NCT 2020, a new project K-pop band from SM Entertainment, will drop the first of the group's two-part debut studio album next month, according to the company Tuesday. The boy band with a massive lineup of 23 members will release "NCT 2020: Resonance Pt. 1" on Oct. 12, according to SM. NCT 2020 is an umbrella team that brings together members from pre-existing teams under SM's "NCT" brand -- NCT 127, NCT Dream, WayV and an upcoming NCT-branded act that has yet to of

Samsung Electronics Co. will introduce a new smartphone line in India, industry insiders said Tuesday, as the South Korean tech giant eyes to expand its presence in the world's second-largest smartphone market. Samsung's Indian unit recently said on Twitter that it will soon launch the Galaxy F smartphone series. The world's leading smartphone producer currently has the premium Galaxy S and Galaxy Note series, foldable Galaxy Z family and budget Galaxy A and M lines. The new Galaxy F lineup

WASHINGTON -- US President Donald Trump said Monday that South Korean home appliance makers Samsung and LG are building plants in the United States to avoid tariffs he imposed on imports, claiming credit for creating jobs and protecting American workers. "South Korea and China, they're dumping washing machines. They make washing machines, they dump them into our market, they put everybody out of business, then they charge a lot of money when everyone's gone," Trump said in a campaign

WASHINGTON -- US President Donald Trump called for international efforts to fully and verifiably denuclearize North Korea on Monday amid stalled nuclear talks with the communist nation. "We must ensure that Iran adheres to the commitments ... to prevent it from ever obtaining a nuclear weapon, and continue to work toward the final, fully verified denuclearization of North Korea," Trump said in a message to an International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) conference in Vienna, Austria. T

LG Electronics Inc. on Tuesday unveiled the price of its new dual-screen smartphone with a rotating form factor that will be released early next month in South Korea. LG Wing will come with a price tag of 1,098,900 won ($940), making it the cheapest non-bar type smartphone in the domestic market, according to the tech firm. The Wing, introduced last week, is highlighted by its two separate displays, with the main screen swiveling 90 degrees horizontally to reveal a secondary screen under it

박휘순의 인스타그램 계정에는 22일 예비 신부가 올린 글이 공개됐다. 자신을 "휘순 오빠 여자친구"라고 소개한 그는 "겉보기와 달리 따뜻하고 배려 깊고 나를 생각해주는 모습에 (박휘순과의) 결혼을 결심하게 됐다"고 밝혔다. 또 "그동안 개그맨 박휘순은 결혼은 언제쯤 할까, 어떤 여자가 데려갈까 궁금하기도 하고 걱정도 되셨을 것"이라며 "내가 데려가니 걱정은 덜어놓으셔도 된다"고 말했다. 박휘순은 2005년 KBS 20기 공채 개그맨으로 데뷔했으며 이후 여러 예능 프로그램에서 활동했다. '미녀는 괴로워' 등 영화에서 단역이나 조연으로 출연하기도 했다. 그는 지난 13일 방송된 JTBC '1호가 될 순 없어'에서 연인의 존재를 밝힌 바 있다. (연합뉴스)

The United States has nearly halved its anti-dumping tariffs on oil pipeline products from South Korean steelmakers, industry sources said Tuesday. The US Department of Commerce has decided to levy a tariff of 4.23 percent to 9.24 percent on South Korean oil pipelines, far lower than the 2018 ruling of up to 18.77 percent. The tariff reduction came after the Court of International Trade (CIT) ordered Washington to readjust its earlier duties in January following complaints from South Korean st

WASHINGTON -- South Korean boy band BTS' new single, "Dynamite," again finished second on Billboard's main singles chart, spending its fourth week in the top two spots of the chart, Billboard reported Monday. "BTS' "Dynamite" ranks No. 2 on the Hot 100 for a second week after spending its first two weeks on the chart at No. 1," the report said. The Hot 100 chart is refreshed every Tuesday. The BTS' song continued to dominate the music industry in terms of digital

South Korean stocks opened lower Tuesday, taking a cue from overnight losses on Wall Street over the new coronavirus concerns. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 15.13 points, or 0.63 percent, to 2,374.26 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Investor sentiment worsened after US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said a full recovery from the pandemic will take a considerably long time.  In a related move, former Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Scott Gottl

Kia Motors Corp. said Monday it will resume operations at one of two domestic plants that were suspended after some of its workers were infected with the coronavirus. Kia halted the operations of two plants in Gwangmyeong, just south of Seoul, from Wednesday through Monday, with all of the 6,000 employees at the plants staying at home, a company spokesman said over the phone. "The company will resume operation of the No. 1 plant (in Gwangmyeong) tomorrow under health authorities' guidan

Hyundai Motor Co. and its labor union agreed Monday to freeze wages for the first time in 11 years as the carmaker struggles to ride out the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. The two sides reached a wage deal without a strike for the second consecutive year, the company said in a statement. The union accepted the company's proposal that included a freeze on basic pay, a one-off bonus amounting to 150 percent of monthly salary, 1.2 million won ($1,029) in special COVID-19 allowance, 10 com

South Korea's healthcare and cosmetics exports rose 42 percent last month from a year ago, led by shipments of COVID-19-related medical devices, industry data showed Monday. According to data from the Korea Health Industry Development Institute (KHIDI), South Korea's exports of pharmaceuticals, cosmetics and medical devices came to $1.69 billion in August, marking the 12th consecutive month of increase since September last year. The rise is largely attributable to growing demand for coronav

South Korea, the European Union and 13 other countries issued a joint statement Monday calling for "a sufficient and equitable" worldwide distribution of coronavirus vaccines. The statement by the Friends of the COVID-19 Vaccine Global Access (COVAX) Facility came as part of ongoing international efforts to launch a multilateral platform aimed at securing safe and fair access and distribution of COVID-19 vaccines. "The Friends of the COVAX Facility strongly support vaccine mu

Train passengers failing to wear masks and comply with quarantine rules against infectious diseases will face monetary penalties under a soon-to-be revised law, the government said Monday. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport made a pre-announcement of the revision of the Railroad Safety Act scheduled to take effect early next month after getting approval from the Cabinet. Under the revision, violators of quarantine rules will be fined. The revised law will prohibit all violatio

The market value of South Korean auto giant Hyundai Motor Group has recovered to the 100 trillion-won ($85.9 billion) level after more than 28 months thanks to brisk sales of hydrogen and electric vehicles, data showed Monday. The total market capitalization of Hyundai Motor Co. and 11 other listed subsidiaries came to 100.2 trillion won as of Thursday, according to the data from the Korea Exchange. South Korea's leading automaker was valued at 39.3 trillion won, with No. 1 auto parts manufac

SEJONG -- South Korea plans to unveil rules to ensure fiscal soundness, Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said Monday.  The rules, which aim to keep the growth rate of government spending at a level of nominal growth of gross domestic product (GDP), will be announced by the end of this month, Hong told lawmakers. However, such rules will be exempted in time of a crisis, like the coronavirus pandemic, Hong said. The move comes amid concerns that this year's four extra budgets could strain fi

Japan's new prime minister, Yoshihide Suga, expressed hope for "forward-looking" relations with South Korea as "important neighbors" in his recent letter to President Moon Jae-in, Cheong Wa Dae said Monday. Suga sent a reply to Moon on Saturday for his congratulatory message, as he was sworn in as the successor of Shinzo Abe, according to Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Kang Min-seok. Suga said he hopes that the two sides will establish forward-looking ties by overcoming "diff

South Korean shares fell below the 2,400 mark on Monday, as lingering valuation pressure drove down the key index. The Korean won rose against the U.S. dollar to the highest level in eight months. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) lost 23.01 points, or 0.95 percent, to close at 2,389.39. Trading volume was high at about 1 billion shares worth some 14 trillion won ($12.1 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 694 to 168. Foreigners sold a net 77 billion won, while re

The head of South Korea's National Intelligence Service (NIS) said Monday that he will push to legislate a ban on the spy agency's involvement in domestic politics. NIS Director Park Jie-won made the remark during a press briefing on the government's plans to reform the NIS, prosecution and police. "(We) will make it clear legally that the NIS will never get involved in domestic politics under any circumstances," Park told reporters. He was appointed as head of the spy agency in Jul

The Mnet Asian Music Awards (MAMA), the K-pop industry's biggest annual year-end music awards show, will be held virtually in South Korea in December with no audience, its organizer said Monday. CJ ENM, which hosts the annual event, said the 2020 MAMA will be held online on Dec. 6 due to COVID-19. The extravagant year-end music show featuring leading K-pop acts has usually been held as a multiday event staged across several venues in Asian countries. "MAMA has grown throughout the years