South Korea's two major online bookstores said Thursday their sites briefly crashed due to high traffic soon after homegrown author Han Kang was announced as the winner of the Nobel Prize in literature. "We fielded complaints that people weren't able to get on our website, and when they did, pages were slow to load," an official at Kyobo Book Centre said. "Since we did not anticipate Han Kang winning the award, we don't have any stock of her books. We have contacted

President Yoon Suk Yeol congratulated novelist Han Kang on winning the 2024 Nobel Prize in Literature Thursday, calling it "a monumental achievement" in the history of Korean literature "It is a monumental achievement in the history of Korean literature and a national celebration that brings joy to all the people," Yoon wrote on his Facebook page during his visit to Laos to attend the Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit. "You have transformed the painful wounds

Russia on Thursday rejected a recent South Korean claim that North Korean soldiers were likely fighting alongside Russian forces in Ukraine. During a parliamentary audit session in Seoul on Tuesday, South Korean Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun said it was "highly likely" that North Korea had deployed troops in support of Russia, because the two countries have a mutual treaty "akin to a military alliance." Kim also said a recent media report on North Korean troop casualties in

Lawmakers of the ruling People Power Party and the main opposition Democratic Party clashed Thursday over allegations that first lady Kim Keon Hee was involved in nominating candidates for a 2022 by-election and the April 2024 parliamentary elections. During a parliamentary audit of the National Election Commission, the state election watchdog, the People Power Party lawmakers dismissed the allegations, which have been raised by the media and the opposition bloc, as having nothing to do with the

A North Korean teenage defector on Thursday shared her horrific story of life in the reclusive regime during a forum hosted by South Korea's unification ministry. "I wear makeup and go out here in South Korea, but my friends in North Korea can't even wash properly, let alone wear makeup. Some friends smell because they can't bathe, but we live understanding each other," Noh Jin-hae recalled. The 16-year-old girl, who defected from North Korea in 2019, recalled her harsh

Seoul stocks finished marginally higher Thursday on overnight US stock gains amid a decline in international oil prices. The local currency fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index edged up 0.19 percent, or 4.8 points, to 2,599.16. Trading volume was heavy at 603 million shares worth 13.48 trillion won ($9.99 billion), with gainers outpacing losers at 442 to 423. Institutions sold a net 299.6 billion won, while foreign and retail investors together bought a net

Bond sales in South Korea rose sharply from a month earlier in September helped by an increase in corporate bond issues, data showed Thursday. The value of bonds sold last month came to 77.1 trillion won ($57.1 billion), up 7.4 trillion won from 69.7 trillion won sold in August, according to the data from the Korea Financial Investment Association. The value of outstanding bonds, on the other hand, dropped 10.3 trillion won to 2,802.6 trillion won over the cited period, due to a sharp decline in

Qoo10 CEO Ku Young-bae attended a court hearing held on Thursday to determine whether to issue an arrest warrant on fraud and embezzlement charges related to his e-commerce group's large-scale payment delays to vendors. Ku appeared at the Seoul Central District Court for his hearing, which will be shortly followed by arrest warrant hearings for Ryu Kwang-jin and Ryu Hwa-hyun, CEOs of Qoo10's e-commerce subsidiaries TMON and WeMakePrice, over the massive insolvency incident Ku denied sp

Seoul stocks opened higher Thursday thanks to overnight US stocks gains led by a decline in international oil prices and a rise in local tech stocks. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 0.46 percent, or 11.90 points, to 2,606.26 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, US stocks extended their gains thanks to a decline in global oil prices and gains in tech stocks. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.03 percent, the S&P 500 gained 0.71 percent, and the tech-heavy N

President Yoon Suk Yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba are set to hold their first summit on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit in Laos on Thursday, Yoon's office said Wednesday. Yoon arrived in Vientiane, the Lao capital, for a three-day visit until Friday to attend the regional gatherings of the ASEAN. Last week, Yoon and Ishiba held their first phone talks, where they shared the need for bilateral cooperation as well as trilateral coope

The KT Wiz walked off the LG Twins 6-5 in 11 innings Wednesday to stay alive in the Korea Baseball Organization postseason. No. 9 hitters Sim Woo-jun delivered an infield single with the bases loaded in the bottom 11th before a sellout crowd of 17,600 at KT Wiz Park in Suwon, just south of Seoul. The Wiz scored three times in the bottom of the third inning to rally from a 3-1 deficit before a sellout crowd of 17,600 at KT Wiz Park in Suwon, just south of Seoul. Cleanup Kang Baek-ho gave the home

Private equity firm MBK Partners said Wednesday that it will not further raise the tender offer price for Korea Zinc Inc. amid intensifying competition for management control. MBK and Young Poong Corp. recently raised their tender offer price for Korea Zinc to 830,000 won ($617) and for Young Poong Precision to 30,000 won, as they aim to gain a controlling stake in the world's top zinc smelter. Young Poong Precision holds a 1.85 percent stake in Korea Zinc. "We cannot stand by as the c

North Korea has convened a key parliamentary meeting to revise the constitution, state media reported Wednesday, without disclosing details about whether it removed unification-related clauses or stipulated territorial boundaries in line with an order by leader Kim Jong-un. At the 11th session of the 14th Supreme People's Assembly Monday and Tuesday in Pyongyang, North Korea unanimously decided to amend and supplement parts of the country's socialist constitution, according to the Kore

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is expected to raise the issue of the "concerning" and "deepening" partnership between North Korea and Russia during annual gatherings involving the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Laos this week, a State Department spokesperson said Tuesday. Blinken is set to represent the US at the East Asia Summit and the US-ASEAN Summit on behalf of President Joe Biden during his trip to the Laotian capital of Vientiane, which lasts u

Powered by a pair of homers and a dominant relief outing from a young hurler, the LG Twins outlasted the KT Wiz 6-5 on Tuesday to move within a win of reaching the next round in the Korea Baseball Organization postseason. Austin Dean slugged a three-run homer off starter Wes Benjamin in the fifth to turn a 3-2 deficit into a 5-3 lead at KT Wiz Park in Suwon, just south of Seoul, after Park Dong-won had opened the scoring with a solo homer in the second. Starter-turned-reliever Son Ju-young twirl

K-pop singer-rapper Jay Park returned Tuesday with a studio album his fans will want to own. Park's sixth full-length album, "The One You Wanted," features 20 tracks, including nine new songs alongside 11 previously released singles. It marks his first R&B album in eight years. The number of tracks is unusually large, given that most K-pop studio albums feature no more than 10 songs. "Since 'Everything You Wanted,' I had planned to release more R&B albums. B

Seoul stocks finished lower Tuesday due to weaker-than-expected earnings results by Samsung Electronics and overnight US stock losses. The local currency fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index dropped 0.61 percent, or 16.02 points, to 2,594.36. Trading volume was moderate at 313 million shares worth 8.98 trillion won ($6.65 billion), with losers outpacing gainers at 569 to 305. Institutions and foreign investors together sold a net 72 billion won, while retai

South Korea racked up a current account surplus for the fourth consecutive month in August, driven by robust exports, central bank data showed Tuesday. The country's current account surplus reached $6.6 billion in August, marking a surplus for the fourth consecutive month, according to data compiled by the Bank of Korea. The August surplus was smaller than the previous month's $8.97 billion. The country's goods account racked up a $6.59 billion surplus in August following an $8.33

Seoul stocks opened lower Tuesday following weaker-than-expected tentative earnings results from Samsung Electronics and overnight US stock losses. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index dropped 0.55 percent, or 14.28 points, to 2,596.10 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Ahead of the trading session, Samsung Electronics estimated its third-quarter operating profit to reach 9.1 trillion won, apparently failing to meet market expectations due to the lukewarm performance of its flagship

US President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and other officials marked the first anniversary of the Hamas militant group's deadly attack on Israel on Monday, mourning the death of victims and calling for the return of hostages and a ceasefire in Gaza. They issued separate statements, taking stock of what has happened since Hamas militants killed more than 1,200 people, including 46 Americans, and took over 250 people hostage, including 12 Americans, in the Oct. 7 attack. "One