K-pop star band TWICE's new EP album debuted at No. 6 on the Billboard main albums chart this week, becoming the second K-pop girl group to make the chart's top 10. "K-pop girl group TWICE debuts at No. 6 with 'Taste of Love,' with 46,000 equivalent album units earned," Billboard reported Sunday (US time), one day before its chart will be updated. The Billboard 200 is one of the U.S. music publisher's main charts, ranking the most popular albums of the week in the United States based

President Moon Jae-in nominated Kim Han-kyu, a lawyer and rookie politician, as his new secretary for political affairs Monday. Having worked as a legal counsel for the ruling Democratic Party (DP), he is a lawyer at the Seoul-based law firm Kim & Chang and also a standing member of the National Unification Advisory Council. He graduated from Harvard Law School after studying law at Seoul National University. Park Seong-min, another DP official who is 25 years old, was tapped as secretary

BUSAN, -- Prosecutors asked a judge to sentence former Busan Mayor Oh Keo-don to seven years in prison for sexual assault in the workplace. Oh is accused of sexually assaulting two female employees and injuring one of them while in office. He is also charged with filing a false complaint against YouTube channel operators who reported the accusations against him. "Given the similarity of his crimes against the two victims, this is a workplace sex crime using his power," prosecutors sa

The approval rating of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) has reached its highest point since a far-reaching corruption scandal surrounding former conservative President Park Geun-hye in 2016 dealt a crushing blow to the party, the latest opinion poll showed Monday. In the Realmeter survey of 2,514 voters nationwide conducted from Monday to Friday last week, the PPP garnered 39.7 percent of support, up 0.6 percentage point from the previous week. It marks the third week in a row that

Samsung Electronics Co. on Monday announced the global launch of its upgraded gaming monitors as the South Korean tech giant tries to boost sales amid the stay-at-home trend. The 2021 edition of Odyssey gaming monitors -- G70A, G50A and G30A -- will be available in major markets, including South Korea, according to Samsung. The 28-inch G70A comes with a price tag of 950,000 won ($840) here, while the 27-inch G50A will be sold at 650,000 won. List prices for the 27-inch and 24-inch G30A monit

Defense Minister Suh Wook said Monday that South Korea will enhance its space defense capabilities and establish a system for combined operations to deal with growing space threats following the recent lifting of US curbs on the country's missile development. The minister made the remarks in a pre-released message for a forum in Seoul, also describing the lifting as having "great significance" that has opened a new horizon for the country's defense industry. After a summit with US Pr

South Korea's new coronavirus cases fell below 400 in about a week on Monday due to fewer tests over the weekend, but rising COVID-19 variant cases, along with pandemic fatigue, are hampering the country's virus battle amid the accelerating vaccinations. The country reported 357 new cases, including 317 local infections, raising the total caseload to 151,506, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. Daily infections stayed in the 400s or 500s in the past five days after rep

China's top envoy to North Korea stressed the importance of cooperation between the two allies on regional peace, stability and prosperity on the occasion of the second anniversary of President Xi Jinping's visit to Pyongyang, the North's state media showed Monday. In an op-ed piece to the Rodong Sinmun, the official newspaper of the North's ruling Workers' Party, Chinese Ambassador Li Jinjun also said that China and North Korea should expand their communication as their relations are faced wit

South Korea's top Olympic official is holding on to hope that North Korea will change its mind and participate in the Tokyo Summer Games after all -- however slim those chances may be. Lee Kee-heung, head of the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee (KSOC) and a member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), said in a recent interview that North Korea's status for Tokyo 2020 will remain up in the air until July 5. That's the deadline for countries to submit their Olympic entries. "My

LG Electronics Inc. and Canadian auto parts maker Magna International Inc. are in the final phase of launching their electric vehicle (EV) powertrain joint venture next month, industry insiders here said Monday, as they review board member appointment plans for the new company. The South Korean tech giant is scheduled to spin off its green business in its vehicle solutions unit on July 1 to set up LG Magna e-Powertrain Co. Magna will then acquire a 49 percent stake in the new firm for $453 mil

The 32nd edition of the Summer Olympics had to be postponed by one year due to the coronavirus pandemic, and the July 23-Aug. 8 event will be the first Olympics to take place in an odd-numbered year. The countdown will reach 30 days Wednesday. Against this backdrop, South Korean athletes, vaccinated and itching to compete after a one-year delay, will try to extend the country's successful run at the Summer Olympics. South Korea has ranked inside the top 10 in medal races at each of the past fo

After overcoming some early trouble, Ryu Hyun-jin of the Toronto Blue Jays finally got his first win of June. The South Korean left-hander held the Baltimore Orioles to a run on three hits in seven innings at Oriole Park at Camden Yards in Baltimore on Sunday (local time) in a 7-4 victory. Ryu struck out four and walked one as the Jays took the rubber match of a three-game series. Ryu, who matched his season high with seven innings pitched, improved to 6-4 and lowered his ERA from 3.43 to 3.25

More than 4 out of 10 South Korean companies plan to employ interns during the second half of the year mainly for the purpose of covering manpower shortages, a poll showed Monday. According to the survey of 416 companies, taken by recruiting platform Saramin, 44 percent of the respondents said they have plans to hire interns in the July-December period. The figure is higher than the percentage of intern-hiring firms a year earlier. About 33 percent of local firms employed interns during the sa

South Korean stocks opened lower Monday despite strong export data as the US Federal Reserve's hawkish pivot last week increased market worries about an early tapering of its accommodative policies. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 18.23 points, or 0.56 percent, to trade at 3,249.7 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Stocks got off to a weak start in the wake of the Fed's ongoing discussions about expediting its rate hike timeline. Federal Reserve Chairman

The United States has offered to meet with North Korea "anywhere, anytime without preconditions" and looks forward to a positive response from Pyongyang, the new US special envoy for the North said Monday. Ambassador Sung Kim made the remarks during trilateral talks with his South Korean and Japanese counterparts, Noh Kyu-duk and Takehiro Funakoshi, in Seoul, where they discussed North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's recent remarks that his country should be ready for both dialogue and co

South Korea's exports rose 29.5 percent on-year in the first 20 days of June on the back of robust demand for chips, autos and petroleum products, customs data showed Monday. The country's outbound shipments stood at $32.4 billion in the June 1-20 period, compared with $25 billion a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service. Imports increased 29.1 percent on-year to $32.1 billion, resulting in a trade surplus of $291 million during the cited period, the data showed. B

North Korea has replaced the president of Kim Il-sung University, who doubles as minister of higher education, a state broadcaster reported Sunday. An official named Kim Sung-chan was appointed to the post last week during a plenary meeting of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party, according to Korean Central Television. The move represents the dismissal and appointment of senior officials of the state organ, it added. Just five months earlier, North Korea picked Ri Guk-chol as the pres

Nearly 8 out of 10 South Korean consumers have increased their online shopping during the coronavirus pandemic, a poll showed Monday. The survey of 1,000 local consumers, taken by the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, showed 78.4 percent of the respondents saying their online purchases have risen since the outbreak of COVID-19. About 71 percent of them said they have purchased more foodstuffs and beverages online, followed by dining out and other food services (30.9 percent), kitchen and

President Moon Jae-in congratulated UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on his reelection in a tweet Sunday, vowing to work with him to foster lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula and tackle global challenges. Guterres' reelection for a second five-year term was confirmed late last week, as the United Nations seeks to strengthen international cooperation in addressing a slew of challenges, including climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic. "My heartfelt congratulations on your reelect

A Central American development bank has decided to open a South Korean office in Seoul as part of efforts to strengthen ties with Asia's fourth-largest economy, the finance ministry said Sunday. The Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI) has notified the Korean government and the Seoul municipality that its Seoul office will be set up in the capital's financial district of Yeouido, according to government officials. The bank has the goal of opening the office within this year.