The Korean daily media headlines and humor

Monday April 10, 2017

Your Excellency:

Here are The Korea Post notices and a roundup of important headlines from all major Korean-language dailies, TV and other news media of Korea today:

Very Respectfully Yours

/s/

Lee Kyung-sik

Publisher-Chairman

Korea Post Media

Late News:

Presidential Candidate Ahn Cheol-soo of the People’s Party outpolls his Minjoo Party rival, Moon Jae-in.

Please visit: http://www.koreapost.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=3520

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What’s ticking in Korea today? Here is a quick roundup of important news stories from the major Korean news media today:


KBS (http://world.kbs.co.kr/english/news/)

'US Navy Strike Group to Move toward Korean Peninsula'

A United States Navy strike group will reportedly be deployed to the western Pacific Ocean near the Korean peninsula amid growing concerns over North Korea’s nuclear and missile program. Reuters quoted a U.S. official as saying that on Saturday, the strike group named Carl Vinson, which includes an aircraft carrier, will make its way from Singapore toward the Korean peninsula. The official told Reuters that the United States feels the increased presence is necessary in the region, citing the North’s worrisome behavior.

Chinese President Stresses China-US Cooperation

Chinese President Xi Jingping has reportedly stressed cooperation between China and the United States during his U.S. trip.Explaining Xi’s latest U.S. trip on Sunday, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi quoted Xi as saying during the trip that cooperation is the only right choice for China and the United States and that the two counties are capable of becoming great cooperative partners. Xi reportedly told U.S. President Donald Trump that there were “a thousand reasons” to make the Sino-US ties work and “no reason” to break them, proposing the two sides create a list of issues on which they will work together.

Google Introduces Fact Check Feature in S. Korea

Google announced on Friday that it has introduced its feature on fact checked articles on Google News in South Korea. Google has been labelling articles in Google News as "in-depth" and "opinion" for the past eight years. However, last year it introduced fact checked tagged articles in Google News in the U.S. and Britain. Since then it has also launched the feature in France, Germany, Mexico and Argentina. Google explained that it decided to bring in the new tag as it has become increasingly difficult to determine whether a story is true or not.

Son Heung-min Breaks Personal Single-season Scoring Record

South Korean striker Son Heung-min of Tottenham Hotspur scored two goals on Saturday to set a personal best for the number of goals in a single season. Son scored his tenth and eleventh regular season goals in a match against Watford in the 2016-2017 season of the English Premier League held at White Hart Lane in northeast London. With Saturday’s two goals, Son has become the first Asian player to score more than ten goals during the regular league matches of a season.

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Yonhap (http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr)

Trump orders 'full range of options' on N. Korea

U.S. National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster said Sunday that President Donald Trump has ordered him to prepare "a full range of options" to the nuclear and missile threats North Korea poses to the U.S. and its allies. McMaster also said on "Fox News Sunday" that it was a "prudent" decision to send the San Diego-based USS Carl Vinson strike group toward the Korean Peninsula, a move designed to warn Pyongyang against additional provocations. "North Korea has been engaged in a pattern of provocative behavior. This is a rogue regime that is now a nuclear capable regime, and (Chinese) President Xi (Jinping) and President Trump agreed that that is unacceptable, that what must happen is the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula," McMaster said.

Conservative presidential candidate resigns as governor

The presidential nominee of the conservative Liberty Korea Party resigned as governor of South Gyeongsang Province on Sunday with just enough time to prevent a by-election to pick his successor.

Hong Joon-pyo, who won the nomination of the former ruling party on March 31, put off his resignation until virtually the last minute despite criticism he was abusing a loophole in the law. The law requires a public servant running for the top elected office to resign at least 30 days before a presidential election. It also stipulates that a local election watchdog must be notified of an upcoming gubernatorial vacancy at least 30 days in advance in order for the relevant by-election to be held on the same day as the presidential poll.

U.S. can consider dialogue after N. Korea stops weapons testing

The United States can start thinking about reopening talks with North Korea, but the communist nation must first stop nuclear and missile tests, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said Sunday. The remark contrasts with Tillerson's previous assertion that two decades of diplomatic efforts to disarm the North have failed, and there is no point in pursuing the diplomatic path any longer, and the U.S. should consider all options, including the use of military force. The sharp change in tone came after U.S. President Donald Trump held his first summit talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Beijing has long called for the U.S. to resume negotiations with Pyongyang to defuse tensions.

Korea's financial services industry saw robust growth last year

Korea's financial services industry recorded 9.2 percent in output growth last year largely driven by interest revenues from growing household loans, government data showed on Sunday. According to Statistics Korea, the year-on-year production growth of financial institutions in 2016 was more than triple the 3 percent reported for the overall services industry. By institution, banks gained 9 percent, the highest since 11.8 percent in 2008. Nonbank depository institutions including savings banks and credit unions posted 17 percent, the fastest since 2000 when Korea began tracking the industry.

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The Korea Herald (http://www.koreaherald.com)

US strike group sails toward Korean Peninsula

Following the missile strike on a Syrian government air base, the US has sent a strike group toward the Korean Peninsula to bolster Washington’s presence in the region, as North Korea appears closer to conducting another nuclear and missile test. The Carl Vinson Strike Group is moving toward the peninsula after stopping in Singapore. The carrier strike group was originally scheduled to sail to Australia until the US Pacific Command changed its itinerary to the Western Pacific.

Sewol finally moved ashore

The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries said Sunday the raised Sewol ferry had been moved onto land, almost three weeks after the sunken Sewol ferry was brought back to the surface. Engineers worked Sunday to move the raised ship onshore, after it ran a final test to move the shipwreck to land that morning. “Following a successful test run, operators began the land-transfer operation by loading the Sewol onto transporters,” said Lee Cheol-jo, a ministry official heading the salvage operation team. At around 1 p.m., the team started to move the ferry slowly ashore, carried on some 600 modular trailers -- low platforms with motorized wheels. At 5:40 p.m., the entire hull of the 145-meter-long Sewol had been brought to land. The wreck, still carried on the trailers, was taken to the right-hand side of a dock area inside the port for a search of its interior, the ministry said.

Sewol recovery leaves unique trail for Chinese veteran diver

The recovery of the South Korean sunken ferry has been an unprecedented challenge that gave the veteran salvage team many "first" experiences, the chief diver involved in the project said Sunday.

"I have dived about 6,000 times, spent some 30,000 hours of my life in water, but the Sewol operation has been somewhat different," Jin Feng, the head of diving unit of the Shanghai Salvage, told Yonhap News Agency in an interview on Sunday. The Chinese salvaging firm has worked with the South Korean government since August 2015 to recover the 6,800-ton ship from the seabed. The ferry capsized in waters off the southwestern tip of Jindo Island on April 16, 2014, killing 304 people on board with nine of them still unaccounted for.

Will internet-only banks shake up Korea's banking industry?

With a newly launched internet-only bank garnering higher-than-expected interest from consumers, expectations are growing that the market entrance of such banks could trigger a change in South Korea’s banking industry. K bank, the country’s first branchless, internet-only bank, attracted more than 100,000 bank accounts in its first three days of operation, beginning April 3. As of Thursday, the bank had 107,379 savings accounts with deposits totaling about 73 billion won ($64.2 million) and had approved 8,021 loans and 91,130 debit card issuances. The subscription figures not only exceeded market expectations, but also the average monthly online subscriptions of 16 traditional commercial banks across the country.

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The Korea Times (http://www.koreatimes.co.kr)

Trump must consult Seoul over any actions on N. Korea

The U.S. Donald Trump administration must have prior consultation with Seoul before taking any confrontational actions concerning North Korea, including launching a preemptive strike, South Korean politicians said. The politicians, including presidential candidate Moon Jae-in of the Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), said Seoul is directly involved in the North Korean issue, noting that any actions taken by Washington will have a direct impact on the Korean Peninsula.

Sewol moved to land after 1,089 days

Salvage workers finally moved the Sewol ferry to a dry dock from the semisubmersible recovery ship on Sunday, 1,089 days after it sunk in the waters off the southwestern island of Jindo, government officials said. They started the transfer at 1 p.m., using hundreds of modular transporters to roll the vessel onto a dry dock at Mokpo New Port in South Jeolla Province. It took about 10 hours to complete the move. It came 18 days after the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries ran test operations on March 22 to raise the ferry that had been kept underwater for nearly three years since sinking on April 16, 2014.

Governor Hong criticized for abusing resignation deadline

Hong Joon-pyo, the presidential candidate of the Liberty Korea Party (LKP), stepped down from his South Gyeongsang Province governor post on late Sunday, the deadline for public officials to resign to run in the presidential election. But the timing of his resignation is controversial, because he deliberately delayed it until the deadline to prevent the province from having a by-election to fill his vacancy, possibly because the chance of a liberal candidate's victory in the by-election is high.

AmorePacific aims to top ASEAN market

Most Korean exporters have been hit hard by China's trade curbs over Korea's deployment of the U.S. missile defense system. Like many others, AmorePacific, Korea's cosmetics giant, is the victim of the trade conflict because it has huge exposure to the world's second-largest economy. However, the company seems to be less anxious than other Korean players as it has already diversified its export markets by developing Southeast Asia as its new growth engine. AmorePacific has been rapidly growing in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) over the past few years. It is now targeting leading global brands, including L'Oreal, Estee Lauder, LVMH and Shiseido.

Huh's retrospective showcases restless spirit

Huh Dong-hwa, director of the Museum of Korean Embroidery, believes Korean "bojagi" (traditional wrapping cloth) will someday be recognized as abstract art, just like Korean modern art pioneer Kim Whan-ki's paintings. It is no coincidence that the 91-year-old collector and artist Huh is holding a solo exhibition at the Whanki Museum, which is dedicated to the late artist Kim. Titled "Huh Dong-hwa: Abundance," the retrospective captures the unique esthetic sense of Huh, inspired by his extensive collection of antiques and nature.

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DongAIlbo (http://english.donga.com)

White House considers plan to eliminate Kim Jong Un

The U.S. is taking unilateral action to pressure North Korea and China as President Donald Trump failed to find a solution to resolve the North Korean nuclear issue at the summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping the Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach. American news media NBC reported on Friday (local time) by quoting sources from the authorities that the preemptive strike such as assassination of Kim Jong Un and redeployment of tactical nuclear weapons on the Korean Peninsula were included in the Trump administration’s North Korea policy. According to NBC, the White House National Security Council (NSC) completed the review of its North Korea policy and reported such policy options to President Trump.

Unique scent of old books to remain as cultural heritage

A project will soon be initiated to preserve unique scent of old book as cultural heritage. The news was announced on the “Heritage Science,” an international academic journal, issued on Friday by the research team headed by Prof. Matija Strlic at University College London. The research team has decided to first develop a proper tool for analyzing chemical substances consisting of book smell and then commence the project to preserve the smell of old books. The team’s survey in Birmingham Museum in the U.K. has confirmed that some 70 percent of visitors are in favor of the scent that old books give off.

13 more female foxes released loose on Mt. Sobaek

The Environment Ministry has released loose in phases additional 13 female foxes in areas around Mt. Sobaek from late February to April. Foxes are a Grade 1 endangered wild animal in Korea.

The foxes released are 10 female foxes that were introduced from China and the Seoul Zoo from 2014, and three that were redeemed from wild in January and February this year. The three recollected from wild are those that were recalled to replace their signal receivers, mated and had their pregnancy confirmed.

'I will respond when needed,' says Ban Ki-moon

Former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon left Korea on Saturday as a visiting professor to lecture former national leaders at Harvard University for three months. Around two months have passed since he announced his resignation to run for the presidency on Feb. 1. Ban met reporters just before the departure at Incheon International Airport, and gave a positive response to the offer from Ahn Cheol-soo, presidential candidate of the People's Party, of assigning him to the special envoy. "As a citizen of the Republic of Korea, I will serve my duties," the former UN chief said. "It will be a given job for any Korean to actively respond to any request when my experiences are required, regardless of who will become the next president."

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ChosunIlbo (http://english.chosun.com)

Private Tuition Makes Students Dependent, Study Warns

Dependence on private tuition from a young age causes children to lose the ability to study independently, so that they rely on outside help even at university, a study by the Korean Educational Development Institute warns. Kil Hye-ji, a researcher at KEDI, studied English-language crammer experiences of 570 university students and found that 437 or 76.6 percent went to crammers, and 66.8 percent of them had private tuition at high school as well. Among the rest who did not go to private crammers at university, however, only a handful had relied on outside help at high school.

Alliance Between Conservative and Moderate Candidates Unlikely

Moon Jae-in of the Minjoo Party retains a comfortable lead in opinion polls with the presidential election just over a month away, followed by the People's Party's Ahn Cheol-soo. The five major political parties have all picked their presidential candidates now, and it seems unlikely that conservatives and moderates will pool their resources and settle on a single candidate to beat Moon. Pundits believe much will hinge on whether candidates can sway of solid core of around 15 percent who are staunchly conservative. Recent polls show Moon holding a solid lead over his rivals, but Ahn would be the favorites in a standoff against Moon should other candidates be excluded.

Average Salaries to Rise W120,000 This Year

The average monthly salary received by full-time permanent workers this year is expected to rise more slowly than in 2016 at around W120,000 (US$1=W1,132). The Korea Labor Institute on Thursday said wages paid by companies that employ more than five workers are expected to reach W3.55 million, up 3.5 percent on-year. As of last year, there were 16.8 million workers in Korea, of which 14.11 million were classed as "regular" or permanent employees with contracts of at least one year and full benefits.

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HanKyoRehShinmoon (http://english.hani.co.kr)

In race for the presidency, Ahn Cheol-soo has nearly pulled even with Moon Jae-in

People’s Party candidate Ahn Cheol-soo has almost caught up with Minjoo Party candidate Moon Jae-in as the 19th presidential election a little over a month away rapidly shapes into a contest between two front runners. Polling results showed Ahn overtaking Moon in Seoul and Chungcheong Province and broadening his support among conservatives in the Daegu/North Gyeongsang Province region, and voters aged 50 and older. Gallup Korea announced results on Apr. 7 from its first opinion poll on presidential candidate preference since the final slate for the five major political parties was determined.

Japanese photojournalist’s book chronicles hideous crimes of the past

The first feeling that South Korean readers are likely to get from this book, written by Japanese photojournalist Takashi Ito, 65, is shock. They’ll get a glimpse into how the aggressors can be saved from their hideous crimes of the past. The testimonies of the 20 former comfort women from North and South Korea that are included in this book (originally titled “The Sadness of the Rose of Sharon”) are bathed in blood – they are, in the words of the writer, “so shocking that I lost my desire to cover the story.” That shock is communicated through Ito’s photography and his writing style – marked by brevity and grace, with little in the way of rhetoric.

One elderly women’s emotional wounds still unhealed from forced labor

Kim Jae-rim, 87, was a member of the Korean Women's Volunteer Labor Corps. In late May 1944, she went to Japan on the understanding that she would be sent to a girls’ school but was instead forced to work at an aircraft production facility in Nagoya that was operated by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries until the end of Oct. 1945, without receiving a single penny for her work. Kim barely managed to escape from the rubble of a building that collapsed in a major earthquake in Dec. 1944, but searchers never found the body of her cousin, who had been trying to escape with her. After returning to Korea without receiving any wages, Kim got married at the age of 20 and had a son and daughter before losing her husband. Since then, her life has had many twists and turns.

More than half of South Koreans pick US as most essential for development

An intense tug of war is underway between the US and China over the foreign policy and security issues that dominate political affairs on the Korean Peninsula, including the North Korean nuclear issue and the THAAD missile defense system. While it’s unclear what results the leaders of the US and China may achieve during their summit on Apr. 6 and 7, five out of 10 South Koreans are seeking the answer from close cooperation with the US for South Korea’s development. This was apparently influenced by ongoing concerns about security and hostility over China’s retaliatory measures against the THAAD deployment.

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JoongAngIlbo (http://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/)

Sewol moved onto land at last

The 17,000-ton salvaged Sewol ferry was unloaded from a ship and onto a dock in the Mokpo New Port in South Jeolla Sunday, where it will be examined to pin down the causes of its capsizing and searched for remains of nine victims and personal effects of all 304 killed. The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries confirmed Sunday morning that 600 modular transporters slid under the wreck of the Sewol and were able to withstand its weight. They started moving the wreck from 1 p.m. “When the tides will start ebbing is the best time for transportation operations,” said Lee Cheol-jo, a Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries official overseeing the salvaging project at a press conference on Sunday morning at the port. “It may take some three to four hours until the ferry is completely on the dock.”

Trump calls Hwang to brief him on Xi summit

U.S. President Donald Trump told Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn, South Korea’s acting president, that he made “clear” Washington’s position on the deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (Thaad) battery to Korea during his summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping. Trump and Hwang held a 20-minute phone conversation starting at 7:20 a.m. on Saturday in Seoul, after the U.S. president wrapped up a two-day summit with Chinese President Xi on Friday. A South Korean government official said Sunday that Trump told Hwang that he “spoke in a clear manner so that the Chinese leader could understand the issue of the deployment of the Thaad system.” The official continued, “President Trump emphasized what it expects from China in regard to the North Korea nuclear issue.”

China firms on Kospi, Kosdaq lose their luster

When China Ocean Resources, a Hong Kong-based fisheries company, debuted on Korea’s main bourse Kospi in 2009, the company quickly became a favorite for punters. Analysts said that China’s growing middle class would drive demand for more diverse types of fish. So keen were investors that they plunked down over 1 trillion won ($881.8 million) in advance payments before the listing. After the hype came reality: The company has been accused of false disclosures and substandard auditing practices. Korea Exchange, operator of Korea stock markets, suspended trading of China Ocean Resources earlier this month until it responds to rumors of dodgy audits - an echo of China Gaoxian Fibre Fabric Holdings, a textile manufacturer that was delisted from the Kospi in March 2011 - only two months after its listing - because of fraudulent audits.

Daelim plans luxury living in Seoul’s forest

A huge construction fence has been erected across the street from exit No. 1 of the Seoul Forest subway station in eastern Seoul’s Seongdong District. Currently the field covered with tall weeds is an empty lot. But in months, this location could transform into a new town for the rich. Not only does it have an easy access to public transportation including the subway, but it also has a great view of the Han River and the large city park Seoul Forest. Daelim Industrial plans to start taking preconstruction orders on the high-rise apartment complex Acro Seoul Forest that will be built on the lot.

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The KyungHyangShinmoon (http://english.khan.co.kr/)

Moon and Ahn Should Stop the Slander and Discuss Visions and Policies

The presidential candidates of all five parties in the National Assembly have been determined. But the parties and candidates are now busy tearing each other apart. The race has now transformed into one between Moon Jae-in, the Minjoo Party of Korea candidate, and Ahn Cheol-soo, the candidate of the People‘s Party, and both have increased attacks on each other. The People’s Party has been attacking Moon in their morning meetings, coining the expression, “Moon morning.” Yesterday, word had it that Ahn was connected to a gang. It is questionable as to whether the presidential election is an arena to see who can tear the opponent apart more brutally or a forum to compete with policies that will lead the nation into the future.

The Race Emerges as a Competition Between Moon and Ahn

In the early days of the May 9 presidential election, the race appears to be a battle between two strong candidates, Moon Jae-in of the Minjoo Party of Korea and Ahn Cheol-soo of the People’s Party. Moon‘s approval ratings climbed slightly from the high 30% level to slightly over 40%, while Ahn’s approval ratings jumped after the primaries of the two parties, rapidly narrowing the gap. According to a survey conducted by the survey team at JoongAng Ilbo on April 4-5, the race has shifted from a multi-party competition to a race between two strong candidates: Moon supported by 38.4% of the people and Ahn by 34.9%.

Accusations of Deep-Rooted Evils and Hegemony Do More Harm Than Good: It’s Negative Campaigning, Not Highlighting Strengths

Moon Jae-in (64), the presidential candidate of the Minjoo Party of Korea, and Ahn Cheol-soo (55) the candidate of the People's Party have launched a battle to define the upcoming presidential election. Both candidates have put their political careers on the line, with the presidential election only a month away. The two men are putting an emphasis on defining the election in a way that penetrates the weakness of their opponents.

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The Korea Economic Daily (http://english.hankyung.com/)

Moon Jae-in Leads Ahn Cheol-soo by Slight Margin in 5 Way Race

A recent survey said Minjoo Party candidate Moon Jae-in and People's Party nominee Ahn Cheol-soo are neck and neck In a hypothetical five-way race. In a poll conducted on 1,500 adult men and women by Research & Research commissioned by the Korea Economic Daily and MBC-TV on April 7-8, Moon's approval rating was 35.2 percent while that for Ahn was within the margin of error at 34.5 percent. The ratings for other runners-up were 7.4 percent for Liberal Korea Party candidate Hong Jun-pyo, 3.2 percent for the Justice Party's Shim Sang-jung, and 2.8 percent for the Bareun Party's Yoo Seung-min.

Koreans Gulp down 25 Bil. Cups of Coffee Last Year

Korea's coffee market is growing at a rapid pace, with Koreans estimated to have drunk about 25 billion cups of coffee last year. This figure is up about 25 percent compared to ten years ago. If Korea's total population is assumed to be about 50 million, the per-capita coffee consumption reached about 500 cups of coffee last year. According to industry sources on April 9, coffee mix (or instant coffee packet), which accounts for the largest share in the domestic coffee market, came on top with 13.2 billion, followed by coffee beverage, including canned coffee with 3.79 billion, brewed coffee with 3.64 billion, non-packaged instant coffee with 3.16 billion, and instant brewed coffee with 1.25 billion.

Banks Speed up Tempo of Reducing Branches and Payrolls

As non-contact transactions expand, concerns are growing that banks would speed up the speed of reducing branch offices and payrolls. Thanks to the rising popularity of mobile and Internet banking, domestic banks can afford to reduce their offices, ATMs, and payrolls. According to the Bank of Korea, the share of online banking, including mobile banking, in the banking industry's overall transactions stood at 80.6 percent as of December 2016. This is the highest level since the central bank began compiling the data in 2005. In contrast, the share of offline transactions, including those through ATMs, stood merely at 15.5 percent.

SK Group Takes up 11% in Korea's Exports

This year marked the sixth anniversary of foundation for SK Group plus the fifth year for SK Hynix becoming incorporated as the group's affiliate. Backed by the strong growth in exports of its affiliated companies, SK Group is positioning itself as the nation's major exporter. According to SK Group on April 9, the group's ICT subsidiaries such as SK Telecom, SK Hynix, SK C&C, and SK Planet achieved sales of 37.4 trillion won and exports of 17 trillion won. This figure is 2.1 times higher in sales and 127 times higher in exports compared to 2011, the year before the group acquired SK Hynix. In 2011, the group posted sales of 17.6 trillion won and exports of 130 billion won.

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AJU Business Daily (http://eng.ajunews.com/korea)

Samsung's de facto head denies bribery charges at first hearing

The de facto head of South Korea's top conglomerate, Samsung Group, flatly denied an illicit money-for-favor exchange with ex-president Park Geun-hye in his first court hearing, insisting charges against him were based on assumption. The hearing at a Seoul court was attended by Samsung Electronics vice chairman Jay Y. Lee and four other senior Samsung Group executives. Lee, 48, was arrested in February on multiple charges including bribery and embezzlement.

Samsung begins receiving pre-orders for Galaxy S8

Samsung Electronics began receiving pre-orders for its latest flagship smartphone Galaxy S8 at home Friday, nearly six months after its Note 7 bowed out due to combustible batteries. The price was set at 935,000 won (826 US dollars), a little higher than Apple's iPhone 7 (32GB model – 920,000 won) and LG's G6 (899,800 won). S8 will be released on April 22. The pre-order package included a Bluetooth speaker, Level Box Slim, or Dex, a port which connects S8 to a monitor to create a desktop-like working environment. More gifts have been prepared such as accessory discount coupons and repair service discount coupons.

Hyundai and Kia face major engine recalls at home and abroad

South Korea's top auto group Hyundai faces the recall of more than 170,000 vehicles at home and probably about 1.3 million units in the United States to fix faulty engine parts, dealing a blow to its campaign aimed at recouping losses last year. At home, Hyundai Motor and its affiliate Kia Motors will begin recalling 171,348 vehicles in five different models -- Grandeur (HG) and the Sonata (YF), K7 (VG) and K5 (TF) sedans as well as Sportage (SL) sport-utility vehicles, all produced before August 2013, the transport ministry said.

Foreign experts invited for investigation into cause of Sewol ferry sinking

Foreign experts from Brookes Bell, a Britain-based international marine consultancy and marine surveying firm, have been invited for an investigation into the exact cause of the sinking of a South Korean ferry that cost more than 300 lives three years ago. Brookes Bell experts are examining the exterior of the Sewol ferry which was raised from the seabed and transported to the southwestern port of Mokpo for the search of nine victims who were still listed as missing, officials said.

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Maeil Business News Korea (http://www.pulsenews.co.kr/)

S. Korea expects IPO rush by Chinese companies this year

A slew of Chinese companies are knocking on the doors of the South Korean IPO market despite growing friction between Seoul and Beijing over the deployment of U.S. Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) antimissile system on Korean soil. A total of 26 Chinese companies are currently preparing to go public in Korea, according to 14 Korean securities companies polled by Maeil Business Newspaper on Thursday. Of them, 15 are aiming to float an IPO within this year.

DSME bags order to build up to 10 VLCCs for Hyundai Merchant Marine

South Korea’s Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co. (DSME) bagged an order to build five 300,000-ton very large crude carriers (VLCCs) for Hyundai Merchant Marine Co. with an option of five more vessels. DSME said Sunday it recently signed a letter of intent (LoI) with Hyundai Merchant Marine. Under the terms, it will construct five VLCCs first and may construct up to five more upon additional request. Final agreement will be concluded by the end of July.

S. Korea’s LH Corp. gets approval for MoU to build smart city in India

Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) has moved a step closer to building its second smart city in India after its bagged a deal to build its first smart city in Kuwait. Last month, LH signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Kalyan-Dombivli Municipal Corporation, the Maharashtrian city’s governing body, on a strategic partnership to build New Kalyan Smart City in India. The two parties held a ceremony on Thursday after approval was made by the local municipal assembly, LH said on Friday.

S. Korea’s Eugene builds ultra-low temperature logistics center

South Korea’s Eugene Group has become the nation’s very first to build ultra-low temperature logistics center enabled by combination of liquefied natural gas (LNG) cooling technology, solar power and energy storage system. The firm’s subsidiary Eugene Super Freeze on Friday held a groundbreaking ceremony for the center in Oseong foreign-invested company industrial zone in Pyeongtaek City, Gyeonggi Province, with an aim of completion by December 2018.

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