The Korean daily media headlines and humor

Tuesday, December 5, 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

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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:

The Korea Post media (www.koreapost.com) in English, (www.koreapost.co.kr) in Korean.

State pension fund to adopt 'stewardship code': welfare minister

South Korea's state pension fund operator will introduce a set of guidelines next year to promote its role as the nation's biggest institutional investor, the welfare minister said Friday.

Health and Welfare Minister Park Neung-hoo said it is a global trend to adopt the so-called stewardship code for state pension funds in order to protect their investment and boost their profitability over the mid and long term.

KAIM Chairman Cho, Suk-hwan develops Inter-Korean Hangeul keyboard jointly

“There is only one person in the Republic of Korea who is able to achieve real national reunification of the Korean peninsula.” A friend of mine told me so recently. It certainly was like a bolt from the blue. “Who could be that person?” I wanted to know. North Korea's Kim Jong-un shows the cold shoulder to the Moon Jae-in regime which has pursued an appeasement policy. The North Korean regime also turned down all appeasement gestures so far made by President Donald Trump of the United States. Still, the friend said that there is someone who is positioned to materialize national unification “peacefully’ and at the initiative of the Republic of Korea.

Samsung to promote QuickDrive washers through film

Samsung Electronics Co. said Monday it plans to showcase a film on its QuickDrive washers under cooperation with a popular music composer, highlighting how its products can save users time compared with rivals.

The company said the 66-minute film, "Washing Machine" will be showcased in London on Tuesday, with popular Michael Nyman joining the project. The movie will be available on YouTube starting Wednesday.

President Moon commends JSA troops over defection of N. Korean soldier

President Moon Jae-in on Friday met with a group of South Korean and U.S. soldiers guarding the border with North Korea to commend them on the way they handled the recent defection of a North Korean soldier through the heavily fortified border. "I invited you here because I wished to personally express my gratitude as the president of the Republic of Korea," Moon said during a 30-minute meeting at Cheong Wa Dae with the South Korean and U.S. troops stationed at the Joint Security Area, according to Cheong Wa Dae pool reports.

Trump will 'take care of' N. Korea by unilateral action if necessary: McMaster

.S. President Donald Trump will "take care of" the growing nuclear threat from North Korea by taking unilateral action if necessary, his national security adviser said Sunday. H.R. McMaster made the remark on "Fox News Sunday" after North Korea launched what appeared to be its most powerful intercontinental ballistic missile last week.

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

UN Political Chief to Visit N. Korea

The UN's political chief will visit North Korea this week for talks with officials, amid heightened tensions over the North's latest ballistic missile test. UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said on Monday that UN Undersecretary-General for Political Affairs Jeffrey Feltman will travel to Pyongyang Tuesday to discuss "issues of mutual interest and concern" with North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho and others.

UN Condemns N. Korea's Missile Launch

Mr President, this is the 13th time the council has met to discuss the DPRK in 2017. Speaking at the session in New York on Wednesday, UN Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs Jeffrey Feltman said the Security Council "needs to do all it can" to prevent an escalation. "This dynamic must be reversed. The solution can only be political. Given the grave risks associated with any military confrontation, in exercise of its primary responsibilities the Security Council needs to do all it can to prevent an escalation."

Rival Parties Reach Agreement on Next Year's Budget Plan

The ruling and opposition parties have finally reached an agreement on next year's budget bill, two days after the legal deadline for its passage at the National Assembly. The agreement was announced Monday evening by the floor leaders of the ruling Democratic Party(DP), the largest opposition Liberty Korea Party(LKP) and the minor opposition People’s Party. Under the agreement, the number of public jobs to be created next year as part of the government's employment boosting program has been set at nine-thousand-475, slightly down from the initial 12-thousand-221.

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

Opposition bigwig again delays appearance for questioning over bribery

An influential opposition lawmaker on Tuesday delayed his appearance for prosecution questioning over bribery allegations involving former spy agency chiefs under the previous Park Geun-hye government.

Rep. Choi Kyung-hwan of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party has been asked by the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office to appear for an interrogation at 10 a.m. But he notified the prosecution at the last minute that his appearance will be delayed, citing a parliamentary vote on next year's budget bill slated for 11 a.m. According to his office, Choi said he will come as soon as the voting ends.

S. Korea's current account surplus dips to US$5.72 bln for Oct.

South Korea's current account surplus contracted in October from a year earlier due mainly to a decreased surplus in the goods account and an increased deficit in the service account, central bank data showed Tuesday.

The country's current account surplus reached US$5.72 billion in October, compared with a surplus of $7.69 billion a year earlier, according to the preliminary data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). The BOK said the goods account surplus narrowed to $8.6 billion in October from $9.16 billion a year earlier.

S. Korea's per-capita GDP to top US$30,000 in 2018: Goldman Sachs

South Korea's per-capita gross domestic product (GDP) is expected to surpass US$30,000 in 2018 on brisk exports of chips and other positives, Goldman Sachs said Tuesday. "Unless there is any big change in South Korean and global export conditions, South Korea's per-capita GDP will likely break the $30,000 level next year for the first time," Goldman Sachs economist Kwon Goo-hoon said in a news conference on the country's 2018 economic outlook.

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

Korea regrets Japan not taking promised follow-up measures after UNESCO listing

South Korea expressed regret on Tuesday over Japan not taking proper measures to commemorate the victims of its colonial-era forced labor as part of its promised follow-up action after some of its modern industrial facilities were listed as UNESCO heritage. "The government expresses regret over the implementation report that Japan recently submitted as part of its follow-up measures on the world heritage listing of its modern industrial facilities," the foreign ministry said in a commentary issued in the name of its spokesman.

US reiterates denuclearization as precondition for talks with NK

The United States reiterated denuclearization as a precondition for talks with North Korea in response to Pyongyang’s request that Washington must recognize it as a nuclear weapons state to start dialogue. “It is not enough for (North Korea) to stop its program where it is today,” US State Department spokesperson Katina Adams told Voice of America on Monday.

“We do not see any signs that North Korea is willing or interested to engage in credible talks on denuclearization at this stage.

Search continues for the missing in Incheon boat sinking

The search continued Monday for the two people missing from a fishing tour boat that sank after colliding with a tanker early Sunday in waters off Incheon.

At least 13 people who were on the fishing boat have died. Seven have been rescued, but two others including the boat’s captain were missing. The 9.77-ton recreational fishing vessel Seonchang-1 carrying two crew members and 20 anglers crashed with the 336-ton Myeongjin-15 tanker near Yeongheung Island while trying to pass a narrow channel at around 6 a.m. on Sunday.

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

South Korean uses 4.6 GB mobile data a month; world's top 7

South Korea ranked seventh in the world in terms of per capita mobile data usage last year among 41 major economies checked, a report said Tuesday.

The average South Korean used 4.6 gigabytes per month in 2016, according to the Digital Fuel Monitor (DFM) report by Rewheel, a Finnish management consulting firm, based on a survey of 187 carriers. Finland topped the list with 16.1 GB, followed by Latvia at 6.4 GB, Austria at 5.5 GB, Denmark and Sweden at 5.4 GB each, and Estonia at 5.1 GB.

Trump, Kim Jong-un vying over Person of the Year

Weekly Time on Monday announced the 10 finalists for this year's Person of the Year, including North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and U.S. President Donald Trump. The two leaders were shortlisted along with other people deemed to have most influenced the news during the year. "The North Korean leader has renewed the threat of nuclear war in American minds, launching repeated intercontinental ballistic missile tests and exchanging threats and insults with President Trump, who dubbed him 'Rocket Man,'" Time said.

Virtual currency will be regulated

The Moon Jae-in administration established a task force Monday to discuss ways of regulating Bitcoin and other cryptocurrency trading, which has been causing controversies across the country. The Ministry of Justice, which hosted the first meeting of the task force, said that the government is "aware of the seriousness of virtual currency-related problems and will collaborate to deal with the issues." Thus far, investments in cryptocurrencies have created a craze here as its prices have shot up.

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DongA Ilbo (http://english.donga.com)

N. Korean sailors stole electronics at a Japanese island shelter

North Korean sailors are being investigated for charges in stealing electronics from a shelter on Matsumaeko Island, NHK and other media reported on Monday. The Japanese Coast Guard caught an unidentified wooden boat anchoring at Matsumaeko Island, a deserted island in Hokkaido, on last Tuesday. A Japanese patrol ship, which failed to reach the island due to the weather issues, discovered a North Korean wooden boat in the nearby sea and approached it. At that moment, North Korean sailors threw electronics into the sea.

Religious leaders to pay income taxes from next year

If the legislation to tax religious leaders takes effect next year, how much should they really pay in taxes? Suppose you are a pastor with average income, for a family of three, including yourself, wife and a child. You have to pay the withholding tax of 1,330 won every month.

South Korea’s Ministry of Strategy and Planning presented to the public the simplified tax withholding table, which shows the base income tax rate, for the nation’s first clergy tax bill. The tax amount to be withheld is calculated based on this simplified table and according to the end-of-year tax settlement in January of the following year, the income tax is either refunded or collected more.

McMaster: Nuclear-armed N. Korea poses real danger to world

H.R. McMaster, President Trump’s national security adviser, on Sunday (local time) warned China and Russia of the possibility of nuclear disarmament by Japan and South Korea along with that of North Korea. Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham said nuclear and missile provocations by North Korea are increasing the possibility of a preemptive strike by the United States. “China, as you know, has taken some unprecedented actions. And what we're asking China to do is, not do us or anybody else a favor, but to act in China's interest,” McMaster told Fox News on Sunday.

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Chosun Ilbo (http://english.chosun.com)

Reunification 'Won't Solve Low Birthrate, Aging Society'

Even if Korean reunification happens now, a declining population both in the South and the North is expected to lead to an overall drop in the population starting in 2034. There have been expectations that North Korea's young population could solve South Korea's low birthrate following reunification. But the latest study by Choi Joon-wook at the Korea Institute of Public Finance pours cold water on such hopes.

China Moving Toward Accepting Nuclear-Armed N.Korea

China's leadership is moving toward accepting North Korea's nuclear weapons and the U.S. should follow suit, the Sunday Times quoted a Chinese expert as saying. The weekly quoted Tong Zhao, a researcher at the Carnegie-Tsinghua Center for Global Policy, as saying that Beijing and Washington have "fundamentally different interpretations of the threat and intent behind North Korea's weapons program. That means they have a very different strategy to handle it."

N.Korea's New Missile 'Can Strike All of U.S.'

North Korea on Wednesday boasted that the intercontinental ballistic missile it launched into the East Sea in the small hours can strike "all of the U.S."

In a statement read on state TV, the regime said it successfully tested a Hwasong-15 ICBM. "Now we have finally realized the great historic cause of completing the state nuclear force, the cause of building a rocket power," it quoted leader Kim Jong-un as saying. The missile, fired at a steep angle, reached an altitude of 4,475 km. Scientists said if it had been launched on a normal trajectory, it would have flown about 13,000 km, which would bring the entire U.S. mainland within range.

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HanKyoReh Shinmun (http://english.hani.co.kr)

Women clad in all black gather to call for repeal of abortion ban

“If abortion is a crime, than the criminal is the state!” the protesters shouted. A group of over 500 protesters in black clothing had gathered at Sejong Street Park, in the Jongno District of Seoul, on the afternoon of Dec. 2, as the temperature hovered just over zero degrees celsius. Wearing black coats, black hats and black gloves, they were singing an altered version of the Christmas song “Look Out the Window:” “Feminist President, look out the window, the feminists are here. It’s time to end the ban, the ban on abortion.”

Double freeze” proposal goes unheeded as US, South Korea begin joint military exercises

South Korea and the US are launching their five-day-long Vigilant Ace 18 air force exercise on Dec. 4. Unusually, the war games will include the F-22 and F-35, both state-of-the-art US stealth fighters. “My understanding is that US Air Force aircraft, including six F-22 Raptors and six F-35A Lightning II aircraft, have all arrived in South Korea for the Vigilant Ace exercise,” a South Korean military official said on Dec. 3. The South Korea and US Air Forces hold annual Max Thunder exercises in the first half of the year and Vigilant Ace exercises in the second.

Comfort woman survivor’s story brings Berlin audience to tears

“Taedong River / in sorrow / is it still there / unchanged? / Moran Hill . . .”

The plaintive strains of a song by a woman in her nineties filled the offices of a women’s rights group in central Berlin on Dec. 1. It was the bitter song of Gil Won-ok, 90, who was taken away to serve as a Japanese military comfort woman at the age of 13 and prevented from returning to her hometown of Pyongyang by Korea’s post-Liberation division.

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JoongAng Ilbo (http://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/)

Deal finally made on a budget plan for next year

The ruling and opposition parties on Monday struck a deal on the Moon Jae-in administration’s budget plan for next year, allowing the government to move forward with its plan to create jobs by hiring more public servants and increase tax rates for top-earning individuals and companies. Floor leaders of the three main parties held a press conference in the evening and announced their agreement on the government spending plan for next year. The budget bill of 429 trillion won ($395 billion) will be rewritten based on the agreement and a vote will take place today.

Graham: War with the North is ‘more likely’

Washington insiders are indicating that North Korea’s latest launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) is close to being a game changer for the United States, with Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina pointing out that pre-emptive war is “becoming more likely” as Pyongyang’s weapons technology “matures.” “We’re getting close to a military conflict because North Korea’s marching toward marrying up the technology of an ICBM with a nuclear weapon on top that cannot only get to America but deliver the weapon,” Graham, a former Republican presidential hopeful, told CBS’ “Face the Nation” on Sunday. “We’re running out of time.”

Paris Baguette lands upon possible hiring fix

The deadline is looming for Paris Baguette to address the way it hires bakers, but the conflict between the company and bakers is nowhere near reaching an agreement within time. The Ministry of Employment and Labor has set Dec. 5 as the deadline for the nation’s top bakery chain to change how it hires some 5,300 bakers across the nation, from indirect employment to direct employment.

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The KyungHyang Shinmun (http://english.khan.co.kr/)

Government, "Pyongyang Views the JSA Escape Seriously"

Ri Myong-su (photo), the chief of the General Staff of the Korean People's Army conducted a private inspection of the North Korean post in the Panmunjom Joint Security Area (JSA) about ten days after a North Korean soldier escaped to the South. Ri Myong-su is regarded as one of the closest military aides of Kim Jong-un, chairman of the Workers' Party of Korea, so his inspection of the JSA suggests that the North Korean leadership views the latest escape as a serious incident.

Government, "Pyongyang Views the JSA Escape Seriously"

Ri Myong-su (photo), the chief of the General Staff of the Korean People's Army conducted a private inspection of the North Korean post in the Panmunjom Joint Security Area (JSA) about ten days after a North Korean soldier escaped to the South. Ri Myong-su is regarded as one of the closest military aides of Kim Jong-un, chairman of the Workers' Party of Korea, so his inspection of the JSA suggests that the North Korean leadership views the latest escape as a serious incident.

Curious Hanbok Appears in a Seoul Ad for New York

An advertisement of Seoul (photo), which the city had planned to release throughout New York including Times Square, is under fire for commercializing the female body. The city decided to replace the problematic ad with another design.

In a phone conversation with the Kyunghyang Shinmun on December 3, an official at the Seoul Metropolitan Government said, "Instead of the controversial ad, we decided to use an advertisement using famous sites in Seoul, such as Gwanghwamun and the Dongdaemun Design Plaza." He added, "The ad started out with good intentions, but we made the decision after humbly accepting the criticism that the advertisement could be provocative."

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

Tourism and Duty-free Industries Hopeful about Improving Korea-China Relations

As Korea and China are set to improve their relationship that was rocked by the controversy over the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) anti-ballistic missile system, Korea's tourism and duty-free shopping industries are raising their hopes of better days. The tourism industry believes that the Chinese government's group tour ban to Korea would be relaxed soon. A travel agency in Hebei posted an Internet ad recently for a group tour program to Korea in November at the price of 1,480 yuan(US$223). China's largest online travel agency trip also put out group tour programs to Korea for the first time in seven months.

Korea's MBI to Establish EV Plant in Vietnam

MBI, a Korean manufacturer specializing in making transmissions, will build an electric car plant in Hanoi, Vietnam, jointly with local firm N&G Group. The two companies will invest a total of US$1 billion for the next seven years.The companies said on September 21 that the heads of the two companies signed an agreement to establish a joint venture called Viko Motors in South Hanoi next month. Earlier in June this year, MBI was promised by the Vietnamese government and the Hanoi city government for a 20-year free land lease, high-tech investment incentive, preferential tariffs, and designation of MBI-held patented technologies as Vietnamese standards.

Gov't Decides to Give $8 Mil. Aid to North Korea...Timing to Be Announced Later

The government has decided to give support to North Korea worth US$8 million in programs helping its vulnerable people including children and pregnant women indirectly through international organizations. It, however, has not decided when to start sending money and exactly how. This is interpreted as a choice to deflect criticism that it is undertaking an aid project at a time when North Korea is causing an international storm by launching a series of missile tests.

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

U.S. and S. Korea stage major joint bombing drills targeting N. Korea missiles

Backed by stealth fighters, U.S. and South Korean troops staged a major joint air exercise targeting key North Korean missile and nuclear facilities, five days after the nuclear-armed country launched an intercontinental ballistic missile. The five-day exercise code-named "Vigilant ACE" involved about 230 planes, military authorities said. It was the largest of its kind, demonstrating a show of force by the allies to a series of North Korean provocations including last week's launch of the Hwasong-15 ICBM capable of hitting the U.S. mainland.

Samsung to screen strange full-length film starring washing machine

Samsung is up for one of its greatest challenge in its marketing as it will screen a bizarre 66-minute-long commercial film to promote its washing machine "QuickDrive" in Britain.

While other electronics makers such as LG, Apple and Sony have tried to attract global consumers with their eye-catching TV and cinema advertisements, Samsung kept things relatively cool, sticking to the old-school basic principles of advertising.

S. Korea forms special brigade to decapitate N. Korea leadership

South Korea formed a special army brigade aimed at decapitating North Korea's leadership in a ceremony on Friday, Yonhap News Agency reported.

Yonhap quoted an army officer as saying that the brigade involved about 1,000 well-trained soldiers from the special warfare command as well as an unspecified amount of equipment. The brigade would carry out its contingency mission to "decapitate" North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and other top commanders in charge of nuclear weapons.

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

Korea’s Nov. foreign exchange reserve hits fresh record high

South Korea’s foreign exchange reserve hit a fresh record high at the end of November, benefiting from greater returns in non-dollar assets against a weaker U.S dollar, central bank data showed. According to the Bank of Korea on Tuesday, Korea’s foreign exchange reserve reached $387.25 billion at the end of November, up $2.79 billion from the previous month. Compared to the end of last year, the external reserve expanded $16.15 billion.

SK Group launches T-commerce unit

SK Broadband Co., a major South Korean Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) service provider, has spun off its television commerce (T-commerce) business with an aim to nurture it as the country’s leading T-commerce platform with sales of 500 billion won ($459.6 million). SK Broadband announced Monday that it has demerged its T-commerce business to set up new subsidiary SK Stoa. It initially injected 20 billion won in the new T-commerce subsidiary and holds a full stake in it.

LG Display kicks of operation of its first OLED module factory in Vietnam

LG Display Co., South Korea’s top display manufacturer, has opened an organic light-emitting diode (OLED) module factory in Vietnam, the company’s first manufacturing site in the Southeast Asian country that will mainly produce OLED panels for major Chinese TV and smartphone makers. The company on Monday (local time) held a ceremony to celebrate the opening of an OLED module manufacturing factory in an industrial park in Hai Phong, located about 90 kilometers southeast of Hanoi, the company said.

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What’s ticking around the world at this second?

See what the world media around the world have to report:

USA Today www.usatoday.com aallman@gannett.com

The New York Times www.nytimes.com inytletters@nytimes.com

Wall Street Journal www.wsj.com support@wsj.com,service@wsj-asia.com

Financial Times www.ft.com ean@ft.com

The Times www.thetimes.co.uk help@timesplus.co.uk

The Sun www.thesun.co.uk talkback@the-sun.co.uk

Chinese People's Daily www.people.com.cnkf@people.cn

China Daily www.chinadaily.com.cn circulation@chinadaily.com.cn

GwangmyeongDaily www.gmw.cn webmaster@gmw.cn

Japan's Yomiuri www.yomiuri.co.jp japannews@yomiuri.com

Asahi www.asahi.com customer-support@asahi.com

Mainichi www.mainichi.jp

Le Monde www.ilemonde.com

Italy LaRepubblica www.quotidiano.repubblica.it vittorio.zucconi@gmail.com

Germany Frankfurter AllgemeineZeitung www.faz.net anzeigen.ausland@faz.de

SüddeutscheZeitung www.sueddeutsche.de forum@sueddeutsche.de

Australia Brisbane Times www.brisbanetimes.com.au syndication@fairfaxmedia.com.au

Sydney Morning Heraldwww.smh.com.au

Colombia Reports http://colombiareports.com

Bogota Free Planet http://bogotafreeplanet.combfp@bogotafreeplanet.com

El Universal http://www.eluniversal.com.mx/english

Andes http://www.andes.info.ec/en

Ecuador Times http://www.ecuadortimes.net

The Jordan Times https://www.jordantimes.com

LSM.lv http://www.lsm.lv/en

The Baltic Times http://www.baltictimes.comlithuania@baltictimes.com, estonia@baltictimes.com, editor@baltictimes.com

El Pais http://elpais.com/elpais/inenglish.html

Philippine Daily Inquirer https://www.inquirer.net

Daily News Hungary http://dailynewshungary.com

Budapest Times http://budapesttimes.hu

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The Korea Post is running video clips from the different embassies.

Azerbaijan: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OR8CBpcQ4WM

Sri Lanka: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hByX92Y2aGY&t=22s

Morocco: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jfFmp2sVvSE

And many other countries.

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