President Moon and the mountain

For any president or world leader there is a point when you need to look over your shoulder to see how far up the mountain you've climbed. It is a daunting moment. Either there is a sense of achievement as you gaze down at a faraway ground, or a shocking realization that you're not high enough to hurt yourself if you fall. President Moon Jae-in, halfway through his term, has arrived at that moment of self-assessment.

Footsies, dalliances and an adventurous Italian's missionary position (Part 1)

Many early Westerners living in Korea in the late 19th and early 20th centuries published accounts of their lives. Naturally, they often portrayed themselves in heroic roles and exaggerations were fairly common. One of the strangest accounts came from Paolo dall' Aquila, a dashing Italian working with the Korean Customs Service in the late 1890s and early 1900s.

Perfect storm of coronavirus in Korea

I spoke with American virology expert Dr. Hakim Djaballah Friday morning about the COVID-19 outbreak in Korea. In New York, where he is based after stint as head of the Institut Pasteur Korea, he repeated: "This is bad." He was referring to a cluster of cases in Daegu and the first death in Korea from the Wuhan pneumonia epidemic. Djaballah described the Daegu outbreak as a case of "community transmission," by which the disease can jump to pandemic proportions. It is because members of a community eat, drink and play together and live close, meaning a greater chance of contraction and contagion.

Samsung Electronics names ex-minister as board chair

Samsung Electronics has appointed an outside director as its board chairman for the first time in a bid to improve transparency and independence of corporate governance, the company said Friday. The tech giant said that it held a board meeting and elected Bahk Jae-wan, an outside director and former economy and finance minister, as its board chairman.

Solar industry faces major setback

The country's solar industry is facing a major setback after the top two solar businesses shutdown all polysilicon plants in Korea, which will inevitably have an impact on the Moon Jae-in administration's initiative to grow its renewable energy sector.

Gov't to isolate Chinese students from communities

The government unveiled measures Friday to isolate Chinese students from local communities when they return from the mainland for the spring semester to prevent them possibly spreading the coronavirus on and off campus.

Moon orders swift response to coronavirus

President Moon Jae-in received an emergency briefing from Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun, Friday, regarding the quick spread of the coronavirus in Korea.

BTS' 'Boy With Luv' video featuring Halsey tops 700 mln YouTube views

The video of "Boy With Luv," K-pop boy band BTS' Billboard-topping song featuring Halsey, has topped 700 million YouTube views, the band's management agency said Friday.

New BTS album 'Map of the Soul: 7' set to rock global music scene

K-pop phenomenon BTS will drop a new album, "Map of the Soul: 7," Friday evening, rocking the world music scene once again.

HYUKOH says 'love is alternative over questions for cycle of beginning and end'

When indie band HYUKOH made its debut here in 2014 with an experimental sound and catchy lyrics, nobody expected it could become one of Korea's mainstream bands, holding concerts around the world.

Trump apparently not a fan of 'Parasite'

President Donald Trump is apparently not a fan of ``Parasite,`` his biggest complaint being that the movie was made in South Korea.

'Wandering Chef' brings people together through food

Chef Im Ji-ho, better known as the “Wandering Chef,” has devoted much of his life to traveling Korea in search of unique culinary and medicinal ingredients.

More people switch over to IPTV from cable TV

More people have switched to IPTV platforms with subscribers exceeding 15 million for the first time in 2018, as cable TV subscriptions dropped to 13 million, widening the gap even further in the pay TV sector.

NH set to challenge top 4 banking groups

NH NongHyup Financial Group's rapid growth is set to change the pecking order of the country's financial industry, with it challenging the top four banking groups - Shinhan, KB, Hana and Woori. NongHyup saw its earnings surge in 2019 by nearly 50 percent year-on-year, based on the solid performance of its affiliates. Observers within the industry say that it may not be long before the group catches up with the four majors, or even surpasses some of them.

Moon's New Northern Policy gaining spotlight

President Moon Jae-in will focus on his New Northern Policy of engaging more actively with countries situated north of the Korean Peninsula this year, including Russia, Mongolia and other central Asian countries.

BWI unveils 'Schon Brunno' spring bar pliers

BWI has unveiled Schon Brunno spring bar pliers that are capable of easily and safely replacing watch bands.

Xi to Moon: 'A friend in need is a friend indeed'

Xi told Moon that he was very impressed by Moon's statement that China's suffering is also South Korea's suffering. Xi added that the two neighbors are cooperating to ride out the current adversity together "in one mind."