SPOTLIGHT

• Social affairs

  

  Firefighters struggle to contain mountain fire in Gangwon Province

  Firefighters are struggling to contain a fire that broke out in Jeongseon-gun, Gangwon Province, Wednesday evening.According to regional forest service and fire agencies, the blaze started around 7:20 p.m. on Wednesday at the seventh ridge of Baekseoksan and spread slowly to the surrounding area.About 110 firefighters and seven fire helicopters have been mobilized to contain the fire.Although the fire is not likely to spread further, firefighters are having difficulties in putting out the fire d

• K-pop

  

  Academics explain driving force behind BTS’ global success

  Academics from around the world got together in Seoul on Wednesday to discuss the global success of BTS and K-pop in general.Sponsored by Big Hit Entertainment, which houses the likes of BTS and TXT, the global seminar “K-Pop Beyond BTS” took place at Yonsei University, attracting scores of scholars, journalists and YouTubers.  In a keynote speech, Hong Seok-kyeong, a professor of communication at Seoul National University, said BTS and other K-pop boy bands offer “soft ma

• K-pop

  

  Holland is turning scars into triumphant pop

  The openly queer singer is using his position to highlight school violence with a new single

• Culture

  

  Korean dance, communication delivered through the body

  People dance for many reasons -- for imparting love and joy, in celebration or when they try to overcome something unexpected through passion. Similarly, the aesthetic movement is an art that can work as a form of communication. The bodily conveyance could be directed toward ourselves, but it could also serve others and even play the role of a medium for emotional release. South Korea’s traditional dances, along with its chronicled history, have developed over a long period -- including th

LATEST NEWS

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  Finance

  Watchdog warns foreign would-be voice phishers

  The Financial Supervisory Service on Thursday warned that even foreign residents who are accomplices to voice phishing crimes will be subject to punishment, raising alert as to the escalating financial crime.Announcing a plan to tighten grip over the transactions of bank accounts, the Financial Supervisory Service shared campaign visuals to help prevent voice phishing. The given materials were written in both Korean and Chinese, reflecting the involvement of Chinese or Chinese-speaking ethnic Ko

• 

  Golf

  2 S. Korean rookies victorious in Presidents Cup debuts

  MELBOURNE -- Two South Korean rookies earned a victory apiece on the opening day of the Presidents Cup golf competition here on Thursday, as the International Team jumped out to a surprising 4-1 lead over the heavily favored United States.Im Sung-jae teamed up with Adam Hadwin of Canada to defeat Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele 1-up in the second four-ball match of the day at Royal Melbourne Golf Club.Right behind them, An Byeong-hun and Adam Scott of Australia beat Tony Finau and Bryson D

• 

  Finance

  Chubb Life Korea welcomes new CEO

  Chubb Group, the world’s largest property insurer based in the US, has named Albert Kim as the new chief executive officer of Chubb Life Korea, its life insurer subsidiary operating here, officials said Thursday.Throughout his 25-year career, Kim has worked in various global insurers including AIG, Allianz and AXA. Until recently, he served as vice president in charge of sales and management at AIG Korea.“We are glad to announce that Albert Kim will henceforth lead Chubb Life Korea,

• 

  Industry

  Huawei tipped to narrow gap with Samsung in smartphone shipments

  Samsung Electronics Co. is widely expected to maintain its No. 1 status in the global smartphone market this year, but its Chinese rival Huawei Technologies Co. will narrow the gap with the world's largest smartphone maker in terms of market share, an industry report showed Thursday.The South Korean tech giant is tipped to ship 323 million smartphones for a 21.3 percent share in 2019, according to market researcher Strategy Analytics.The estimated shipments and market share are both slightly up

• 

  Social affairs

  [Newsmaker] Male rapper convicted of sexually insulting female singer in lyrics

  The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld lower courts' conviction of a male rapper indicted for sexually insulting a female rapper in his songs and concerts.Black Nut, the defendant rapper whose real name is Kim Dae-woong, was sentenced by the top court to an imprisonment of six months, suspended for two years, and ordered to conduct 160 hours of social service.Lower courts had previously handed out the same guilty verdict and sentences to Black Nut, who was accused of inserting controversial words

• 

  Industry

  BOK says global chip market will likely recover next year

  The global semiconductor market will likely rebound next year on increased demand that may have been held back on hope of additional price drops, the Bank of Korea said Thursday, apparently suggesting a recovery of the local economy as well.South Korea's exports have dropped for 12 consecutive months as of November amid the prolonged trade dispute between the United States and China but also because of an extended slump in the global semiconductor market.Semiconductors alone accounted for more t

• 

  Finance

  Kyobo Life chief wins award for humanistic management

  Kyobo Life Insurance Chairman Shin Chang-jae has won an international prize for humanistic management, becoming the first winner of the newly established award, the company said Thursday.The International Council for Small Business, the world’s oldest and largest nonprofit organization devoted to small and medium enterprises, has selected the South Korean insurer chief as winner of its Humane Entrepreneurship Award.The awards ceremony took place on the sidelines of the SME World Forum 2019

• 

  Politics

  Moon vows govt. efforts to transform agricultural system

  President Moon Jae-in said Thursday his government will push for the epoch-making development of the country's agricultural and fisheries sectors in tandem with a response to the fourth industrial revolution. He laid out a vision for the "bold transformation" of the farming field during a town hall meeting at the Korea National College of Agriculture and Fisheries in Jeonju, North Jeolla Province, some 240 kilometers southeast of Seoul.The liberal Moon administration's policy motto is

• 

  Industry

  Japan threatens to overtake S. Korea in China's cosmetics market

  Japan is threatening to overtake South Korea's No. 1 status in China's imported cosmetics market this year, industry data showed Thursday, mainly on the back of the growing popularity of low- to mid-priced "J-beauty" productsJapanese companies accounted for 25.2 percent of China's imported cosmetics in the January-October period, closing the gap between South Korean rivals, whose combined market share was 25.5 percent, according to industry tracker IHS Global Trade Atlas.France came in

• 

  Defense

  US again sends surveillance plane over S. Korea: aviation tracker

  The United States flew a surveillance plane over the Korean Peninsula, an aviation tracker said Thursday, the latest in a series of near-daily flights to monitor North Korea amid growing concerns Pyongyang could test-fire a long-range missile.The E-8C aircraft, or JSTARS, was spotted over the Korean Peninsula at 29,000 feet, Aircraft Spots said on its Twitter account without specifying the exact time of the operation. It also did not upload photos showing the flight route.As a platform for airbo

GRAPHIC NEWS

OPINION

• Viewpoints

  

  President Trump gets little credit for foreign policy

  Last week’s NATO summit in London should have been a nice little success story for President Donald Trump.For once he went to an international meeting without intending to blow it up. Instead, he planned to trumpet how he had convinced several European allies to boost defense spending, one of his foreign policy priorities.But that storyline got lost the moment Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was caught on camera making fun of the president, drawing laughter from British Prime Minist

• Viewpoints

  

  Why US can’t end ‘endless wars’

  Secretary of Defense Mark Esper has imported into the American military lexicon a new rationale for US military actions in the Middle East. It’s called “mowing the lawn,” but it has nothing to do with keeping the grass trimmed. “To mow the lawn,” Esper recently remarked to reporters, “means, every now and then” giving your adversary a good, swift kick in the shins. “You have to do these things,” he explained, “so that a threat doesn&rsq

THE INVESTOR

• Mobile & Internet

  

  Korean investors turn to real estate, less interested in stock market

  Korean investors have been turning their attention toward the real estate market, reflected in an increase in mortgage lending, while cash flows in the equity market have been overall stagnant, recent data showed. According to data released by the Bank of Korea last month, the outstanding balance of mortgage loans held by banks and other financial institutions here came to a combined 830.3 trillion won ($700.5 billion) as of September. The latest data is a noteworthy jump from the corresponding

• Startups & Investors

  

  Techstars Korea to accept applications for 1st batch through March 2020

  Global startup accelerator Techstars said it would accept applications for its first South Korea-focused accelerator program through March 1, 2020 to tap into the tech-savvy nation’s large pool of talents in a landscape firmly supported by the government. The first phase of the accelerator program, co-hosted by Techstars and Hillstone Partners, will select 10 startups mainly dedicated to three categories -- enterprise technology, human-device interaction and lifestyle tech -- said Lee Eun-

• Bio & Medicine

  

  Celltrion presents Truxima’s results of phase 3 clinical trials in US forum

  Celltrion announced on Dec. 9 that it has disclosed its biosimilar Truxima’s results of phase 3 clinical trial at the 2019 annual meeting of the American Society of Hematology last week.“The clinical trials were conducted among patients in European countries including Germany, Spain and Russia as well as Asian countries like Japan for 40 months,” a Celltrion official said in a statement. More than 17,000 experts of blood diseases from over 100 countries attended the meetin

• LG

  

  LG Chem, GM deal ups ante in EV battery competition

  The recent announcement for a joint venture between South Korean battery maker LG Chem and US carmaker General Motors has upped the ante in the global competition to secure lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles, according to industry sources on Dec.8. The 2.7 trillion won ($2.3 billion) joint venture for an EV battery factory with production capacity of over 30 gigawatt hours per year in Lordstown, Ohio, was clinched amid GM’s ongoing transition from combustion engine cars to electri

K-POP

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  Academics explain driving force behind BTS’ global success

• 

  Holland is turning scars into triumphant pop

• 

  Big Hit denies report it is in profit dispute with BTS

HERALD INTERVIEW

• Industry

  

  Electricity market competition, price hike needed for green energy expansion

• People

  

  Women’s colleges relevant in world where men enjoy privileges

• Industry

  

  China’s No. 1 aesthetic laser firm sees Korea as bridge to Asian markets

• Defense

  

  ‘We will support conscientious objectors in fulfilling alternative service’

PHOTO NEWS

• Travel

  

  Once a ghetto, now tourist hot spot

  Gamcheon Culture Village, a hilltop village in Busan’s Saha district, is a tourist hot spot, drawing an increasing number of visitors.Camera-toting tourists from Korea and elsewhere explore terraced rows of small houses, painted in pastel colors, and labyrinth-like alleys, with some so narrow only one person can pass at a time. The town has hidden gems as well -- murals, sculptures, installation art, galleries and eateries.Among its recent visitors was Indonesian President Joko Widodo, who

VIDEO

• People

  

  ‘Koreans are like the Latin people of Asia’

• Diplomatic Circuit

  

  Paris looks to Korea’s technology, startups for cooperation: French ambassador

• Film

  

  Ryan Reynolds says ‘6 Undergrounds’ shows how times are changing

• Travel

  

  While in Busan, don’t miss 2 things: Excitement and adventure

FEATURES

• People

  

  Frank penguin becomes new star of year, breaks stereotype of EBS characters

  A 210-centimeter-tall penguin walks into a room for an audition at Educational Broadcasting System, insisting he wants to be a star creator. The penguin, who has a strand of seaweed and a seashell on its head, explains that he swam all the way from the South Pole. The 10-year-old’s ultimate goal is to become as popular as BTS.Speaking in a cute -- sometimes husky -- voice, Pengsoo raps, breakdances and even yodels -- a skill he picked up in Switzerland on his way to Korea. When the judges

• Social affairs

  

  Number of Seoulites residing alone up 300,000 in 10 years

  SEJONG -- The number of residents in Seoul stood at 9.73 million as of November 2019, according to the Ministry of Interior and Safety. This is estimated to be the lowest figure in more than 30 years.Given unofficial statistics showing that Seoul was home to 9.2 million in 1983 and 10.28 million in 1988, the current population level is assumed to be similar to that seen in the years between 1984 and 1987.Compared to the figure of 10.21 million in November 2009, the population of the capital of S

• Technology

  

  LG Chem, GM deal ups ante in EV battery competition

  The Friday announcement for a joint venture between South Korean battery maker LG Chem and US carmaker General Motors has upped the ante in the global competition to secure lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles, according to industry sources on Sunday. The 2.7 trillion won ($2.3 billion) joint venture for an EV battery factory with production capacity of over 30 gigawatt hours per year in Lordstown, Ohio, was clinched amid GM’s ongoing transition from combustion engine cars to electr

• Finance

  

  Unlisted stock market gains momentum with attention to startups

  Interest in unlisted stocks is projected to further grow as there are no other alternatives to Kosdaq and Konex