The Korean daily media headlines and humor

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Lee Kyung-sik

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Lee Kyung-sik

Publisher-Chairman of The Korea Post

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A quick roundup of major news stories from Korean media:

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

S. Korea, Mexico Agree to Resume Free Trade Talks

President Park Geun-hye and her Mexican counterpart Enrique Pe?a Nieto have agreed to resume working-level discussions on a bilateral free trade deal later this year, a move that would allow the two sides to pick up where they left off in 2008 when talks were stalled. The agreement came during a summit between the two leaders in Mexico, where President Park is set to wrap up her state visit on Tuesday.

S. Korea, Mexico Agree to Resume Free Trade Talks

'S. Korea-US Alliance will not be Swayed by Results of U.S. Presidential Election'

Swing Voters to Decide the Outcome of April 13 Elections

Largest Muslim Tourist Group to Visit S. Korea

S. Korea to Foster Insect Industry

S. Korean Stocks Jump on Monday

[Exclusive] N. Korea Sells S. Korean Goods Left Behind at Gaeseong

RFA: N. Korea Tightens Crackdown on Clothing, Hair Styles

N. Korea Announces Test Launch of New Interceptor Guided Missile

Washington Puts Forth Terms for Resuming 6-Way Talks

Goldman Sachs Advises Selling Asian Currencies

Trump: War on Korean Peninsula Unrelated to US

Korea Maritime Ocean Univ. Certified as IALA Education Center

Five S. Koreans Fined for Unauthorized Contact with N. Korea's Christian Federation

Ex-President's Son Suspected of Setting Up Paper Companies at Overseas Tax Haven

Yeouido Spring Flower Festival Begins Monday

2016 Ballet Festival Korea to Kick off in May

Nonghyup Launches Free Korean Language Tutoring for Multicultural Children

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

Pyongyang's GPS disruptions continue for 5th day

South Korea's ICT ministry said North Korea's disruptions of GPS signals, which started last week, continued to affect local airplanes and ships on Monday.

Actress Han Hyo-joo says baddie totally new experience

For actress Han Hyo-joo, an icon of pure and innocent girls in Korean films, playing the bad guy in her latest work "Love, Lies" was a new challenge in her career.

CJ CGV purchases stake in Indonesian theater chain

South Korea's largest multiplex cinema chain CJ CGV said Monday that it has purchased a 7.8-percent stake in Indonesian movie theater chain, PT GrahaLayar Prima Tbk.

Hyundai Merchant mulls over selling oil-carrier business

Hyundai Merchant Marine Co., South Korea's No. 2 shipping line by sales, said on Monday it was mulling over selling its oil-carrier business unit to improve its financial footing.

S. Korea to test new recon planes in U.S. this week

South Korea plans to conduct a flight test of two new reconnaissance planes in the United States this week, which can help the country better detect signs of North Korean missile launches and other threats, officials said Monday.

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

Time runs out for opposition unity

Moves to form an opposition coalition effectively came to naught Monday, amplifying the challenges faced by The Minjoo P...

Debate escalates over Korean QE

Former Finance Minister Kang Bong-kyun, who coheads the ruling Saenuri Party’s campaign for th...

Korea to invest W100b in developing supercomputers

The Korean government has rolled up its sleeves to develop more advanced supercomputing systems...

After brief rebound, banks to continue poor performance

Local commercial banks outperformed the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index last week, ...

Huge tax leak exposes Putin aides

A massive leak of 11.5 million tax documents has exposed the secret offshore dealings of a...

Prosecutor’s jackpot

A high-profile prosecutor reaped stock gains worth 3.7 billion won ($3.23 million) last year...

N.K. news briefings

South Korean citizens are asking their government what it has done about the North’s provoc...

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

Whining, racism and in-between

Some things should be best left unsaid, some people would say. But in journalism, my belief is that it should be the other way around. The recent editorial, “Ugly foreigners,” has created a lot of buzz, inadvertently opening a c...

Gov't to get tough on illegal foreigners 

The government will crack down on illegal foreigners, with the aim of reducing their ratio among the total foreign resident population to less than 10 percent...

Famous plastic surgery clinic accused of 'ghost surgery' 

Prosecutors have indicted Ryu Sang-wook, director of Grand Plastic Surgery in Gangnam, southern Seoul, for allegedly having other surgeons stand in for him in... 

Policymakers, scholars at odds over economic outlook 

Policymakers are increasingly voicing optimism about the economy bottoming out, while most private... 

Koreans prefer Osaka for short trips 

Koreans prefer Osaka the most as a city for two-night trip, says global online travel agent Expedi... 

Mr. Pizza mired in owner scandal 

The second largest pizza franchise in the country, Mr. Pizza, could be in trouble with increasing ...

Parties going all out to win over voters 

The rival parties ratcheted up their campaigns in fiercely contested districts in Seoul and South ...

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

Nepalese children being sold to rich British families

The British government is determined to come up with a counter-measure against the shocking claim that child survivors of the Nep…

Seoul to resume the operation of water taxis on the Han River

The operation of water taxi service in Seoul, which was suspended after the sinking of the Sewol ferry, will be resumed this fall…

Cardinals' reliever Oh Seung Hwan makes his MBL debut

Oh Seung-hwan (34) of the St. Louis Cardinals successfully finished his official debut game in the U.S. Major League Baseball. Oh

Hillary Clinton under fire for blocking traffic for haircut

U.S. Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Clinton has come under fire as her staff blocked traffic while she was getting …

Arbor Day in Korea getting too hot to plant trees

As the average temperature in spring in Korea has significantly increased over the past 70 years, March is becoming more suitable…

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

N.Korea Demands Talks as Sanctions Bite

North Korea on Monday called for talks with the U.S. a month after the UN Security Council enforced tougher sanctions against the North. A spokesman for the National Defense Commission complained of "unilateral sanctions" but added "preparing steps for negotiations" is a more fundamental solution than military pressure. >> Full Text

S.Korean Military Under Fire Over N.Korean Missile Muddle

The South Korean military is under fire for yet another blunder after reporting that North Korea test-fired only one new surface-to-air missile last Friday instead of three. That casts some doubt on the gaffe-prone military's readiness to defend the country. >> Full Text

More Koreans Wear Plus-Size Clothes

Koreans are getting bigger, and demand for plus-size shoes and clothes is growing. Shoe manufacturer Kumkang said Monday that sales of larger size shoes in the first three months of this year rose 28 percent offline and 71 percent online compared to the same period last year. >> Full Text

Korea, Mexico to Resume FTA Talks

Voters Remain Undecided Among Lackluster Options

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

After summit, S. Korea, US and Japan expected to step up military cooperation

The topic of closer cooperation is likely to be taken up next in May at the Singapore Shangri-La Dialogue

Military cooperation among South Korea, the US, and Japan is expected to gain traction after their leaders agreed to strengthen trilateral collaboration on security at the Nuclear Security Summit on Mar. 31.South Korean President Park Geun-hye, US President Barack Obama, and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe previously helped usher in stronger trilateral cooperation by tackling frictions between Seoul and Tokyo during a trilateral summit at the Nuclear Security Summit in The Hague two years

Pres. Park directing government to refrain from criticizing Japan

Reports in the Japanese media suggest that the South Korean government‘s decision not to criticize Japan since the two governments’ reached an agreement on the comfort women issue on Dec. 28, 2015 is the result of instructions given by President Park Geun-hye. Regardless of the veracity of these reports, it is true that the South Korean government has been holding back on criticism of Japanese behavior that violates the spirit of the agreement.

Workers setting up strategies to narrow gap between regular and irregular positions

Inside the labor movement, there are signs of a push for a strategy of solidarity to reduce the gap in wages and working conditions between regular and irregular workers, and between workers at chaebol, or family-run conglomerates, and the smaller companies that serve as their subcontractors. This strategy includes such measures as labor unions for regular workers accepting a lower raise in wages in exchange for improved conditions for irregular workers and creating a fund to provide irregular workers with assistance.

Sluggish exports the biggest factor in S. Korea’s weak economic growth

Poor export performance was the single biggest factor in South Korea’s sliding economic growth rate last year, statistics show.Meanwhile, the prospects for 2016’s growth rate appear increasingly bleak as corporate investment, private consumption, and other domestic demand fail to make up for weak exports.

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JoongAngIlbo(conservative): (http://koreajoongangdaily.joinsmsn.com/)

Park promotes Mexico FTA idea

Korean President Park Geun-hye said a free trade agreement with Mexico will provide new impetus to the two countries’ economic relationship and predicted a “win-win” situation for both countries in an interview with local media ahead of a bilateral summit with the Latin American country’s leader…

Saenuri may hold onto majority, says analysis

The ruling Saenuri Party could win a parliamentary majority in the upcoming April 13 general elections…

Kakao’s size restricts its stake in Internet bank

Kakao Corp.’s dream of expanding into finance with the nation’s first online bank faced a hurdle after the former IT start-up…

Koreans join line for latest Tesla

Tesla Motors received 276,000 preorders for its upcoming Model 3 electric sedan in just three days, Elon Musk…

Samsung’s Serif TV is breakthrough in style

Samsung Electronics’ Serif TV, a premium model created by celebrity designers Ronan and ErwanBouroullec…

FDI rises 19% in the first quarter

Foreign direct Investment (FDI) to Korea in the first quarter of this year rose substantially with inflows from China…

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

Kim Moo-sung's Vulgar Campaign Accusing Opposition Party of Being Anti-Government

Saenuri Party leader Kim Moo-sung said, "If you vote for the opposition party that gave up national security, they will resume operations at Kaesong Industrial···

[20 Years of the Population Cliff: Lessons from Japan] South Korea's Decrease in Population, More Serious than Japan

Jang (31) had worked as an after-school instructor, but recently failed to renew her contract. Although she has a boyfriend, she has no thoughts of marriage. Ja···

'Voluntary Prostitution Still Harmful and Should Be Subject to Punishment' Constitutional Court Rules Against Prostitution 6:3

The Constitutional Court ruled that the Act on the Punishment of Acts of Arranging Sexual Traffic, which stipulates that people engaging in prostitution can be ···

Slogans to Draw Voters: 'Work, National Assembly!' 'The Problem Is the Economy' 'The Problem Is Politics'

On March 31, the first day of the official campaigns for the April 13 parliamentary elections and also the dawn of a thirteen-day "battle," ruling and opposit···

Daegu, the Heart of the Government? It's Not That Daegu Anymore

There is something serious about the public sentiment in the Yeongnam area, the "comfort zone" of the ruling Saenuri Party, ahead of the April 13 parliamentar···

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

KDB to Give $1.7 Bil. Credit Support to Firms Winning Overseas Orders

Korea Development Bank will increase the volume of policy loan credit provided to Korean companies winning overseas orders by 40 percent from last year. In particular, the state-run bank will lend more support to those companies moving to newly opening markets such as Iran. The bank held an event on...

North Korea Puts out Feelers a Month after UN Sanctions

The North Korea government has proposed talks with its counterpart in the south a month after the United Nations Security Council put its sanctions in place. To this, the South Korean government responded by flatly dismissing, "It's not a good time to talk about reconciliation." The National Defense...

Samsung Bioepis' Second Biosimilar "Flixabi" Close to Getting European Approval

Samsung Bioepis has won a positive recommendation for approval in Europe for its biosimilar drug "Flixabi," a biosimilar for Remicade for treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and other related conditions. This is the second instance for the Samsung Group company to receive a CHMP (Committee for Medicin...

Ruling Party Pledges “Minimum Wage to Be Raised up to 9,000 Won”

Korea’s ruling New Frontier Party revealed a plan to raise the minimum wage level as part of its general election pledges. Kang Bong-kyun, co-chairman of the ruling party’s campaign headquarters, held a press conference in Seoul on April 3 where he said, “To relieve the income disparity among wor...

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

'Suspicious' activity at North Korea's nuclear complex

Recent satellite images have shown "suspicious activity" at North Korea's nuclear site which could mean reprocessing is under way to produce …

Ex-president's son found to run secret paper firms in tax haven

Roh Jae-hun, the eldest son of the ex-president Roh Tae-woo [Pool Picture] The eldest son of South Korea's former president Roh Tae-woo was found to have set up three secret paper firms i…

Pyongyang fires ground-to-air missile into sea

North Korea fired a short-range missile into the sea Friday in a show of force as South Korean President Park Geun-hye held back-to-back summits wit…

Seoul urges Pyongyang to stop GPS attack

South Korea blamed North Korea Friday for waging a systematic electric warfare by discharging strong electric waves from different places along the border to disrup…

North Korea blamed for disrupting South's GPS communications

South Korea accused North Korea Thursday of discharging strong electric waves to disrupt South Korea's satellite traffic navigation signals for an

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ETNEWS(http://english.etnews.com/)

South Korean Government to Invest in Developing Its Own Super-Compute...

For the first time, South Korean Government is pushing for development project of super-computers. Ministry of Science, ICP and Future Planning (MSIP) made an announc...

Household Appliances and G5 to Lead LG Electronics’ Performance

LG Electronics is expecting that it had made a surprising performance that is better than initial expectation in first quarter and that it will make its biggest perf...

Tesla’s Model 3 Attracts 250,000 People in Making Reservations in just ...

Number of people that made reservations for Tesla¡?s electric vehicle

Samsung Display to Face Negative First Quarter Performance while LG Display to Face Satisfactory First Quarter Performance

Samsung Display and LG Display are facing two different feelings as they are about to show how they did in first quarter. Range of operating loss for Samsung Display¡?s LCD Display has gotten wider t

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MaeilBusinessNewsKorea (http://www.pulsenews.co.kr/ )

S. Korea’s LSIS wins American energy storage system certification

South Korea’s LS Industrial Systems Co. (LSIS) said Monday that its power conversion system (PCS) for an 1-megawatt (MW) energy storage system (ESS) was certified in the United states, a move that is expected to accelerate the company’s forays into the U.S. market.

Hyundai Motor’s Genesis’ brand value soars last year

The brand value of Hyundai Motor Co.’s Genesis has improved significantly after the South Korean automaker spun off its first ...

Samsung Bioepis gets positive CHMP opinion for its second biosimilar

Samsung Bioepis Co.’ second biosimilar product Flixabi gets closer to marketing authorization in Europe. The Committee for ...

Posco bets on lithium business amid rapid growth in EV demand

South Korea’s leading steelmaker Posco aims to complete building its lithium manufacturing plant in Argentina sooner than its ...

S. Korean government to grow local edible insect market to $436 mn industry.

The South Korean government aims to grow the country’s edible insect market to 500 billion won ($436 million) by 2020 as part ...

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