Headlines, September 12, 2018

Wednesday, September 12, 2018

Round-up of important news from major Korean dailies today

And from international media:

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

Koreas to open liaison office in Kaesong on Friday
South and North Korea will officially launch their joint liaison office this week aimed at fostering cross-border exchange and contacts, the unification ministry here said Wednesday.
The liaison office will be launched in the North's border town of Kaesong on Friday, with around 50-60 people each from the two Koreas expected to attend the opening ceremony, according to the ministry.

S. Korea to draw hydrogen industry road map by year-end
South Korea will draw up a comprehensive road map on developing the hydrogen industry by the end of the year to foster the emerging sector and reduce air pollutants, the industry ministry said Wednesday.
The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said it will set policy goals for hydrogen technology development, industrial complexes and incentives to facilitate its role in the renewable energy system.

Seoul sells 660 bln won worth of 50-yr Treasurys
South Korea's finance ministry said Wednesday that it sold 660 billion won ($585 million) worth of 50-year Treasury bonds to meet demand from institutional investors.
The ministry said the state debt was sold at a rate of 2.09 percent, adding that the amount was raised due to strong demand. Earlier, it plans to sell 600 billion won worth of the longest-dated state debt.

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

Inter-Korean Liaison Office to Open Friday
The two Koreas' joint liaison office in North Korea's Gaeseong Industrial Complex is set to open on Friday.
The Unification Ministry in Seoul said Wednesday that a ceremony to mark the launch of the communications office will take place at 10:30 a.m., with 50 to 60 people from each side expected to attend.

Finance Minister Says Gov't to Hold Discussions on Slowing Pace of Minimum Wage Hikes
Finance Minister Kim Dong-yeon said Wednesday that the government will begin discussions with the top office and the ruling Democratic Party to produce reasonable plans to adjust the pace of raising the minimum wage.
The minister made the remarks during a meeting with chiefs of economy-related ministries at the government complex in Seoul.

10 Suspected MERS Cases Test Negative
Ten people who had shown symptoms of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome(MERS) tested negative for the disease.
The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention(KCDC) said Wednesday that one person who came into close contact with the recently confirmed MERS patient and nine people who had "ordinary" contact showed symptoms of fever and coughing, but they all tested negative.

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

S. Korea's jobless rate rises in Aug., sluggish job creation continues
South Korea's unemployment rate rose slightly in August due to a fall in employment in the retail and manufacturing sectors, with poorer-than-expected job creation showing no signs of a letup, government data showed Wednesday.
The unemployment rate stood at 4 percent last month, up 0.4 percentage point from a year earlier, according to the report compiled by Statistics Korea.

Gov't to mobilize all possible policy options to boost job creation: finance minister
South Korea's chief economic policymaker said Wednesday that the government will make all-out efforts to improve the country's dismal job market as a dramatic upturn in employment is unlikely in the near future.
His remarks came as the number of employed people reached 26.9 million in August, up a meager 3,000 from the same month in 2017, according to Statistics Korea.

PM expresses disappointment party leaders reject proposal to travel with Moon to N.K.
Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon expressed disappointment Wednesday that some opposition party leaders rejected a proposal to accompany President Moon Jae-in on a trip to Pyongyang next week for his third summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
Moon's office proposed that the leaders of five ruling and opposition parties travel together with Moon when he visits Pyongyang from Sept. 18-20. Officials believe such joint visits will underline bipartisan support for cross-border reconciliation and peace.

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

Talks underway for second US-NK summit
With South Korean President Moon Jae-in planning to visit North Korea for his third meeting with the country’s leader Kim Jong-un, the prospect of another summit between North Korea and the US has emerged.
White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Monday that talks are underway with North Korea over setting up a second summit meeting between President Donald Trump and Kim.

Korea searches for 50 foreigners possibly exposed to MERS
South Korean health authorities are searching for some 50 foreign nationals who may have been in contact with the recently confirmed Middle East respiratory syndrome patient, including those who arrived in Incheon from Dubai on the same flight Friday.
The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said it was difficult to track the individuals down, as foreign travelers in Korea usually do not have local phone numbers

Korea's jobless rate rises in Aug., sluggish job creation continues
South Korea's unemployment rate rose slightly in August due to a fall in employment in the retail and manufacturing sectors, with poorer-than-expected job creation showing no signs of a letup, government data showed Wednesday.
The unemployment rate stood at 4 percent last month, up 0.4 percentage point from a year earlier, according to the report compiled by Statistics Korea.

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

China condemns Japanese man for vandalism of 'comfort women' statue
The Chinese government has condemned a Japanese man for kicking a symbolic statue for the victims of Japan's wartime sexual slavery, also known as "comfort women."
Local media reported Tuesday that Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang said China hopes Japan will take up its responsibility and handle the act of vandalism in Taipei properly.

Ex-ambassador to Ethiopia sentenced to one year in jail for sexual violence
The Seoul Central District Court sentenced a former South Korean ambassador to Ethiopia to one year in prison Wednesday on charges of using his position to have sex with an aid agency employee and sexually harassing two others.

Obama mulled preemptive attack on North Korea: book
Former U.S. President Barack Obama mulled a preemptive attack on North Korea after its fifth nuclear test in 2016, according to a book released Tuesday.
Obama was deeply disturbed to learn that North Korea had conducted its biggest-yet nuclear detonation on Sept. 9, 2016, with the North claiming the new nuclear bomb could be mounted on a ballistic missile, journalist Bob Woodward wrote in "Fear: Trump in the White House."

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

Korean Firms Take Their Money Abroad to Flee Red Tape
Big Korean companies are taking their business abroad, be it to escape red tape at home or because the infrastructure there is more forward-looking.
Naver is investing W751.7 billion in its Line mobile messenger business in Japan later this month

Cross-Border Liaison Office to Open Friday
South Korea is finally ready to open a liaison office in the North Korean border city of Kaesong on Friday, according to a Unification Ministry spokesman on Tuesday.
The opening of the liaison office, set up in the shuttered Kaesong Industrial Complex, has been delayed under pressure from the U.S., which warned it could violate international sanctions since it requires shipments of materials and electricity supply from South Korea.

Price Fixing Rampant in Overheated Real Estate Market
Price fixing is rampant in real estate sales, mostly led by chat rooms on social media as apartment prices in Seoul continue to soar.
Owners team up on social media to artificially hike the prices of properties in their area, while estate agents snoop around them for potential sellers. This has prompted authorities to monitor the chatrooms they can find to crack down on potential illegality.

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

North Korea and US to hold another summit, White House says
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un proposed holding a second summit with US President Donald Trump in a private letter, and the two sides are already working on organizing the summit, the White House said on Sept. 10.

Moon stresses need for second NK-US summit
On Sept. 11, South Korean President Moon Jae-in emphatically stressed the need for a second summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, adding that for the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula to occur, “North Korea must carry out its nuclear dismantlement, and the US must create a [favorable] environment through corresponding measures.”

Blue House invites 9 politicians to accompany delegation to inter-Korean summit
The Blue House is extending invitations for nine politicians to attend an inter-Korean summit beginning in Pyongyang on Sept. 18, including the National Assembly speaker and two deputy speakers, five ruling and opposition party leaders, and the chairman of the National Assembly Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee, it announced on Sept. 10.

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The Dong-A Ilbo (http://english.donga.com/)

Trump plans second summit with Kim Jong Un in October
The countdown for the second U.S.-North Korea summit has started. The leaders of the United States and North Korea have agreed to meet again and engage in a top-down negotiation to close the gap found in working-level denuclearization talks that followed the first summit in Singapore in June. Critics say that U.S. President Donald Trump, ahead of the midterm election on November 6, is likely to concentrate on cutting a "big deal" on denuclearization that would give advantage to Trump in the upcoming election.

‘N. Korea could produce new nuclear weapons,’ says U.S. officials
While North Korea and the United States are seemingly in close consultation to discuss another summit between their leaders, reports have suggested that North Korea is still making nuclear weapons.

Samsung to supply 5G-ready CBRS equipment to AT&T
Samsung Electronics has been designated as a 5 generation (5G) communications equipment supplier of AT&T, following Verizon and Sprint. AT&T selected Samsung Electronics, Nokia, and Ericson as suppliers of 5G communications devices and is expected to initiate 5G services in Atlanta, Dallas, and Houston within this year. Samsung Electronics will also be providing 4G LTE equipment, which can be upgraded to 5G.

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

White House is working on second summit
A second summit between North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and U.S. President Donald Trump is being coordinated following a request by Kim, said the White House Monday.
Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the White House press secretary, confirmed that Trump had received a letter asking for a meeting from Kim, calling it “very warm, very positive” in a press briefing in Washington.

Moon calls for ‘bold’ denuclearization ideas
President Moon Jae-in on Tuesday called on the leaders of North Korea and the United States to make “bold decisions” to move denuclearization talks to a higher level, saying the North should rid itself of its nuclear arsenal while the United States rewards it in return.

Income inequality stats continue to get worse
The steep hike in the minimum wage dealt a harsh blow to small businesses, aggravating income polarization among businesses big and small, an analysis by a lawmaker with opposition Liberty Korea Party showed Tuesday.

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

Regrettably, Opposition Parties Refuse to Accompany the President to Pyongyang for the Inter-Korean Summit
On September 10, Chief of Staff Im Jong-seok asked nine politicians including the speaker and deputy speakers of the National Assembly, the chairman of the parliamentary Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee and the leaders of the five ruling and opposition parties, but the leaders of the conservative opposition parties--the Liberty Korea Party and the Bareun Mirae Party--declined the invitation. This led Moon Hee-sang, speaker of the National Assembly, and the deputy speakers to refuse the offer as well. It is regrettable that the opposition leaders have given up the opportunity to take part in an important event at a critical moment in the political situation on the Korean Peninsula.

How Much Longer Must We Tolerate the False Resident Registrations of Candidates for High Public Office?
On September 10, the confirmation hearing of justice nominees of the Constitutional Court and the ministerial nominees of the Moon Jae-in government's second cabinet began at the National Assembly starting with Constitutional Court justice nominees Lee Suk-tae and Kim Ki-young. Of the eleven candidates scheduled to undergo the hearing at least five have allegedly made a false resident registration. They are Constitutional Court justice nominees Kim Ki-young and Lee Eun-ae, deputy prime minister for social affairs cum education minister nominee Yoo Eun-hae, defense minister nominee Jeong Kyeong-doo, and labor minister nominee Lee Jae-gap. The latest hearing was no exception when it came to the history of false resident registrations by candidates of high public office, an issue that has appeared at nearly every confirmation hearing. It looks like the people will be in for another hearing full of excuses on why the resident registrations were made inaccurately. During the hearing this day, nominee Kim Ki-young said, "I apologize for not meeting the public's moral standards," and made the usual apology. The ruling party once condemned false resident registrations holding candidates up to a strict standard when it was in the opposition. The fact that we are witnessing a number of candidates for high public office facing allegations of false resident registrations after witnessing a similar situation in previous presidential appointments on a smaller scale is embarrassing for the government is contradicting itself.

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

SM shipping company forges alliance with Vietnam's national shipper
SM Lines, a leading container carrier in South Korea, forged a strategic alliance with Vietnam National Shipping Lines (Vinalines), a state-owned shipping firm, in an effort to secure a stable foothold in Southeast Asia's fast-growing shipping logistics market.

Expelled ambassador jailed in court for forced sex in Ethiopia
South Korea's disgraced former ambassador to Ethiopia was jailed in court Wednesday after he received a one-year jail sentence on charges of raping a woman and sexually harassing two others from a state organization which implements grant aid programs for developing countries.

Hyundai to provide safety cars at WorldSBK superbike championships
Safety cars bearing the logo of Hyundai Motor's high-performance compact sedan "i30 Fastback N" will guide professional motorbike racers at the world's biggest superbike racing event.

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

LG Chem buys full stake in U.S. auto sealant maker Uniseal
South Korea’s leading chemical and secondary battery maker LG Chem Ltd. acquired a full stake in U.S. automotive adhesive maker Uniseal from its parent company Koch Enterprises to strengthen its automotive part network in the age of new mobility requiring ultra-light vehicles running on electric power.

Hanwha Advanced Materials to complete Hanwha Q Cell merger by Oct
South Korea’s Hanwha Advanced Materials Corp. will complete its vertical integration of solar cell making affiliate Hanwha Q Cells Korea Corp. by next month to rationalize management of the solar energy business under a single parent Hanwha Chemical Corp.

Posco E&C moves a step closer to kicking off new town project in Indonesia
South Korea’s Posco Engineering & Construction Co. (Posco E&C) said Tuesday it has signed a preliminary financing agreement with Indonesia’s MNC Group and Korean institutions - KEB Hana Bank and IBK Securities - to back a new town development project in Lido, Indonesia, it will be building.

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Lee Kyung-sik edt@koreapost.com