SEOUL, June 20 (Korea Bizwire) — For the first time in K-pop history, idol groups featuring members who defected from North Korea are making their debut this summer. According to the music industry, the six-member boy band Be Boys became the first K-pop group to include a North Korean defector when it debuted Wednesday. Member [...]
SEOUL, June 20 (Korea Bizwire) — K-pop boy band Tomorrow X Together (TXT) will kick off its fourth world tour in August. The group announced on the K-pop fan community platform Weverse on Friday that the “Act: Tomorrow” tour will begin with concerts at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul on Aug. 22 and 23. It [...]
SEOUL, June 19 (Korea Bizwire) — Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Corp. on Thursday signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the government to jointly develop and commercialize a next-generation connected digital tachograph for commercial vehicles, the automakers said Thursday. The automakers, together with the transport ministry and the state-run Korea Transportation Safety Authority, plan [...]
SEOUL, June 19 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s financial regulator said Thursday it will review the introduction of tighter rules on so-called jeonse loans amid rising household debts. In a report to the State Affairs Planning Committee, the de facto transition team of the new Lee Jae Myung administration, the Financial Services Commission (FSC) said [...]
SEOUL, June 19 (Korea Bizwire) – South Korea’s energy supply has yet to experience any disturbance from the Israel-Iran conflict, Seoul’s industry ministry said Thursday, noting it is maintaining an emergency mode in response to escalating tensions in the Middle East. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy held an emergency meeting with officials from [...]
SEOUL, June 19 (Korea Bizwire) — North Korea fired around 10 artillery shells from its multiple rocket launcher system Thursday, South Korea’s military said, a day after the South conducted joint air drills with the United States and Japan. The North fired the shells toward the Yellow Sea at around 10 a.m. from the Sunan [...]
SEOUL, June 19 (Korea Bizwire) — The annual monsoon season began in the central and southern regions Thursday, the state weather agency said, forecasting torrential downpours in some areas in central and southwestern regions starting late at night. Rain will fall sporadically along the west coast due to the influence of hot and humid air [...]
TOKYO/SEOUL, June 19 (Korea Bizwire) — Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said Thursday he had a good discussion with President Lee Jae Myung during their first summit in Canada earlier this week, noting that they “aligned on views” on shared issues. Ishiba made the remark at an event in Tokyo held to celebrate the 60th [...]
SEOUL, June 19 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s internet-only lender Kakao Bank said Thursday it has received approval from the Thai government to operate a “virtual bank,” marking the first reentry of a Korean bank into the Thai market in 25 years. The Thai Ministry of Finance recently selected a consortium formed by Kakao Bank [...]
SEOUL, June 19 (Korea Bizwire) — More than 40 South Korean nationals and their family members have evacuated Iran and Israel via land routes and arrived safely in neighboring countries, the foreign ministry said Thursday, amid escalating tensions between the two nations. Eighteen South Koreans and two Iranian family members crossed the border into Turkmenistan [...]