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Lee Hyo-sik

Korea Times Finance Reporter

Lee Hyo-sik is Finance Desk editor at The Korea Times. He manages finance-related stories on macroeconomics, banks, stocks, bonds, crypto etc. He is passionate about covering what's happening in Korea's financial industry and explaining it to both Korean and non-Korean readers. You can reach him at leehs@koreatimes.co.kr. Your insights and feedbacks are always appreciated.

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South Korea

Automakers blamed for violating overtime work rule

By Lee Hyo-sik The government revealed Sunday all car producers here _ Hyundai, Kia, Ssangyong, General Motors and Renault Samsung _ have broken labor standard laws by forcing their employees to work by more than a legal ceiling of 12 extra hours. Employers here are legally prevented from making employees work more than 12 hours in overtime. This rule has been considered an exception for autoworkers forced to put in a lot more hours in overtime, according to the Ministry of Employment and Labor. The ministry said, among others, Hyundai Motor’s plants in Jeonju and Ulsan, Kia Motors’ Hwaseong plant and General Motors’ Bupyeong plant were frequent violators of the overtime rule. “Local automakers have placed top priority on signing secret pacts with union leadership to keep employees working for extended hours. This labor practice hinders carmakers from hiring new staff and improving labor productivity,” a ministry official said. He said the government will take measures to make the automakers stop this practice. “We asked auto companies to submit a comprehensive plan to

Nov 6, 2011By Lee Hyo-sik
South Korea

Bars, hagwon owners to hold rally against credit card fees

By Lee Hyo-sik Tens of thousands of bars, “hagwon (private learning institutes)” and other small businesses nationwide will close their doors on Nov. 30 to protest what they claim are high credit card transaction fees. According to the Federation of Professional Economic-Person Societies and other advocacy groups for small shop owners Tuesday, about 50,000 operators of entertainment establishments, private learning institutes, massage parlors, opticians and other businesses run by the self-employed will gather and hold a rally at the Janchung Gymnasium in Seoul at the end of this month. Those who do not take part in the mass gathering are expected to at least pull down their shutters for one day in protest of the high fees charged by card companies. The organizers also plan to hold more large-scale protests in cities across the country, including Busan, Daegu, Daejeon and Gwangju, from December through February next year. If the Nov. 30 rally materializes, it will be the first time for self-run businesses in 60 sectors employing more than 5 million workers to collect

Nov 4, 2011By Lee Hyo-sik
Travel & Food

Jeju Olle festival to be held Nov. 9-12

By Lee Hyo-sik The country’s southern resort island of Jeju has long been a popular vacation spot for Koreans. In the past, the island used to be the most common honeymoon destination for newly-weds here before they started going abroad. Jeju Island, with its subtropical climate and warm seawater, along with its flora, marine fauna and living culture, makes itself an exotic holiday spot for mainlanders. Many of the island’s natural assets have also been designated as a World Natural Heritage site over the past few years, helping to draw many Chinese and other foreign tourists. Besides its pristine nature, unique cuisine based on a variety of sea foods and exotic culture, now there is one more reason for both Koreans and non-Koreans to visit Jeju Island, that is, to walk on the ``Olle’’ trails built along its coasts. Under the theme of ``Discover Love on the Trail,’’ the island will hold the 2011 Jeju Olle Walking Festival on trail route No. 6 to 9 from Nov. 9 to 12. Olle trails first opened in September 2007 and there are now a total of 23 trekking courses spann

Nov 3, 2011By Lee Hyo-sik
South Korea

Police relaxing rules on gun use

Officers likely to be allowed to shoot without prior warning By Lee Hyo-sik Police officers will likely be allowed to use firearms against violent suspects without prior verbal warning or firing warning shots when their lives or the lives of innocent citizens are threatened. The move is intended to get tougher on gangsters and other violent criminals and help officers defend themselves. But this relaxation of the rules on the use of guns is raising concerns that overuse by officers could cause human rights violations of suspects, and possible tragic consequences. The National Police Agency (NPA) released a new draft of a manual on gun use Wednesday, and formed a task force to finalize it manual after a series of hearings. Under the current rules, officers are required to give at least three verbal warnings to suspects wielding knives or other deadly weapons. They also need to fire blanks before using live ammunition. If suspects continue to refuse to surrender their weapons and threaten their lives, police can then open fire. But in reality, the majority of offic

Nov 2, 2011By Lee Hyo-sik
South Korea

Japanese female tourist missing for a month

By Lee Hyo-sik A 21-year-old Japanese female tourist has been missing for a month after she left a hotel in Myeong-dong, downtown Seoul, with an unidentified man. According to the Namdaemun Police Station Wednesday, the woman from the Hyogo Prefecture came to Korea with her mother on Sept. 19 for a three-day visit. She came back here again on Sept. 26 by herself to meet a man who helped her and her mother when they were arguing with a taxi driver over fares. The Yomiuri Shinbun and other major daily newspapers have covered the incident. According to the newspapers, the missing woman was seen leaving the hotel on Oct. 6 with a young man on a surveillance camera. The woman did not seem to be leaving against her will. Since then, her whereabouts have been unknown. Police said nothing has been verified yet, adding the investigation is still in its early stages. The missing woman’s mother came to Korea on Oct. 14 to report her daughter’s disappearance to the police. The mother told officers that she was not sure whether the man who helped her and her daughter a month ago

Nov 2, 2011By Lee Hyo-sik
Society

English speech contest promotes Jeju Island

An English speech contest to promote Jeju Island as one of the New7Wonders of Nature was held Sunday at the COEX, a conference center in southern Seoul. The contest was hosted by The Korea Times and supervised by The Korea Times Global Net. At the contest, local and foreign elementary middle, and high school students who passed the preliminary round wrote a speech and presented the material in front of the crowd. They spoke about Jeju’s natural landscape, natural resources, the value of its culture and how to attract tourists. The contest was organized to promote Jeju’s natural beauty, its history and culture. Jeju is the only place in the world that has both a geopark and a biosphere reserve and designated a natural heritage at the same time. At the contest, 46 students made it to the final round. “The contest was very meaningful and I really do hope Jeju can be included in the New Seven Wonders,” said Choi Mee-do from Daewon Foreign Language High School. Choi is one of the grand prize winners.

Nov 2, 2011By Lee Hyo-sik
Society

Seoul’s educational policy could be drifted

By Na Jeong-ju The conflict between conservatives and liberals over Seoul’s educational policies could deepen further with the appointment of Education Minister Lee Ju-ho’s aide as acting head of the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education (SMOE). Former ministry spokesman Lee Dae-yeong, who was named vice superintendent of the education office last week, will be in charge of formulating Seoul’s educational policies in place of liberal superintendent Kwak No-hyun. His official duties have been suspended due to his trial on bribery charges. Sources say Minister Lee’s appointment of his aide as SMOE’s acting head reflects his determination to deal sternly with any moves to dampen the government’s education policy. The vice chief is expected to seek to slow down Kwak’s educational reform programs, including providing free lunches to elementary and middle school students and changing the way teachers treat students. Minister Lee has expressed discontent over such measures. The election of civic activist Park Won-soon as new Seoul mayor in the Oct. 26 by-election also sugge

Nov 2, 2011By Lee Hyo-sik
South Korea

American soldier sentenced to 10 years in prison for rape

By Lee Hyo-sik A 21-year-old U.S. soldier has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for raping a teenage Korean girl. It is the heaviest sentence given to a U.S. serviceman for a crime committed here since 2001 when the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) was revised to grant local law enforcement authorities more investigation rights. The Uijeongbu District Court said Tuesday that the solider will also undergo a treatment program designed to cure those committing rape and other sex-related crimes for 80 hours. The court also ordered his personal information, including his name and address, to be open to the public for 10 years. The harsher-than-expected sentence is seen to reflect growing public demand for U.S. soldiers and their family members to be subject to more severe punishment for crimes they commit against Koreans. The soldier, assigned to the 2nd U.S. Infantry Division in Dongducheon, broke into an apartment near his unit at around 4 a.m. on Sept. 24 and raped an 18-year-old girl. He then fled the scene after stealing 5,000 won. ``The defendant claims h

Nov 1, 2011By Lee Hyo-sik
South Korea

61st Casino industry booming

By Lee Hyo-sik It is hard to book rooms these days at major hotels in Seoul and other popular tourist destinations in provincial areas, with Chinese and other foreign visitors taking up all available accommodation. Department stores are flooded with non-Korean customers eager to snatch up luxury bags, cosmetics and other high-priced items, while high-end restaurants are crowded with foreigners seeking to taste a range of Korean dishes. Japanese and those from Southeast Asian countries have become the majority audience of K-pop groups’ concerts here. It is almost impossible to tour old palaces and other famous tourist spots across the country without bumping into at least one group of foreign travelers. To sum it up, Korea’s hospitality-related businesses are flourishing, thanks to the surging number of incoming visitors. But there is one overlooked sector that has outshined others; casinos. The nation’s two major casino operators ― Grand Leisure Korea (GKL) and Paradise Group ― have seen the number of foreign customers soar by a double-digit figure each year. GKL,

Nov 1, 2011By Lee Hyo-sik
South Korea

28 Chinese caught cheating on Korean language test

By Lee Hyo-sik A group of Chinese students have been caught cheating on Korean language proficiency exams held here by using tiny cameras and other high-tech devices, police said Monday. Police arrested a 22-year-old Chinese national surnamed Ma and two other individuals, and booked 25 Chinese students studying at local universities for obstructing civil servants’ duty. Ma and two other individuals allegedly took money from 19 Chinese students, totaling 6.6 million won, in return for providing them with answers to questions in the Korean Language Proficiency Test (KLPT) held at a university in Gwangju on Oct. 23. The three scammers smuggled the “spy cam,” a small camera that can be embedded into clothes, from China. They hired a 21-year-old Chinese student surnamed Han who is enrolled at a university in Seoul to wear the camera on his shirt and take an exam. Through the camera Han was wearing, the scammers obtained answers and passed them to exam candidates through a wireless phone earpiece they wore. Investigators plan to expand the probe into other internatio

Oct 31, 2011By Lee Hyo-sik
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