11+ min ago (908+ words) Published : Nov. 30, 2025 - 16:16:36 SK chief urges EU-style cooperation as two neighbors hit parallel limits in growth, demographics One of the key messages Chey Tae-won, chair of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry and SK Group, has been emphasizing most fervently in recent months is the need for stronger cooperation between South Korea and Japan. As leader of the nation's largest business lobby, Chey's argument is blunt: Both East Asian neighbors are hitting the limits of their existing growth models, grappling with stagnant domestic economies, aging populations and rising global trade barriers. They can no longer afford to face the future alone and need to cooperate for bigger market and new opportunities. Chey has conveyed this message since 2023 and repeatedly made case throughout this year in press conferences, media interviews, and meetings with Japanese and Korean officials. His advocacy for a…...

51+ min ago (677+ words) Opinion [Allison Schrager] US middle class shrinking Published : Dec. 1, 2025 - 05:36:00 The good news is that Americans have never been richer. The bad news is that most of them don't feel like it. There has been tremendous growth in income and wealth in the US in the last half century, even for poorer and middle-class households. But because of the nature of that growth, as well as the changing structure of the national economy, a lot of the people who have benefited also believe that the economy isn't working for them. It is true the middle class is shrinking. In the 1960s the income distribution of US households looked like a bell curve with a very thick middle. Today there are fewer Americans in the middle -- largely because many have joined the ranks of the upper-middle class. Income inequality also increased. The very…...

57+ min ago (613+ words) Published : Dec. 1, 2025 - 05:30:00 BOK rate hold signals policy limits while currency pressures check further easing The quietest moment in monetary policy often reveals the loudest warning. The Bank of Korea's decision on Nov. 27 to keep the policy rate at 2.5 percent for the fourth consecutive meeting looked, at first glance, like another routine attempt to buy time. In reality, the central bank signaled the limits of what monetary policy alone can now accomplish. A currency hovering around the 1,470 won level against the US dollar, a housing market that refuses to cool, and an uneven recovery built on a narrow semiconductor rebound point to a more complicated landscape than the rate decision suggests. The bank's revised growth forecasts capture this contradiction. Next year's outlook was lifted from 1.6 percent to 1.8 percent, broadly in line with estimates of potential growth, and the projection for 2027 was…...

57+ min ago (402+ words) Opinion [Man Ki Kim] Korea at a crossroads: Innovation, demographics and the global diaspora Published : Dec. 1, 2025 - 05:30:00 In just six decades, Korea has risen from the devastation of war to become a global leader in industry, technology and culture. Today, the nation faces a new set of challenges: the fastest population decline in the OECD, widening income inequality, and youth unemployment, all of which threaten social cohesion. Yet, Korea's 7.32 million-strong diaspora offers a powerful resource. Their creativity, professional networks and global influence can help drive innovation, strengthen soft power and ensure that Korea's next transformation is sustainable, inclusive and globally connected. In 1960, Korea's GDP per capita was only about $158. By 2024, it had surged to between $33,000 and $36,000. This extraordinary transformation is not merely an economic story " it is a human story of perseverance, vision and collective effort. Past success, therefore, lies not…...

4+ hour, 57+ min ago (707+ words) PR Newswire Perlis Royalty Join Prof. Mike Chan in Strengthening Malaysia's Fight Against Autism Published : Dec. 1, 2025 - 01:30:15 The royal presence aligned with the scientific direction championed by Prof.Dato' Sri Dr. Mike Chan, whose two decades of global research have positioned him as one of Asia's leading voices in precision neuro-generation. Rising Needs in Malaysia Perlis, like many parts of the country, has seen an increase in autism prevalence among school-aged children. Through UniMAP and the A-HEART Autism Hub, the Perlis royal household has invested in early identification, teacher training and family support programs. Their visit in Kuala Lumpur highlighted the need to extend such efforts nationally. Prof. Mike Chan's Global Autism Mission Prof. Chan's work on autism began more than a decade ago in Baoding, China, where he trained paediatric teams to improve diagnostic accuracy and early detection. These early…...

6+ hour, 42+ min ago (1023+ words) Published : Nov. 30, 2025 - 09:45:14 We rarely remember childhood with clarity. What remains are flashes, blurred images capturing only that which faintly surfaces. The past does not unfold like a film with a neat beginning and end. That, perhaps, is the beauty of memory. The same is true for Laure Mi Hyun Croset, a writer who was born in Korea and adopted to Switzerland at 10 months old. Her early memories, too, resist coherence, surviving only as isolated images, blurred at the edges like "a scattered series of uneasy Polaroids strewn across a vast forest." ## So she gathered the fragments of her life into a narrative stitched together. The result became her first written novella published in French, the autobiographical "Polaroids." The book will also be translated into Italian. ## Croset writes that the first Polaroid remains forever blank. All that lingers is the faint…...

6+ hour, 57+ min ago (1111+ words) Published : Nov. 30, 2025 - 09:30:00 Expectant couples hit the road for belly shots and more, but experts warn of potential risks Pregnancy comes with a heavier belly, swollen legs, sore backs and hormonal mood swings. But for many mothers-to-be in South Korea, it also brings something else: the urge to splurge on an overseas vacation. These "babymoons" first gained popularity here more than a decade ago, as a final getaway for parents-to-be before the round-the-clock feedings and sleepless nights begin. The practice has since become a rite of passage, much like a honeymoon for couples. A quick search of "babymoon" on Instagram pulls up more than 831,000 posts. Many local travel agencies now offer babymoon-themed package tours, with itineraries designed to minimize physical strain and highlight wellness attractions for pregnant travelers. Among the most popular destinations for this particular type of holiday are Guam,…...

12+ hour, 9+ min ago (537+ words) National Teen dies after shop spreads images of her shoplifting Published : Nov. 30, 2025 - 18:18:25 The death of a high school student in South Chungcheong Province after images of her taking ice cream from an unmanned store circulated among local teenagers has triggered a new public debate over privacy. According to local reports, the 18-year-old, identified as Lee, was found dead at her home in Hongseong on Sept. 23, just a few days after the store owner sent images of her stealing to a local tutoring room. She reportedly suffered extreme anxiety after the images were revealed. She is said to have expressed her frustration in text messages to friends, such as "What do I do " my heart is shaking," "How can I show my face in Hongseong? How am I supposed to handle these rumors?" Her brother said she also confided in him…...

12+ hour, 36+ min ago (816+ words) PR Newswire The Bioregenerative Sports Revolution: How Prof. Mike Chan Is Changing Athlete Recovery -- From Sabah to the Super Bowl Published : Dec. 1, 2025 - 01:50:18 KOTA KINABALU, Malaysia, Dec. 1, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Big changes often start in small ways. For Sabah FC, a top Malaysian football club, it began with a simple agreement " a partnership with European Wellness, a medical group best known for anti-aging and precursor stem cell therapy. But that one move is now shaking up the world of sports medicine. Because what started in Sabah is now heading to the biggest sporting stage in the world: the Super Bowl. And behind it all is a man who's been preparing for this moment for over 40 years " Prof. Dato' Sri Dr. Mike Chan. How It All Started in Sabah In late 2025,Sabah FC signed a deal with European Wellness Premier Center (EWPC) in Kota…...

12+ hour, 48+ min ago (492+ words) National 120,000 private cameras hacked, used to record sexual content Published : Nov. 30, 2025 - 17:39:10 Four individuals are under investigation for allegedly hacking around 120,000 internet protocol cameras installed at homes and businesses across the country, with the suspects accused of using them to record sexual content. Two of the suspects each hacked into 63,000 and 70,000 IP cameras, recording hundreds of sexual videos, which they sold to operators of websites based outside of the country. One made 35 million won ($23,800) while the other made 18 million won in the process, according to the National Office of Investigation under the National Police Agency. The two other suspects hacked into 15,000 and 136 IP cameras, respectively, and possessed videos from the camera feeds but had not distributed the illegal images. The four suspects committed the crimes separately, and three of them have been detained for investigation. A total of 58 places have been…...