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REUTERS/Nacho DoceTOKYO/SEOUL, March 31 (Reuters) - South Korea's Samsung Electronics Co Ltd (005930.KS) is considering setting up a chip test line in Japan, five people said, to bolster its advanced packaging business and forge closer ties with Japanese makers of semiconductor equipment and materials. It would be the first such test line in Japan for Samsung, the world's largest maker of memory chips. Companies are racing to develop advanced packaging techniques, which involve placing chips with different functions into a single package, to enhance overall capabilities and limit the added cost of more advanced chips. The test line would involve the so-called back-end process of chipmaking, according to the five people, which refers to a process in which semiconductors are cut and assembled into products. Samsung last year set up an advanced packaging team in South Korea.

☆ Blackpink's Jisoo makes solo debut with 'ME'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( Hyunsu Yim | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SEOUL, March 31 (Reuters) - K-pop group Blackpink's Jisoo became the last member to make a solo debut with her EP "ME" released on Friday. Many meetings and a lot of thought went into her first record, she said, before adding that she was not nervous about her solo debut. Rose and Lisa also made their solo debut in 2021. Earlier this month, the K-pop superstars also became the most-streamed female band on streaming app Spotify, according to Guinness World Records. Their songs had a whopping 8,880,030,049 individual streams, overtaking British pop group Little Mix, Guinness World Records said at that time.

☆ North Korean Executions and Torture Alleged in New Report
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Dasl Yoon | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

A North Korean propaganda village near the border with South Korea. SEOUL—South Korea released a new report detailing allegations of executions and torture in North Korea as President Yoon Suk Yeol attempts to put more pressure on Pyongyang over its human rights record. The accounts in the report released Thursday include allegations that six teenagers were executed by firing squad in 2015 for watching South Korean videos and using opium; a pregnant woman was executed in 2017 for pointing her finger at a portrait of the country’s founder, Kim Il Sung ; and the leaders of an underground church were executed in 2019.

☆ South Korea data shows uneven economic recovery, suggests steady rates
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Choonsik Yoo | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SEOUL, March 31 (Reuters) - South Korea's factory output slumped while retail sales jumped in February, data showed on Friday, signalling an uneven economic recovery and bolstering the market's view that the central bank will keep rates on hold for the rest of the year. The industrial output index fell 3.2% in February from the month before after a 2.4% gain in January, while the retail sales index jumped 5.3% month-on-month after a 1.1% drop in January, according to Statistics Korea. South Korea's central bank, which started raising interest rates in August 2021 ahead of most central banks, has raised the policy rate by 300 basis points from just 0.5% but kept it unchanged at its latest meeting in February. Bank of Korea Governor Rhee Chang-yong told reporters after the February decision that the central bank would not resume its rate hikes if inflation continued to moderate. Economists said the robust retail sales data could be temporary given the worsening outlook for exports, which influence a wide range of economic activity in South Korea.

☆ North Korea executes people for South Korean videos, drugs - report
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Hyonhee Shin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] A North Korean flag flies on a mast at the Permanent Mission of North Korea in Geneva October 2, 2014. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse/File PhotoSEOUL, March 30 (Reuters) - North Korea executes people for drugs, sharing South Korean media, and religious activities as it stifles its citizens' human rights and freedom, its rival, South Korea, said in a report on Thursday. "Executions are widely carried out for acts that do not justify the death penalty, including drug crimes, distribution of South Korean videos, and religious and superstitious activities." Reuters could not independently verify the South Korean government's findings but they were in line with U.N. investigations and reports from non-governmental organisations. Nearly 34,000 North Koreans have settled in South Korea but the number of defectors has fallen sharply because of tighter border security.

☆ Top security aide for S.Korea's Yoon offers to resign
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SEOUL, March 29 (Reuters) - A top security adviser for South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol said on Wednesday he had offered to step down. His resignation comes ahead of Yoon's summit with U.S. President Joe Biden next month. Media reports said earlier National Security Adviser Kim Sung-han could be replaced over planning issues related to Yoon's visit to Washington. He added that Yoon's upcoming trip to the United States was being well prepared so his successor could take over smoothly. Yoon nominated Cho Tae-yong, ambassador to the United States, as Kim's successor, Yonhap news agency reported following the announcement.

☆ South Korea to host third 'Summit for Democracy' -joint statement
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SEOUL, March 29 (Reuters) - South Korea will host a third "Summit for Democracy", President Yoon Suk Yeol said in a statement with U.S. President Joe Biden on Wednesday. "The United States and the Republic of Korea share deep bonds, rooted in our common democratic values and respect for human rights, and we are committed to further strengthening our robust political, economic, security, and people-to-people ties," the statement said. The plenary session of the second summit is to be held on Wednesday, involving 120 countries, civil society groups and technology companies in an event critics say illustrates the halting progress the Biden administration has made in advancing human rights and democracy as a focus of its foreign policy. The second summit is being co-hosted by the United States, Costa Rica, Zambia, the Netherlands and South Korea. It was not immediately clear when the next summit will be held or whether other countries will co-host the meeting.

☆ U.N. urges North Korea to confirm fate of forcibly disappeared people
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( Soo-Hyang Choi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SEOUL, March 28 (Reuters) - The United Nations Human Rights office in Seoul called on North Korea on Tuesday to confirm the fate and whereabouts of people who have been disappeared under its regime, accusing Pyongyang of violating the rights of the victims and their loved ones for decades. In a report on enforced disappearance and abductions by North Korea, the U.N. rights office said North Korea should acknowledge that it has engaged in a state policy of enforced disappearances since 1950, and take immediate steps to end such violations. The report, based on interviews with defectors, former abductees and relatives of victims, details accounts of disappearances, including arbitrary detentions in North Korea and abduction of nationals from South Korea, Japan and other countries. "Enforced disappearance is a profound violation of many rights at once, and responsibility lies with the state," U.N. Human Rights Chief Volker Turk said. According to the report, many victims of enforced disappearance within North Korea were sent, often for life, to political prison camps or other detention sites.

☆ North Korea fires multiple cruise missiles off its east coast, South Korea says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( Soo-Hyang Choi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SEOUL, March 22 (Reuters) - North Korea fired multiple cruise missiles off its east coast on Wednesday, South Korea's military said, the latest in a series of tests of its weapons as its rivals, South Korea and the United States, conducted joint military exercises. North Korea fired the missiles at around 10:15 a.m. (0115 GMT) from its South Hamgyong province, South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said. Wednesday's North Korean missile launches come just three days after North Korea fired a short-range ballistic missile towards the sea off its east coast. The North has long bristled at exercises conducted by South Korean and U.S. forces, saying they are preparation for an invasion of the North. South Korea and the United States deny that, saying instead, they have to prepare to defend against North Korean aggression.

Yoon announced the decision at a cabinet meeting, saying South Korea and Japan should make efforts to remove obstacles that hinder developing bilateral ties. "I will preemptively order our trade minister today to begin necessary legal procedures to have Japan back on our white list," Yoon told the meeting, which was televised live. "I'm sure Japan will respond if South Korea first starts removing the obstacles." South Korea and Japan removed each other from the list in 2019 amid a decades-old row over a 2018 South Korean court order for Japanese companies to compensate forced labourers during Japan's 1910-45 occupation of Korea. "It's time for South Korea and Japan to go beyond the past," Yoon said.

☆ South Korea tried to push an almost 70-hour work week, but was forced to rethink after millennials and Gen Z protested
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-20 | by ( Sawdah Bhaimiya | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

South Korea is rethinking a 69-hour work week proposal after millennials and Gen Z protested. At present, companies must limit overtime work to 12 hours per week, according to measures introduced in 2018 by Yoon's predecessor. South Korea is infamous for its long working hours, with the average citizen working for 1,915 hours in 2021, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Many Korean workers have lost their lives to "Gwarosa" — a Korean word for death by overwork, as the country's working hours exceed the average across the world. "Workers should be allowed to work 120 hours a week and then take a good rest," he said, per the Korea Times.

The South Korean government was this week forced to rethink a plan that would have raised its cap on working hours to 69 per week, up from the current limit of 52, after sparking a backlash among Millennials and Generation Z workers. South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol’s senior secretary said Wednesday the government would take a new “direction” after listening to public opinion and said it was committed to protecting the rights and interests of Millennial, Generation Z and non-union workers. “My own father works excessively every week and there is no boundary between work and life,” he said. South Korean people will (remain) vulnerable to deadly overtime work.”Pedestrians in downtown Seoul. Even when the limit was cut to 52 hours, cases of “gwarosa” continued to make the headlines.

☆ Japan, South Korea business leaders look for reset after wartime labour strain
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

TOKYO, March 17 (Reuters) - Top business leaders from Japan and South Korea met in Tokyo on Friday, pledging greater economic cooperation as they seek to pivot away from years of strain and acrimony over compensation for forced wartime labour. The head of Japan's Keidanren business lobby met with members of its South Korean counterpart, the Federation of Korean Industries, as well South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol on Friday morning. Yoon is in Japan for the first visit by a South Korean president in 12 years. The lack of cooperation between the two countries has long undercut U.S.-led efforts to present a united front against China and North Korea. Signs of a breakthrough came last week when Seoul announced a plan for its companies to compensate former forced labourers.

☆ South Korea’s President Yoon Arrives in Japan for Rare Summit Talks
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Alastair Gale | Dasl Yoon | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol arrived in Tokyo on Thursday. TOKYO—South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol arrived in Tokyo on Thursday for the first formal summit between the leaders of South Korea and Japan since 2011, with trade and intelligence sharing on the agenda. Mr. Yoon’s visit comes after his administration last week proposed a plan to resolve a standoff over payments for Koreans forced to work for Japanese companies during World War II, one of the most contentious of an array of disputes between two countries.

☆ Japan and S.Korea's historic rivalry is softening
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Reuters Editorial | ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

PoliticsJapan and S.Korea's historic rivalry is softeningPostedSouth Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol's visit to Japan is the first for a Seoul leader in 12 years. The urgency of the regional security situation - and the threat posed by North Korea - were underscored just hours earlier when the North fired another ballistic missile that landed in the sea between the three countries. Matthew Larotonda reports.

☆ South Koreans sceptical as president offers olive branch to Japan
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Ju-Min Park | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

SEOUL, March 16 (Reuters) - As South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol landed in Tokyo on Thursday his plan to patch up relations with Japan faces lingering scepticism at home. Sixty-four percent of the respondents said South Korea did not need to rush to improve ties with Japan if there were no change in Tokyo's attitude, according to the poll. Yoon is the latest of many South Korean conservatives who embrace the argument that Seoul must heal divides with Japan to confront security challenges. Boycotts of Japanese products and vacations have largely faded in South Korea, and a growing number of South Koreans are travelling to Japan as COVID restrictions ease. Three Japanese animated films are among the top five at box office in South Korea.

☆ 'Omurice', comfort food for Japanese and Koreans, a symbol of warmer ties
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Kantaro Komiya | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Kishida and Yoon will reportedly share a more formal dinner of sukiyaki beforehand, but the real ice-breaker could be when they sit down for omurice, Kawabata said. Japan and South Korea are holding a summit for the first time in 12 years, seeking to mend relations that had deteriorated severely. "It could be an effort to foster a laid-back mood, through a casual dish that both Japanese and Koreans consider comfort food," he said. "Yoon may have been impressed with the softness of Japanese-style omurice," Kawabata said. "I hope the world discovers that Japanese food culture also has a dish like this," he said.

Hong Kong/Seoul CNN —South Korea says it will build an enormous facility to make computer chips in greater Seoul, with about $230 billion in investment from private companies. “We will build the world’s largest new ‘high-tech system semiconductor cluster’ in the Seoul Metropolitan area based on large-scale private investment of almost 300 trillion Korean won,” President Yoon Suk Yeol said on Wednesday. “In addition, we will grow the ‘semiconductor mega cluster’ to the world’s largest in connection with the existing memory semiconductor manufacturing complexes.”The Seoul Metropolitan area includes the capital Seoul, neighboring city of Incheon and surrounding Gyeonggi province. This is a developing story. More to come.

☆ Factbox: What's on the table for the Kishida-Yoon summit?
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol speaks at an interview with Reuters in Seoul, South Korea, November 28, 2022. Kishida is considering visiting South Korea as early as this summer, Kyodo has reported. G7 INVITATIONKishida may extend an invitation to Yoon to attend the G7 summit set to take place in Hiroshima in May, several media reported. EXPORT CURBSThe two leaders could confirm their countries' intention to resolve Japan's high-tech material export curbs against South Korea. Japan tightened restrictions on the export of high-tech semiconductor materials to South Korea in 2019 as a row over how to compensate wartime labourers flared.

☆ South Korea's Yoon arrives in Tokyo hours after North's missile launch
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( Sakura Murakami | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/6] South Korea's President Yoon Suk Yeol and his wife Kim Keon-hee arrive at Tokyo International Airport (Haneda Airport) in Tokyo, Japan March 16, 2023. Before Yoon's flight, North Korea fired a long-range ballistic missile, which landed in the sea between the Korean peninsula and Japan, emphasising both the urgency of regional security and the threat posed by North Korea. "There is an increasing need for (South) Korea and Japan to cooperate in this time," Yoon said in a written interview with international media on Wednesday, calling both North Korea's nuclear and missile threats and supply chain disruptions a "polycrisis". South Korea and Japan at the time agreed to exchange real-time intelligence on North Korea's missile launches, which experts say will help both countries better track potential threats. Tokyo worries that Russia's invasion of Ukraine has set a precedent that will encourage China to attack self-ruled Taiwan.

☆ China coast guard enters disputed waters in East China Sea
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BEIJING, March 15 (Reuters) - China's coast guard entered the waters around disputed East China Sea islets on Wednesday to counter what it called the incursion of Japanese vessels into Chinese territorial waters. Disputed East China Sea islets claimed by China and Japan have long been a sticking point in bilateral ties. China Marine Police spokesperson Gan Yu said in a statement that coast guard vessels entered the waters of the Diaoyu for a "normal rights protection patrol" calling it a "routine move". "(This also）is a strong countermeasure to the Japanese side's intrusion of one yacht and several patrol vessels into our territorial waters," Gan said, though he did not specify any incident. China's coast guard said in late January that the Shinsei Maru and four other Japanese ships illegally entered the territorial waters of the Diaoyu islands before being driven away by Chinese coast guard vessels.

Hong Kong/Seoul CNN —South Korea says it will build an enormous facility to make computer chips in the greater Seoul area, with about $230 billion in investment from memory chip giant Samsung Electronics. “We will build the world’s largest new ‘high-tech system semiconductor cluster’ in the Seoul Metropolitan area based on large-scale private investment of almost 300 trillion Korean won,” he said. An aerial view of Samsung Electronics' chip production plant at Pyeongtaek, South Korea on September 7, 2022. The vast majority of the world’s advanced microchips are made in just two places, Taiwan and South Korea. Taiwan’s industry is larger and more dominant, something South Korea is keen to challenge.

Samsung said it will make a 300 trillion Korean won investment in a new semiconductor facility in South Korea over the next two decades. It is part of a broader tech investment plan by the South Korean government. The South Korean government is looking to join together its biggest technology companies to spur development in key areas. The new 300 trillion won chip complex Samsung is building will be just outside of the South Korean capital of Seoul. The South Korean government said that companies will build five chip manufacturing facilities in the cluster.

"There is an increasing need for Korea and Japan to cooperate in this time of a polycrisis, with North Korean nuclear and missile threats escalating and global supply chains being disrupted," Yoon said. Yoon's visit also comes as North Korea has been raising tensions in the region weapons test, including the latest launch of two short-range ballistic missiles into the sea off its east coast on Tuesday. South Korea, the United States and Japan must further strengthen security cooperation to deter North Korea, Yoon said, adding that he expected GSOMIA, an intelligence-sharing pact with Japan, to be "invigorated" as the two countries restore trust. South Korea has been conditionally maintaining the pact, which is intended to help the two countries share information on North Korea's missile and nuclear activities. Yoon denounced North Korea for focusing on its "reckless" weapons programmes when the country's food shortages have "grown worse" and said South Korea "will never acknowledge North Korea as a nuclear state under any circumstances."

The summit is the same week as major South Korea-U.S. military drills that routinely anger Pyongyang, and North Korea has already staged multiple missile launches - a backdrop for the message that Japan, South Korea and the United States need to close ranks. In November South Korea and Japan agreed to exchange real-time intelligence on North Korea's missile launches, which experts say will help both countries better track potential threats. "South Korea is already taking a side and entering the Cold War," said Kim Joon-hyung, a former chancellor of the Korean National Diplomatic Academy. Yoon said high-tech cooperation on supply chains between Japan and South Korea would contribute significantly to economic security. 'SHARED INTERESTS'Washington had pressed for reconciliation, but a State Department spokesperson said the recent arrangements were the result of bilateral discussions between Japan and South Korea.

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