Most Asian stock markets climbed Friday as investors took heart from a slight improvement in U.S. economic indicators amid lingering worries over the pace of the global economic recovery. But gains were modest across the region as investors took a wait-and-see stance ahead of closely-watched U.S. employment figures due out Friday.
South Korea and the United States will hold joint anti-submarine exercises in another show of force against North Korea, officials said Friday, as Pyongyang renewed threats against the drills. The exercises will be the second in a series of joint maneuvers the allies planned to conduct in response to the deadly sinking of a South Korean warship in March that they blame on the North.
It seemed like a perfect match. The Korean army would make a few bucks to help cover some of the costs of modernizing its military by selling 850,000 Korean War era rifles in the USA while American hunters and collectors would have access to a trove of vintage weapons. It was a win-win situation that the Obama administration approved last year.
China called Thursday for a compromise among the parties to talks aimed at disarming North Korea's nuclear program in order to get the negotiations back on track. China hosted the six-nation talks before North Korea walked away from them last year in protest over the international condemnation that followed its testing of a long-range missile.
Typhoon Kompasu slammed into South Korea on Thursday, killing three people in what was called the strongest tropical storm to hit the Seoul area in 15 years. Powerful gusts knocked over trees, power lines and streetlights, cutting off power to tens of thousands of homes and forcing airports to cancel or delay dozens of international flights, the National Emergency Management Agency said.
Asian stock markets rose Thursday as investors hungry for good news seized on stronger U.S. manufacturing as a sign the world economy isn't slowing as much as feared. The second day of gains in the region follows a month of heavy selling amid jitters about the global recovery as figures from major economies suggested growth was faltering.
Typhoon Kompasu, the strongest tropical storm to hit Seoul in 15 years, forced canceled flights in Incheon and Gimpo airports and paralysed transportation around the city. The subway system was affected due to power outages and the closing of above-ground stations due to high winds. Most of the above-ground stations are in the suburbs, which will cause further transportation chaos as workers try to get to or from their places of employment in the city by other means.
Police are investigating after a teacher in a child center in Pyeongtaek was accused of repeated sexual assaults of two sisters. According to police on September 1, 36-year-old Mr. A is accused of repeatedly sexually assaulting in his home over the past year the 13- and 12-year-old daughters of 47-year-old Mr. B, who has a difficult home situation.
While no nation's situation is completely analogous to another's, there are some parallels between Korea's position in the late 1950s and Iraq's today, something that is not lost on Iraq's ambassador to Korea.
World stock markets mostly gained Wednesday after Chinese manufacturing growth picked up and Australia's economy expanded at its fastest pace in three years. The two indicators are a break from a stream of weak economic readings from the U.S. to Japan that sent stock markets into a funk the past month as investors fretted about a slowing global recovery.
Asian stock markets rose Wednesday, rebounding from losses as Australia's economic growth accelerated and Chinese manufacturing activity recovered in August. Japan's Nikkei 225 stock average added 0.5 percent to 8,869.74 after hitting a 16-month closing low the previous day. Ongoing worries about the strong yen kept trading cautious.
The original Korean article is here. From what I have heard a similar policy wound up working out very well in Ireland. My wife and I always bring reusable bags to the store and find them more convenient anyway.
South Korea
