1. In a widely expected decision, the monetary policy board of the Bank of Korea on Thursday kept its policy rate unchanged at 3.5 % for the eighth straight session, amid woes over a still weak economic recovery and slower-than-expected inflation moderation.

2. Lee Nak-yon, former leader of the Democratic Party, announced his departure from the party Thursday. Lee delivered his plans to join forces with three other non-mainstream lawmakers who quit the party a day earlier to launch a new party ahead of April's parliamentary elections.

3. South Korea’s UN Ambassador Hwang Joon-kook said Wednesday during a U.N. Security Council session that Russia's recent launches of North Korean ballistic missiles into Ukraine give Pyongyang military insights and could encourage it to export weapons to other countries.