Focus on Headline

1. The main opposition Democratic Party retained a majority in the National Assembly in Wednesday's general elections. Including proportional seats, the Democratic Party and its satellite party garnered 175 seats, while the People Power Party and its satellite party clinched 108 seats out of a total of 300.

2. President Yoon Suk Yeol on Thursday vowed to reform state affairs to reflect people's will following the ruling party's crushing defeat in the parliamentary elections. Han Dong-hoon, leader of the ruling People Power Party, resigned the same day to take responsibility for the election results.

3. U.S. President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Wednesday called for North Korea to return to dialogue during a summit in Washington. In a joint statement, the leaders also vowed to strengthen defense cooperation and establish a joint command structure.

1. South Korean voters on Wednesday headed to the polls for the country's 22nd parliamentary elections. Voter turnout for this election was higher than the last general election.

2. A senior U.S. official said Tuesday that the United States is considering including South Korea as a partner in Pillar Two advanced military technology development projects under the AUKUS security partnership, which comprises the U.S., the U.K. and Australia.

3. The Booker Prize Foundation on Tuesday announced that South Korean novelist {황석영}Hwang Sok-yong’s novel “Mater 2-10” has been shortlisted for the 2024 International Booker Prize, one of the most prestigious literary awards in the world.

1. On the eve of the 22nd general elections Tuesday, both ruling and opposition parties headed to key battleground areas in Seoul and the nearby metropolitan regions to make their final pitch to voters.

2. South Korea's foreign ministry on Monday said that 11 citizens from Haiti evacuated via helicopter due to deteriorating security. The ministry said the citizens were airlifted to the neighboring Dominican Republic, and withheld further details to ensure the safety of other South Koreans in Haiti.

3. Citing sources, Reuters reported on Monday that the Biden administration plans to announce it is awarding more than 6 billion U.S. dollars to South Korea's Samsung next week to expand its chip output in Taylor, Texas.

1. According to the National Election Commission, a record 31-point-28 percent of voters cast their ballots during the two days of early voting for the upcoming 22nd general elections, marking the first time early-voting turnout for general elections exceeded 30 percent.

2. South Korea's defense ministry said Monday that the nation successfully launched its second indigenous spy satellite on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from the U.S. Kennedy Space Center. The reconnaissance satellite succeeded in communicating with an overseas ground station at 10:57 a.m.

3. Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said during an interview on Sunday that his government is making "high-level approaches" to North Korea to hold a summit with Kim Jong-un. Tokyo reportedly seeks to resolve "outstanding issues" and promote stable relations between the two nations.

1. Early voting began Friday ahead of next week's parliamentary elections, with turnout reaching a record high just three hours after the polls opened. Leaders of rival parties visited polling stations, urging voters to exercise their rights.

2. According to the Bank of Korea on Friday, South Korea logged a current account surplus for the 10th straight month in February on the back of an increased trade surplus and dividend income. The country's current account surplus reached 6-point-86 billion U.S. dollars in February.

3. A foreign ministry official said Friday that South Korea is in talks with China and Japan to host a trilateral summit next month at the "earliest time convenient" for all sides. A

summit of the three nations was last held more than four years ago in December 2019.

1. President Yoon Suk Yeol on Thursday vowed to support people’s livelihoods by completing as many revisions to lower-level laws as he can within the year, while speaking at a government meeting reviewing the 24 government-public debate sessions held so far this year.

2. South Korean security sources said Wednesday that the government had seized a stateless vessel allegedly involved in violating UN Security Council resolutions against North Korea. The ship was reportedly en route to Russia from North Korea before it was caught last Saturday in waters off the country’s south coast.

3. Gold prices surged to an all-time high on Wednesday after the U.S. Federal Reserve hinted that it was preparing to cut interest rates later this year even as inflation remains above the central bank’s target.

1. A memorial service marking the 76th anniversary of the Jeju April 3rd Incident was held Wednesday morning at the Jeju 4.3 Peace Park. Around 15-thousand people attended the ceremony. Prime Minister Han Duck-soo delivered a commemorative address on behalf of the government.

2. According to data by Statistics Korea released Wednesday, the inflation rate for dining out in March was 3.4%, surpassing the average inflation rate for overall consumer prices for 34 consecutive months. The inflation rate for processed foods was below the average for two consecutive months.

3. Taiwan was rocked by a 7.2 magnitude earthquake on Wednesday morning, the strongest the country has seen in 25 years. Taiwanese authorities said the earthquake struck the country's east coast with the depth of the epicenter estimated at 20 kilometers. At least seven people have died and 700 are reportedly injured.

1. The Joint Chiefs of Staff said Tuesday that North Korea fired what appeared to be an intermediate-range ballistic missile, possibly equipped with a hypersonic warhead, at 6:53 a.m. The South Korean military said the missile flew about 600 kilometers before landing in the East Sea.

2. The National Election Commission said Tuesday that overseas voting turnout for the April 10 general elections was at an all-time high of 62.8 percent on the final day. A total of 92-thousand-923 people out of more than 147-thousand eligible voters abroad had cast their ballots.

3. According to data from Statistics Korea on Tuesday, South Korea's consumer prices, a key gauge of inflation, rose 3.1 percent on-year in March on record prices of fruits and rising global oil prices. Prices spiked 88.2 percent for apples and 87.8 percent for pears, a record surge for both since the agency began compiling data in 1980.

1. During an address to the nation on Monday, President Yoon Suk Yeol said a hike of 2-thousand in medical school admissions is the minimum needed to reform the healthcare system, and apologized to the public for failing to resolve the ongoing standoff between the government and the medical community.

2. According to data released by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy on Monday, South Korea's exports rose for the sixth consecutive month in March on the back of the robust performance of chips. Exports of chips marked the highest amount since June 2022.

3. South Korea's Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul will attend a foreign ministers’ meeting of NATO to be held in Belgium this Thursday. South Korea was invited to the ministerial meeting for the third year as one of NATO’s four Asia-Pacific partners which includes Japan, Australia and New Zealand.

1. The Korea Meteorological Administration said Friday a yellow dust storm blanketed South Korea with fine dust advisories issued across many regions. Most central regions recorded fine dust levels exceeding the "very bad" level of over 151 micrograms per cubic meter in the morning.

2. Ambassador to Australia Lee Jong-sup stepped down Friday, less than a month after he was named for the job. The announcement came amid criticism of his appointment and departure that came despite the fact that he was subject to an investigation.

3. During a session of the U.N. Security Council on Thursday, Russia vetoed a resolution to extend the mandate of a panel of experts monitoring sanctions on North Korea for a year, with China abstaining. Without the resolution, the panel's mandate is set to expire on April 30th.