Focus on Headline

1. South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol on Wednesday had his first face-to-face meeting with Japanese Prime Minister, Fumio Kishida, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly during which they both agreed on the need to improve Seoul-Tokyo ties.

2. The U.S. Fed hiked its interest rates by 75 bp for the third consecutive meetings on Wednesday, pushing the Korean currency exchange rate against the U.S dollar over the 1,400 Won mark on Thursday for the first time in 13 years and 6 months.

3. In a statement released by the Korean Central News Agency on Thursday, North Korea’s military said it has never supplied weapons to Russia and has no plans to do so, rejecting US claims of arms trade between Pyongyang and Russia.

1. In his 11-minute-long keynote speech at the UN General Assembly on Tuesday President Yoon Suk-yeol called for the protection of freedom and promotion of solidarity.

2. The South Korean Army held a large-scale training on Tuesday, the largest live-fire maneuver exercise in four years. 23 different types of weapons systems were involved, including K2 tanks, Apache helicopters, and K9 howitzers.

3. The environment ministry released a draft revision to the national green taxonomy guideline on Tuesday that includes nuclear energy in the list of government-labeled green economic activities.

1. South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol touched down in New York on Monday, local time,  after completing his schedule in London to deliver his first speech at the 77th session of the UN General Assembly.

2. South Korea’s Minister of Trade, Industry, and Energy, Lee Changyang(이창양) will arrive at Washington on Tuesday to discuss the impact of the Inflation Reduction Act and CHIPS and Science Act with US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo and other senior officials.

3. South Korea reported 47-thousand 9-hundred-17 new COVID-19 infections on Tuesday. The number of deaths and critically ill patients are also on a gradual slowdown, with 24 new deaths and 497 critically ill patients reported today.

1. South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol expressed his deep condolences to King Charles III for the death of Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace on Sunday, a day before her funeral, and said the Queen will forever be remembered for her lifetime dedication to defending peace and freedom.

2. President Biden in a CBS interview on Sunday repeated his claim that the US forces will defend Taiwan if there was an unprecedented attack by China.

3. The first regular session of the National Assembly under the Yoon administration kicked off on Monday with an interpellation. The four-day session runs through Thursday with the focus on national politics on the first day.

1. The South Korean won closed at 1,388.9 won against the US dollar on Friday, appreciating by 5.7 won from Thursday’s close due to government intervention.

2. China's third-highest-ranking official and chief of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, Li Zhanshu, arrived in South Korea on Thursday for a three-day visit for meetings with President Yoon Suk-yeol and National Assembly Speaker Kim Jin-pyo.

3. South Korea reported 51-thousand 8-hundred-74 new COVID-19 infections on Friday.  The head of South Korea’s COVID-19 response team, Jung Ki suk(정기석), said at a regular press briefing on Friday that the time has come to discuss the transition of the daily response system.

1. The South Korean won tumbled once again to 1,397.9 won against the US dollar during Thursday’s session, but the session closed at 1,393.7 won due to government intervention.

2. The head of the World Health Organization Dr. Tedros said Wednesday that last week’s number of coronavirus deaths worldwide was the lowest reported in the pandemic since March 2020. Meanwhile, South Korea reported 71-thousand 4-hundred-71 new COVID-19 infections on Thursday.

3. According to the Presidential office, the President Yoon Suk-yeol is expected to deliver his first UN General Assembly speech on the topic of South Korea’s responsibility to highlight the country’s role as a global leader.

1. The South Korean won fell once again against the US dollar to 1,395.5 won during Wednesday’s session. This is the lowest figure since March 2009. The benchmark KOSPI also fell below the 2,400 mark during Wednesday's session, prompted by the report on US consumer prices.

2.  According to Vice Defense Minister Shin Beom-chul on Tuesday, South Korea and the United States will discuss "concrete" steps to sharpen deterrence against North Korea's evolving military threats during their high-level security talks later this week.

3. National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications, John Kirby, said on Tuesday that more military assistance from the US will be sent to Ukraine in the coming days. Meanwhile, Ukraine took control of the entire Kharkiv region on Tuesday.

1. South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol will embark on a week-long overseas trip on the 18th, first to London to attend the state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II slated for the 19th. He will then travel to New York to deliver a speech to the United Nations General Assembly for the first time on the 20th. 

2. The Netflix original K-drama series, "Squid Game", won multiple Emmy Awards on Monday local time as the first non-English series, with South Korean actor Lee Jung-jae winning outstanding lead actor in a drama series and director Hwang Dong-hyuk taking the award for top director.

3. According to the data from the Korea Customs Service, South Korea's exports fell by 16.6% compared to the same period last year in the first 10 days of September mostly due to fewer working days over the Chuseok holiday.

We prepared a special interview for the day instead of Focus on Headline.

Right around the major holidays in Korea, we analyze the what the public think, and we call this the so-called, “dining table response” or “밥상머리” in Korean, which is very fitting considering how the whole family gather to eat and dine. And it is all the more fitting to find out the public sentiment across the country because this Chuseok, in particular, is the first holiday to return to normal without social distancing since COVID-19 hit Korea.

This is the first holiday since President Yoon’s inauguration, so let’s talk about the issues that families might talk about at the dining table with experts in two main categories: economy and politics.

We are going to talk about political issues with professor. Hong Sung-gul at the School of Public Administration at Kookmin University. Next, we are going to talk about economy with professor of Economic Yang Jun-sok from Catholic University.

1. Queen Elizabeth II, the longest-ruling British monarch, who ruled for seven decades, passed away on Thursday at the age of 96. Her eldest son Charles becomes King Charles III and the head of state of 14 other realms, including Australia, Canada, and New Zealand.

2. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on Thursday vowed that the regime would never abandon nuclear weapons during his speech at the Supreme People's Assembly.

3. South Korea reported 69-thousand 4-hundred-10 new COVID-19 infections on Friday, the first day of the Chuseok holiday which will be observed without social distancing measures for the first time since the pandemic began. KDCA advised people to postpone their visit to their hometowns if they show any COVID-19 symptoms.