By Lee Joon-seung

SEOUL, March 3 (Yonhap) -- South Korean stocks started sharply lower Tuesday as investor sentiment took a beating from overnight Wall Street plunges, analysts said.

SEOUL, March 3 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's corporate bond issuance rose 10.5
percent in February from a month earlier on increased cash needs amid an economic

By Byun Duk-kun
AUCKLAND, New Zealand, March 3 (Yonhap) -- South Korea and New Zealand will soon
hold their first round of negotiations on concluding a trade pact, possibly

SEOUL, March 3 (Yonhap) -- Total earnings by life insurers operating in South
Korea tumbled 55.5 percent on-year in the first three quarters of fiscal 2008,

(ATTN: DELETES para 5 saying N. Korea demanded removal of UN Command; ADDS
participants of Wednesday's talks in para 6, statement by S. Korean defense
spokesman in para 8)

SEOUL, March 3 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's foreign exchange reserves inched down in
February due to a stronger U.S. dollar, but managed to stay above the

(ATTN: UPDATES with Bosworth's meeting with Russian officials in paras 4-6)
By Hwang Doo-hyong
WASHINGTON, March 2 (Yonhap) -- The U.S. pointman on North Korea, Stephen

SEOUL, March 3 (Yonhap) -- As independent feature film "Old Partner
(Warnangsori)" continues to set new records in South Korea's

SEOUL, March 3 (Yonhap) -- Russian Vice Foreign Minister Aleksei Borodavkin, who heads the country's delegation to the six-way talks on North Korea's nuclear program, will visit South Korea next we