Yonhap News Summary

Yonhap News Summary
The following is the second summary of major stories moved by Yonhap News Agency on Wednesday.

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Fate of N. Korea's nuclear fuel rods undecided: Seoul envoy
SEOUL -- South Korea has yet to decide whether to buy unused fuel rods stored at
North Korea's main nuclear site, a Seoul government official said Wednesday as he
headed to Pyongyang for discussions on handling the fissile material.
North Korea said earlier that it has some 14,000 unused fuel rods, each one
measuring about 60 centimeters long, at the Yongbyon nuclear complex. The total
amount is reportedly equivalent to 100 tons of uranium.
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(LEAD) Seoul shares end 1.28 pct higher on financial, auto gains
SEOUL -- South Korean stocks closed 1.28 percent higher Wednesday as investors
scooped up financial shares and automakers, shrugging off concerns over dimmer
corporate earnings outlooks, analysts said. The local currency rose against the
U.S. dollar.
Reversing earlier losses, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI)
advanced 14.97 points to 1,182.68. Volume was moderate at 353.6 million shares
worth 3.9 trillion won (US$2.89 billion), with gainers outpacing losers 544 to
265. The index gained ground for the second straight days.
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(2nd LD) S. Korea's jobless rate rises to 3.3 pct in Dec.
SEOUL -- South Korea's jobless rate rose in December with job growth shrinking
for the first time in more than five years as the economy is sharply slowing, a
government report showed Wednesday.
The unemployment rate was 3.3 percent last month, up from the previous month's
3.1 percent, according to the report by the National Statistical Office.
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(LEAD) Gov't mulls support for GM Daewoo parts suppliers
SEOUL -- The government may move to help struggling parts suppliers of GM Daewoo
Auto & Technology if a global economic downturn continues to hurt production, the
commerce ministry said Wednesday.
GM Daewoo, majority-owned by U.S. automaker General Motors Corp., was forced to
temporarily halt operations in December, dealing a blow to its contractors. Its
vehicle sales in 2008 dropped 8 percent on-year to 881,959 units.
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Ssangyong Motor's suppliers appeal for help
SEOUL -- About 150 direct suppliers to Ssangyong Motor Co. pleaded with creditors
and the Seoul government on Wednesday to provide financial assistance to the
beleaguered carmaker.
Ssangyong, the South Korean unit of China's Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp.
(SAIC), has halted production at its only assembly plant indefinitely since
applying for court receivership to avoid bankruptcy.
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(LEAD) Eximbank aims at raising US$7.2 bln abroad this year
SEOUL -- South Korea's state-owned trade bank said Wednesday it aims to raise
US$7.2 billion this year in overseas markets in a bid to help local exporters
cope with tight financing conditions.
"We plan to pursue two-track overseas funding down the road. We will sell
so-called G3 currency denominated bonds at an appropriate time and tap non-dollar
markets to diversify funding sources," Chin Dong-soo, chairman of the
Export-Import Bank of Korea (Eximbank), told a press conference. G3 currencies
refer to the U.S. dollar, the euro and the yen.
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Seoul schools to highlight security, sovereignty in inter-Korean study material
SEOUL -- Seoul schools will adjust the way they teach inter-Korean relations from
an emphasis on reconciliatory understanding between South and North Korea to
stressing the importance of national security, city education officials said
Wednesday.
The announcement by the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education (SMOE) comes amid
increasing calls to revise history and civics materials to reflect a more
"balanced" perspective since the inauguration of the conservative administration
last year.