Yonhap News Summary

The following is the first summary of major stories moved by Yonhap News Agency
on Tuesday.

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Diplomacy continues to free American journalists detained in N. Korea: State Dept.
WASHINGTON -- The United States is making diplomatic efforts to free two American
journalists detained in North Korea after being taken at the Chinese border last
week, the U.S. State Department said Monday.
"The North has confirmed that it's holding two American citizens, pending an
investigation," spokesman Robert Wood said. "We are working this diplomatically.
And I think the less that I can say -- less I say from here, the better. And let
me leave it at that."
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Obama urged not to overreact to N. Korean rocket, to revive missile talks
WASHINGTON -- The Barack Obama administration was urged Monday to refrain from
trying to intercept a North Korean rocket scheduled for launch in early April due
to fears over its negative impact on the six-party nuclear talks.
Frank Jannuzi, professional staff member of the Senate Committee on Foreign
Relations, also recommended that the Obama administration revive the missile
talks with North Korea suspended under the Bill Clinton administration.
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(LEAD) S. Korea, China to discuss countermeasures to N. Korea missile threat
SEOUL -- South Korea's chief nuclear negotiator said Tuesday that he will focus
on mapping out contingency plans in case of a North Korean missile launch with
his Chinese counterpart in talks later in the day.
"To be mainly discussed are measures before and after North Korea fires a
missile," Wi Sung-lac said shortly before flying to Beijing, where he will meet
China's Vice Foreign Minister Wu Dawei.
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(2nd LD) Seoul, Brussels reach tentative free trade accord
SEOUL -- South Korea and the European Union (EU) reached a tentative free trade
agreement and will seek to finalize the deal early next month, chief negotiators
from both sides said Tuesday.
South Korea, Asia's fourth-largest economy, and the EU, the world's
single-largest economic bloc, began the talks in May 2007, with differences over
industrial tariffs and auto trade initially hampering progress. Advances were
made, however, on those and other issues during the seventh round of negotiations
in May last year.
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(LEAD) S. Korea's March trade surplus to hit record US$4.5 bln: minister
SEOUL -- South Korea's trade surplus is likely to reach a record US$4.5 billion
in March thanks largely to a sharp drop in imports, a senior government official
said Tuesday.
Knowledge Economy Minister Lee Youn-ho told local business leaders and economic
analysts that preliminary reports by the Korea Customs Service (KCS) showed
imports plummeting 40.3 percent in the first 20 days of this month compared to a
13.4 percent drop in exports.
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S. Korea OKs big extra budget to revive economy
SEOUL -- The government approved a 28.9-trillion won (US$20.7 billion) extra
budget on Tuesday in its latest move to bolster domestic demand and jumpstart the
fast slumping economy.
The amount is equivalent to 3 percent of the nation's gross domestic product
(GDP) and the largest ever since 1998 when the nation drew up a 13.9 trillion won
supplementary budget in the wake of the Asia-wide financial meltdown, according
to the Ministry of Strategy and Finance.
(END)