Welcome to Arirang News.
This is Key Kim.
We start with the top headlines at this hour.
1.
Beginning with the annual Security Consultative Meeting between Seoul and Washington that kicked off today here in Seoul.
Defense Minister Shin Won-sik {신원식}... and his U.S. counterpart Lloyd Austin... are touching upon... ways... to bolster... extended deterrence... against Pyongyang's provocations.
Also on their agenda... is the transfer... of wartime operational control... from Washington to Seoul... as well as trilateral security cooperation among Seoul... Tokyo... and Washington.
Seoul's recent suspension of its September 19th military pact with Pyongyang is also expected to be addressed.
2.
Defense chiefs of South Korea, the U.S. and Japan held talks at Seoul's defense ministry on Sunday,... and agreed to start operating a real-time data sharing scheme on North Korean missiles by the end of December.
South Korea's defense minister {신원식} Shin Won-sik sat down on Sunday with U.S. Secretary of State Lloyd Austin, who arrived in Seoul the day before.
Japanese Minister of Defense {미노루 기하라} Minoru Kihara joined the meeting online.
During the meeting, they confirmed that their plans to exchange missile warning data are in the final stages of testing.
The warning data includes the missile's launch point, speed, flight trajectory and expected point of impact.
The three countries have been working on the scheme for about a year,... after their leaders agreed to share this kind of information during the summit in Cambodia last November, to improve each country's ability to detect missiles from North Korea.
3.
President Yoon Suk Yeol is poised to partake in the U.S.-led Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity... this coming Thursday... on the sidelines... of the APEC summit... in San Francisco.
The framework was launched in May... last year... and seeks... to boost... cooperation... on supply chains... trade... climate... and governance.
South Korea... Japan... Australia... Thailand... and Vietnam... are among the current 14 members... striving for a... quote... "connected... resilient... clean... and fair economy".
Members have... thus far... agreed... on supply chain collaboration.
4.
The United Arab Emirates sees South Korea's green industries such as agritech as viable areas for future cooperation.
Talking to Arirang News on Thursday, UAE Minister of Economy Abdulla Bin Touq Al Marri said that Seoul-Abu Dhabi economic ties have progressed to an unprecedented level.
In October, South Korea and the UAE concluded talks to sign a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, a bilateral free trade deal that is Seoul's first with a Middle Eastern nation.
In a bid to boost global investment, the UAE amended a law to allow foreign entrepreneurs to set up businesses in the UAE without local shareholders' involvement.
He said the UAE is interested in doing more business with South Korean companies in green industries as part of efforts to secure a sustainable economic future.
Minister Al Marri, during talks with his counterpart at the Ministry of SMEs and Startups on Wednesday, discussed South Korean companies participating in industrial clusters in the UAE.
4.
South Korea's economy continues to struggle with inflation.
While consumer prices have slowed down,... the burden on everyday consumers has not yet eased.
This is why,... the South Korean government has decided to closely manage 28 agricultural and food items of which prices have the most impact on consumers.
Some of the items include bread, milk, and flour,... and take-out foods like hamburgers, pizza, and chicken.
Also,... agricultural products like rice, cabbage, and apples have seen the highest price rises.
The government plans to do its best to stabilize prices by closely managing the cost of items that are often sought after by everyday consumers.
According to Statistics Korea on Sunday,... the consumer price index for milk last month was at 122-point-zero-three,... up 14-point-3 percent from the same month last year.
Meanwhile,
Public transport fares here... also saw... a surge... of almost 10-percent... on year... in October.
According to Statistics Korea... this latest hike... is the highest... in nearly 17 years... and comes amid... the additional late-night surcharges... for taxis... as well as... increases in fares... for buses... and subways... in August... and October... respectively.
6. Lastly to local bourse,
South Korean stocks closed lower than the week before .
Korea’s benchmark KOSPI fell 5 – point – 9 – 0 points
to close at 2-thousand-4-hundred-03-point- 7 - 6
whereas KOSDAQ fell 12 – point – 2 – 4 points
closing at 8-hundred-10-point-5-4
Moving to weather forecast,
A mix of snow and rain in mountainous regions in Jeju has stopped, and it'll get sunnier on the island as the day goes on while Gyeongsangbuk-do Province and nearby areas are under dry weather alerts.
Afternoon highs will go up a couple of degrees higher than Sunday this afternoon. Seoul and Chuncheon top out at 7 degrees, Busan sees highs of 13 degrees. Sunny skies expected nationwide today.
We will stay below the norms this week then Suneung, the college entrance exam will be held this Thursday, instead of chill there will be rain in most places on the big day.
59:30’
The current temperatures are:
_______ degrees in Seoul
_______ degrees in Pyeongchang
_______ degrees in Busan
And _______ degrees on Jejudo Island
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