Yonhap News Summary

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

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(LEAD) S. Korea to expand caregiving to seniors in their homes

SEOUL -- The government on Tuesday announced a blueprint that centers on providing better treatment and caregiving to seniors in their homes amid a rapidly aging population.

Under the "Community Care" policy spearheaded by the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the government will establish a working system by 2025 so that seniors will be looked after more thoroughly.

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S. Korea well prepared to deal with U.S. monetary normalization

SEOUL -- The South Korean economy is well-prepared to deal with fallout from the ongoing U.S. monetary normalization thanks to its stable financial system and solid growth, the head of an international organization said Tuesday.

The U.S. central bank earlier announced its monetary normalizing plan, steadily raising its fund rate to a range of 2 percent to 2.25 percent from near zero. And it is widely expected to lift the rate by a quarter percentage point in December.

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Samsung hosts forum on AI platform Bixby in Seoul

SEOUL -- Samsung Electronics Co. on Tuesday hosted a forum on its artificial intelligence (AI) platform Bixby in Seoul, emphasizing the necessity of inviting more developers to expand the AI assistant's ecosystem.

"Bixby is a platform that can expand freely," Samsung Electronics Vice President Chung Eui-suk, who leads the project, said during Bixby Developer Day. "By 2020, all Samsung devices will support Bixby."

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Kakao Pay's investment products sell out on 1st day

SEOUL -- Kakaopay Corp., a South Korean mobile payment platform provider, said Tuesday that four investment products sold out in just four hours and 20 minutes on the first day of launch.

On Monday, the company said it will launch a new service called Kakao Investment, allowing users to invest in various financial projects, ranging from crowdfunding, bonds and stocks to funds, through KakaoTalk mobile messenger service.

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(LEAD) S. Korea set to formalize shutdown of 'comfort women' foundation

SEOUL -- The South Korean government is expected to announce a decision this week to dismantle a controversial foundation related to Japan's wartime sexual enslavement of Korean women, an official said Tuesday.

The planned shutdown of the Reconciliation and Healing Foundation, funded by Japan, is seen as Seoul's move to effectively discard a 2015 accord between the neighboring countries on the "comfort women" issue.

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S. Korea set to formalize shutdown of 'comfort women' foundation

SEOUL -- The South Korean government is expected to announce a decision this week to dismantle a controversial foundation related to Japan's wartime sexual enslavement of Korean women, an official said Tuesday.

The planned shutdown of the Reconciliation and Healing Foundation, funded by Japan, is seen as Seoul's move to effectively discard a 2015 accord between the neighboring countries on the "comfort women" issue.

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Former KBO slugger to extend playing career in Australia

SEOUL -- After getting released by a South Korean baseball club last month, slugger Choi Joon-suk has found a lifeline in Australia.

Choi will join Geelong Korea, the new entry in the Australian Baseball League (ABL) this season, for the team's four-game series against the Melbourne Aces starting Nov. 29, Geelong Korea officials said Tuesday.

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Chief prosecutor appeals to redress atrocities against vagrants

SEOUL -- Prosecutor-General Moon Moo-il on Tuesday filed an emergency appeal against a court ruling made 30 years ago that acquitted the chief of a vagrants' detention facility notorious for slave labor, violence, rape and hundreds of mysterious deaths.

The prosecution is currently reinvestigating allegations of illegal confinement and mistreatment of inmates at the "Brothers Welfare Center" in the southeastern city of Busan in the 1970s and '80s.

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N. Korea destroys 10 DMZ guard posts

SEOUL -- North Korea exploded 10 guard posts in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) Tuesday as part of an inter-Korean agreement to withdraw them to reduce tensions and prevent accidental clashes, Seoul's defense ministry said.

The explosion occurred at around 3 p.m. after the North notified the South on Sunday of the demolition plan.

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USFK chief vows full support for strong alliance

SEOUL -- The new top commanding general of American troops in South Korea said Tuesday he will make every effort to beef up the allies' combined defense posture.

In an introductory meeting with Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha, Army Gen. Robert B. Abrams said, "The alliance is ironclad."

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(LEAD) Jeju Air inks US$4.4 bln deal for 40 new Boeing planes

SEOUL -- Jeju Air Co., South Korea's biggest budget carrier by sales, said Tuesday it inked a US$4.4 billion deal for 40 new planes, with the delivery set to begin in 2022.

Jeju Air has decided to buy Boeing Co.'s new B737 MAX passenger jets to strengthen its fleet, the company said in a statement.

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(LEAD) President Moon to attend G20 summit in Argentina

SEOUL -- South Korean President Moon Jae-in will travel to Argentina next week to take part in the annual Group of 20 summit, his office Cheong Wa Dae said Tuesday.

The president will leave the country on Tuesday to first visit the Czech Republic. He will head to Buenos Aires on Nov. 29 for the G20 summit slated to be held Nov. 30-Dec. 1, according to Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Kim Eui-kyeom. Moon will then make a three-day state visit to New Zealand from Dec. 2.
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