South Korea holds emergency meeting on new barriers to trade in China

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January 17, 2017

The South Korean government held an «emergency meeting» on Tuesday in response to China’s enforcement of new trade barriers, following Seoul’s decision to jointly deploy a U. S. missile defense system on the peninsula.
According to Seoul’s trade ministry, for the first time government officials met with business executives representing the automobile, tourism and cosmetics industries to discuss challenges and countermeasures, local news service EDaily reported Tuesday.
South Koreans have grown concerned Beijing may have been boycotting K-Pop artists and Korean companies in China.
South Korean airlines, including Asiana and Jeju Air, have not been allowed to dispatch charter flights to and from China, and electric carmakers that use Samsung or LG batteries have been excluded from Chinese government subsidies, according to the report.
China has also banned the import of 28 cosmetic products, and 19 of them are of South Korean origin.
South Korean Finance Minister Yoo Il-ho had said at a separate meeting on Sunday that Seoul has noticed «trade problems with China are surfacing in various ways. »
«We will do our best to communicate and persuade through various economic cooperation channels between Korea and China… [and] actively deal with trade disputes with China that are against international norms,» Yoo said.
The U. S. missile defense system THAAD is being deployed on the Korean peninsula because of North Korea provocations that have included dozens of ballistic missile tests in 2016.
Seoul is also guarding against North Korea’s submarine-launched ballistic missiles, and is considering the acquisition of 12 maritime helicopters to have ready for deployment by 2023, News 1 reported Tuesday.
Models under consideration include the AgustaWestland’s AW-159, the MH-60R Seahawk, and NHIndustries’ NH-90.
South Korea’s acting President and Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn said Tuesday Seoul continues to support sanctions to pressure Pyongyang on weapons, but also to encourage North Korea to change its policy, Yonhap reported on Tuesday.
Hwang made the remarks to a gathering of top diplomats in Seoul, including outgoing U. S. Ambassador Mark Lippert, according to the report.

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© Source: http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2017/01/17/South-Korea-holds-emergency-meeting-on-new-barriers-to-trade-in-China/1561484670030/
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Samsung embroiled in South Korea money and power scandal

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January 17, 2017

The family-run conglomerate is still reeling from last year’s Galaxy Note 7 recall, its patriarch is on his death bed, and prosecutors on Monday sought the arrest of his son and heir on charges of bribery, embezzlement and perjury.
When Lee Jae-Yong emerged from a marathon 22-hour questioning session last week, his taut, fixed hint of a smile gave nothing away, seemingly characteristic of the electronics giant’s opaque leadership.
«There is this widespread perception that the Lee family is above the rule of law,» said Shim Jung-Taik, an author of several books on Samsung and its corporate culture.
«Many South Koreans hope that prosecutors investigating the case will prove that wrong,» he said.
Samsung, whose turnover is equivalent to a fifth of South Korea’s GDP, is one of several sprawling conglomerates, known as «chaebols», that dominate the country’s economic landscape.
The chaebols are credited with powering Seoul’s state-directed growth in the 1970s and 80s, pulling the war-ravaged nation out of poverty.
But critics say their founding families run them less as global firms and more as private fiefdoms that enjoy deep-rooted ties to the government.
When millions of people took to the streets to demand the ouster of now impeached President Park Geun-Hye in the latest bribery scandal, they also demanded the paymasters be punished.
«Street rallies of unprecedented magnitude apparently convinced lawmakers and prosecutors that they could no longer ignore the public anger over corporate corruption,» Shim told AFP.
Lee, vice chairman of flagship subsidiary Samsung Electronics, was hauled in over accusations he bribed Park’s secret confidante Choi Soon-Sil with nearly $40 million to seek policy favours.
If convicted he could been sentenced to several years in prison, but powerful businessmen have previously met lenient fates in South Korean courts.
Lee’s own father, Samsung’s longtime patriarch Lee Kun-Hee, who is credited with turning the once-obscure manufacturer into a global powerhouse, was found guilty in 1996 of bribing former President Roh Tae-Woo.
He was given a suspended jail term, but received a presidential pardon a year later.
Lee senior was convicted of tax evasion and breach of duty in 2008 for creating secret slush funds worth billions of dollars — again receiving a suspended jail term and another presidential pardon.
The Lee family directly own only five percent of Samsung shares but control the group via a complex web of cross-shareholdings between group subsidiaries.
Samsung allegedly bribed Choi to secure a state approval for the controversial merger of two Samsung units in 2015, seen as a key step to ensure a smooth succession for Lee.
Many external investors opposed the deal, saying it wilfully undervalued one of the firms involved. But it went through after Seoul’s state pension fund voted in favour.
«Such lack of transparency is Samsung’s biggest weakness that makes it vulnerable to outside criticism… or to political pressure» to offer bribes, said Kim Sang-Jo, economics professor at Hansung University.
The timing of the crisis could have not been worse for the 48-year-old Lee, who has struggled to prove he deserves to take over the firm from his bedridden father.
Last year’s recall of the Galaxy Note 7, when the world’s top smartphone maker was forced to discontinue its flagship handset over exploding batteries, damaged the son’s nascent leadership.
Lee’s two sisters — especially Lee Boo-Jin, 46, who leads the group’s fast-growing hotel business — have proven to be capable managers, while some critics suggest Lee has «a Minus touch» after several of his pet projects fizzled out.
Lee’s absence might have a limited impact on the day-to-day operations of Samsung, where each unit has its own CEO and overall business strategies are set by an elite team of executives at its Future Strategy Office.
But in the long term, Samsung’s future hinges on reform of its byzantine governance structure, Kim said, adding Lee appeared to be more willing to listen to critics than his father.
The group said last year that it was considering splitting Samsung Electronics into two units, as suggested by many critics including the US activist hedge fund Elliot Management.
«Samsung should learn a hard lesson from this whole crisis that it should reinvent itself as a truly global, transparent entity,» said Kim, «whether Lee Jae-Yong goes to jail or not».

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© Source: http://www.timeslive.co.za/scitech/2017/01/17/Samsung-embroiled-in-South-Korea-money-and-power-scandal1
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North Korea vows to pursue weapons development, condemns new sanctions

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January 17, 2017

North Korea is resisting pressure to denuclearize and vowing to continue the «parallel development» of weapons of mass destruction alongside economic growth.
Pyongyang is standing firm following a U. S. decision to blacklist Kim Jong Un ‘s younger sister for her propaganda activities.
Seoul also decided recently to accelerate plans for a special assassination unit targeting the North Korean leadership.
State-controlled news agency KCNA announced on Tuesday the policy of parallel development, or Byungjin, is the «truth, and the banner of victory. »
«If you challenge the truth, you are destined for ruin,» the North Korean statement read. «By continuing to keep the line of Byungjin steady, we will rise as a great political power, military power, socialist economy and civilization. »
North Korea has continued to send out messages that include threats to launch an intercontinental ballistic missile. But it is also calling on the United States to change its policy.
But ahead of U. S. President-elect Donald Trump ‘s inauguration on Friday, Washington has instead pursued further sanctions against the Pyongyang regime, including blacklisting Kim Yo Jong, who is reportedly the vice director of the propaganda department of the Korean Workers’ Party.
On Tuesday, North Korea condemned the «second round of sanctions» being enforced by the U. S. Treasury Department.
«On Jan. 11, the Obama faction…sanctioned 7 North Korean individuals and 2 of our institutions,» the KCNA statement read. «The purpose of the additional sanctions is intended to hurt the image of the pure [North Korea]. »
Pyongyang added, «Obama should not waste his time on anyone’s ‘human rights,’ and devote his time to packing his belongings at the White House, while repenting for the pain and misery of countless Americans and citizens of the world. »
North Korea did not provide a basis for its claims, neither has the country allowed outside inspectors to verify testimonies from defectors who say they have witnessed summary execution, rape, torture or forced labor under the regime.
In a separate statement, Pyongyang said South Korea’s special assassination unit would be its «first target» should war erupt on the peninsula, according to South Korean news service News 1.

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© Source: http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2017/01/17/North-Korea-vows-to-pursue-weapons-development-condemns-new-sanctions/6551484661998/
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Thelma Schoonmaker, Janet Ashikaga To Be Feted by American Cinema Editors

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January 17, 2017

The American Cinema Editors organization has announced that veteran cutters Janet Ashikaga and Thelma Schoonmaker will be honored with Career Achievement awards at the 67th annual ACE Eddie Awards later this month.
Ashikaga has won four Emmys throughout her career for work on multi-camera series like “Seinfeld” and “Sports Night.” She has been ACE-nominated seven times, for those series as well as “The West Wing” and “My Name is Earl.”
Schoonmaker, meanwhile, has been tied to filmmaker Martin Scorsese for most of her career, winning Oscars for “Raging Bull,” “The Aviator” and “The Departed.” She won ACE awards for those three films as well as “Gangs of New York,” and was nominated by the organization four times besides.
Schoonmaker and Scorsese’s latest collaboration, “Silence,” is currently in theaters.
“Janet Ashikaga and Thelma Schoonmaker have helped create some of the most iconic films and television programs in entertainment,” the ACE Board of Directors said in a joint statement. “While their resumes alone are deserving of recognition and celebration, their commitment to the film editing community and shining a light on the craft of film editing is also noteworthy. For these reasons and more, we are thrilled to honor them with Career Achievement awards for their indelible contributions to the craft and community of film editing.”
The 67th annual ACE Eddie Awards will be held Friday, Jan. 27.

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© Source: http://variety.com/2017/film/in-contention/thelma-schoonmaker-janet-ashikaga-to-be-feted-by-american-cinema-editors-1201960943/
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Why is Daniel Hannan's banner pic a work of science fiction? Labour must learn the secrets of the Scottish Conservatives

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January 17, 2017

Since Daniel Hannan, a formerly obscure MEP, has emerged as the anointed intellectual of the Brexit elite, The Staggers is charting his ascendancy…
People out there in the big wide world are often helpful enough to point me towards Daniel Hannan’s latest brainfarts. He’s pretty prolific, but some of his work seems so boneheaded that I’ll get the same link sent to me by two, three, or, on one occasion, five different people.
This week it was this particular tweet – a retweet from last September; it’s all repeats on the internet these days – that everyone seemed keen to point me towards.
It’s like Ayn Rand has been reincarnated in the form of 15 year old hoping to study PPE at Oxford, isn’t it? That tweet suggests a world view so comfortingly simple that nobody actually needs money, and if you try to tax anyone anything they might decide to stop earning any in a fit of pique. (At time of writing, incidentally, Daniel Hannan has yet to resign his job as a Member of the European Parliament.)
If I get too far into this one, though, there’s a danger I’ll find myself attempting to disprove the assumptions of classical economics through the medium of sarcasm, and while I’m not shy about my own abilities to bullshit, I think that may be a bit beyond me. So instead I’m just going to leave it there for everyone to marvel at while we talk about flags.
Daniel Hannan’s header has been annoying me for months now, because it clearly takes place in a parallel universe in which the Anglosphere is a real thing rather than just the masturbatory fantasies of a certain type of free market ideologue. It combines the flags of the UK, US, Australia, Canada and New Zealand, into a single red, white and blue monstrosity: the fact that one of Britain’s best known Eurosceptics uses this as his banner pic implies, at least to me, that he thinks this is what we should have instead of the EU.
At first glance, the assumption here seems to be that Britain’s natural allies are all the other countries who speak English. Except it clearly isn’t that, because a lot of other countries also speak English – Ireland, India, South Africa, to name but three – yet are mysteriously missing from the flag.
A better definition might be that it’s the bits of the British Empire where our forefathers planted their own colonies and attempted to wipe out the natives, rather than simply lording it over them through a combination of divide-and-rule and Maxim guns. More charitably, it’s the places that have a slightly misty-eyed relationship to the same stuff – free markets, Magna Carta, the notion that Britain invented freedom – that Dan himself does.
The notion of the Anglosphere is not entirely without foundation: these five countries constitute the Five Eyes intelligence alliance, which implies a certain degree of closeness, and there’s a fair amount of military co-operation too. In the event of a nuclear holocaust, indeed, one of the instructions British prime ministers can leave for their nuclear subs is, basically, “You are now Australian. »
But nonetheless oh my god, mate, are you actually high? The Anglosphere is not a political unit – outside the world of George Smiley and GI JOE, it might as well not exist – and the idea of a US that is increasingly a) diverse but b) protectionist going anywhere near that kind of thing is just delusional. Dan is basically just saying he’d be happier if Britain’s primary allies were countries which we founded, which speak English, and which contain depressingly high concentrations of people who agree with him.
I was going to end with a crack about how the Anglosphere flag was such a work of science fiction that Dan might as well employ the flag of Star Trek ’s United Federation of Planets or, if that was too lefty, the Terran Federation from Blake’s 7 (at least everyone there speaks English). But I’ve had a better idea. There is another rainy, sea-faring kingdom in a popular work of fantasy that recently took advantage of continent-wide chaos to break away from a larger political unit. In what may or may not a foretaste of things to come, it later used it as an excuse to attack its former allies.
I am talking, of course, about the Iron Islands from Game of Thrones .
What is dead may never die.
If Labour wants to recover as a political force, in Scotland or nationally, it must do the hard work of selling voters on a British, progressive party. But some in both the SNP and Labour sense a shortcut — a «progressive alliance».
Progressives might be naturally cautious about taking advice from a Conservative, but anybody covering Scottish politics for a Tory website is very familiar with life in the doldrums. And there are a few things to be learnt down there.
First, as Scottish Labour members will tell anyone who listens , the SNP talk an excellent progressive game, particularly on any area where they’re in opposition. But in government the Nationalists have simply navigated by two stars — differentiating Scotland from England to the greatest extent possible, and irritating as few people as possible , all in order to engineer support for independence.
Independence itself would, according to nearly all objective assessments, involve a sharp adjustment in Scottish public expenditure, and painful consequences for those who depend on it. Yet this does little to dent the SNP’s enthusiasm. All their political reasoning is worked out backwards from that overriding goal.
There is no reason to believe that the nationalists’ priorities at Westminster would be any different. Joining the SNP in «progressive alliance» would be a poison pill for Labour.
For the larger party would be in a double bind. Govern cautiously, respecting the relative weakness of the left in England and Wales, and the SNP will paint its coalition partner as «Red Tory», taking credit for whatever was popular in Scotland and disowning the rest.
But drive through a more radical programme with SNP votes (presumably after dismantling «English Votes for English Laws»), and risk permanently alienating huge sections of the electorate south of the border. Those Miliband-in-Salmond’s-pocket pictures would be just the start.
Scottish Labour is familiar with the reality of the SNP in power. But that’s not to say it isn’t making its own mistakes. Too often, it tries to strike the same sort of bargain with small-n nationalism.
Constitutionally-focused politics isn’t kind to social democrats, as Irish Labour will tell you. So it’s clear why Scottish Labour leader Kezia Dugdale would wish to believe that there is a split-the-difference constitutional position which would, as this article has it , offer “an escape from the black and white world of referendum politics”.
But incantations about «federalism» and «home rule» aren’t going to save Labour. They’re an attempt to appeal to everybody, and are neither intellectually nor politically adequate to the challenge facing the party.
Holyrood is already one of the most powerful sub-state legislatures on earth, so «federalism» is at this point mostly a question of how England is run. If “more powers” were actually going to stop nationalism, we’d have seen some evidence of it during the last 20 years.
And as political tactics go, it won’t woo back voters whom the SNP have persuaded that independence is a progressive cause, but it will alienate voters who care about the union.
Here, Scottish Labour should learn from the Conservatives. The leader in Scotland, Ruth Davidson, realised that voters were always going to have better non-Conservative options on the ballot paper than the Tories, so there was no way back that didn’t involve selling voters on Conservatism. A new Conservatism in important respects, but nonetheless a British, centre-right party.
Labour too must recognise that they are never going to be a more appealing option than the SNP to voters who believe separatism is a good idea. Instead, they must sell voters on what they are: a British, centre-left party. The progressive case for Britain, and against independence, is there to be made.
Labour needs to sell the United Kingdom, and the Britishness underlying it, as a progressive force. As long as left-wing voters remain attached to independence and the SNP, despite all the implications, Labour will be marginalised and the union in danger.
Henry Hill is assistant editor of ConservativeHome, and has written their Red, White, and Blue column on Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland since 2013. Follow him @HCH_Hill.

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© Source: http://www.newstatesman.com/politics/staggers/2017/01/why-daniel-hannans-banner-pic-work-science-fiction
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Australian family rescued after night on Japanese mountain

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January 17, 2017

An Australian woman and her three sons have been rescued after going missing while skiing in Japan. They were reported missing late on Monday after failing to return to Nozawa Onsen ski resort on Mount Kenashi.

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Buy Netflix because subscribers will surge in 2017 as cord-cutting accelerates, Mizuho analyst says

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January 17, 2017

Investors should buy Netflix shares on the prospect of strong subscriber growth in the coming year, according to Mizuho Securities, which raised its rating on the streaming giant to buy from neutral.
«We believe there is material room for international subscriber growth and contribution profit growth, even without material gains in Asian markets,» analyst Neil Doshi wrote in a note to clients Monday. «Furthermore, we like the moats around original content, and as cord-cutting increases, we see NFLX as a beneficiary. We like the setup for 2017 and beyond. »
Netflix will report fourth quarter financial results on Wednesday, according to its website.

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© Source: http://www.cnbc.com/2017/01/17/buy-netflix-because-subscribers-will-surge-in-2017.html
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Aerospace Robotics Market 2016 — Global Forecast to 2022: KUKA, FANUC, ABB, Yaskawa Electric & Kawasaki Heavy Industries Dominate the $4.52 Billion Industry — Research and Markets

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January 17, 2017

11:10 ET
Preview: FI Delivery Channel Ecosystem Report: Crafting a Customer Experience — As More Americans Become Digital Natives, Financial Institutions Must Become Reacquainted with Consumers — Research and Markets
11:10 ET
Preview: Asian Animation Industry Report 2017: Strategies, Trends and Opportunities — Increasing Focus Towards Production of Local Animation Content for Television as Well as Production of Animated Movies — Research and Markets

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© Source: http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/aerospace-robotics-market-2016—global-forecast-to-2022-kuka-fanuc-abb-yaskawa-electric—kawasaki-heavy-industries-dominate-the-452-billion-industry—research-and-markets-300391805.html
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Tourists Flock to Japan, but Keep Their Wallets Closed

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January 17, 2017

TOKYO—Tourists are flooding into Japan in record numbers, but spending growth has slowed sharply in part because Chinese visitors are shying away from expensive items such as jewelry.
The Japan National Tourism Organization said Tuesday that a record 24 million foreign tourists came to the country in 2016, nearly double the figure two years earlier. Visitors from China, Taiwan and Hong Kong combined make up slightly more than half…

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Wife of Pulse shooter charged with aiding and abetting

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January 17, 2017

The wife of the Pulse Nightclub shooter was arrested Monday in Rodeo seven months after her husband, Omar Mateen, opened fire inside the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, killing 49 people. When she appears in federal court in Oakland Tuesday morning, it’s likely the indictment will be unsealed. We will know more about how the FBI came to charge her in connection to the deadliest mass shooting in U. S. history. The U. S. Attorney’s Office says Noor Salman has been charged with aiding and abetting Mateen in the deadly attack on the Pulse Nightclub in Orlando. They say that provided material support to ISIL, the terror group also known as Isis. «She’s being charged with aiding and abetting in materially aiding the criminal act,» said Legal Analyst Christian Picone. «So she could be prosecuted in essence as a principal. As if she were the person who went to the nightclub. «The Orlando shooter reportedly texted his wife during the attack and she accompanied him on at least one trip to a gun shop as he bought ammunition. «She could face whatever maximum sentence that her husband, had he not been killed, would have faced,» Picone told ABC7 News. Salman’s attorney, Linda Moreno, released a statement to ABC News:FBI agents arrested Salman at her parents’ home in Rodeo Monday morning. «It was 7:30, 7:45 when I heard the commotion,» said neighbor Glauber Franchi. «People walking around, car doors slamming and the dogs went off like crazy, but they never came to my door. «Salman, 30, grew up in Rodeo and married the Orlando gunman in the Bay Area in 2011.