Yonhap News Summary

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

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(3rd LD) 4.5 magnitude quake strikes off east coast

SEOUL -- A 4.5 magnitude earthquake struck off the east coast city of Donghae on Monday, the 35th one the same area has experienced in about three weeks, leading to residents reporting shaking and sparking concerns it might signal a stronger temblor could be coming.

No damage has been reported after the quake occurred in waters 59 kilometers northeast of Donghae, 182 km east of Seoul, at 6:27 a.m., according to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) and fire authorities.

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(2nd LD) S. Korea to hike Q2 electricity, gas rates by 5.3 pct on high costs, losses

SEOUL -- South Korea will raise second-quarter electricity rates and gas prices by 5.3 percent on-year on high global energy costs and mounting losses of state utility companies, the industry ministry said Monday.

The government will jack up the electricity rates for consumer and industrial use by 8 won (US$0.01) per kilowatt hour (kWh) for the second quarter, compared with a 13.1 won increase per kWh in the first quarter of this year, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

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S. Korea, U.S. conduct joint analysis on possible Korean War remains

SEOUL -- South Korea and the United States began joint regular identification work Monday on possible remains of American soldiers killed during the 1950-53 Korean War, Seoul's defense ministry said.

The two-day examinations on the remains suspected to be those of four U.S. soldiers got under way between officials from the ministry's war remains excavation team and the U.S. Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) at the team's office in southern Seoul.

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PPP to launch own investigation team over opposition lawmaker's cryptocurrency scandal

SEOUL -- The ruling People Power Party said Monday it plans to launch an internal task force to look into suspicions surrounding cryptocurrency dealings of opposition lawmaker Kim Nam-kuk.

Kim has come under fire following revelations he owned around 800,000 Wemix coins in 2021, worth around 6 billion won (US$4.5 million), a significant amount inconsistent with his frugal image. Suspicions have arisen over where the money came from and whether he used insider information.

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S. Korea, Indonesia to discuss stronger ties on nuclear energy, key minerals

SEOUL -- South Korea and Indonesia will discuss ways to boost bilateral cooperation on nuclear power generation, supply chains of major minerals and other advanced industry sectors, Seoul's industry ministry said Monday.

First Vice Industry Minister Jang Young-jin is on a four-day trip to Jakarta from Sunday for talks with senior Indonesian officials, including the country's economic minister, Airlangga Hartarto, and energy minister, Arifin Tasrif, on industry issues of mutual interests, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

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N. Korea slams U.S. for being behind Japan's military 'collusion' with NATO

SEOUL -- North Korea said Monday the United States is behind Japan's move to seek military "collusion" with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), denouncing Washington for aiming to build a military bloc in the Asia-Pacific region.

Kim Sol-hwa, a researcher of the Institute for Japan Studies of the North's foreign ministry, said Japan's "unprecedented" military ties with NATO have sparked "great" concerns in the international community.

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Latest LPGA champion Ko Jin-young attributes playoff win to luck

SEOUL -- After rallying from a four-stroke deficit to claim her 15th career LPGA title in a playoff, South Korean star Ko Jin-young attributed her win to luck.

Ko defeated Minjee Lee of Australia on the first hole of the sudden-death playoff to win the Cognizant Founders Cup in Clifton, New Jersey, on Sunday (local time).

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