- United Democratic Party and Grand National Party made concessions today to agree keeping Ministry of Gender Equality and Family intact and scrapping Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries.

- Christopher Hill was awarded this morning the Distinguished Order of Diplomatic Service from the government for his efforts in solving North Korea’s nuclear problems and contribution to better relations between Seoul and Washington.

- Consumers stocked up heavily with instant noodles on the news that some snack companies raise noodle prices as much as W100. Big marts like EMart and Home Plus have seen their noodles sold out. An official at Lotte Mart says Shinramyeon(신라면) would be out of stock in ten days.

- PM nominee Han Seung-soo said, attending his confirmation hearing this morning, he would do his best in ‘resource diplomacy’ if officially appointed. “Securing resources is not the matter of today or tomorrow but the problem that we have to solve in consideration of the future of our economy.

- Twenty-five per cent of 350 Korean companies working in China are found to have seriously considered withdrawing from the country and 3.1 per cent is currently preparing for leaving China, according to a research by Korea Chamber of Commerce. 85.8 per cent think business environment in China will deteriorate, compared to only 3.9 per cent which paints a rosy picture. Labor management is the biggest challenge facing Korean companies doing business in China with 43.1 per cent, followed by constant changes in laws and regulations (21.4 per cent), and difficulty in adapting to the local market (13.3 per cent.)

- Special inquiry team is investigating into the claim by a former SDS employee that Samsung SDS has amassed tens of billions of won in secret money in the name of ‘managing computer system’ for the last five years.