South Korea News Blog @newzblogz.com

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) -- Motorola Inc. started selling the next generation model of its popular, ultra-slim Razr cell phone in South Korea Friday, ahead of a global launch scheduled for July. "We're releasing our new phone in the Korean market first in recognition of tech-savvy and fashion-aware Korean consumers," Motorola Korea Inc. said in a statement. The new phone, called "Razr2," will be available via SK Telecom Co., Korea's largest wireless carrier by revenue. It retails at about 580...

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SEOUL, South Korea - South Korea and the United States have agreed on final changes to their free trade agreement, paving the way for its signing on June 30, the prime minister's office said Friday.Prime Minister Han Duck-soo told managing editors of major newspapers and broadcast outlets that Seoul and Washington had agreed to change parts of the agreement to include new U.S. labor and environmental standards for free trade agreements, his office said.Han said the agreement was reached and "tra...

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NEW YORK (AP) -- Internet addresses ending in ".asia" will be open to governments and trademark owners starting in October, with general registrations coming in 2008. The initial round, which starts Oct. 9, is limited to governments desiring geographical names such as "china.asia" and those with trademarks applied before March 16, 2004, and actively in use. Registrations for other trademarks and for company names begin Nov. 13. The Internet's key oversight agency for domain names, the Intern...

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PYONGYANG, North Korea --U.N. nuclear monitors returned Friday from a trip to North Korea's plutonium-producing reactor, saying the facility has not been shut down yet but that they were satisfied with their visit there.

The team returned to Pyongyang from the Yongbyon reactor complex, about 60 miles northeast of the North Korean capital, Kyodo News agency reported from the city.

"We visited all the places which we were planning to," IAEA Deputy Director Olli Heinonen said in footage shot by APTN. He added: "The cooperation was excellent and now we continue the meetings ... in Pyongyang."

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U.S. and Panamanian officials signed a trade and investment agreement in a ceremony at the Organization of American States Thursday in a low-key prelude to what the White House hopes will be an easy passage through Congress and into law.

Both U.S. Trade Representative Susan C. Schwab and Panamanian Minister of Commerce and Industry Alejandro Ferrer lauded the agreement, which took three years to negotiate and will lower tariffs, strengthen investment rules and attempt to harmonize business practices in the two countries.

The administration is racing a Saturday midnight deadline to conclude all aspects of pending free-trade deals. That is when the president's power to negotiate agreements under an expedited Congressional review process expires.

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