Seoul, Jan. 19: The military establishment in North Korea has admitted over the weekend that it had "weaponised" enough plutonium for roughly four to six nuclear bombs.

The New York Times quoted scholar Selig Harrison as saying that North Korean officials had revealed this fact to him, certifying what US intelligence officials have already said that North Korea had harvested enough fuel for six or more bombs.

Seoul - Samsung, South Korea's leading electronics company, will merge its four major departments into two groups as a response to the ongoing economic downturn, the company reported Friday.

The semiconductor and liquid crystal display (LCD) divisions will merge, as will the telecommunication and digital media divisions, according to the company.

The company also announced a series of staff changes, including plans to cut top managers' salaries by 20 per cent. Bonuses will also be reduced.

Seoul - Shares surged 2.2 per cent Friday on the Seoul stock exchange after recent losses. South Korea's currency rose against the dollar.

Seoul - North Korean dictator Kim Jong Il has, according to South Korean media reports, named the youngest of his three sons as his successor.

Kim issued an order on January 8 to the leadership of the communist Workers' Party that Kim Jong Un should take his place, South Korean news agency Yonhap reported on Thursday, citing intelligence reports.

The decision to name Jong Un, believed to be around 25 years old, came earlier than expected amid reports of the worsening of Kim's health.

Seoul - The chief executive of leading South Korean steel company POSCO tendered his resignation Thursday, amid a darkening outlook for the world's fourth-largest steelmaker, a statement said.

Despite an earnings increase in 2008 of 38 per cent due to higher global sales prices, the company warned of production cuts and earnings decreases this year.

Chief executive Lee Ku Taek is to leave the firm in February, saying that he wished to make room for a new leadership at the firm.

Lee said that the business environment has become erratic due unstable currency and raw material prices.

Seoul  - North Koreans are watching South Korean-made film and TV drama DVDs in growing numbers, challenging the iron-fisted media control that has effectively isolated 23 million North Koreans from the outside world.

North Korea observers in Seoul estimate that a trickle of the media influx into the otherwise isolated North Koreans has become a stream, despite harsh penalties for those who violate censorship rules.