South Korea's government asked Samsung Electronics to extend the refund period for its Galaxy Note 7 smartphones that have been subject to an unprecedented global recall.

The Korean Agency for Technology and Standards, the government agency responsible for product safety and recalls, has not approved Samsung's smartphone recall plan because its measures on how to remove Note 7s already in the market were inadequate, Nam Taek-joo, the agency official said yesterday. The agency asked Samsung earlier this week to say how long it could extend the refund period for consumers who missed Monday's deadline. Nam said the agency made the request because "the plan to remove hazards in the markets is insufficient."