The Korea Herald

[Graphic News] Number of foreign subscribers to state health insurance soars in 2019

NationalFeb 17, 2020

　The number of foreign subscribers to the state health insurance program surged in 2019, topping the 1 million mark, after Korea required long-term-stay foreigners to sign up for it. 　According to data from the National Health Insurance Service, there were slightly over 1.21 million foreign subscribers to the mandatory health insurance plan last year, up some 266,000 from the previous year. Last year marked the first time the figure surpassed 1 million. 　The number had been on a steady ri
At least 3 killed on icy roads as snow blankets nation

Social affairsFeb 17, 2020

The heaviest snow so far this winter hit most parts of South Korea on Monday, disrupting road traffic and causing flight cancellations. At least three people were killed as cars crashed on icy roads, while nearly 40 were injured. Dozens of flights to and from the provinces of Jeju, Gangwon, Jeolla and Gyeongsang have either been canceled or delayed. Around 20 vehicles piled up inside a tunnel on a highway connecting Suncheon and Wanju in North Jeolla Province at 12:23 p.m., leaving three peo
Park Shin-hye says ‘Call’ a never-before-seen mystery thriller

FilmFeb 17, 2020

Actress Park Shin-hye will be returning to the big screen for the first time in three years with “Call,” a movie she describes as the tensest and fiercest among those in which she has acted. “There are stories that stimulate my imagination as I read on. They make me wonder how alike or different those imaginations will be when the stories are actualized on the set,” Park said at a press conference in Seoul on Monday. Park exclaimed she got goosebumps just reading the s
“Crash Landing on You” ends with tvN’s highest ratings yet

TelevisionFeb 17, 2020

“Crash Landing on You,” tvN’s Saturday-Sunday drama, came to an end Sunday, breaking its own viewership record and scoring the highest ratings for any tvN drama. The final episode of the 16-part romantic comedy starring Hyun Bin and Son Ye-jin saw its ratings peak at 24.1 percent, with the average viewer ratings for the whole series standing at 21.7 percent, according to Nielsen Korea. It set a record for the South Korean drama powerhouse tvN. Previously, “Guardian: T
Government steps up virus screening as risk of community spread looms

Social affairsFeb 17, 2020

New case with unclear transmission path stuns officials
[Keenan Fagan] Time for a temporary travel ban

ViewpointsFeb 17, 2020

Recently, President Moon has expressed confidence that South Korea can control the novel coronavirus outbreak with its quarantine system and that its threat to the country will soon subside. However, there is an increasing threat of a major outbreak of COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) in the Republic of Korea because flights carrying passengers from much of stricken China continue to arrive. To contain the threat of outbreak here, it is time for the Moon administration to consider a temporar
[Editorial] Ruling party’s arrogance

EditorialFeb 17, 2020

Democratic Party drops accusations against columnist amid criticism over freedom of expression　
[James Jay Carafano] The Pentagon’s three headaches

ViewpointsFeb 17, 2020

Secretary of Defense Mark Esper doesn’t have much gray hair. Just wait. He has some monumental challenges ahead. Even if Esper has the backing of the president, and Trump gets reelected, the Pentagon has a daunting to-do list. If the secretary plans to leave the common defense stronger than it was when he came aboard, he’ll have to overcome three big problems. Big Problem No. 1: All bets aren’t covered. There are three vital areas of operations for the US: Europe, Greater M
[Ivo Daalder] China’s secrecy has made coronavirus crisis much worse

ViewpointsFeb 17, 2020

For eight years, China’s President Xi Jinping has trumpeted his country’s increasingly authoritarian system as a grand model for other developing countries to follow. No doubt, China has seen an extraordinary period of economic growth, which has benefited hundreds of millions in China and around the world. But authoritarianism has also come at great cost, as the rapid spread of the novel coronavirus underscores. In two months, the virus has spread throughout China and beyond. More t
Lime investors face tough compensation fight

MoneyFeb 17, 2020

Investors in beleaguered hedge fund Lime Asset Management are facing a bumpy road to get compensation for their losses. By no later than Friday, every investor in the hedge fund is expected to find out their confirmed individual losses in their combined 1.7 trillion-won ($1.4 billion) investment made under the convoluted master-feeder fund structure -- involving four master funds and 173 feeder funds as of end-2019. The losses of Lime Asset’s feeder funds may vary, but in some cases be
Moon calls on government to focus on reducing economic impact of virus

PoliticsFeb 17, 2020

Finance Ministry reveals plans to support budget airlines
Coronavirus tips help stop the flu

Social affairsFeb 17, 2020

Tips on preventing the spread of the new coronavirus, which causes a respiratory disease now called COVID-19, also seem to be helping control influenza in South Korea. According to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Sunday, the number of flu patients stood at 16 per 1,000 outpatients in the second week of February. That represents a 67 percent decline from the season’s peak of 49, recorded in the fourth week of December. The number of flu patients had steadily decl
Number of foreign nationals in Korea surpasses 2.5m

Social affairsFeb 17, 2020

The number of foreign nationals in South Korea reached a record 2.5 million in December, government data shows. According to the Korea Immigration Service on Monday, there were 2.5 million foreign nationals on short- or long-term visas here as of December 2019, up 3.7 percent from a month earlier. From a year ago, the tally increased by 6.6 percent. Foreign citizens now account for 4.9 percent of Korea’s population. Korea’s foreign population has risen steadily since it hit the
[Monitor] Six out of 10 Korean firms anticipated worsened business from coronavirus

IndustryFeb 17, 2020

Six out of 10 Korean companies expect their business to worsen due to the novel coronavirus outbreak, a survey released by the Korea Economic Research Institute showed. The survey, conducted by Mono Research on the top 1,000 companies by revenue, showed that 61.8 percent of them said the outbreak will hamper their overall revenue and exports. Among those with production facilities in China, 83.9 percent said they will be hurt by the virus. A prolonged pandemic will hurt the auto industry the
Zico's 'Any Song' rules S. Korean music charts backed by viral cover dance videos

K-popFeb 17, 2020

Zico, a rapper and music producer, became the latest K-pop sensation as his latest hip-hop number, "Any Song," topped weekly domestic music charts for the fourth week in a row. The hypnotic song topped the Gaon weekly digital chart, operated by the Korea Music Content Association, for the week of Feb. 2-8, securing its fourth week atop the chart. Since its release on January, "Any Song" has stayed on top of daily digital song charts of major online music streaming service