Most Popular
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[Exclusive] Korean military set to ban iPhones over 'security' concerns
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Korean, Romanian leaders discuss defense tech, nuclear energy
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S. Korea calls on Japan to confront history amid Yasukuni Shrine visit
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Yoon’s jailed mother-in-law excluded from latest parole list
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Hybe and Min Hee-jin, CEO of Hybe sublabel Ador, lock horns
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[Herald Interview] 'Amid aging population, Korea to invite more young professionals from overseas'
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Korea’s homegrown nanosatellite successfully launches into space
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[Pressure points] Leggings in public: Fashion statement or social faux pas?
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Nicaragua shuts down Seoul embassy
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Rocket engine expert, ex-NASA exec to lead Korea's new space agency
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S. Korea's senior citizens suffer high rate of relative poverty: report
The relative poverty rate of South Korean senior citizens has been on the decline, but is still high among member countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) amid rapid aging, a report showed Wednesday. The relative poverty rate of South Koreans aged 66 or older came to 40.4 percent in 2020, down from 43.2 percent the previous year and 47.8 percent in 2011, according to the report on sustainable development goals by Statistics Korea. Relative poverty rate refers
April 6, 2022
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S. Korean shipbuilders rank first in Q1 new global orders
South Korean shipbuilders won half of new global ship orders in the first quarter of the year to take the top spot in the world, industry data showed Wednesday. Local shipyards, led by Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., clinched 4.57 million compensated gross tons (CGTs) in new orders in the January-March period, or 50 percent of the global total at 9.2 million CGTs, according to data from global market researcher Clarkson Research Service. It represents the first time in seven years that South Korea
April 6, 2022
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Internet-only K-Bank flies high after 5 yrs of operation
K-Bank, a South Korean internet-only bank, said Wednesday that it garnered more than 7.5 million customers in five years of its launch thanks to a steep increase in mid- and low-credit loans and the rising popularity of mobile banking. K-Bank has enjoyed brisk business growth in the recent years, as during the pandemic customers increasingly sought mobile banking, which provides easier access than offline branches. K-Bank's loans grew 1.56 trillion won ($1.28 billion) per year on average since i
April 6, 2022
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Galaxy S22 sales expected to top 1 million in S. Korea this week
Samsung Electronics Co. said Wednesday the sales of its latest Galaxy S series are expected to surpass 1 million units in South Korea later this week, two weeks faster than its predecessor did. The Galaxy S22 series was launched on Feb. 25 with three models -- the Galaxy S22, Galaxy S22 Plus and Galaxy S22 Ultra -- promising stronger performance for daytime and nighttime shooting, among others. Samsung said its latest flagship smartphone series passed 900,000 in sales earlier this month on its h
April 6, 2022
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Seoul stocks open lower on Fed's hawkish stance, supply disruption woes
South Korean shares opened lower Wednesday, tracking overnight falls on Wall Street, as a key US Fed member hinted at more aggressive monetary tightening. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) had lost 16.52 points, or 0.60 percent, to reach 2,742.68 as of 9:15 a.m. Overnight, the US stock market tumbled, after Federal Reserve Gov. Lael Brainard said the Fed would begin rapidly reducing its balance sheet in May and is preparing for "stronger" actions to bring down inf
April 6, 2022
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Kia vehicle sales jump 18% in India in March
Kia Corp., South Korea's second-biggest carmaker, said Wednesday its on-year vehicle sales jumped 18 percent in India last month on demand for its multipurpose model. Kia sold 22,622 vehicles in India last month, marking the biggest monthly sales figure since it entered the emerging market in August 2019, according to the company's sales data. The result was helped by increased sales of the Carens MPV. Sales of the Carens jumped to 7,008 units in March from 5,109 in February and 575 in January,
April 6, 2022
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ADB cuts 2022 growth estimate for S. Korean economy to 3%
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) on Wednesday lowered its 2022 growth outlook for the South Korean economy to 3 percent amid the upsurge in COVID-19 cases and the Ukraine crisis. The latest estimate by the Manila-based bank is lower than the 3.1 percent growth forecast made in December last year. The ADB forecast the South Korean economy will grow 2.6 percent next year. Despite the downward revision, the ADB assessed the South Korean economy is expected to "settle into more sustainable grow
April 6, 2022
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Sanctions on big S. Korean firms rise 10.4% in 2021
Domestic and foreign sanctions on big South Korean firms increased more than 10 percent on-year in 2021 with the amount of fines on them soaring over 50 percent, a corporate tracker said Wednesday. Local and overseas regulators imposed a total of 571 sanctions on 225 large corporations in Asia's fourth-largest economy, up 10.4 percent from a year earlier, according to CEO Score. The companies, which rank among the country's top 500 by sales, were slapped with a combined fine of some 887 billion
April 6, 2022
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S. Korea steelmaker Posco says its staff back in office as COVID rules ease
Most staff at South Korea's Posco have returned to their offices starting from Friday, a spokesperson of the steelmaker said on Tuesday, making it one of the first major firms in the country to implement back-to-office plans. Posco's move comes as South Korea weighs scrapping social distancing curbs altogether and explores living with COVID-19 amid declining infections. Previously, 50 percent of the company's office-based workforce had worked from home, while its plants in the southern port ci
April 5, 2022
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Shinsegae looks into whiskey business: reports
Shinsegae’s ambition to enter the soju business appears to have shifted to whiskey instead, as it reportedly submitted a trademark application last week, according to local reports Tuesday. Tentatively named Jeju Whiskey, the retailer is likely to introduce its new brand early next year, considering the application process that takes six to 12 months. According to Korea Customs Service, last year’s whiskey imports increased by 32.4 percent from 2020, on the back of rising demand fo
April 5, 2022
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Regulator says Google’s billing policy violates Korean law
The South Korean regulator on network and IT services said Tuesday that it has reached the conclusion that Google’s new payment policy violates the Korean law that prohibits app store operators from forcing app developers to use in-app payment systems. Based on its conclusion, the Korea Communications Commission will make a final ruling on whether Google’s new billing system is against the law after reviewing related cases based on the levels of coercion and unfairness. The regulato
April 5, 2022
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Korean ramen makers’ share prices on rise amid strong exports
Share prices of Korean ramen companies like Nongshim, Samyang Foods, and Ottogi are on the rise, as exports of Korean instant noodles hit new highs last month. Notably, foreign and institutional investors are demonstrating strong interest, according to analysts. Nongshim shares closed at 306,000 won ($252) apiece on Monday, up 2.68 percent from the previous session. The figure indicates a 9.42 percent rise in only half a month since its price stood at 281,000 won on Mar. 15. Institutional inv
April 5, 2022
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Yoon’s committee starts work on digitizing government work
The transition committee working for President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol on Tuesday discussed digitizing government work with outside experts after being briefed on digital efforts under the current Moon Jae-in government. A task force -- launched by the committee to deliver on Yoon’s promise to change the way the government works by embracing digital technology, mainly big data but also artificial intelligence -- held its first meeting to facilitate the digital shift before Yoon takes office
April 5, 2022
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Amid steep prices growth, Korea to expand fuel tax cut to 30% from May
SEJONG -- The Ministry of Economy and Finance said Tuesday that it would expand the rate of tax cut on fuel from the current 20 percent to 30 percent, temporarily from May to July, as a contingency plan to alleviate inflationary pressure. The measure, aimed at easing the cost burden on households and some businesses, was unveiled amid growing concerns over consumer price growth reaching the highest figure in more than 10 years. Announcing the plan at a ministerial meeting, Deputy Prime Ministe
April 5, 2022
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Kakao unveils ‘stock as gift’ service
Kakaopay Securities, the stock brokerage arm of Korea‘s mobile payment platform KakaoPay, said Tuesday it will launch a new service in June through which one can buy stocks as gifts with its payment platform that has over 37 million subscribers. “Users can give both domestic and foreign stocks to friends and family with a gift card featuring Kakao Friends characters,” said Kakaopay Securities co-CEO Lee Seung-hyo during an online press conference. Users receive the stock gift
April 5, 2022
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Korea’s top 20% own real estate 251 times more valuable than lowest
The gap between people categorized as South Korea’s wealthiest and the poorest groups has been growing sharply in recent years, with houses, buildings and land owned by the top 20 percent valued at an average 251 times higher than that owned by the bottom 20 percent, a report showed Tuesday. The report suggested pandemic-triggered inflation as a key reason behind the widening economic polarization. Koreans in the top 20 percent income bracket had real estate valued at a combined 1.2 bill
April 5, 2022
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SK hynix, Solidigm launch enterprise SSD for data centers
South Korean memory chip maker SK hynix and its US NAND flash memory solutions arm Solidigm have launched solid-state drives for data centers, the companies said Tuesday. The new product, called P5530, is their first collaborative effort since San Jose-based Solidigm‘s SSD business was acquired by the world’s second-largest memory chip manufacturer in December. P5530 will be a combination of SK hynix‘s 128-layer NAND flash technology with Solidigm’s SSD controller and
April 5, 2022
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From anti-aging to chip materials: Samsung unveils futuristic projects to fund
Samsung Electronics and its tech foundation said Tuesday they are spending a combined 48.65 billion won ($40 million) this year to fund 27 new research projects on futuristic technologies from anti-aging to new materials for chips. The tech giant has supported local researchers and their work through the Samsung Science & Technology Foundation since 2013. About 1.5 trillion won has been poured into supporting 735 projects involving 14,000 researchers at some 50 schools over the past decade
April 5, 2022
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9th International EV Expo to kick off in Jeju next month
The annual International Electric Vehicle Expo -- the largest exhibition on electric vehicles in the world -- will kick off next month, bringing industry experts and visitors from around the world to South Korea’s resort island of Jeju. Some 200 companies in the e-mobility sector are to participate in the exhibition, which kicks off on May 3 for a four-day run, according to the organizer. The list of participants includes Tesla and Volvo as exhibitors for the first time. A virtual exhibi
April 5, 2022
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National debt hits record high in 2021 amid pandemic
South Korea's national debt rose to a record high last year as the government boosted a debt sale to fund its expansionary fiscal spending to ride out the COVID-19 pandemic-caused slump, the finance ministry said Tuesday. The sovereign debt, which covers bond sales and financial borrowing by central and provincial governments, amounted to 967.2 trillion won ($796 billion) last year, sharply up 120.6 trillion won from the previous year, according to a report on the 2021 national settlement. The 2
April 5, 2022