Articles by Kim Yon-se
Kim Yon-se
-
[News Focus] Will Democratic Party defend its 82 seats in capital area?
SEJONG -- The general election for the 21st National Assembly is coming up in about 300 days, and it will be a crucial moment when ordinary people get their chance to assess the Moon Jae-in administration.Currently, few people expect the results of the parliamentary election to mirror those of the 2018 local elections, when the ruling Democratic Party of Korea scored a landslide victory over its main rival, the Liberty Korea Party. According to a variety of pollsters, President Moon’s
Politics June 13, 2019
-
[News Focus] 1 in 6 car buyers choose import brands
SEJONG -- The automobiles segment was one of the few hot-button issues during South Korea’s respective negotiations for a free trade agreement with the United States and the 28-member European Union.The Korea-EU FTA and Korea-US FTA, which took effect in July 2011 and March 2012, respectively, heralded the era of import cars in the nation under eased tariff barriers. Market insiders say that German carmakers -- the most popular import brands in Korea -- have been propelled forward in
Industry June 11, 2019
-
[News Focus] Korea seeks to raise GDP, employment figures by spending more of taxpayers’ money
SEJONG -- The Moon Jae-in government recently unveiled a policy to pay 3 million won ($2,550) over a six-month period, or 500,000 won a month, to a certain portion of jobless people aged 18-64 after assessing their household income levels.It has also decided to provide financial support for self-employed people who have had to close their businesses, according to the Ministry of Employment and Labor.Officials say the purpose of this support is to assist the recipients’ job-seeking activiti
Economy June 9, 2019
-
[News Focus] 17% of Seoul citizens reside alone in 2019
SEJONG -- A core demographic change in South Korea in recent years is the rapidly growing number of single-person households.The trend is especially strong in Seoul as younger people working in the capital seem more reluctant to get married amid uncertainty over finances, job security and their prospects of being able to purchase apartments. According to the Ministry of Interior and Safety, the number of single-person households in Seoul was 1.51 million five years ago in May 2014, when the
Social Affairs June 6, 2019
-
[News Focus] No pension at 65? Will payouts be delayed as Korea’s population ages?
SEJONG -- It has been 31 years since South Korea introduced the national pension, and 20 years since it became a universal program in April 1999.The number of policyholders for government-administered annuity products offered by the National Pension Service now comes to more than 22 million. Among those policyholders, subscribers paying into the state pension via their workplaces in the form of mandatory deductions accounted for the dominant proportion, or 62.3 percent. Their numbers totale
Social Affairs June 4, 2019
-
[News Focus] National debt up W56 trillion since late 2017: Assembly data
SEJONG -- Compared with past governments, the Moon Jae-in administration has been actively increasing public expenditure to benefit jobless people in their 20s and early 30s.However, many have cast doubt on the efficacy of its strategy of pouring dozens of trillions of won in taxpayer money into job creation over the past two years since May 2017.This year, the incumbent government is struggling to prevent the economic growth rate from falling sharply by proposing a supplementary budget bill, dr
Economy June 2, 2019
-
[News Focus] Moon, ruling party lose support from wider brackets, regions: polls
SEJONG -- Poll results released Tuesday show that the main opposition Liberty Korea Party may have overtaken the ruling Democratic Party of Korea in terms of approval ratings, though the gap is negligible.Pollster R&Search surveyed 1,000 people nationwide in coordination with media outlet Asia Today, asking questions such as, “Which party would you vote for if the general election were held tomorrow?” While 37.7 percent of the respondents picked the Democratic Party, 38
Politics May 30, 2019
-
[News Focus] Unemployment-benefit payment surges 58% during Moon’s term
The number of South Koreans applying for unemployment benefit (also dubbed job seekers’ allowance) have rapidly increased in the wake of widespread small business closures and rising jobless rates.According to the Ministry of Employment and Labor, the unemployment rate as of April 2019 came to 4.4 percent, higher than the 3.8 percent recorded both in April 2014 and April 2009. According to the Korea Employment Information Service, the government’s monthly payment of unemployment
Social Affairs May 28, 2019
-
Amet Actio successfully registers with US regulator
Amet Actio Technology, the American subsidiary of South Korean firm CPE Cell, said Tuesday it has registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission for its greenhouse-gas reduction project to tackle global warming.Being registered means securing credibility among global investors. Amet Actio plans to launch a systematic security token offering in an active way for the development of a certified carbon emissions transaction project.According to US federal laws, STO tokens registered with the
Industry May 28, 2019
-
[News Focus] Online shopping expands more than 100% in 3 years
SEJONG -- South Koreans have sharply increased their shopping through computers and smartphones in recent years, which is taking up more than 20 percent of their total consumption.The rapid growth of online shopping transactions has been backed by systematic parcel delivery services, which send products to consumers across the country in one to three days.Almost every kind of product -- from drinking water, food and cosmetics to clothing, home appliances and furniture -- are available on online
Economy May 26, 2019
-
[News Focus] Korea’s farming population decreases 42% since 2000
SEJONG -- South Korea saw the number and percentage of population engaged in agriculture continue to drop, though the number of urbanites returning or turning to farming has notably increased over the past decade.According to Statistics Korea, the number of farm population (farming-household population in official) stood at 2.31 million as of 2018, which is a decline by about 750,000 individuals in the 2010s, compared to 3.06 million in 2010. Further, given 4.03 million recorded in 2000, th
Social Affairs May 23, 2019
-
[News Focus] Manufacturers’ production capacity slides to mid-2016 levels: index
SEJONG -- The manufacturing industry has come to a standstill in output and productivity that could further weaken the nation’s already lackluster economic growth, which has suffered as a result of sagging exports and weak private consumption.According to Statistics Korea, the manufacturing production capacity index stood at 101.4 in February 2019 -- the lowest level in 33 months, since May 2016, when it posted the same figure. Though the index inched up to 101.6 in March 2019 (the la
Economy May 21, 2019
-
[News Focus] In efforts to curb apartment prices, rate hikes seemingly pushed aside
SEJONG -- The Moon Jae-in government has repeatedly expressed its commitment to lower housing prices in Seoul, amid an extraordinary situation in which many apartments surged in price more than 50 percent from late 2016 through 2018.Most of its anti-speculation measures have been mapped out by the Finance Ministry, the Land Ministry and the Financial Services Commission.But the presidential office has refrained from seeking to normalize apartment prices by normalizing interest rates. This is des
Economy May 20, 2019
-
[News Focus] Surging Sejong population appeals to mega-shopping malls, hospitals
SEJONG -- It is now seven years since the government relocated numerous ministries and agencies to the newly developed special autonomous city of Sejong, neighboring the northwestern part of Daejeon, as part of its efforts to decongest Seoul.Sejong has 14 dongs -- administrative divisions -- including Eojin-dong where the Government Complex is located, one eup -- town -- and nine myeons –- townships. (Graphic by Heo Tae-seong/The Korea Herald)Though the city is rapidly expanding, its infrastruct
Social Affairs May 16, 2019
-
[News Focus] Soaring elderly population outnumbers Busan, Daegu, Daejeon combined
SEJONG -- The government has embarked on research into whether it should raise the threshold at which it considers people senior citizens from the current 65 years old to 70.Though South Korea has followed UN standards stipulating the age of seniors, the recent move to fine-tune it comes amid rapid growth in the percentage of Koreans who are aged 65 or above.A decade ago, 10.39 percent of Koreans were aged 65 or over -- 5.15 million out of 49.59 million citizens, according to the Ministry of Int
Social Affairs May 14, 2019
Most Popular
-
1
Key suspects grilled over alleged abuse of power in Marine death inquiry
-
2
Marine Corps commander summoned by CIO for questioning on alleged influence-peddling case
-
3
Army takes group action against Hybe for neglecting BTS
-
4
Debate rages over ‘overly fatty’ samgyeopsal
-
5
Some junior doctors are returning: Health Ministry
-
6
Ador CEO's request for exclusive right to terminate NewJeans' contract with Hybe refused in February
-
7
[Weekender] Korean psyche untangled: Musok
-
8
Naver will consider company benefits in deciding on selling Line shares: CEO
-
9
Woman dangling from power lines rescued by residents holding blanket
-
10
Hyundai Motor aims to lead hydrogen truck business in US