A South Korean panel of experts said Monday that the vaccine for the novel coronavirus by US pharmaceutical company Moderna Inc. showed more than a 94 percent efficacy rate and is eligible for use. The advisory board consisting of outside experts announced its review on the efficacy and safety of the Moderna vaccine, according to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. The panel's review is the first step of three separate independent evaluations before the ministry gives final approval. The p

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases rose by the smallest number in a week on Monday due to fewer tests over the weekend, but health authorities remained worried over a potential spike amid spreading variant cases. The country reported 463 more COVID-19 cases, including 436 local infections, raising the total caseload to 127,772, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. Monday's figure fell from 564 Sunday and 701 Saturday as fewer people took virus tests over the week

Korea’s fight against the pandemic is strained by fresh opponents: variants

4.3 million Koreans de facto unemployed

Mayor Choi Dae-ho helps expand city’s international network, undertaking first-ever projects and spearheading measures to fight COVID-19

A man in his 30s was arrested early Sunday on suspicion of abusing his 2-year-old adopted daughter to the point she fell unconscious with bleeding in her brain, police said. According to the Gyeonggi Nambu Police Agency, the girl was already unconscious when her adoptive father brought her to a hospital near Hwaseong, about 40 kilometers south of Seoul, on Saturday evening. After determining she was in a serious state, hospital workers sent her to a larger hospital in Incheon, 40 km west of Se

More than 43,000 Koreans petition against foreign residents’ suffrage

Nearly 70 percent of South Koreans believe that the use of a vaccination passport, which proves that a person has been fully vaccinated against the virus, will help the economy, a poll showed Sunday. The poll from the Federation of Korean Industries, a major business lobbying group here, showed 67.4 percent expect the adoption of the passport will vitalize the economy. With the passport, 36.4 percent said they would like to take trips overseas, with 41.2 percent of them pointing to Europe as t

A third plane carrying South Koreans arrived from India on Sunday, transporting 164 business officials out of the virus-ravaged country. The special flight operated by Asiana Airlines arrived at Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul, from New Delhi, mostly carrying officials who had been sent to oversee the construction of a new Samsung Display plant. South Korea has flown two special flights out of India in recent days -- one from Chennai carrying 172 Korean residents and another from

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases fell back below 600 on Sunday mainly due to fewer tests as health authorities try to boost the nationwide vaccination drive to contain the spread. The country reported 564 more COVID-19 cases, including 522 local infections, raising the total caseload to 127,309, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. Sunday's figure was sharply down from 701 from the previous day. The daily caseload usually spikes after weekends as more people g

Former Prime Minister Lee Han-dong died of a chronic disease Saturday at the age of 87, his close aide said. "The former prime minister died at his home at around noon," the aide told Yonhap News Agency. Lee served six terms as a lawmaker from 1981-2000 and as the prime minister from 2000-2002 under then President Kim Dae-jung. In 2002, he made an unsuccessful presidential bid with a pledge to eradicate regionalism and corruption. In 2004, he was indicted without detention on charg

Students at the College of Agriculture and Life sciences at Kangwon National University practice rice planting at Kangwon National University’s subsidiary farm in Chuncheon, Gangwon Province.  A farmer plants rice seedlings using a rice transplanter machine in a field in Taean, Chungnam, for the first rice-planting in Taean this year. (Photos: Yonhap) By Yoon Chae-won (choenayoon@heraldcorp.com)

Children make paper carnations at a kindergarten attached to Hanil Elementary School in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province. Namdaemun Flower Market is crowded with people purchasing flowers for Parents’ Day.  Park Sung-soo, the mayor of Songpa-gu, and staff from the Songpa-gu Saemaeul Women’s Society deliver carnations and kimchi to a senior citizen living alone in southeastern Seoul.  (Photos: Yonhap) By Yoon Chae-won (choenayoon@heraldcorp.com)

Two prominent biological scientists in South Korea have been named as foreign members of the Royal Society of Britain, the scientific academy said. Professors Kim V. Narry of Seoul National University and Lee Sang-yup of KAIST (Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology) became first South Koreans to join the Royal Society, according to its announcement Thursday (local time). Founded in 1660, the society is one of the most prestigious and oldest institutes in the field of science. It h

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases rose back to the 700s for the first time in 10 days Saturday as the country remains on alert for a potential upsurge in variant cases. The country reported 701 more COVID-19 cases, including 672 local infections, raising the total caseload to 126,745, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said in a statement. The daily caseload reached 488 on Monday on fewer tests over the weekend and stayed under 700 from Tuesday to Friday. There wer