[Graphic News] Gold bar sales at all-time high

　Investors are buying more gold as prices rise to an all-time high. 　According to the banking industry, gold bars sold at KB Kookmin, Hana, Woori and NH Nonghyup from April 3-6 stood at 2.49 billion won ($1.89 million). 　Gold bar sales at the four major banks increased from 1.98 billion won in January to 3.29 billion won in February and 3.95 billion won in March. 　Gold prices have risen as investors kept an eye on safe assets due to instability in global financial markets.

MarketApril 14, 2023

[Graphic News] Russia’s murder rate rises for first time in 20 years

　The rates of murder and attempted murder in Russia increased last year for the first time in 20 years in what some analysts suggest is a knock-on effect of the country’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine, according to the Russian daily newspaper Kommersant. 　The number of murders and attempted murder cases in Russia in 2022 was 7,628, up 4 percent from 7,332 in the previous year. 　The data showed a significant rise in murder rates in the Russian regions that border Ukraine. 　The number of c

World NewsApril 13, 2023

[Graphic News] Nearly 70% of Americans are ‘afraid’ of self-driving cars: survey

Despite recent advancements in autonomous vehicle technology, Americans are growing increasingly wary of the safety of self-driving cars. AAA released the results of its annual automated vehicle survey, finding that nearly 70 percent of respondents were afraid of self-driving cars, while less than 10 percent fully trusted them. These numbers represent a significant shift from last year’s survey results, with the number of respondents fearful of self-driving cars spiking by 13 percentage po

World NewsApril 12, 2023

[Graphic News] Americans divided over criminal charges against Trump

The prosecution of former President Donald Trump has evenly divided Americans but appears to have boosted his chances of winning the Republican nomination for the 2024 election, according to a recent Reuters/Ipsos poll. The poll was conducted between April 5-6, following the indictment of Trump by prosecutors in New York City on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. The survey found that 49 percent of all Americans think it was right for prosecutors to pursue the indictment, the first

World NewsApril 11, 2023

[Graphic News] Lahore is most polluted city, Chad worst among countries: survey

Lahore in Pakistan jumped more than 10 places to become the city with the worst air quality in the world in 2022, according to an annual global survey by a Swiss air purifier manufacturer. The report published by IQAir also said that Chad in central Africa had replaced Bangladesh as the country with the most polluted air last year. IQAir measures air quality levels based on the concentration of lung-damaging airborne particles known as PM2.5. Its annual survey is widely cited by researchers and

World NewsApril 10, 2023

[Graphic News] Young workers’ debt levels soar in 2021

Debt held by South Korean salaried workers in their 20s jumped 15 percent on-year in 2021, much higher than the 7 percent growth on average for all salaried workers, data showed. Bank and nonbank loans extended to salaried workers in the country averaged 52.02 million won ($40,107) per person as of the end of 2021, up by 3.4 million won from a year earlier, according to the data from Statistics Korea. It is the first time that salaried workers’ per capita debt surpassed 50 million won sinc

Social AffairsApril 3, 2023

[Graphic News] French bulldog is favorite dog breed in US

The American Kennel Club said registration data from 2022 revealed French bulldogs are now the most popular variety of purebred dogs in the US, ending the Labrador retriever’s 31-year reign. The AKC said Labrador retrievers have topped its yearly list of the most popular dog breeds in the United States for 31 consecutive years, but French bulldogs clinched the top spot for the first time. French bulldogs were the second most popular breed in 2021, and Labrador retrievers were booted down t

World NewsMarch 31, 2023

[Graphic News] Major school shootings in US

A 28-year-old woman shot dead three children and three adults at a private Christian school in Nashville, Tennessee, on Monday, before police killed her. The incident is one of the latest mass shootings at US schools. In January, a first grader shot and killed his teacher in Virginia, and on March 22, two school administrators were shot dead during a Denver high school shooting.

World NewsMarch 30, 2023

[Graphic News] Auto exports hit record high in February

South Korea’s car exports jumped nearly 50 percent in February on-year to reach an all-time high on the back of solid demand for eco-friendly cars. The value of outbound shipments of automobiles came to $5.59 billion last month, up 47.1 percent from a year earlier, according to the data from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. It is the highest monthly figure, with the previous record being set in December last year when exports stood at $5.42 billion. In terms of volume, exports s

IndustryMarch 29, 2023

[Graphic News] S. Korea’s beef imports hit record high in 2022

South Korea’s imports of beef reached a record high last year on growing demand for the meat and the government’s zero-tariff scheme, data showed. The country’s beef imports came to 477,000 metric tons in 2022, the largest volume ever, compared with 453,000 tons a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Rural Economic Institute. Beef imports have been on a constant rise in recent years, and last year’s figure marked a 60 percent growth from that in 2015, the in

MobilityMarch 28, 2023

[Graphic News] List of world leaders who have visited Ukraine

　Japan’s Fumio Kishida met President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv on March 21 during a rare, unannounced visit by the Japanese leader that underscored Tokyo’s emphatic support for Ukraine in its fight against Russia’s invasion. 　The Japanese prime minister had been the only leader of the Group of Seven rich nations yet to visit Ukraine, which has seen an outpouring of popular support in Japan following the Russian invasion. 　On Feb. 20, US President Joe Biden also swept unann

World NewsMarch 24, 2023

[Graphic News] Internet banking customers up 8.5% in 2022

The umber of customers who use internet banking in South Korea continued to grow in 2022, thanks to increased availability of online services and people’s preference to make transactions on the go, Bank of Korea data showed. Registered customers for mobile banking totaled some 207.04 million at the end of last year, up 8.5 percent from a year earlier, according to the data from the BOK. The figure includes customers who hold multiple accounts. The daily average transactions made through in

MarketMarch 23, 2023

[Graphic News] Hate crimes in US surged 11.6% in 2021, fueled by racial, ethnic bias

Hate crimes in the United States surged 11.6 percent in 2021, with the largest number motivated by bias against Black people, followed by crimes targeting victims for ethnicity, sexuality and religion, the FBI said in a report. The FBI said reported hate crime incidents rose to 9,065 in 2021 from 8,120 in 2020. The bureau said 64.5 percent of hate crime victims in 2021 were targeted because of their race, ethnicity or ancestry bias, while 15.9 percent were targeted because of sexual-orientation

World NewsMarch 22, 2023

[Graphic News] Number of corporate M＆As in S. Korea down 7.7% in 2022

Mergers and acquisitions by South Korean firms decreased 7.7 percent in 2022 from a year earlier amid economic uncertainties, data showed. The number of mergers came to 1,027 cases last year, down from 1,113 cases tallied in 2021, according to the Fair Trade Commission. They were valued at 325.5 trillion won ($245.9 billion), down 6.7 percent over the period. It marked the first time since 2016 for the number of M&As to decrease on-year. The figure, meanwhile, still hovered above 1,000 for t

CompaniesMarch 21, 2023

[Graphic News] US banks collapses since 2000

The demise of the 16th-largest bank in the US, Silicon Valley Bank, on March 10, followed by that of Signature Bank two days later, sent global banking stocks on a roller-coaster ride as investors feared another Lehman Brothers moment, the Wall Street giant whose failure triggered the global financial crisis more than a decade ago. Two large banks that cater to the tech industry have collapsed after a bank run, government agencies are taking emergency measures to backstop the financial system, a

World BusinessMarch 20, 2023

[Graphic News] Only 4% of women view marriage, childbirth as essential: survey

Only 4 percent of single South Korean women in their 20s and early 30s view marriage and childbirth as essential, a survey showed, a development that illustrated the chronic decline in childbirths in Asia’s fourth-largest economy. Meanwhile, 12.9 percent of single men in the same age bracket agreed that marriage and childbirth were essential for women, according to the survey conducted by the Korean Association for Social Welfare Studies. The survey showed that 53.2 of female respondents b

Social AffairsMarch 17, 2023

[Graphic News] Facebook users in S. Korea dip below 10m: data

The number of Facebook users in South Korea fell to a record low last month as a growing number of young people opted to use Instagram and other social media platforms, industry data showed. Facebook had a combined 9.79 million South Korean monthly active users on the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store as of last month, down 2.6 percent from a month ago, according to the data by Mobile Index. It is the first time that Facebook’s MAU in South Korea dropped below the 10-million thresh

Social AffairsMarch 16, 2023

[Graphic News] Costs to eat out surge 10.8%

As the costs of eating out have continued to soar, the average prices of bibimbap and cold noodles have both exceeded 10,000 won ($7.70). In January this year, the average price of eight representative restaurant menu items in Seoul rose 10.8 percent compared to during the same period last year, according to the Korea Consumer Agency. In particular, jajangmyeon rose 13.9 percent from 5,769 won during the same month last year to 6,569 won, while bibimbap rose 8.8 percent to 10,000 won and naengmy

Social AffairsMarch 15, 2023

[Graphic News] Total area of N. Korea’s rice paddies down in 2022

　The total area of North Korea’s rice paddies decreased by 0.8 percent in 2022 from a year earlier, data showed, reflecting the reclusive regime’s challenging food shortages. 　The North’s rice paddies totaled 539,569 hectares in 2022, an area slightly larger than the US state of Delaware, compared to 544,006 hectares recorded in 2021, according to Statistics Korea. 　The figure stands at around 74 percent of the 727,158 hectares of rice paddies in South Korea. 　The North is

North KoreaMarch 14, 2023

[Graphic News] K-content exports hit all-time high

South Korea’s exports of the content industry hit an all-time high of $12.4 billion for the country in 2021, boosted by the global boom of Korean pop culture, according to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. The ministry said it will increase such exports by an average of 12.3 percent every year to achieve $25 billion in 2027 by pushing its so-called “3E strategies” for K-content exports. Currently, China, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Japan account for more than half of South

K-popMarch 10, 2023