Change in government leaves foreign domestic worker program in limbo

South Korea’s pilot program for overseas domestic workers is now hanging in the balance, with no clear path forward after months of delays, labor disputes, and a new administration that had voiced skepticism about the system in the past. The Ministry of Employment and Labor had pledged to finalize a long-term version for the program by mid-2025, but nothing has been put forward. Vice Labor Minister and acting Minister Kim Min-seok said last Sunday that it "won't be easy" to expand beyond the pil

June 15, 2025

Korea’s extra holidays fuel travel abroad, not local economy: National Assembly report

A recent National Assembly Research Service indicated that temporary public holidays are not boosting domestic spending; instead, they are resulting in increased overseas travel. Released Thursday, the report examined the impact of this year’s extended Seollal New Year holiday in January, when the government added a temporary holiday on the 27th. That move created a six-day break, intended to encourage local consumption. Instead of spending more at home, nearly 3 million South Koreans went abroa

June 15, 2025

Yes24 warns of possible data breach as outage drags on; full recovery by Sunday

Yes24 warned Thursday that it would notify users individually if personal data was compromised in the ransomware attack that has shut down its services for four consecutive days. This marks a shift from the company’s earlier stance that no data breach had occurred. The statement, posted on Yes24’s official website and app outage page on Thursday morning, came just one day after South Korea’s Personal Information Protection Commission launched a formal investigation into the incident. Until now,

June 12, 2025

Seoul cultural spending hits $157 per person as live arts overtake cinema

Seoul residents are returning to theaters, galleries and concerts in growing numbers, spending more on cultural activities and diversifying the way they engage with the arts, according to new survey data released Wednesday by the Seoul Foundation for Arts and Culture. In 2024, the average Seoulite spent 214,000 won ($157) on arts and cultural experiences. Last year's figure is up 27 percent from 2022, when pandemic-related restrictions still lingered. People also went out more often, attending a

June 11, 2025

Seoul Food 2025 blends tech, taste and trade

South Korea’s largest food industry showcase, Seoul Food 2025, opened Tuesday at Kintex in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province. The four-day event features a record-breaking 1,639 companies from 45 countries and is now recognized as one of Asia’s top four food exhibitions, alongside shows in Shanghai, Bangkok and Tokyo. Global interest in Korean food, or K-Food, is driving a sharp rise in export activity this year. According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, export consultations at the event

June 10, 2025

AI teaching assistant shows real promise at S. Korea tech university KAIST

South Korea’s top science and engineering university has rolled out a custom-built AI teaching assistant to help students in large graduate courses, and early results show it helped reduce repetitive student questions while encouraging more active, self-directed learning. At Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, a team of researchers led by AI graduate school professor Choi Yoon-jae and design professor Hong Hwa-jung developed a virtual teaching assistant, or VTA, that can answer s

June 10, 2025

How one December night set S. Korea on the path to a new presidency

For the second time in a decade, South Korea held an early presidential election to fill a leadership void following the impeachment of a sitting president. And once again, the vote comes on the heels of months of political turmoil that shook the country‘s young and vibrant democracy to its core. But this time, the crisis ran even deeper. What began with a failed self-coup escalated into a riot at a courthouse, conspiracy theories about election fraud, and a political climate more divided than a

June 3, 2025

Final salute for Navy crew killed in Pohang crash

South Korea held an emotional military funeral on Sunday for the four Navy officers killed in last week’s crash of a P-3CK maritime patrol aircraft during a training flight. The ceremony, held at the Naval Air Command headquarters in Pohang, North Gyeongsang Province, drew more than 1,000 attendees, including top military officials, service members and civilians. The four men, identified as Cmdr. Park Jin-woo, Lt. Cmdr. Lee Tae-hoon and senior noncommissioned officers Yoon Dong-gyu and Kang Shin

June 1, 2025

Can a city cure loneliness? Seoul is spending millions to try

In Seoul, you can call a city hotline at 3 a.m. just to say you feel lonely. You can walk into a “Maeum (Korean for 'heart') Convenience Store” to eat free ramyeon and talk with someone about the emptiness you’ve been carrying for months. These are not gimmicks. They are part of a sweeping five-year, 451.3 billion won ($330 million) effort by the Seoul Metropolitan Government to confront a crisis few cities have dared to name outright: loneliness. South Korea is facing a growing epidemic of soci

June 1, 2025

Seoul hotels double down on 'small luxuries' with fancier, pricier desserts

The price of summer desserts in South Korea’s luxury hotels has hit a new high, with one bowl of bingsu now selling for up to 150,000 won ($108). High-end hotels are banking on what they call “small luxuries” to appeal to locals looking for special indulgences even in a time of rising inflation. On Sunday, the InterContinental Grand Seoul Parnas released this season’s most expensive offering: a bingsu made in collaboration with French champagne brand Perrier-Jouet. Priced at 150,000 won, it just

June 1, 2025