Samsung Electronics retained the top spot in the global smartphone market in the third quarter of the year, a report showed. The world‘s largest smartphone maker held a market share of 20 percent in the July-September period, followed by Apple with 14 percent and Xiaomi with 13 percent, according to a report from market researcher Counterpoint Research. During the three months, the South Kor...

The United States is by far the biggest contributor to global plastic waste in the world, according to a new report submitted to the federal government that called for a national strategy to tackle the growing crisis. Overall, the US contributed around 42 million metric tons in plastic waste in 2016 - more than twice as much as China and more than the countries of the European Union combined, ...

The average life expectancy of South Korean babies born last year reached 83.5 years, more than seven years longer than two decades ago, data showed, amid improved public awareness about health and a better medical system. The average life expectancy at birth in 2020 was 2.4 months longer than a year earlier, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. Compared with 10 and 20 years a...

South Koreans’ overseas card spending declined 14.8 percent in the third quarter from three months earlier as the government tightened rules on withdrawals of money from automatic teller machines and the won depreciated against the dollar, central bank data showed. According to the data by the Bank of Korea, the amount of money spent overseas by South Koreans with cards, including credit and d...

Some 2.9 billion people - 37 percent of the world’s population - have still never used the internet, the United Nations said, despite the COVID-19 pandemic driving people online. The UN’s International Telecommunication Union estimated that 96 percent of those 2.9 billion live in developing countries. The agency said the estimated number of people who have gone online rose from 4.1 billion i...

South Korea’s imports of whisky soared more than 70 percent in the first 10 months of the year as more people drank at home amid the coronavirus pandemic, data showed. The value of whisky imports came to $93.21 million in the January-October period, up 73.1 percent from a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service and the local liquor industry. It represents the first...

South Korea’s total population is expected to record its first decline this year, the statistics agency said, a grim assessment of its demographic situations amid the country’s chronically low birthrate, rapid aging and a decline in incoming foreigners during the pandemic. The country’s total population is estimated to have peaked at 51.84 million last year before falling to an estimated 51.75...

South Korea’s imports of golf equipment rose to a record high in the first 10 months of this year on the back of strong demand amid the pandemic, customs data showed. The imports of golf clubs and other related equipment reached $601 million in the January-October period, up 29.3 percent from the previous year, according to data from the Korea Customs Service. The reading hit an all-time hig...

South Korea's internet banking services continued to grow in the first half of the year, with the number of users and daily transactions rising to new highs, central bank data showed. The number of internet banking users, including mobile banking, came to 186.5 million as of end-June, up 5.6 percent from six months earlier, according to the data from the Bank of Korea. The figure is the simple ...

More than 1 in 6 South Korean married women suffered a career break this year, quitting their jobs due to child rearing and getting married, data showed. The number of women aged 15-54 who have stopped working after marriage reached 1.45 million in April, down 3.8 percent, or 57,000, from the previous year, according to data from Statistics Korea. These women accounted for 17.4 percent of th...

Tel Aviv is the world’s most expensive city to live in, as soaring inflation has pushed up living costs globally, according to a survey. The Israeli city climbed five rungs to top the list for the first time in the authoritative ranking compiled by the Economist Intelligence Unit. The Worldwide Cost of Living Index is compiled by comparing prices in US dollars for goods and services in 173 c...

South Korea ranks low among members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development in terms of the employment rate for university graduates due mainly to a severe mismatch between their majors and job openings, a report showed. The employment rate for South Koreans aged 25-34 with university diplomas came to 75.2 percent in 2020, 31st lowest among 37 comparable OECD member countr...

Amid liquidity-driven booms in the real estate and stock markets during the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of people with assets of more than 1 billion won ($838,000) increased by over 10 percent last year from a year earlier, a report showed. The number of Koreans with financial assets worth over 1 billion won stood at 390,000 last year, taking up 0.76 percent of the total population, accordin...

South Korea’s rice output rose for the first time in six years due mainly to favorable weather conditions and an increase in the cultivation area, data showed. The country’s rice production reached 3.88 million metric tons in 2021, up 10.7 percent from a record low of 3.51 million tons the previous year, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. It marked the first rebound since 20...

The number of babies born in South Korea fell to a record low in September, data showed, underscoring the country’s bleak demographic situation with the chronically low birthrate. A total of 21,920 babies were born in September, down 6.7 percent from the previous year, according to data compiled by Statistics Korea. It marked the lowest for any September since 1981, when the statistics agenc...