According to the Ministry of Employment and Labor, the government paid 1.16 trillion won ($954 million) in benefits to those struggling to find jobs in May, marking a 33.9 percent increase from 758.7 billion won paid in the same month last year. 　The May figure marked the first time for the monthly unemployment benefit payments to top 1 trillion won since the introduction of unemployment insurance in 1995. It also marked the highest unemployment rate for four months. (Yonhap)

Social Affairs June 17, 2020

　US dollar-denominated deposits at South Korean banks have risen nearly 30 percent since February, as investors have chased safer assets amid the novel coronavirus outbreak, industry data showed. 　Outstanding dollar deposits at five local banks reached $47 billion as of June 11, up 28 percent from $36.6 billion tallied at the end of February, according to the data. 　A rise in the foreign currency deposits came as investors bet on a stronger US dollar amid pandemic-caused economic uncertain

Business June 16, 2020

　South Korea’s auto exports more than halved in May from a year earlier due to falling demand in the face of the new coronavirus pandemic that as infected more than 7 million people, data showed. 　Local carmakers shipped 95,400 units of cars overseas last month, down 57.6 percent from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. 　In terms of value, auto exports also fell 54.1 percent over the period to reach $1.81 billion. 　In the fi

Industry June 15, 2020

　South Korea been named 10th safest country out of 200 regions in the world for COVID-19, according a report from Deep Knowledge Group, a consortium of companies and non-profit organisations. 　The study was based on 130 quantitative and qualitative parameters and over 11,400 data points in categories like quarantine efficiency, monitoring and detection, health readiness and government efficiency. 　Switzerland topped the list followed by Germany, Israel and Singapore.

World News June 12, 2020

　Samsung Electronics dominated the 5G smartphone market in the United States in the first quarter of the year, a report showed. 　Samsung’s Galaxy S20 series, which was unveiled in February, made up 94 percent of the US 5G smartphone market in the January-March period, according to market tracker Strategy Analytics, with the S20 Plus being the bestselling model. 　The midtier S20 Plus accounted for 40 percent, followed by the high-end S20 Ultra with 30 percent and entry-level S20 at 2

World Business June 11, 2020

　Schools and businesses have been closed, sports events canceled and cultural institutions shut down around the world, as countries try to stem the coronavirus outbreak. 　The latest Nielsen survey shows what people missed the most during the social distancing in the US.

World News June 10, 2020

　South Korea’s exports of packaged traditional chicken soup, or samgyetang, have posted sharp growth in the first four months of 2020 from a year earlier, data showed, amid the growing demand for ready-to-eat products around the globe due to the pandemic-led lockdowns. 　Outbound shipments of ready-to-eat samgyetang products reached $4.82 million over the January-April period, up 82.2 percent from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Tra

World June 9, 2020

　The volume of short-term floating capital in South Korea hit an all-time high of more than 1,100 trillion won ($904 billion) amid low interest rates and increased uncertainties over the novel coronavirus pandemic, data showed. 　Cash and other forms of short-term capital, including demand deposits and money market funds, totaled 1,106.3 trillion won as of end-March, Bank of Korea and Korea Financial Investment Association data showed. The amount was the largest since the institutions began

Business June 8, 2020

　Lineage 2M, a mobile massively multiplayer online role-playing game by Korean online game maker NCSoft, was the highest grossing app on the Google Play Store during the first quarter of the year, industry data showed. 　The mobile version of mega-hit Lineage II was the most popular app in the world on Android platforms during the January-March period, partly on the back of the novel coronavirus pandemic that confined people to their homes, data from analytics firm App Annie showed. 　The mo

World Business June 5, 2020

　Only about half of Americans say they would get a COVID-19 vaccine if the scientists working furiously to create one succeed, according to a new poll from the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. 　That’s surprisingly low considering the effort going into the global race for a vaccine against the coronavirus that has sparked a pandemic since first emerging from China late last year. But more people might eventually roll up their sleeves: The poll found 3

World News June 4, 2020

　South Korea‘s output of medical equipment and related materials passed 7 trillion won ($5.7 billion) in 2019 on solid demand for dental treatment products, data showed. 　About 7.3 trillion won worth of medical equipment and materials were produced in the country last year, up 11.8 percent from a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. 　The sector’s annualized growth rate far outpaced the 2 percent increase in the country’s gross domestic product

Technology June 3, 2020

　South Korea’s gross domestic product ranked 10th in the world in 2019, down two notches from the previous year, data showed. 　Asia’s fourth-largest economy registered $1.64 trillion in nominal GDP last year, according to the data from the Organization for Economic Cooperation. 　It marked South Korea’s first ranking drop since the 2008 global financial crisis. The OECD analyzed 38 advanced and emerging economies. 　The United States topped the global GDP list with $21.43

World Business June 2, 2020

　Nearly 70 percent of South Korean youths think that reunification with North Korea is necessary, a survey showed. 　According to the poll conducted by the National Youth Policy Institute, 67.8 percent of 3,228 elementary, middle and high school students replied that the two Koreas need to reunify. 　Among them, 28.8 percent said that reunification is necessary as it will help South Korea become stronger, while 23.2 percent answered it will ease security concerns on the Korean Peninsula. So

North Korea June 1, 2020

  Timeline of reported cases Late April: An unidentified children’s illness reported in Europe May 9: Illness claims three children in New York, US, and one in France May 13: Casualty occurs in the UK; UK, France, US together confirm over 100 cases May 23: Mystery children’s illness spreads to 13 countries (25 states in the US) May 25: Korea launches disease surveillance systems May 26: Korea sees two suspected cases of the rare pediatric condition, both in Seoul　

Technology May 29, 2020

　Spending on video games in the US jumped to a new April record as locked-down consumers sought refuge in playing games, industry figures showed. 　A total of $1.5 billion was spent on video game hardware, software, accessories and game cards, eclipsing a previous April high of $1.2 billion spent in the US in 2008, according to NPD analyst Mat Piscatella. 　April was the first full month of tight restrictions on people’s movements in the US to prevent the spread of the deadly novel cor

World Business May 28, 2020