South Korea will increase defense spending by an average of 7.5 percent each year over the next five years, the Defense Ministry said.　The ministry announced its defense blueprint for the 2019-2023 period, when it intends to spend 270.7 trillion won ($241 billion) -- 94.1 trillion won on improving defense capabilities and the rest on managing troops, equipment and facilities.  　Under the plan, the ministry seeks to increase the country’s defense budget, which stands at 46.7 trillion won this ye

Defense Jan. 20, 2019

　The number of abandoned animals continued to increase in South Korea, amid the growing number of households raising pets, government data shows. 　The number of abandoned animals stood at 102,593 in 2017, gradually rising from 81,147 in 2014. The number of households raising pets also increased from 4.57 million in 2015 to 5.39 million in 2017, according to statistics from the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs.　On average, 281 pets were abandoned every day in 2017.　In the wake of a

Social Affairs Jan. 17, 2019

　The US government shutdown became the longest in history when it entered its 25th day Tuesday.　Trump was unmoved in the White House, his border wall unbuilt, and around 800,000 federal workers were still without pay and facing mounting hardships.

World Jan. 16, 2019

　The global market for organic light-emitting diode TVs has surged twofold every year since 2015.　IHS Markit said sales of OLED sets are estimated to have reached some 2.6 million units in 2018, up from just 335,000 in 2015. Data showed that sales reached 724,000 units in 2016, followed by 1.59 million units in the following year.　Total sales may rise to 3.6 million units this year, nearly double to reach 7 million units in 2020 and surpass 10 million units in 2021.　The market researcher said OL

Business Jan. 15, 2019

　Fine dust filled South Korea’s sky Sunday, prompting authorities to take countermeasures and issue advisories. 　The fine dust level stood at 79 micrograms per cubic meter for Seoul as of 10 a.m., according to Air Korea.　The density level was likely to hover above 50 micrograms per cubic meter on average for the day in most of Seoul and the surrounding regions, the weather agency predicted. 　In response to the dust, the Ministry of Environment required thermal power plants in the affected areas

National Jan. 14, 2019

　The number of dedicated global fans of “hallyu,” or the Korean Wave, is estimated to have surged to about 90 million at the end of last year, a government-affiliated foundation said.　The Korea Foundation said in a report that there were 1,843 hallyu fan clubs in 113 countries worldwide, excluding South Korea, as of December 2018.　The global hallyu fan clubs had a total of 89.19 million members, marking a surge of 22 percent, or 16.07 million, from 73.12 million in 2017, said the foundation, whi

Culture Jan. 13, 2019

　South Korean teenagers spend two hours a day watching online broadcasts streamed by individual creators, a survey showed, with YouTube being the most popular platform.　According to the survey of 1,058 respondents conducted by the Korea Communications Standards Commission, South Korean teenagers spend 114.9 minutes every day watching such online video content. 　By platform, YouTube accounted for 36.4 percent of the content, followed by AfreecaTV with 16.8 percent and Twitch with 16.6 percent. V

Social Affairs Jan. 10, 2019

　The number of South Koreans who switched mobile carriers reached a 13-year low in 2018 due to weaker subsidy competition, industry data showed.　The country‘s three major mobile carriers -- SK Telecom, KT and LG Uplus -- and budget carriers posted a combined 5.67 million in number portability last year, according to data from the Korea Telecommunications Operators Association.　The tally was down 19.3 percent from the previous year and the lowest level since 2005.　The figure translates into aroun

Business Jan. 9, 2019

　South Korea’s performing arts market grew 23 percent in 2018 compared to the previous year, on the back of ticket sales for musicals and K-pop concerts.　According to ticket distributor Interpark, sales of tickets for performing arts reached 544.1 billion won ($486 million) in 2018, up from 441.1 billion won the previous year. 　Sales of tickets for musicals rose 29 percent on-year to 257.1 billion won, while sales of concert tickets rose 22 percent to 223.3 billion won. The two genres led the ov

National Jan. 8, 2019

　A total of 556 people died in 15 plane crashes in 2018, significantly more than the previous year, but long-term trends show that safety has improved, an aviation watchdog reported.　The year 2017 was the safest year in aviation history with only 44 people killed in 10 airliner accidents, said the Aviation Safety Network.　Last year was still the third-safest year in aviation history in terms of the number of fatal accidents and the ninth-safest in terms of lives lost.　Last year’s deadliest accid

World News Jan. 7, 2019

　South Korean food industry sales grew 2.3 percent in 2018 from a year ago to exceed 90 trillion won ($80.2 billion) for the first time, a report showed.　According to the report from the Korea Rural Economic Institute, total shipments of the nation’s food products, groceries and beverages came to an estimated 91.3 trillion won last year, up 2 trillion won from 2017.　Food industry sales topped the mark of 90 trillion won three years after passing the milestone of 80 trillion won.　Last year’s grow

Business Jan. 6, 2019

　According to the data compiled by the European Patent Office, the number of applications related to self-driving cars filed in Europe was 3,998 in 2017, growing more than threefold from 922 in 2011. 　Samsung Electronics holds the largest number of patents between 2011 and 2017, 624, with US company Intel ranking second with 590.　US chipmaker Qualcomm held 361, followed by Samsung Electronics’ smaller rival LG Electronics at 348 and Germany’s Bosch with 343. 　The figures show that information an

World Business Jan. 3, 2019

　More than 1 in 10 South Korean senior citizens live with dementia, data showed, with the number expected to reach 2 million by 2039 due to the rapidly aging population.　According to the data compiled by the National Institute of Dementia, 10.2 percent of Koreans aged 65 and above had dementia as of 2018. It was the first time the figure exceeded the 10 percent mark, the institute said. The 2017 figure stood at 9.95 percent. 　The total number of dementia patients came to 750,000: 275,000 men and

Social Affairs Jan. 2, 2019

　Nearly 190,000 foreign nationals have become naturalized South Korean citizens over the past seven decades, government data showed.　The Ministry of Justice said the number of people naturalized here since the enactment of the Nationality Act on Dec. 20, 1948, reached 189,193 as of the end of November.　The nation’s first naturalization occurred on Feb. 8, 1957, when a then Taiwanese citizen who changed his name to Son Il-seung acquired South Korean nationality.

Social Affairs Jan. 1, 2019

 Switzerland once again clinched the top spot in a global survey on fostering and attracting talent, part of a top-10 list that includes Canada but not the US and no Asian nations.The country retained its title for the fifth consecutive year in the World Talent Ranking report published by IMD Business School, a result of its strong emphasis on skills training and education. Denmark and Norway ranked second and third. While the US didn’t make the top 10, it climbed four notches to No. 12. Canada

World News Dec. 31, 2018