Nearly 3 million animals were used in experiments by universities and public and private research centers in South Korea last year, government data showed Tuesday.(Yonhap)A total of 2.88 million mammals, amphibians and fish were experimented on by 333 institutions in 2016, according to the data compiled by the Animal and Plant Quarantine Agency.Testing on mammals fell 22.5 percent on-year, while the number of amphibians and fish experiments rose 13.7 percent last year from a year earlier.In the

Acting President and Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn on Tuesday weighed in to stem the constant spread of "fake news" that has sparked social and political confusion, calling for a 'preemptive, strong' response to it.From a prominent presidential hopeful to an independent counsel probing a presidential corruption scandal, a series of high-profile figures recently fell prey to bogus -- oftentimes ill-intentioned -- news reports, underscoring the need for effective measures to block them. Acting Pres

More than half of people seeking to run their own business in South Korea are considering opening a cafe or a bakery, a survey showed Tuesday.In a survey of 4,625 people who have filed an online application to attend the upcoming International Franchise Seoul expo, 65 percent said they will either open a cafe or a bakery when starting their own business, the event organizers said. This file photo, taken on Jan. 6, 2017, shows dozens of would-be business owners attending a franchise-job fair in S

The government will come up with a monitoring system linked to Internet of Things devices by May to detect various cyberattacks from both home and abroad, the science ministry said Tuesday.A set of measures was discussed during a meeting attended by officials from the Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning and the Korea Internet and Security Agency, the ministry said. (Yonhap)The measure comes amid worries that a series of so-called distributed denial of service attacks on infrastructure s

South Korea spent more than 22 trillion won ($19.4 billion) in government budget last month as part of its efforts to frontload its budget spending to prop up the economy, the finance ministry said Tuesday.Fiscal spending by the government and public institutions reached a combined 22.4 trillion won in January, up 2 trillion won from its planned outlay of 20.4 trillion, according to the Ministry of Strategy and Finance. (Yonhap)The South Korean government has called for a stronger fiscal role in

South Korean girl group Gugudan has released the music video for "A Girl Like Me," the lead single off its second EP album. (Jellyfish Entertainment)The clip, released on Monday, features Gugudan members engaging in various forms of narcissism, gazing at themselves in the mirror and being mesmerized.The production was inspired by the famous 16th century painting "Narcissus" by Caravaggio, which appears in the video. The title of the new album is "Act 2 Narcissus."The album was released via strea

The number of South Korean business groups' affiliates subject to restrictions on mutual investments and loan guarantees gained ground this month from a month earlier, the antitrust watchdog said Tuesday.The Fair Trade Commission said the number of firms on its monthly watch list stood at 1,131 as of end-February, up six from the previous month. (Yonhap)The affiliates are owned by the country's 27 largest business groups, including Samsung Group and Hyundai Motor Group.Four business groups, incl

South Korea's four opposition parties Tuesday decided to request National Assembly Speaker Chung Sye-kyun exercise his authority to directly call a vote on a bill to arrange an extended special investigation into a scandal involving President Park Geun-hye.Rep. Choung Byoung-gug of the Bareun Party (L), Rep. Park Jie-won of the People's Party (C-L), Rep. Choo Mi-ae of the Democratic Party (C-R) and Rep. Sim Sang-jung of the Justice Party pose for a photo at the National Assembly in Seoul on Feb.

South Korea's ruling Liberty Korea Party on Tuesday rejected the opposition bloc's push to impeach the acting president, calling it a politically motivated move."It is a typical political ploy and not even worthy to be reviewed," said Rep. Chung Woo-taik, the party's floor leader. Rep. Chung Woo-taik, the floor leader of the Liberty Korea Party (Yonhap)On Monday, the main opposition Democratic Party and other liberal parties agreed to seek the impeachment of Acting President and Prime Minister H

South Korean actor Lee Dong-gun and actress Cho Youn-hee, who played a fictional couple in a recent TV series, are dating in real life, according to Lee's management agency Tuesday."The two have formed a good relationship while filming and have developed into a couple recently," Lee's agency FNC Entertainment said. (Herald DB)According to KINGKONG Entertainment, which represents Cho, the two are "about a week into their relationship."The 37-year-old Lee and the 35-year old Cho appeared as a coup

Five South Korean firms gained government approval to carry out their voluntary corporate restructuring through fast-track legal and administrative procedures, the ministry said Tuesday.The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said a government panel chose the five companies, which include LS Metal, an affiliate of the country's 16th largest business group of LS Group; Kahn PI Co., a ship materials manufacturing firm; and Sungwook Steel Co., to endorse their proposed restructuring efforts to b

South Korean households headed by people in their 40s saw their monthly income rise at the slowest pace ever in 2016, data showed Tuesday, sparking concerns it could further dampen the nation's anemic consumption.According to the data by Statistics Korea, the average monthly income of those households came to 5,005,000 won ($4,414) last year, up a mere 0.9 percent from a year earlier which compares to the 2.8 percent on-year expansion the previous year. (Yonhap)It also marked the lowest annualiz

Sales of an anti-nicotine tablet have spiked by more than eightfold in South Korea over the past two years, industry data showed Tuesday, as more smokers opt to quit amid bolstering government efforts on an anti-smoking campaign.The annual sales of Champix, a prescription medication designed to treat nicotine addiction, reached 42 billion won ($37.02 million) at the end of 2016, compared with 5 billion won recorded in 2014, according to the company and industry sources.  (Yonhap)Its on-year sale

South Korean manufacturers' business sentiment for next month improved, as they expect an increase in domestic demand and exports, central bank data showed Tuesday.The business survey index of manufacturing firms came to 81 in March, up from 76 in February, according to the Bank of Korea.(Yonhap)A reading over 100 means optimists outnumber pessimists, while a reading below the benchmark means the opposite.An index measuring local firms' sentiments toward exports came to 92 for next month, up fro

South Korea's lawmakers raised 53.5 billion won ($47.1 million) in donations in 2016, data showed Tuesday, with the main opposition party taking in the largest amount.The combined figure marks a 47.8 percent spike from a year earlier, apparently helped by the general election, which took place in 2016.South Korea's National Assembly (Yonhap)According to the data compiled by the National Election Commission, the main opposition Democratic Party received 22.3 billion won, followed by the ruling Sa

North Korea's trade with the European Union shrank for the third consecutive year in 2016 amid international sanctions against the North, a US media outlet said Tuesday.European flags fly in front of construction in the European district in Brussels on Feb. 18, 2016, in this photo released by Europe's news photo agency EPA. (Yonhap)The 2016 trade volume was tallied at about $29 million, marking a 6.6 percent decrease from a year ago and one tenth of the peak figure recorded in 2006, Voice of Ame

One out of 10 foreigners living in South Korea are illegal aliens, government data showed Tuesday.According to the data released by the Ministry of Justice, 211,320, or 10.5 percent of the total number of foreigners living here as of end-January, are staying without a valid visa. (Yonhap)The number is up 1.1 percent from what was tallied the previous month, which stood at 208,971, it said. The total shot up to 223,464 in 2007 and dropped to 177,955 in 2009. Since 2014, the number has hovered aro

Bus drivers will be required to take longer and more frequent breaks during their driving hours as a way of enhancing passenger safety, the transportation ministry said Tuesday.Starting from Tuesday, those driving city buses are required to take a minimum 10-minute break after each complete run, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.(Yonhap)They will be required to take a 15-minute rest should their route take more than two hours to be completed and a 30-minute break fo

The global anti-chemical weapons watchdog has denounced as "deeply disturbing" the use of a banned chemical weapons agent in the killing of the half brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons issued the statement after Malaysian police determined that the nerve agent VX was used in the killing of Kim Jong-nam, the North Korean leader's estranged brother, at Kuala Lumpur International Airport on Feb. 13. (Yonhap)"The Malaysian authorities s

North Korea is "completely unhinged" and it's impossible to hold negotiations with the communist nation, the US House Intelligence Committee chairman said Monday."The North Korean regime is completely unhinged. They've long been unhinged. And the closer they get to ability to not only detonate a nuclear weapon, but also deliver that nuclear weapon, we have to take that seriously," Rep. Devin Nunes (R-CA) told reporters."This is not a regime that ... by any stretch of the imagination, you can hav