Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has drawn positive ratings from Americans for his handling of international affairs after Russia invaded his country last month, according to a survey released March 30. 　The Pew Research Center poll found that 72 percent of Americans have “a lot” or “some” confidence in Zelenskyy, higher than any other world leader included in the survey, while only 6 percent of Americans expressed confidence in Russian President Vladimir Putin

　Many Americans have taken significant steps back from once-routine coronavirus precautions, with less than half now saying they regularly wear face masks, avoid crowds and skip nonessential travel. 　Americans are letting down their guard even as experts warn a new wave of COVID-19 cases is coming. A new poll from the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research shows fewer people taking protective measures than at any point in AP-NORC polls conducted since early 2021. 　The poll f

  　More than half of South Koreans are against President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol’s plan to move the presidential office out of Cheong Wa Dae, while some 44 percent support the idea, a poll showed Wednesday. 　According to the poll of 500 adults, conducted by pollster Realmeter on Tuesday, 53.7 percent said the presidential office should remain at Cheong Wa Dae, and 44.6 percent said they back the relocation plan. 　On Sunday, Yoon announced his decision to move the presidential office from

  　South Korea’s import prices of grain has jumped nearly 50 percent over the past two years to a near nine-year high amid the prolonged coronavirus pandemic, data showed. 　Prices of imported grains came to $386 per ton in February, up 26 percent from a year earlier and 47.4 percent from two years earlier, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service and industry sources. 　The February per-ton import price represented the highest level since it reached $388 in May 2013. 　Last

  　Instant noodles captured the top spot in production among food products in South Korea in 2020 on a surge in exports amid the coronavirus pandemic, data showed. 　The output of instant noodles, or “ramyeon” in Korean, stood at 1.93 million metric tons in 2020, up a whopping 231 percent from a year earlier, according to the data from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. 　Ramyeon’s ranking in terms of production was up 12 notches from the previous year. 　Carbonated drink

　The number of South Koreans getting married tumbled to a new all-time low in 2021 amid the coronavirus pandemic and young people’s changing attitude toward marriage, government data showed.  　The number of couples tying the knot in Asia’s fourth-largest economy came to 193,000 last year, down 9.8 percent from the previous year, according to the data from Statistics Korea.  　The number is the lowest since 1970, when the statistical agency began compiling related data, an

   The average monthly salary of wage earners rose 3.6 percent on-year in 2020 from a year earlier despite the COVID-19 pandemic, a government report showed.  South Korean wage workers earned a monthly average of 3.2 million won ($2,669) in December 2020, up from 3.09 million won a year earlier, according to the report from Statistics Korea.  The figure for workers with large companies stood at 5.29 million won, with those in smaller firms earning 2.59 million won.  &n

  The proportion of US adults identifying as LGBT has increased to a high of 7.1 percent, double the figure from 2012 when Gallup first started measuring it, reflecting a generational shift, the polling firm said. Gallup asks Americans whether they personally identified as straight, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or something other than heterosexual, as part of the demographic information it collects on all its phone surveys. Respondents can also volunteer any other orientation or gen

　The number of stock investors in South Korea spiked more than 50 percent on-year in 2021 to breach the 10 million mark amid a retail investment boom, industry data showed. 　A total of 13.84 million investors held shares in 2,426 companies listed on the country's main and secondary bourses, up 50.6 percent from a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Securities Depository. 　Those investors owned shares in an average 5.96 companies, up 13.7 percent from a year earlier, but per-cap

　US President Joe Biden’s approval rating has fallen to the lowest levels of his presidency over concern for his handling of the Russian invasion of Ukraine and rising inflation, an NBC poll found. 　Just 40 percent of those who responded to the survey said they approved of Biden’s job performance overall, the poll results show. His job approval rating has gradually fallen since April 2021 when 53 percent of Americans said they approved of his performance. 　The number of those who

　South Korea’s imports of coffee surged more than 24 percent to hit a new all-time high in 2021 on its growing popularity here, data showed. 　The value of the country’s coffee imports stood at $916.5 million last year, up 24.2 percent from the previous year, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service and industry sources. 　It marks the first time that South Korea’s coffee imports have exceeded the 1 trillion-won ($823 million) level in terms of the local currency.

　South Koreans’ use of internet banking services soared 18 percent on-year in 2021 as customers preferred contactless services amid the coronavirus pandemic, central bank data showed. 　The daily use of online banking services, including mobile banking, reached 17.32 million cases last year, up from 14.68 million a year earlier, according to the data from the Bank of Korea. 　Mobile banking use came to 14.36 million instances per day, up 22.9 percent from a year earlier and accounting for

　More than half of South Koreans are against President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol’s plan to move the presidential office out of Cheong Wa Dae, while some 44 percent support the idea, a poll showed Wednesday.  　According to the poll of 500 adults, conducted by pollster Realmeter on Tuesday, 53.7 percent said the presidential office should remain at Cheong Wa Dae, and 44.6 percent said they back the relocation plan.  　On Sunday, Yoon announced his decision to move the presidential offi

　South Korea’s import prices of grain has jumped nearly 50 percent over the past two years to a near nine-year high amid the prolonged coronavirus pandemic, data showed. 　Prices of imported grains came to $386 per ton in February, up 26 percent from a year earlier and 47.4 percent from two years earlier, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service and industry sources. 　The February per-ton import price represented the highest level since it reached $388 in May 2013. 　Last mon

　Nearly 7 in 10 South Koreans saw their income fall in the wake of COVID-19, a survey showed.  　In an online survey of 2,016 people aged 18 or above by the Korea Institute of Public Administration from Nov. 15-22, 68 percent said their average monthly income was lower in 2021 than in 2019 before the pandemic struck.  　Only 30 percent said their income rose, while the remaining 2 percent said it remains unchanged.  　Those who earned less lost 1.25 million won ($1,038) per month

　Six out of 10 South Korean companies want the incoming government of President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol to focus on creating jobs to support the economic recovery, a survey showed. 　Of 157 local companies, 95, or 60.5 percent, picked job creation as the top policy priority for the new government, according to the Mono Research poll commissioned by the Federation of Korean Industries, the country's top business lobby. 　The Feb. 18-March 1 survey also showed resolving social conflicts ranked second

　Fremont, California, is the happiest city in the United States, according to a new survey from WalletHub based on some 30 key indicators for happiness, ranging from depression rates to income growth and average use of leisure time each day. 　WalletHub said the coronavirus pandemic has left one-third of US residents so stressed that it‘s difficult to make basic decisions. 　WalletHub said it depended on positive-psychology research to determine the happiest among 182 of the largest US ci

　The number of registered surviving South Korean victims of wartime forced labor in Japan decreased by 585 in the past year, data showed.  　A civic group unveiled government statistics on medical assistance provided to people who were conscripted to work in Japan during World War II. 　The data showed the number of recipients stood at 1,815 in January, down from last year’s 2,400. Of them, 116 are women.  　The number has steadily dropped - 8,075 in 2016, 6,570 in 2017, 5,245 i

　South Korea ranked fifth in terms of global vehicle production last year, retaining the spot for the second consecutive year, amid efforts to minimize the fallout from the pandemic-caused global chip shortage, a report showed.  　The combined vehicle output by South Korean carmakers, including Hyundai Motor and Kia, reached 3.46 million units as of end-2021, down 1.3 percent from the previous year, according to the report from the Korea Automobile Manufacturers Association.  　China

　The average monthly salary of wage earners rose 3.6 percent on-year in 2020 from a year earlier despite the COVID-19 pandemic, a government report showed. 　South Korean wage workers earned a monthly average of 3.2 million won ($2,669) in December 2020, up from 3.09 million won a year earlier, according to the report from Statistics Korea. 　The figure for workers with large companies stood at 5.29 million won, with those in smaller firms earning 2.59 million won.  　The monthly pay for m