The numbers for suicides as well as traffic and crime-related deaths fell in 2020 due largely to various social distancing schemes imposed over concerns of the COVID-19 pandemic, the government said. 　According to the Interior Ministry, the combined number of deaths connected to traffic accidents, crimes and suicides stood at 16,439 in 2020, down from 17,350 a year earlier. 　In terms of types, traffic deaths fell 15.9 percent to 2,858, and those connected to five major crimes, such as murder

　Tottenham Hotspur’s South Korean star Son Heung-min has been named the country’s top athlete for the fifth straight year in a national poll. 　Gallup Korea announced the findings of its annual survey on athletes. In a poll of 1,700 South Koreans over the age of 13 from Nov. 5 to 28, Son earned overwhelming support of 72.8 percent as the top South Korean athlete for 2021. 　Respondents could select up to two athletes. 　Son has developed into one of the Premier League’s most d

　The proportion of one-person households in South Korea hit a fresh record high last year, as the number of such households has continued to increase amid a delay in marriage and rapid aging, data showed. 　One-person families accounted for 31.7 percent of the total last year, up from 30.2 percent the previous year, according to the data from Statistics Korea. 　Households consisting of a single member totaled 6.64 million in 2020, up from 6.15 million a year earlier, the statistics agency said

　Isolation. Anxiety. Uncertainty. The stresses of the coronavirus pandemic have taken a toll on Americans of all ages, but a new poll finds that teens and young adults have faced some of the heaviest struggles as they come of age during a time of extreme turmoil. 　Overall, more than a third of Americans ages 13 to 56 cite the pandemic as a major source of stress, and many say it has made certain parts of their lives harder. But when it comes to education, friendships and dating, the disruption

　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 Korean tech giant shipped 69.3 million smartphones, up 20 percent from the previous q

　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, according to the analysis.  　On average, each American generates 130 kilograms of plastic wast

　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 ago, the average life expectancy became 3.2 years and 7.5 years longer, respectively. 　The reading 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 debit cards, came to $2.88 billion in the July-September period, down from $3.37 billion

　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 in 2019 to 4.9 billion this year, partially due to a “COVID connectivity boost.&rdq

　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 on-year increase in the country’s whisky imports since 2014. 　Industry sources attribu

　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 million this year and an estimated 37.7 million in 2070, according to the latest

　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 high for any first 10-month period of the year. It was also higher than the yearly imports of gol

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 sum of all registered users of 18 internet and mobile banking service providers in the country, meani

　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 the total 8.32 million married women here, down from 17.6 percent a year earlier. 　The 2021 tally was

　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 cities.  　Tel Aviv climbed the rankings partly due to the strength of the national

　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 countries, according to the report from the Korea Economic Research Institute. 　The figure is much lower

　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, according to the Korea Wealth Report 2021 released by KB Financial Group Research Institute. 　The lat

　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 2015 when rice output rose 2 percent on-year to 4.33 million tons. The figure declined for

　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 agency began compiling related data. 　In the third quarter, the number of newborns also reached an

　Sales of electric vehicles in South Korea almost doubled in the first three quarters of this year from a year earlier, ranking seventh in the world, data showed. 　A total of 71,006 EVs were sold in Asia’s fourth-largest economy in the January-September period, up 96 percent from a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Automotive Technology Institute. 　The figure was the seventh-largest in the world. China sold the largest number of EVs with 1.76 million units in the nine-m