Korea on Sunday decided to enforce tougher distancing regulations for the greater Seoul area and the southwestern region as health authorities try to stem a resurgence of the novel coronavirus.     The government announced that the Level 2 distancing, the third-highest in the country's five-tier COVID-19 alert system, will be applied to the nation's capital area, while North and South Jeolla Provinces will be under the Level 1.5 distancing for two weeks starting Tuesday. &nbs

Authorities are discussing whether to enforce tougher distancing regulations for the greater Seoul area and the southwestern region, the prime minister said Sunday, as the country fights a resurgence of the new coronavirus. Chung Sye-kyun made the remark during a COVID-19 response government meeting, saying South Korea could face another wave of mass infections if it fails to stem the virus at this point. "We're at a critical juncture of facing a large number of infections nationwide, as

South Korean President Moon Jae-in and leaders of 19 other major global economies plan to adopt a joint communique to sum up the results of their two-day virtual conference dominated by the COVID-19 pandemic, Cheong Wa Dae said Sunday. In the Day 2 session of the Group of 20 (G-20) summit, they are scheduled to focus on ways for an "inclusive, sustainable and resilient" future of the world hit hard by the virus. The participating leaders will adopt a joint communique following the se

Ten more service members and a civilian employee working for the military have tested positive for the new coronavirus, the defense ministry said Sunday, as sporadic infections continue at barracks across the country. In the southern city of Jinhae, three Navy officers and an enlistee have tested positive after they came into contact with another officer who was earlier confirmed to have been infected with COVID-19, according to the ministry. In Pocheon, north of Seoul, three Army soldiers and

South Korean fashion and retail conglomerate E-Land Group said Sunday it has suspended operations at nearly half of its stores in the country due to a ransomware attack. The group said its corporate network system was attacked by ransomware early in the morning. Such a malware attack has forced 23 of its 50 branches of NC Department Store and NewCore Outlet to halt their operations, E-Land added. Ransomware is software that intentionally blocks users from accessing their digital files unless

Nearly two-thirds of South Korean manufacturing firms believe that the business environment will not change much under the forthcoming Joe Biden administration in the United States, a poll showed Sunday. According to a survey conducted by the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), 65.3 percent of local manufacturers answered that they expect no significant changes in the business environment with the new US government. The survey, which asked 300 firms earlier this month, showed that

A major South Korean labor union has decided to stage a large-scale strike this week against what it describes as anti-labor law revision, sources said Sunday, amid the country's struggle to curb the new coronavirus. The Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) plans to conduct the nationwide one-day walkout Wednesday to oppose the government plan to revise the law to ratify key International Labor Organization (ILO) conventions. The conventions are aimed at improving workers' rights here,

SK Telecom Co., South Korea's leading mobile carrier, said Sunday it has developed a next-generation cloud native core network system with Samsung Electronics Co. that can provide better 5G services. A core network is the central part of a telecommunications infrastructure that handles key tasks, including device certification and quality of service management, for mobile subscribers to access various services. SK Telecom said its latest core network is the first in the industry to meet the

Back from international duty marred by coronavirus infections for his teammates, Tottenham Hotspur star Son Heung-min has claimed the sole possession of the Premier League scoring lead. Son netted a fifth-minute opener for a 2-0 victory over Manchester City at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London on Saturday (local time). It was his ninth goal in nine matches in the league this year, putting Son ahead of three players -- Dominic Calvert-Lewin of Everton, Mohamed Salah of Liverpool and Jamie Var

North Korea on Sunday called for tighter border controls against the coronavirus, urging its officials to stay on "high alert at all times" amid a global resurgence in the virus cases. North Korea has recently intensified calls for tightened preventive measures against COVID-19 after leader Kim Jong-un held a politburo meeting of the Workers' Party and stressed the need to "keep a high alert, build a tight blocking wall and further intensify the anti-epidemic work." "B

Environmentally friendly cars, such as electric vehicles (EVs) and hydrogen-powered cars, make up more than 3 percent of the total vehicles registered in South Korea, a report from the country's transport ministry showed Sunday. There were 766,464 green vehicles registered in South Korea as of end-October, accounting for 3.16 percent of the total vehicles here, according to the data from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transportation. This is the first time that the share of eco-fri

성추행범으로 확정판결을 받은 배우 조덕제씨의 일방적 주장을 근거로 피해 여배우에 대해 허위사실을 보도한 언론사의 손해배상 책임이 1심 법원에서 인정됐다. 22일 법조계에 따르면 서울중앙지법 민사합의14부(김병철 부장판사)는 배우 반민정씨가 SBS플러스 등 언론사와 온라인매체 5곳을 상대로 제기한 손해배상 청구 소송에서 원고 일부 승소로 판결했다. 조덕제씨는 2015년 4월 영화 촬영 중 사전에 합의하지 않은 채 상대 여배우인 반씨의 신체를 만지는 등 강제 추행한 혐의로 2018년 9월 유죄가 확정됐다. 하지만 피고 매체들은 판결 전후로 조씨 측의 주장을 일방적으로 실은 기사를 보도했고, 반씨는 이들이 허위사실을 보도했다며 지난해 7월 1억원대의 손해배상을 청구하는 소송을 냈다. 판도라TV는 지난해 10월 법원의 화해권고 결정에 따라 "조덕제 성폭력 사건과 관련된 허위내용이 포함된 영상들이 게시된 바 있음을 인정하고 사과한다"고 했다. 헤럴드도 최근 화해권고

Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Lee Seong-yong and US chief of space operations Gen. John Raymond have held their first bilateral talks and agreed to boost cooperation to better respond to emerging space threats, the military said Sunday. During the meeting held in Hawaii on Thursday, Lee proposed setting up a regular consultation channel between the Air Force and the US Space Force for personnel exchanges, technology cooperation and information sharing, according to the Air Force. "Lee as

South Korean President Moon Jae-in participated in an annual conference with the leaders of 19 other major economies, held via video links Saturday, and emphasized the importance of concerted efforts to overcome the COVID-19 pandemic. Speaking at the Day 1 session of the Group of 20 (G20) summit, chaired by Saudi Arabia, the president pointed out that uncertainties facing the global economy are still running high. He stressed the need for the development and equitable distribution of vaccines

The number of daily new coronavirus cases in South Korea exceeded 300 for the fifth straight day Sunday due to sporadic cluster infections across the country as health authorities decided to enforce tougher antivirus curbs to prevent another wave of the pandemic.     The country added 330 more COVID-19 cases, including 302 local infections, raising the total caseload to 30,733, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).     The latest fi

The US Forces Korea (USFK) decided not to issue its annual Korean Peninsula security report this year as it has to cope with the coronavirus pandemic and other challenging matters, officials said Sunday. The USFK, along with the United Nations Command and the Combined Forces Command, has issued the annual publication, titled "Strategic Digest," which provides major developments on the Korean Peninsula with regards to military and the bilateral alliance issues, such as North Korea's mi

About 60,000 people took a state-run teacher employment examination across the country Saturday despite a new spike in coronavirus cases. The education ministry went ahead with the test to pick new teachers for public middle schools despite a cluster infection at a private institute for aspiring teachers in southeastern Seoul. As of Saturday morning, a total of 67 students at the cram school have been confirmed to be infected with COVID-19. The first case occurred there Wednesday. The exam

The small southern county of Hadong in South Gyeongsang Province started to enforce the third-highest level of social distancing Saturday to prevent the further spread of the novel coronavirus. The provincial government said it raised social distancing by one notch to Level 2 under the new five-tier social distancing scheme in the Hadong county, about 360 kilometers south of Seoul, starting at 2 p.m. Saturday. The move came as 29 new cases had been confirmed in the past five days in the count

The US Forces Korea was set to enforce new coronavirus restrictions for its members amid a resurgence of COVID-19 in South Korea. The US military said on its homepage Friday it will implement a two-week travel ban for the greater Seoul area, effective Saturday at 6 p.m. "USFK has declared that all travel to or within Area II -- except for those who reside within Area II or for individuals conducting official and necessary duties -- is off-limits for the next 14 days," the military s

K-pop sensation BTS has topped 90 regional iTunes charts with its latest album titled "Be," the band's agency said Saturday. Released the previous day, the band's fifth Korean-language studio album debuted at No. 1 on the iTunes Top Albums charts in 90 countries, including the United States and Britain, according to Bit Hit Entertainment. At the same time, the title track, "Life Goes On," ranked first on the iTunes Top Songs chart in 90 countries. Sales of the eight-track