South Korea's health minister on Tuesday stressed the importance of increasing COVID-19 vaccines and treatment manufacturing capacity to fight the pandemic. "We have to focus on developing and expanding the manufacturing capacity of vaccines and treatments to fight the current pandemic," Kwon Deok-cheol said in a keynote speech during the World Health Assembly (WHA). Kwon cited the importance of simplifying clinical trials to expand the commercial supply of COVID-19 vaccines. The he

British home appliance maker Dyson Ltd. on Tuesday launched two new brands of vacuum cleaners equipped with dust-detecting laser technology as the company tries to expand sales here amid the pandemic-induced stay-at-home trend. Dyson's V15 Detect and V12 Detect Slim cordless vacuum cleaners will be sold in South Korea with price tags of 1.24 million won ($1,100) and 1.09 million won, respectively. The two vacuum cleaners were already launched in select markets earlier this year. Dyson said t

The veterans affairs minister is on a visit to Colombia this week to pay tribute to the country's 1950-53 Korean War veterans, his office said Tuesday. Minister Hwang Ki-chul arrived in the Latin American country on Monday (Colombia time) for a three-day visit to strengthen the bilateral friendship and expand cooperation in veterans affairs, according to the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs. Later Monday, Hwang visited a rehab center for Korean War veterans and the Navy headquarters w

South Korea's exports of kimchi advanced a whopping 35 percent on-year in the first four months of 2021, data showed Tuesday, on the growing demand for healthier foodstuffs amid the new coronavirus pandemic. Outbound shipments of kimchi reached $61.1 million over the January-April period, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. Kimchi is a traditional Korean side dish normally made of fermented cabbage, salt and hot peppers and is eaten with almost all meals. The fer

A top Cheong Wa Dae official dismissed speculation Tuesday that China may launch another round of economic retaliation against South Korea over its latest summit agreement with the United States that touched on a sensitive regional security issue. Asked about the odds of Beijing's action against Seoul during a radio interview with CBS, a Seoul-based broadcaster, the official said, "I don't think so." Related speculation, reported by some media outlets, is based on "excessively p

Hyundai Motor Co., South Korea's biggest carmaker, said Tuesday it will temporarily suspend its Indian plant due to the rapidly spreading coronavirus pandemic. Hyundai Motor will halt the Indian plant in the southern state of Tamil Nadu for five days starting Tuesday, a company spokesman said over the phone. The decision came after two workers were infected with COVID-19 and several workers staged a sit-in at the plant Monday amid rising virus fears among workers. Tamil Nadu is one of the

President Moon Jae-in instructed the government and his Cheong Wa Dae team Monday to take thorough follow-up measures to implement his summit agreement with US President Joe Biden, according to his office. Moon convened a meeting with his Cheong Wa Dae aides and also had a weekly meeting with Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum as scheduled, a day after returning from his visit to the US for the summit talks. Citing deals on economic cooperation, COVID-19 vaccines, the alliance and the Korea peace pro

North Korea touted an organization of pro-Pyongyang residents in Japan for its efforts to hand down the Korean national identity and patriotism on the 66th anniversary of its founding on Tuesday. The General Association of Korean Residents in Japan, or Chongryon, has "established a national education system from kindergarten to college and successfully fostered talents to lead the future, and also further elevated our outstanding culture and customs," the Korean Central News Agency sa

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases stayed below 600 for the third straight day Tuesday due to fewer tests over the weekend, but health authorities are concerned over rising infections outside the greater Seoul area. The country reported 516 more COVID-19 cases, including 481 local infections, raising the total caseload to 136,983, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. The daily caseload came to 585 on Sunday and 538 on Monday. There were four additional virus dea

SsangYong Motor Co., currently under court receivership, is expected to select a lead manager as early as this week to find a new investor, industry sources said Tuesday. The carmaker didn't confirm the plan to select a lead manager. US vehicle importer HAAH Automotive Holdings Inc. reportedly remains among the potential bidders though it failed to submit a letter of intent (LOI) to a bankruptcy court to acquire the financially troubled carmaker. SsangYong's Indian parent Mahindra & Mah

South Korea's corporate direct financing inched up 2 percent in April from the previous month due largely to a rise in bond sales, data showed Tuesday. Local companies raised a combined 24.9 trillion won ($22.1 billion) by selling stocks and bonds last month, up 492.7 billion won from the previous month, according to the data from the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). Corporate stock sales declined 96 percent on-month to 250.4 billion won in April due to the previous month's high base. In

South Korean stocks opened higher Tuesday, as investor concerns over early post-pandemic inflation were eased by the soothing comments by the US Federal Reserve. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) rose 8.27 points, or 0.26 percent, to reach 3,152.57 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, the tech-laden Nasdaq gained 1.41 percent, as the Fed's key officials said the recent price hikes and supply shortages may be temporary. The Dow Industrial Average and the

South Korea's consumer sentiment rose to the highest level in almost three years in May as the country's economy is on a recovery path, central bank data showed Tuesday. The composite consumer sentiment index (CCSI) came in at 105.2 for May, up 3 points from the previous month, according to the data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). It marked the highest level since June 2018, when the sentiment index came to 106.3. The latest reading also represented the fifth straight month of on-month gain. A

WASHINGTON -- The US Department of Defense is working on details of how and when US vaccines will be provided to South Korean troops working with US Forces Korea, a Pentagon spokesman said Monday. US President Joe Biden made a surprise announcement Friday that the US will help fully inoculate all 550,000 South Korean service members, who work closely with US troops in South Korea on a daily basis. "Obviously we support the president's direction here to provide the vaccines to our ROK alli

WASHINGTON -- The United States on Monday raised its travel warning for Japan to the highest level, advising Americans not to travel to the Asian nation. "The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has issued a Level 4 Travel Health Notice for Japan due to COVID-19, indicating a very high level of COVID-19 in the country. There are restrictions in place affecting US citizen entry into Japan," said the latest US travel advisory on the country. The move comes ahead of the Tok

China is aware that part of a joint statement from last week's summit between South Korea and the United States is targeted at Beijing, though it made no mention of the country, the top Chinese envoy here said Monday. Chinese Ambassador Xing Haiming made the remarks amid expectations that the statement following the first in-person summit between Presidents Moon Jae-in and Joe Biden on Friday could stir unease in China, as it touches on sensitive issues involving the Taiwan Strait and the South

Seven in 10 childcare center teachers in South Korea believe the coronavirus pandemic has reduced language development opportunities for preschoolers, a poll showed Monday. In the poll of 709 teachers at national and public daycare centers in the greater Seoul area, 74.9 percent agreed with the view that children‘s language development was disturbed by the use of masks against COVID-19. The poll was recently conducted by the World Without Worries About Shadow Education, an education nong

The government plans to make a decision by next month on the construction of a new museum to house donations from the late Samsung Chairman Lee Kun-hee's vast art collection, officials at the culture ministry said Monday. Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Hwang Hee plans to announce details of a new art museum for around 23,000 artworks and artifacts donated by Lee's family, in June, the officials said. The planned announcement will come as at least a dozen cities around the country have

First Vice Foreign Minister Choi Jong-kun said Monday he believes China will think highly of the fact that a joint statement issued after last week's summit between President Moon Jae-in and US President Joe Biden made no mention of China. The statement, issued after the summit Friday (Washington time), stressed "the importance of preserving peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait," the first time the Taiwan issue has been included in a joint summit statement between Seoul and Washin

A woman was mauled to death by a stray dog in a suburb near Seoul on Saturday afternoon. The 59-year-old died of excessive bleeding a few hours after the dog bit her neck.  The dog's attack was filmed by a closed circuit camera set up in the neighborhood, and police later captured the dog, which looked like a hybrid of Pungsan Dog and Samoyed. This is not an isolated incident at a time when many pedigreed dogs end up on city streets and turn into strays, baring fangs and attacking people