K-pop act Tomorrow X Together (TXT) is set to appear on the popular US show "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" as part of its latest global promotion drive, the group's agency said Thursday. The boy band will perform "We Lost the Summer," the main track of its third EP "Minisode 1: Blue Hour" on April 16 (US time), in its first-ever appearance on an American talk show, according to Big Hit Music. TXT made its first American television outing on cable music network MTV's &

Only 26 of 5,002 people in the greater Seoul area have antibodies against the novel coronavirus, a test showed Thursday, reinforcing views that the nation's aggressive containment efforts might have curbed the prevalence of the virus. However, the antibody rate of 0.52 percent among those in the wider Seoul area, which includes Gyeonggi Province and Incheon City, was higher than a rate of 0.15 percent in last year's antibody test, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KD

South Korea's health authorities on Thursday said they will resume administering AstraZeneca vaccines one day after suspending the vaccination program for certain groups over its safety, saying they will officially decide the issue over the weekend. On Wednesday, the country suspended the use of vaccines by the British-Swedish pharmaceutical giant and Oxford University for people under age 60, special education instructors and school nurses. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDC

The music video for the 2018 BTS hit "Fake Love" has earned 900 million views on YouTube, becoming the group's fourth song to reach the milestone, their agency said Thursday. "Fake Love," the main track for the seven-piece act's third full album "Love Yourself: Tear," hit 900 million views at 10:39 a.m. on Thursday, according to Big Hit Music. The album had stayed on Billboard's main albums chart for 15 consecutive weeks after peaking at No. 1, while "Fake Lo

The leaders of the ruling Democratic Party (DP) resigned en masse Thursday to take responsibility for the shocking rout in this week's by-elections. "Taking responsibility for the results of the elections, all (members of) the DP leadership are stepping down," Rep. Kim Tae-nyeon, the party's acting chairman and floor leader, said in a press conference at the National Assembly. The party will hold a convention to pick a new chairman on May 2, a week earlier than initially planned, and

Excess funds held by South Korean households and nonprofit agencies more than doubled in 2020 from a year earlier due mainly to an extended slump in private consumption amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the central bank said Thursday. Net financial funds -- the value of financial assets minus financial liabilities -- held by local households and nonprofit organizations serving households amounted to 192.1 trillion won ($172 billion) last year, sharply up from 92.2 trillion won a year earlier, accord

SEJONG -- Average monthly household spending fell 2.3 percent on year in 2020 as the COVID-19 pandemic hurt private consumption, data showed Thursday. South Korean households spent an average of 2.4 million won ($2,144) per month last year, compared with 2.45 million won per month in 2019, according to the data released by Statistics Korea. Average monthly expenditures on food and nonalcoholic beverages came to 381,000 won last year, up 14.6 percent from a year ago, the data showed. The da

Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co. said Thursday that it has opened a center to control the shipbuilding process at its shipyards. The center at its Okpo shipyard on Geoje Island, 398 kilometers south of Seoul, is made up of two parts -- the smart production management center and smart sea trial center -- Daewoo Shipbuilding said. The smart production management center will check the locations of blocks being built at the shipyard and will help workers make quick decisions by sha

Police raided the headquarters of Korea Land and Housing Corp. (LH) and five other locations Thursday as part of an investigation into alleged irregularities involving business contracts. The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency said its officers searched the state housing developer in Jinju, about 435 kilometers southeast of Seoul, as well as the offices of its suppliers and the homes of three suspects in Gyeonggi Province near the capital. The company is suspected to have given favors to supplie

Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun on Thursday ordered health authorities to thoroughly and swiftly review the latest findings by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) on the safety of AstraZeneca's vaccine. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency should "swiftly reach a scientific conclusion on the findings and share the results with the public in a transparent manner," he said. While rare blood clots have been reported among people administered with the vaccine, the EMA said "

South Korea's agricultural ministry said Thursday it plans to expand the size of the insects market to 140 billion won ($124 million) by 2025 and foster the segment as a new growth engine for the country's food industry. The targeted market value marks 55 percent growth from 2019, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. "We plan to further speed up the growth of the industry and develop new environment-friendly protein sources using insects, which can contribute

After his Democratic Party (DP) suffered an election rout, President Moon Jae-in stated Thursday that he takes it as a "reprimand" from the public. He said he will carry out his duties with a "humble demeanor and heavy sense of responsibility," according to Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Kang Min-seok. Moon was quoted as adding that he will concentrate efforts on meeting the people's "desperate demands," including overcoming the COVID-19 crisis, revitalizing the economy,

Samsung Electronics Co. introduced its new Galaxy A series smartphone portfolio in the United States on Thursday, hoping it can take over market share of its South Korean rival LG Electronics Inc. that recently announced its departure from the mobile business. Starting with the Galaxy A42 5G on Thursday, Samsung will release the Galaxy A52 5G, A32 5G and A12 on Friday in the US. The Galaxy A02s will be available from April 29. "These are the perfect smartphones for anyone who wants the

South Korea decided Thursday to spend 2.3 billion won ($2.1 million) of inter-Korean cooperation funds to repair a flood-damaged bridge near the border with North Korea, the unification ministry said. A civilian-government committee on inter-Korean exchanges approved the decision to use the funds to rebuild the "Bima Bridge," a sole path toward the Arrowhead Ridge on the border with North Korea in Cheorwon, some 90 kilometers northeast of Seoul. The bridge was destroyed by heavy down

A military officer working for the arms procurement agency tested positive for the new coronavirus, the latest in a series of confirmed cases there, the defense ministry said Thursday. The officer of the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) has been in isolation after coming into close contact with his colleague who earlier tested positive, according to the ministry. Since last week, the agency has reported six COVID-19 cases, including the latest one. All of them worked at a same

KT Sat Co., a satellite service arm of South Korean telecom giant KT Corp., said Thursday it has won an order to establish a high-speed satellite telecommunications network in Indonesia's Papua province. The company said it will take part in the Indonesian government-led project to offer telecommunications services for 3.4 million Indonesians and up to 1,300 schools and public facilities in the province by partnering with local satellite internet service provider DTP. A KT Sat official said th

North Korea urged the grassroots leaders of the ruling Workers' Party not to overlook "wrong deeds" of their members, state media said Thursday, as the country steps up efforts to carry out economic development and other goals put forward earlier this year. A conference of the party's "cell secretaries" has been under way in the North since Tuesday. The meeting came as the country is striving to drum up support for goals and policy directions put forth during the eighth part

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases hit the highest in three months Thursday as the country pushes for the resumption of AstraZeneca vaccine rollout amid lingering woes over its safety. The country reported 700 more COVID-19 cases, including 674 local infections, raising the total caseload to 107,598, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. It marked the highest level since 870 cases on Jan. 7 and a rise from 668 on Wednesday. The country added two more deaths from C

SEJONG -- The government will make efforts to revise a set of laws this year to help root out real estate speculation, Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said Thursday, amid growing public criticism over allegations of property speculation by officials at the state-run housing corporation. Hong said the government will have close consultations with the National Assembly to submit 19 revision bills this month that eventually ban public officials from doing illegal property speculation. Of the 19 bil

The White House on Wednesday denied any discussions with US allies to jointly boycott the 2022 Winter Olympic Games to be held in Beijing as part of efforts to hold China accountable for its suppression of Uyghurs in Xinjiang. White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said the United States will work closely with allies for their shared interests but reiterated "no discussion" is under way. "Our position on the 2022 Olympics has not changed. We have not discussed and are not discussing