The number of stock investors jumped nearly 49 percent in 2020 from a year earlier amid a bullish market run, industry data showed Tuesday. A total of 9.19 million investors held shares in 2,352 companies listed on the country's main and secondary bourses, up 48.5 percent from a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Securities Depository. Those investors owned a combined 99.1 billion shares, with per-capita holdings standing at 10,779 shares. Retail investors in those firms closi

President Moon Jae-in apologized to the people Tuesday over alleged insider property speculation involving officials at the state-owned housing supply body, two weeks after the revelation of the case by civic groups. "I am sorry for having caused great concern to the people," he said at the start of a weekly Cabinet meeting. The case has brought about a "great sense of despondency and disappointment" among the public, he added. The apology followed a string of strong messa

The first solo album of Rose, K-pop girl group BLACKPINK's main vocalist, has scored over 500,000 global preorders, a record number for a K-pop female singer, the singer's management agency said Tuesday. The album, titled "R," has sold a combined 505,000 units since its online release last Friday, including 404,318 units in CD and 49,058 in KiT, a type of physical album used for digital streaming, according to YG Entertainment. This marks the biggest presales for an album by a K-pop

South Korea's airfreight exports jumped to account for 36 percent of the country's overall exports last year, industry data showed Tuesday, on higher demand for chips and biohealth products. Of the country's combined exports of $512.5 billion in 2020, air transport accounted for $183 billion, according to the data compiled by the Korea International Trade Association (KITA). While maritime transport still accounted for the majority of $325.8 billion, the portion of air cargo rose 5.4 percentag

South Korea on Tuesday said it will open new facilities overseas to help exporters better capitalize on free trade agreements (FTA) amid the coronavirus pandemic. Under the plan, the country plans to spend 11.9 billion won ($10.4 million) this year to open new FTA support centers in Southeast Asia and provide customized consulting programs, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The country currently operates 18 FTA support centers for exporters nationwide, along with 15 othe

T'way Air, a South Korean low-cost carrier, said Tuesday it will begin introducing three A330-300 chartered planes late this year to prepare for the post coronavirus era. T'way Air plans to inject the three A330-300s into mid- and long-haul international routes to Kyrgyzstan, Australia and Croatia, the company said in a statement. The budget carrier has 27 B737-800 chartered planes and currently serves six international routes and six domestic routes. It served 47 international and three domes

Three soldiers based in the central city of Sejong have tested positive for the new coronavirus, the defense ministry said Tuesday. They were confirmed to have contracted COVID-19 in a test required to exit quarantine after coming into contact with a colleague who tested positive earlier, according to the ministry. Since the first case was reported earlier this month, the unit in Sejong, some 120 kilometers south of Seoul, has reported a total of 12 cases. The total number of infections repo

Almost all of South Korea was blanketed Tuesday by a massive yellow dust storm originating from the inland deserts in northern China, the state weather agency said. According to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA), almost all parts of the nation came under the influence of high levels of yellow dust that originated in the Inner Mongolian region in northern China and the vicinity of the Gobi Desert over the weekend and was moving south by riding the northerly wind. The latest yellow d

The founder of South Korea's top mobile messenger operator Kakao Corp. said Tuesday that he will donate half of his wealth -- currently estimated to be more than 10 trillion won ($8.9 billion). "Through this pledge today, we commit to give more than half of our wealth back to society during our lifetime," Kim Beom-su said in a message posted on the website of the Giving Pledge. Giving Pledge, created by Bill and Melinda Gates and Warren Buffett, is a global campaign by the world's we

Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun on Tuesday instructed health authorities to review ways of introducing a holiday program geared toward vaccinations against the new coronavirus. "There is a need to systematize a vaccine holiday to encourage the people to participate in the vaccination campaign with assurance," Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said during a daily interagency meeting on the coronavirus response. Chung explained that regular side effects, such as experiencing a fever or achin

Samsung Display Co., a major display maker in South Korea, said Tuesday it targets to expand its presence in the gaming display market with its OLED panels for smartphones. Samsung Display said its 6.78-inch OLED panel is used in Asus' Republic of Gamers (ROG) Phone 5 launched last week, and it aims to sell more OLED displays to those who make gaming IT devices. "With more people practicing social distancing by staying at home, the number of online gamers has surged, and end-product manuf

S BS TV '그것이 알고 싶다' 프로그램이 경북 구미 3세 여아 친모로 밝혀진 석모(48)씨의 얼굴 사진을 공개했다. '그것이 알고 싶다' 측은 지난 15일 석씨의 얼굴 사진을 소셜네트워크서비스(SNS)에 공개하고 '아동 학대로 사망한 구미 3세 여아의 친모로 확인된 석씨(1973년생)를 알고 계신 분들의 연락을 기다린다'고 밝혔다. 공개된 사진에서 석씨는 밝은색으로 물들인 머리를 한 상태로 얼굴이 희미하게 드러나 있다. 앞서 지난달 10일 구미 한 빌라에서 3살 된 여자아이가 숨진 채 발견되자 수사에 나선 경찰이 석씨의 딸 김모(22)씨를 살인 및 아동복지법 위반(아동방임) 등 혐의로 구속했다. 하지만 유전자(DNA) 검사 결과에서 숨진 여아의 친모는 김씨 어머니인 석씨로 밝혀졌다. 이에 경찰은 비슷한 시기 딸이 낳은 아이를 빼돌린 혐의(미성년자 약취)로 석씨를 구속하고 사라진 다른 여자아이를 찾고 있다. (연합뉴스)

South Korean stocks opened higher Tuesday, tracking overnight advances on Wall Street amid falling Treasury yields. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 12.72 points, or 0.42 percent, to 3,058.43 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite added 1.05 percent, as the yield on the US 10-year Treasury note fell, easing investor concerns over earlier-than-expected post-pandemic inflation. In Seoul, top cap Samsung Electronics gaine

In just his second spring training start, Ryu Hyun-jin of the Toronto Blue Jays already looked to be in midseason form. The South Korean left-hander tossed four shutout innings in a 4-0 win over the Detroit Tigers at Publix Field at Joker Marchant Stadium in Lakeland, Florida, on Monday (local time). Ryu struck out four and gave up just two hits. He was supposed to get his pitch count up to 60 pitches over those four innings but ended up needing just 49 pitches -- 38 of them strikes. Ryu threw

WASHINGTON -- The Korean War Veterans Memorial in Washington will undergo an extensive renewal that will add a complete list of those killed in battles, including Korean augmentees to the US Army or KATUSA, the Korean Embassy here said Monday. The work to add a list of some 43,000 Korean War veterans killed in battle will begin on Tuesday. The $22 million project is expected to take 18 months, according to embassy officials. The newest addition to the memorial will have a list of some 36,000

Samsung Electronics Co. said Tuesday it has been selected as the sole vendor to supply 5G network equipment and solutions to a Canadian telecommunications firm. Under the deal with Saskatchewan Telecommunications Holding Corp. (SaskTel), Samsung will provide the Canadian company with the 4G/5G radio unit, massive multiple input, multiple output (MIMO) radio technology, network virtualization software and maintenance services. The South Korean tech giant said it is also the first time that the

The market value of cryptocurrencies in South Korea has shot up nearly 10 times over the past three years amid keen investor interest, industry sources said Tuesday. According to local cryptocurrency exchange Upbit, its market index stood at 9,742.62 points as of 5:45 p.m. Monday, almost 10 times the level of 1,000 points on Oct. 1, 2017, when the index was first calculated The Upbit Market Index covers all cryptocurrencies traded in the exchange's won-denominated market and shows changes in t

Samsung Electronics Co. was the third-largest vendor of wearable devices in the fourth quarter of 2020, a market report showed Tuesday, amid soaring global demand for wearbles despite the pandemic. The South Korean tech giant shipped 13 million units of wearable devices in the October-December period, up 20.5 percent from a year earlier, although its market share dropped to 8.5 percent from 9 percent a year ago, according to the latest report from market tracker International Data Corp. (IDC).

South Korea's export prices rose in February, marking the third straight monthly gain helped by a modest recovery in exports, central bank data showed Tuesday. The country's export price index, in terms of the local currency, rose 3.1 percent in February from the previous month, according to the preliminary data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). The reading marked the third consecutive month of an on-month rise. In January, the index rose 1.8 percent on-month. From a year earlier, the index rose

Youn Yuh-jung has a career that spans over half a century, with a number of hit films and TV series under her belt. At the age of 73, the veteran actress has made South Korean film history by being nominated for best supporting actress at the 93rd Academy Awards for her performance in the US immigration film "Minari." No other Korean actor, even stars from the Oscar-winning "Parasite," has received an Oscar nomination. Born in 1947, Youn rose to fame in South Korea with her