Culture Minister nominee Hwang Hee pledged efforts Tuesday to help recover the culture, sports and tourism sectors hit particularly hard by the brunt of the COVID-19 pandemic. "Those who work in the culture, sports and tourism fields have been under bigger and graver pain from the COVID-19 pandemic," the nominee said in his speech to the parliamentary culture committee during a confirmation hearing. "I will pour my utmost efforts to helping them recover rapidly if I am appointed

Prosecutors dropped a charge on Tuesday against Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl that he ordered the illegal surveillance of judges hearing politically sensitive cases. The Seoul High Prosecutors Office said it concluded that the abuse of power accusation against Yoon was unfounded, after questioning multiple people involved in the case and going over similar cases. The Ministry of Justice in February ordered the Supreme Prosecutors Office (SPO) to investigate the allegation. The SPO later re

Combined service output declined in 15 provinces and major cities in South Korea in the fourth quarter of last year as the pandemic hit the segments providing face-to-face services, data showed Tuesday. Except for Seoul, six cities and nine provinces posted an on-year fall in service output in the October-December period, according to Statistics Korea. Service output in Seoul -- home to about one-fifth of the country's 51.6 million population -- rose 0.9 percent on-year in the fourth quarter,

The delinquency rate for South Korean banks' won-denominated loans fell in December last year from the previous month, the financial regulator said Tuesday. The rate for bank loans more than 30 days overdue stood at 0.28 percent at the end of December, down 0.07 percentage point from the previous month, according to the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). Compared with a year earlier, the bank loan delinquency rate was also down 0.09 percentage point. Banks' loan delinquency rate remains sta

South Korean shipbuilders held on to their global No. 1 status in terms of new orders of ships in January, outpacing their Chinese rivals for the seventh straight month, industry data showed Tuesday. According to the data provided by global market researcher Clarkson Research Service, South Korean shipyards bagged new orders totaling 910,000 compensated gross tons (CGTs), representing 54 percent of the 1.7 million CGTs ordered globally in January, or 24 of 66 ships. The South Korean shipbuilde

A senior Renault Group executive on Tuesday said its South Korean operations should ramp up production and cut manufacturing costs to stay afloat amid the coronavirus crisis. Jose Vicente de Los Mozos, executive vice president in charge of manufacturing and supply chain at Renault, made the comments in a video message delivered to workers at the French carmaker's sole Korean plant in Busan, 450 kilometers south of Seoul. Last year, Renault Samsung Motors Corp. promised to improve productivity

A planned live-fire exercise involving Apache attack helicopters of the US Forces Korea has been suspended following noise and other complaints from residents near the firing range in the southeastern city of Pohang, officials said. The Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission said the drill, which had been scheduled to begin on Tuesday and continue until next month, will be suspended while a mediation procedure is under way with residents near the Suseong firing range in Pohang. "As t

The unification ministry on Tuesday expressed hope for the early reopening of a now-shuttered industrial complex in North Korea's border town of Kaesong as it marks the fifth anniversary of its closure amid chilled inter-Korean relations. South Korea closed the Kaesong Industrial Complex in February 2016 in retaliation against the North's nuclear and missile provocations. The Kaesong complex had been considered one of the most tangible symbols of inter-Korean reconciliation. "The governme

North Korea has been conducting regular wintertime military drills without showing any unusual moves ahead of the birthday of late leader Kim Jong-il, the South Korean military said Tuesday. North Korea celebrated the 73rd anniversary Monday of the foundation of its army and has another key national holiday coming up, which is the Feb. 16 birthday of its late leader, the father of current leader Kim Jong-un. "North Korea's military is continuing wintertime exercises and has not shown any

South Korea said Tuesday it plans to implement revised rules on animal abuse this week that center on tougher punishment and more regulations on pet owners. Starting Friday, those who slaughter animals cruelly will face imprisonment of up to three years or a fine of 30 million won ($26,840), according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. It compares with the previous ceiling of two years. Owners of fierce dogs are obligated to purchase insurance packages, and violators will

South Korean petrochemical companies said Tuesday they will join the country's green energy drive, which centers on achieving carbon neutrality by 2050. The country launched a new committee on achieving carbon neutrality under ties with the private sector, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The Moon Jae-in government has vowed to achieve carbon neutrality by that year, which means effectively reducing carbon emissions to zero. It is also pushing a Green New Deal aimed at

Doosan Mobility Innovation (DMI), a producer of portable fuel cell power packs, said Tuesday it has signed a deal with a Chinese robot maker to jointly develop hydrogen fuel cell-powered firefighting robots. Under the deal with CITIC HIC Kaicheng Intelligence Equipment Co., DMI will work together to establish sales networks in China and other countries, the company said. The two companies plan to release a prototype of hydrogen fuel cell-propelled robots in the first half of the year and to st

South Korea's overall advertising expenditure inched down in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, but the digital ad market expanded at a double-digit rate, a report showed Tuesday. Advertising expenses in Asia's fourth-largest economy amounted to 11.99 trillion won ($10.7 billion) last year, down 0.8 percent from a year earlier, according to the report from Cheil Worldwide Inc. The country's leading advertising agency attributed last year's sluggish market growth to the COVID-19 outbreak tha

Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun on Tuesday asked for the public's cooperation with the government's antivirus measures amid a backlash from small business owners in the greater Seoul area over stricter rules imposed on them than those in other regions. "We ask for your participation in the spirit of the greater good and cooperation. We understand the underlying emotions, but it is a decision reached under comprehensive consideration of the transmission risk and social receptiveness," Ch

Chinese electronics giant Skyworth has apologized over misusing an image of LG Electronics Inc.'s rollable TV during its presentation at a tech expo last month, industry insiders said Tuesday, following the South Korean tech firm's complaint. Skyworth USA Corp., the American unit of Skyworth, recently issued a statement acknowledging its unauthorized use of LG's rollable TV image during its Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2021 online event. "Skyworth USA Corporation misused an LG Rollable

South Korea will start vaccinating its population against COVID-19 on Feb. 26 if final approval for the use of AstraZeneca's vaccine for elderly people is made this week, health authorities said Tuesday. The announcement by the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency came as the nation reported a slight rise in daily coronavirus cases, with authorities still on high alert ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday. It was the first time that the KDCA set a start date for the vaccinations, rais

South Korean stocks opened higher Tuesday, tracking overnight gains on Wall Street that stemmed from growing hopes of progress in the US stimulus talks. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 24.52 points, or 0.79 percent, to 3,115.76 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Market kingpin Samsung Electronics added 1.81 percent, and No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix hiked 3.2 percent. Hyundai Motor gained 1.07 percent following heavy losses the previous session after saying tha

7일 오후 9시 30분, 국내외에서 뜨거운 반응을 얻고 있는 오디오 소셜미디어(SNS) '클럽하우스'(ClubHouse)에 방을 열어봤다. 친한 기자 한 명과 업계 종사자 한 명이 들어오고, 호기심 또는 실수로 방제를 누른 것 같은 이용자 두어 명이 접속했다. 가볍게 인사를 나누며 다른 방은 뭐가 있나 둘러보니, 스타트업 대표부터 연예인·작가·유튜버 등 소위 '셀럽'들이 연 방이 많았다. 쟁쟁한 '경쟁자'들을 보고 등에 한 줄기 식은땀이 흐르는 것을 느끼는 찰나, 기자가 만든 방에도 30명 넘는 이용자가 모였다. 목소리를 가다듬고 대화를 시작했다. 힙스터(최신 유행을 좇는 사람)들이 쓴다는 클럽하우스를 써봤다. 방 열자 방송인·스타트업 대표 등 접속…저명인사와 친구처럼 대화 가능 클럽하우스는 미국 스타트업 '알파 익스플로레이션'이 지난해 4월 출시한 음성 SNS다. 실리콘밸리의 벤처캐피털(VC) 앤드리슨 호로위츠가 투자

BLACKPINK, which owns one of the world's biggest subscriber bases on YouTube, set another record Tuesday by earning 1.2 billion views with its music video "Kill This Love." Views for the 2019 hit broke the record at 12:38 a.m. on YouTube, becoming the all-female act's second music video to set the milestone, according to YG Entertainment. Its most-watched music video is "Ddu-du Ddu-du," which is nearing a record 1.5 billion views. Released in April 2019, the fierce anthem w

WASHINGTON -- South Korea's push for concessions to North Korea may continue to create tension in US-South Korea relations, a US congressional report said. The updated Congressional Research Service (CRS) report on South Korea noted policy coordination between Seoul and Washington had been "inconsistent" under former US President Donald Trump. President Joe Biden, on the other hand, is "reinvigorating the alliance, suggesting he would abandon President Trump's repeated use of pu