The ruling Democratic Party (DP) has set out to find ways to get lucrative companies to share some of their profits with small businesses vulnerable to losses amid the coronavirus pandemic, but it is facing vehement objection from the business community and opposition lawmakers. Last week, a DP task force addressing the growing economic bipolarization from the pandemic began discussions on how to promote profit sharing between the supposed corporate winners and losers amid an economy weighed do

The race for the upcoming Seoul mayoral by-election is all but set, with the ruling and opposition parties likely to finalize their candidates by the end of this week. The competition has heated up with the addition of each new runner, the latest being former Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, who declared his candidacy on the ticket of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) on Sunday. All eyes are now on the decision of Park Young-sun, minister of SMEs and Startups, who is widely expected to throw

South Korea's health authorities on Monday confirmed the country's first case of the new coronavirus variant that was first identified in Brazil. The latest discovery brings the total caseload of new coronavirus variants to 18 here, including 15 with the British COVID-19 variant and two with the South African variant, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). Reports say the British and South African variants may spread more readily between people than the original v

President Moon Jae-in said Monday that South Korea will seek dialogue with Japan to find a solution to Tokyo's wartime sexual slavery amid renewed tensions following a recent court ruling on the thorny issue. During his New Year's press conference, Moon also renewed his call for a diplomatic solution to the issue of Japan's colonial-era forced labor, while stressing his two-track approach separating historical issues from efforts to forge "future-oriented" bilateral ties. His remarks

Over a third of non-regular workers have experienced unemployment since the new coronavirus broke out in South Korea in January 2020, a survey showed Monday. According to a survey by Embrain Public conducted on 1,000 salaried workers aged between 19 and 55 on four occasions in April, June, September and December, the average rate of respondents who said they have lost their jobs stood at 17.2 percent in December, up 11.7 percentage points from April. The rise was sharper among non-regular work

Foreign currency deposits at banks in South Korea hit a new high in December last year on increased retail holdings of the US dollar deposits, central bank data showed Monday. Outstanding foreign currency-denominated deposits held by residents amounted to $94.2 billion as of end-December, up $590 million from the previous month, according to the data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). Residents' foreign currency deposits renewed their record for the third consecutive month after plunging by $3.1 bi

South Korea's ICT ministry said Monday it has required global tech giants Google, Facebook and Netflix as well as local rivals Naver, Kakao and Wavve, to comply with the country's new law under which large data-hungry online companies must provide stable services. Last year, South Korea passed a law revision holding online content service providers accountable if they fail to maintain stable services amid growing complaints against streaming giants Netflix and Google, which operates YouTube, af

President Moon Jae-in on Monday expressed hope for the stalled diplomacy on North Korea's denuclearization to move forward from the agreement reached in the Singapore summit between Washington and Pyongyang. "The Singapore Declaration achieved under the Trump administration was a very important declaration in terms of denuclearization and establishing peace on the Korean Peninsula," Moon said during a New Year's press conference held at Cheong Wa Dae, referring to the agreement produc

A heavy snow advisory was replaced by a cold wave alert in Seoul and central regions on Monday, the weather agency said, forecasting the capital's morning low will dip to minus 13 C on Tuesday. The Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) said it has lifted a heavy snow advisory issued for Seoul and central and southern regions and that a cold wave alert or warning will go into effect in those regions Monday night. A cold wave warning is issued when the morning low is below minus 15 C for mor

South Korea's top construction equipment maker Doosan Infracore Co. said Monday that the number of its construction equipment sold here rose 18 percent last year from a year ago on increased demand. "Despite the coronavirus pandemic, demand for high-end excavators increased last year here on the back of enhanced safety regulations and increased use of excavators in construction sites," a company official said over the phone on condition of anonymity. Doosan Infracore said it sold ove

President Moon Jae-in forecast Monday that South Korea will be able to achieve the formation of collective herd immunity against the new coronavirus faster than other countries under the government's inoculation program. "South Korea will definitely not lag behind (in achieving herd immunity), but rather will be able to achieve it much faster compared to other nations when considering the inoculation period and the time frame in achieving herd immunity," Moon said during a New Year's

South Korea's public institutions plan to hire more than 26,000 new employees this year in a bid to prop up the job market hit hard by the new coronavirus outbreak, the finance minister said Monday. The plan will represent an increase of around 1,000 people from the previous year, Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said at an opening speech for a job fair on public institutions. "Job creation in the public sector has become more important than ever to tackle the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic

The defense ministry said Monday it has extended a toughened social distancing scheme for two weeks, banning troops from vacationing and taking off-installation trips to stem the spread of the new coronavirus. Since November, the ministry has enforced Level 2.5 social distancing rules, the second highest in its five-tier alert system, following a series of COVID-19 cluster infections at barracks across the country. "Given the government's decision on the social distancing rules, we've dec

South Korea's first homegrown coronavirus treatment candidate from Celltrion Inc. is expected to be used to treat patients starting early February, Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said Monday. "We expect the drug to be used from early next month in antivirus activities in the field if the review process goes smoothly," Chung said during an interagency meeting on the COVID-19 response held at the government complex in Seoul. The prime minister said health authorities convened a panel of

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases rose by the smallest number in nearly two months Monday, apparently on the back of tightened social distancing measures and fewer tests over the weekend, but health authorities remain vigilant over potential upticks. The country added 389 more COVID-19 cases, including 366 local infections, raising the total caseload to 72,729, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). Monday's daily figure marked a sharp fall from 520 posted

자신의 여자친구를 험담한 인터넷방송 진행자에게 흉기를 휘두른 30대 남성이 경찰에 붙잡혔다. 광주 서부경찰서는 특수상해 혐의로 A(33) 씨를 현행범 체포했다고 18일 밝혔다. A씨는 이날 오전 3시 10분께 광주 서구 한 주택에서 인터넷방송 진행자 B(36)씨 등 2명에게 흉기를 휘두른 혐의다. A씨는 B씨 등이 인터넷방송에서 자신의 여자친구에 대해 험담을 하자 이러한 일을 벌인 것으로 조사됐다. 흉기에 다친 B씨 등은 경상을 입고 병원 치료를 받았다. 경찰은 A씨를 상대로 정확한 사건 경위를 조사 중이다. (연합뉴스)

Nearly 135,000 terminally ill South Koreans have chosen to forgo life-prolonging treatment since the legalization of the right to die with dignity three years ago, government data showed Monday. The number of patients who opted to die with dignity stood at 134,945 at the end of December last year, according to the data from the National Agency for Management of Life-Sustaining Treatment. Of the total patients, 80,594, or 59.7 percent, were male, with those aged 60 or older taking up 81 percent

North Korea convened a parliamentary session in Pyongyang over the weekend to discuss personnel, budget and other issues in a follow up on decisions made during a recent ruling party congress, state media said Monday. The North's rubber-stamp Supreme People's Assembly (SPA) meeting was held less than a week after Pyongyang wrapped up the eight-day congress of the ruling Workers' Party on Tuesday. On Sunday, the SPA unanimously decided on the implementation of its five-year economic plan set fo

South Korea's exports of rechargeable batteries rose for the fifth consecutive year in 2020 despite the coronavirus impact, data showed Monday. Overseas shipments of rechargeable batteries came to 7.2 trillion won ($6.6 billion) last year, up 2.9 percent from the previous year, according to the data from the industry ministry and the Korea Battery Industry Association. Exports of rechargeable batteries expanded for five years running in 2020, setting a new record. Rechargeable battery product

Disaster safety authorities were on heightened alert on Sunday as heavy snowfall was forecast to hit South Korea on Sunday evening and throughout the night, raising alarms over potential traffic disturbances around morning rush hour the next day. The Korea Meteorological Administration said the western part of the greater Seoul area and the west coast line of the South Chungcheong Province will begin to see snowfall at around 3 p.m. The flurry will then gradually move east to affect the count