Samsung Electronics Co. on Monday confirmed that new models of its flagship smartphone lineup will be unveiled next week as the South Korean tech giant tries to fend off challenges from Apple Inc. and Chinese brands. Samsung's Galaxy S21 smartphone series will be introduced at the Galaxy Unpacked online event at 10 a.m. Eastern Standard Time on Jan. 14 under the theme of "Welcome to the Everyday Epic." "Over the past year, mobile technology has taken center stage in everyday lif

이탈리아의 한 의사가 신종 코로나바이러스 감염증(코로나19) 백신을 맞은 엿새 뒤 바이러스 확진 판정을 받았다고 일간 일 메사제로 등 현지 언론이 3일(이하 현지시간) 보도했다. 시칠리아주에 있는 도시 시라쿠사의 움베르토 1세 병원에서 근무하는 의사 안토넬라 프란코는 지난 2일 코로나19 검사에서 양성 반응을 나타냈다. 그는 6일 전인 지난달 28일 시칠리아 주도인 팔레르모로 이동해 화이자-바이오엔테크 백신을 처음 접종받았다고 한다. 보건당국은 그가 정확히 언제 바이러스에 감염됐는지를 파악하고자 정밀 역학조사를 진행 중이다. 그가 버스로 시라쿠사에서 팔레르모까지 이동한 만큼 함께 탑승한 의료진 가운데 추가 감염자가 있을 가능성도 있다. 다만, 백신 접종 이후 감염됐다고 하더라도 백신 효능에 의문을 가질 상황은 아니라는 게 보건당국의 설명이다. 화이자-바이오엔테크 백신은 3주 간격으로 2회 접종이 원칙이다. 화이자 측도 이러한 방식을 따라야만 95% 이상의 예방 효과를 얻을

South Korea's wine imports soared to a record high in 2020 as more people enjoyed drinking and partied at home due to the coronavirus outbreak, government data showed Monday. South Korea imported $239 million worth of wines in the January-November period last year, much higher than the $204 million for the whole of 2019, according to the data by the Korea Customs Service. If the December numbers are included, last year's value of wine imports will far exceed the previous year's tally. Last ye

North Korea's official newspaper on Monday urged a stepped-up nationwide antivirus campaign ahead of a highly anticipated party congress expected to take place this week. North Korea has said it will convene the eighth congress of the Workers' Party in early January without specifying a date for the gathering. State media earlier said delegates to the congress gathered in Pyongyang, suggesting its opening is imminent. "As we march forward this year, what we have to prioritize is to streng

The number of companies delisted from the South Korean stock market rose fourfold in 2020 from the previous year due to poor financial health or other reasons, data showed Monday. A total of 16 firms, including solar-battery parts maker Woongjin Energy Co., were delisted from the country's main KOSPI and secondary KOSDAQ markets last year, according to the data from the Korea Exchange. Three companies were removed from the main bourse and the remainder from the tech-laden KOSDAQ market. Of th

The coronavirus pandemic is likely to have come as a big draw on South Korean oil refiners last year as their low refining margins ate into their profitability, industry sources said Sunday. Whipsawed by weak oil prices and sluggish refining margins, industry leader SK Innovation Co. and three other players are projected to have posted a combined net loss of more than 5 trillion won ($4.6 billion) last year. The situation didn't improve much in the third quarter of last year despite rising dem

LG Display Co., a major display panel maker in South Korea, said Sunday it will showcase a 48-inch flexible display that can generate sound without speakers at the world's largest tech expo next week. LG Display said its 48-inch bendable cinematic sound OLED (CSO) will make its debut at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2021, which will be held online from Jan. 11 to 14. The world's top large-size OLED panel maker said the latest product is optimized for gaming. "Its paper-thin screen

The leadership of the ruling Democratic Party (DP) said Sunday two imprisoned former presidents must display remorse if they are to be pardoned. This came in response to DP Chairman Lee Nak-yon's remark on Friday he would ask President Moon Jae-in to grant pardons to Park Geun-hye and Lee Myung-bak, two former conservative presidents in jail for corruption and influential-peddling charges. Following a meeting among senior party officials, including Lee Nak-yon, DP spokesman Choi In-ho said, &q

President Moon Jae-in's approval rating has reached an all-time low, while public disapproval of his performance also has hit its highest point, a poll showed Sunday. In a Realmeter survey of 1,000 people aged 18 and over, conducted over Friday and Saturday, 34.1 percent of respondents supported Moon. It's the lowest approval rating since Moon took office in May 2017. The figure in the previous Realmeter poll released last Monday was 36.7 percent. In the latest survey, 61.7 percent of respond

The coronavirus pandemic is likely to have come as a big draw on South Korean oil refiners last year as their low refining margins ate into their profitability, industry sources said Sunday. Whipsawed by weak oil prices and sluggish refining margins, industry leader SK Innovation Co. and three other players are projected to have posted a combined net loss of more than 5 trillion won ($4.6 billion) last year. The situation didn't improve much in the third quarter of last year despite rising dem

South Korea's population fell year-on-year for the first time in 2020, census data showed Sunday, with a record low number of births getting surpassed by deaths to cause a natural decrease. According to the latest census figures released by the Ministry of Interior and Safety, South Korea had 51,829,023 people as of Dec. 31, 2020, down 20,838 from the end of 2019. The population had increased in each of the previous 10 years, though the growth rate had been steadily falling -- from 1.49 percen

South Korea said Sunday it will spend 5.8 trillion won ($5.3 billion) on science and information and communication technology (ICT) research this year as the country fosters new tech industries under its digital New Deal drive and targets going carbon neutral. The earmarked amount is a 12 percent rise from 2020 and focuses on basic scientific research as well as new technologies, such as artificial intelligence (AI) and 6G wireless networks. The ministry said it has set aside 1.8 trillion won

South Korea's three electric vehicle (EV) battery makers are expected to report robust or improved fourth-quarter earnings results on growing demand for electrified vehicles, analysts said Sunday. LG Energy Solutions Ltd., SK Innovation Co. and Samsung SDI Co. likely performed well in the October-December period as carmakers are adding more battery-powered models to their lineups due to emissions restrictions, they said. The three companies plan to release their business results for the fourth

Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl came out on top in the latest poll of potential presidential candidates released Sunday, building on the momentum of support gained during his tug-of-war with Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae. In a poll conducted by Realmeter on 1,000 people over the age of 18 on Friday and Saturday, 30.4 percent picked Yoon as their most favored president. The survey, commissioned by local cable news channel YTN, had a margin of error of plus-minus 3.1 percentage points, with a 95

A prison in eastern Seoul reported 121 more cases of the novel coronavirus Sunday following its latest round of mass testing. The justice ministry announced 121 inmates at Dongbu Detention Center in Seoul were among 126 newly infected individuals at prisons across the country as of 8 a.m. Sunday. The latest tally raised the total caseload at South Korean prisons to 1,108 -- 1,068 inmates and 40 members of the prison staff. Dongbu Detention Center has been responsible for the vast majority of

Samsung Electronics Co., the world's largest memory chip maker, is expected to report a smaller-than-earlier operating income estimate due to the weakness of the US dollar, industry sources said Sunday. According to the sources, Samsung, also the world's largest smartphone vendor, is likely to report an operating income of 9.74 trillion won ($8.95 billion) during the fourth quarter of last year, up 36.8 percent from a year earlier. But the latest estimate is slightly lower than the 10.16 trill

Son Heung-min has scored his 100th goal as a member of Tottenham Hotspur. The South Korean star reached the century mark in a 3-0 victory over Leeds United in a Premier League match at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London on Saturday. The victory lifted Tottenham from seventh to third place in the league tables with 29 points. It was Tottenham's first win in five matches. Son's 43rd-minute goal, set up by Harry Kane, gave Tottenham a 2-0 lead. Son set up the third goal with a corner headed hom

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases stayed below 1,000 for the second day in a row Sunday, largely due to less testing on the New Year's Day holiday, as health authorities kept tight vigilance with the extension of the current social distancing rules. The country added 657 more COVID-19 cases, including 641 local infections, raising the total caseload to 63,244, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). Daily infections fell from 824 cases a day earlier. Over t

South Korea's antitrust watchdog is likely to complete the review of the merger between two South Korean shipbuilding giants during the first quarter of the year, industry sources said Sunday, possibly paving the way for the creation of the world's largest shipyard. In March 2019, Hyundai Heavy Industries signed a deal to purchase a 55.72 percent stake in Daewoo Shipbuilding. The deal would lead to the creation of the world's biggest shipbuilder with a global market share of around 20 percent.

프랑스의 한 시골 마을 대형 창고에 모여 통행금지 제한을 어기고 신년 축하 파티를 벌인 사람들에게 대거 과태료가 부과됐다. 2일(현지시간) AP통신 등 외신에 따르면 프랑스 경찰은 지난달 31일 브르타뉴 지방 리외롱의 한 빈 창고에서 열린 신년 파티에 참석한 사람 중 주동자 2명을 포함해 7명을 구속하고 1천200여 명에게 과태료를 부과했다. 과태료가 부과된 1천200명 중 800명은 마스크 미착용과 통행금지 위반, 나머지 400명은 금지약물 소지자였다. 프랑스에서 코로나19 방역 조치나 통행금지를 위반하면 최소 135유로(18만원)의 과태료가 부과된다. 2020년 마지막 날 열린 이 비밀 파티에는 전국에서 2천500여 명이 몰려들었고, 참석자 대부분은 마스크를 착용하지 않은 채 파티를 즐겼다. 현지 언론들의 보도한 영상에는 마스크를 쓰고 있는 사람은 찾아볼 수 없고, 다들 한 손에 술병을 쥔 채 음악에 몸을 맡기고 정신없이 춤을 추고 있었다. 출동한 경찰이 현장에 들이닥