South Korean stocks snapped a two-session losing streak Wednesday as investors scooped up top caps that recently suffered heavy losses. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 22.34 points, or 0.71 percent, to 3,148.29. Trading volume was high at about 1.56 billion shares worth around 24 trillion won ($21.9 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 626 to 225. Retail investors purchased a net 171 billion won, while foreigners pi

South Koreans spent an average of 4.4 hours on mobile devices a day last year, up 19 percent from the previous year amid the pandemic, a report showed Wednesday. The country's increased use of mobile apps was in line with last year's global daily average of 4.2 hours, up 20 percent over the same period, according to the report from mobile data tracker App Annie. App Annie said the time South Koreans spent on financial apps last year especially increased, with the country's top five financial a

South Korea plans to sell a total of 8 trillion won ($7.3 billion) worth of Treasury bills in the first two months of the year to fund its expansionary fiscal policy, the finance ministry said Wednesday. The ministry plans to issue 2 trillion won in bills with a maturity of 63 days this month, and the remaining 6 trillion won will be floated next month, according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance. Treasury bills are usually floated to raise money to cover short-term financial shortfalls a

"Boy With Luv (Feat. Halsey)" has become global megastar BTS' second music video to earn 1.1 billion views on YouTube, the band's agency said Wednesday. The music video, released in April 2019 as the lead track for album "Map of the Soul: Persona," reached the milestone at around 1:17 p.m., according to Big Hit Entertainment. The upbeat track featuring American singer-songwriter Halsey debuted at No. 8 on Billboard's main singles chart and stayed there for eight consecutive

SUWON -- A local court on Wednesday acquitted the leader of a minor religious sect of charges of obstructing the government's response to COVID-19 during an outbreak at his church last year. Lee Man-hee, the 89-year-old founder of the Shincheonji Church of Jesus, was indicted in August on charges of misleading health authorities on the size and locations of the church's gatherings in February, which were blamed for a massive spike in coronavirus cases in the country. Prosecutors sought a five-

A majority of South Korean retailers expect their business conditions to worsen slightly in the first quarter of 2021 than three months earlier amid the coronavirus pandemic, a poll showed Wednesday. The Korean Chamber of Commerce and Industry said its retail business survey index (RBSI) stood at 84 for the January-March period of the year, down from 85 three months earlier. The figure is based on a poll of some 1,000 retail businesses across the nation. A reading below 100 means that pessimis

More than eight out of 10 people consider "gapjil," a phenomenon referring to abusive conduct by people in positions of power toward those under their influence, a serious problem plaguing society, a poll showed Wednesday. Gapjil is a portmanteau term that refers to an authoritarian attitude or actions toward those on the weaker end of a power relationship, often spotted in workplaces cultures. In a R&R Consulting survey conducted on 1,500 adults aged between 19 and 69, 83.9 perc

The value of listed bonds in South Korea jumped nearly 24 percent on-year to a new record high in 2020 due to a spike in government debt sale to tackle the coronavirus impact, data showed Wednesday. State, corporate and other bonds worth 769 trillion won ($702 billion) were newly listed on the local bourse last year, up 23.7 percent from the previous year and the largest ever, according to the data from the Korea Exchange. The jump came as the government sharply increased debt sales to finance

South Korea's money supply continued to grow quickly in November last year, as loans to households and firms increased amid the coronavirus pandemic, central bank data showed Wednesday. The country's M2 stood at 3,178.4 trillion won ($2.9 trillion) as of end-November, up 0.9 percent, or 27.9 trillion won, from October, according to preliminary data by the Bank of Korea (BOK). From a year earlier, M2 surged 9.7 percent, the BOK said. A key economic indicator closely monitored by authorities, M

Banks in South Korea are expected to tighten their lending to households and the small business sector in the first quarter of this year, as credit risks will remain high amid the pandemic, a central bank poll showed Wednesday. The Bank of Korea's index measuring the banks' attitude toward fresh loans came to minus 8 for the first quarter. The lower the reading, the more likely banks will tighten their restrictions on lending. A reading below zero means that the number of lenders that will res

Samsung Electronics Co. is expected to unveil another batch of shareholder-friendly measures, including big dividend payments, later this month, industry sources said Wednesday, in a move to smooth out the group leadership succession. Samsung, the world's largest memory chip and smartphone maker, is expected to announce its new shareholder return initiative for the 2021-2023 period on Jan. 28, along with its fourth-quarter earnings report. Local analysts widely expect that Samsung's new measur

South Korea's agricultural ministry said Wednesday it is currently investigating six suspected cases of highly pathogenic bird flu amid no signs of a letup in the spread of the disease. The country's total caseload of the H5N8 strain of avian influenza traced to farms has reached 53 since it reported the first such infection in late November in nearly three years, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. The latest suspected case came from an egg farm in Cheonan, 92 ki

South Korea's exports of agricultural and livestock products advanced 7.7 percent on-year in 2020 on the back of growing demand for healthier foodstuffs amid the new coronavirus pandemic, data showed Wednesday. Outbound shipments of such goods reached a record high of $7.5 billion last year, compared with $7 billion posted in 2019, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. Exports of ginseng jumped 9.3 percent to reach $229.8 million over the period

Two civilians working at US Forces Korea (USFK)'s Yongsan garrison in central Seoul have tested positive for the new coronavirus, the US military said Wednesday. The first patient is a South Korean national who works as a registered taxi driver, and the second individual is an American contractor of the US defense department, according to the USFK. Both reside in Seoul and are currently in isolation at their off-base residences before they will be transported to medical facilities, it added.

WASHINGTON -- The new US administration of Joe Biden must act quickly to prevent North Korea from setting the stage by creating a crisis, a US think tank said Tuesday. The Korea Economic Institute of America (KEIA) also advised the incoming US administration to see if US-North Korea denuclearization talks could be picked up from where they were left off by the outgoing Donald Trump administration. "The Biden Administration should act quickly on North Korea to prevent Pyongyang from settin

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un called for strengthening the country's nuclear capabilities as he addressed the final-day session of the ruling party's rare congress, state media said Wednesday. North Korea on Tuesday wrapped up the eighth congress of the Workers' Party, which had been held for more than a week since its opening on Jan. 5, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). "While further strengthening our nuclear war deterrent, we need to do everything to build the stron

Kolon Industries, a South Korean industrial materials company, said Tuesday it will expand its tire cord plant in Vietnam to increase exports of the product from the Southeast Asian country. Kolon Industries will invest 68 billion won ($62 million) in its wholly owned Kolon Industries Binh Duong Company Ltd. to help the Vietnamese subsidiary expand the plant by September next year, the company said in a regulatory filing. Tire cords are used as reinforcing materials for tires, designed to kee

When the South Korean football legend Hong Myung-bo met with his full squad for the first time as coach of Ulsan Hyundai FC on Monday, he didn't wax poetic on some trendy, modern strategies or formations. Instead, Hong placed his focus on the mental part of the game. "I spoke to the players about our three pillars for the upcoming season. They are: accountability, right attitude and happiness," Hong told reporters after his meeting with the players at the team's clubhouse in Ulsan, 4

Two churches in the southeastern port city of Busan have been ordered to shut down after repeatedly holding in-person worship services in violation of the pandemic-driven social distancing rules, local officials said Monday. Under the administrative orders by Busan's ward offices, the two Protestant churches -- Saegyero and Seobu -- have been forced to shut down for defying the antivirus distancing measures. Busan has been under the second-strongest social distancing scheme of Level 2.5 since

After selling 700,000 albums with just three singles and sweeping rookie prizes at year-end awards, TREASURE now aims to send out positive vibes to fans and listeners. The rookie band that debuted in August through a survival audition program by YG Entertainment, "YG Treasure Box," is set to drop its first full album "The First Step: Treasure Effect," a 12-track album fronted by lead track "My Treasure," late Monday. In a press conference livestreamed on YouTube,