S. Korea calls for allocation of Special Drawing Rights

South Korea's finance minister has called on the International Monetary Fund to consider allocating the Special Drawing Rights, an international reserve asset, to provide global liquidity amid the rapidly spreading coronavirus pandemic. Hong Nam-ki made his case in a video conference of the International Monetary and Financial Committee, the governing body of the IMF, which was held Friday to discuss the unprecedented challenge posed by COVID-19. The SDR is an international reserve asset that

MarketMarch 28, 2020

S. Korea approves W1tr financial relief package for Doosan Heavy

South Korea’s government and key state-run banks on Friday sealed a plan to provide a credit line of 1 trillion won ($826 million) to Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction, in an effort to prevent a possible liquidity crunch amid the novel coronavirus spread. As the key creditor, the Korea Development Bank said it will provide financial support to the struggling power equipment maker jointly with the Export-Import Bank of Korea. “Together, we shall provide some 1 trillion w

MarketMarch 28, 2020

Seoul to turn off lights for 'Earth Hour' campaign

Seoul, the South Korean capital, will join the global lights-out campaign Earth Hour in turning off its lights for an hour Saturday, the municipal government said. Seoul landmarks including Lotte World Tower, N Seoul Tower, the 63 Building and bridges over the Han River will go dark from 8:30 p.m., according to the Seoul Metropolitan Government. But the lights in Seoul City Hall, where the city's situation room is dealing with the coronavirus outbreak, will remain on, it added. Launched by th

Social AffairsMarch 28, 2020

Popular Seoul park to close on virus fears

A park in southeastern Seoul, famous for its picturesque cherry blossom trees, will close until mid-April as part of precautionary measures to contain the new coronavirus. Seokchon Lake Park in Songpa Ward will close from Saturday to April 12, according to a Facebook post written by ward chief Park Sung-soo. The ward will open four gates to the park from 5 a.m. to 9 a.m. every day for residents who pass through the park for their commute, according to the post. The closure comes in line

Social AffairsMarch 28, 2020

French PM warns 'difficult' days ahead over coronavirus

PARIS (AFP) -- French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe raised the alarm Friday over an "extremely high" surge in coronavirus cases in the country and warned things will be "difficult" in the coming days. After 365 people died and more than 2,300 people were hospitalised in France in a single day, the military sent a plane Friday to evacuate six patients from the hard-hit east of the country where hospitals are overstretched. "We find ourselves in a crisis that will l

World NewsMarch 27, 2020

Hanjin KAL’s proxy war to intensify despite activist fund's defeat

South Korea’s activist private equity fund Korea Corporate Governance Improvement on Friday vowed to restore Hanjin Group “back on track,” signaling its push for activism despite the Friday defeat. “We could feel the shareholders' desire to change Hanjin KAL’s management by the owner family,” the coalition led by KCGI wrote in a letter to shareholders. “The most crucial is for Hanjin Group to make a breakthrough, and we believe that the only solut

MarketMarch 27, 2020

International tourism to plunge up to 30% due to virus: UN

MADRID (AFP) -- The number of international tourist arrivals will fall by 20-30 percent in 2020 due to the novel coronavirus, putting millions of jobs at risk, the World Tourism Organization said Friday. This revises sharply lower a forecast made earlier this month of a decline of just 1.0-3.0 percent. The drop in arrivals will lead to an estimated loss of $300-450 billion in international tourism receipts, almost one third of the $1.5 trillion generated in 2019, the Madrid-based UN body sa

World NewsMarch 27, 2020

In Iran, false belief a poison fights virus kills hundreds

TEHRAN (AP) -- Standing over the still body of an intubated 5-year-old boy wearing nothing but a plastic diaper, an Iranian health care worker in a hazmat suit and mask begged the public for just one thing: Stop drinking industrial alcohol over fears about the new coronavirus. The boy, now blind after his parents gave him toxic methanol in the mistaken belief it protects against the virus, is just one of hundreds of victims of an epidemic inside the pandemic now gripping Iran. Iranian media

World NewsMarch 27, 2020

Eric returns with rom-com “Eccentric! Chef Moon”

Singer-actor Eric Mun is returning to the small screen in four years to feature in Channel A’s new miniseries “Eccentric! Chef Moon,” with actress Koh Won-hee. The new series, set to air Friday night, will feature the 43-year-old as star chef Moon Seung-mo who falls in love with a reckless fashion designer Yoo Yoo-jin. Taking place in the rural and fictional Seoha Village in the northern Chungcheong Province, the drama will unfold a warm story as the two characters develop

TelevisionMarch 27, 2020

Italy hopes virus is easing but fears new onslaught in south

ROME (AP) -- Doctors and nurses in Italy's ov erwhelmed northern hospitals have welcomed a slight stabilizing in the number of coronavirus infections but fear the virus is still silently spreading in the south two weeks into the West's most extreme nationwide shutdown. As the dead in Italy keep piling up, virologists warn that the actual number of Italy's positive cases is up to five times as high as the official count of 80,539. That means infections will still climb even with Italians order

World NewsMarch 27, 2020

IATA urges rescue package for virus-hit S. Korean airlines

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has called on South Korea to offer a comprehensive rescue package to support local airlines "in grave and immediate danger of insolvency," according to Korean Air Lines Co. on Friday. In a letter sent to President Moon Jae-in this week, IATA, a global trade association for the airline industry, asked the Seoul government to urgently extend direct financial support, loan guarantees by the government, support for corporate bond issuanc

MobilityMarch 27, 2020

Foreign ministry calls in Chinese Amb. Xing over Beijing's abrupt decision to ban entry of foreigners

The foreign ministry called in Chinese Ambassador to South Korea Xing Haiming on Friday over Beijing's banning of the entry of foreigners without prior notice, which a senior Seoul official called "regrettable." Deputy Foreign Minister Kim Gunn met the Chinese envoy, a day after Beijing announced it would temporarily suspend the entry of foreigners, even those with visas or residence permits, starting Saturday, to help prevent any inflow of COVID-19. Appearing at the ministry, Xing

Foreign AffairsMarch 27, 2020

LG dumps flagship smartphone brand G Series

LG Electronics has decided to drop plans to highlight its flagship smartphone brand G Series as part of efforts to turn around its struggling mobile device business, according to industry sources Friday. The company has reportedly decided to ditch the brand name for premium, mass-market models, according to sources. Instead it will start giving separate names for each model. The decision was made public at a meeting between the company and mobile carriers in South Korea. Since launched

TechnologyMarch 27, 2020

S. Korea likely to maintain suspension of visa-waiver program for Japan over pandemic: PM

South Korea's prime minister said Friday the government is expected to continue suspending a visa-free entry program for Japanese nationals for the time being, citing the rising number of new coronavirus cases in Tokyo. On March 9, South Korea halted a visa-waiver program for Japan in a tit-for-tat response to Tokyo's decision to impose new entry restrictions for South Korean visitors over COVID-19. "Tokyo has recently reported a considerable number of confirmed cases. If the situation c

PoliticsMarch 27, 2020

Traditional Korean zombie series creates global sensation on Netflix

Two weeks since its release, the next season of Netflix’s original series “Kingdom” continues to garner more fans worldwide, firmly maintaining its place in the global streaming site’s top 10 list in numerous countries.　 “Kindgom” tells the story of how Crown Prince Lee Chang and his followers try to save the Joseon era kingdom (1392-1910) from falling apart due to the sudden outbreak of a zombie virus. The second season continues to follow Lee Chang and h

TelevisionMarch 27, 2020

Goo Hara’s brother pushes for law under her name

Late Goo Hara’s brother Goo Ho-in is pushing forward his petition to legislate a “Goo Hara Law,” while also juggling a lawsuit against his mother over the singer’s inheritance. During a recent interview with local publication Woman Chosun, he spoke candidly on his reasons for the legal battle, only three months after the singer passed away. “I am wary of how my acts have been portrayed as mere defamation against our mother. I petitioned for the ‘Goo Hara L

K-popMarch 27, 2020

Art auction markets perform well despite COVID-19 threat

The two main art auction houses in Korea saw better performance than expected in March despite the COVID-19 outbreak clouding the art market. Seoul Auction, the nation’s largest auction house, saw its auction success rate at 60 percent at the first auction of the year, held Tuesday. The total sales amounted to 5 billion won ($4.1 million), according to the company. “We worried about the auction result because the viral infection has frozen the art market, but it turned out to be

Arts & DesignMarch 27, 2020

S. Korea puts US, UAE, Indonesia on priority list for quarantine supplies export

South Korea has put the United States, the United Arab Emirates and Indonesia on its priority list for exporting quarantine supplies, such as coronavirus test kits, a Seoul official said Friday, as nearly 120 countries seek to secure the products manufactured here. The foreign ministry official made the remarks a day after the government held the first meeting of an interagency team formed for discussions on striking a delicate balance between domestic demand and the export or humanitarian pro

Foreign AffairsMarch 27, 2020

SPC Samlip appoints Hwang Jong-hyeon as new CEO

SPC Samlip, a bakery and restaurant franchise giant, said Friday it has appointed Hwang Jong-hyeon as its new chief executive. SPC Group, the holding company, said it has also appointed Ahn Ji-yong as the new CEO to lead its subsidiary SPC GFS. Hwang served as the CEO of Samjin Eomuk, a fish cake maker, and previously worked for Dongwon F&B, the food division for Dongwon Group, for 30 years to lead numerous mergers and acquisitions and contributed to the growth of Dongwon’s dairy

ConsumerMarch 27, 2020

Parties focus on virus responses for April elections

Appealing to voters with measures to tackle the new coronavirus, political parties ramped up election campaigning on Friday, the second and last day of candidate registration for the April 15 elections. The candidate registration for the parliamentary polls will end at 6 p.m. according to the National Election Commission (NEC). A total of 300 National Assembly seats will be up for grabs, with the number of the directly elected slots reaching 253 and that of proportional representation spots 47

PoliticsMarch 27, 2020