Senators say US should stop excessive demands for defense deal with S. Korea

WASHINGTON -- The United States should stop demanding that South Korea pay significantly more for the American troop presence in the country, two US senators said Tuesday. Sens. Cory Gardner (R-CO) and Edward Markey (D-MA) issued the call during a hearing looking back on the year since the February 2019 summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Hanoi, Vietnam. Both men lamented the lack of progress in North Korea's denuclearization and raised the importan

Foreign AffairsFeb. 26, 2020

Revenues of Korean IoT firms surpass W10tr in 2019

South Korea-based internet-of-things firms posted revenue of over 10 trillion won in 2019, up 16.2 percent on-year, according to the ICT Ministry on Tuesday. This is the first time for IoT companies have crossed the revenue milestone since the ministry began collecting relevant figures in 2014. Domestic sales accounted for 89 percent with 9.7 trillion won. Exports accounted for the remaining 1.2 trillion won. Exports have shown an average annual increase of 46.3 percent from 2015-19, the min

IndustryFeb. 26, 2020

Defense ministry shuts down pressroom, briefing room over coronavirus concerns

The Defense Ministry on Tuesday said it has temporarily shut down its pressroom and briefing room for anti-coronavirus disinfection work after a cameraman with a local news outlet was admitted to a hospital with symptoms of the virus. In a notice to reporters, the ministry said the facilities on the first floor of the ministry‘s main building in Seoul will be closed until Wednesday as a precaution against the COVID-19 virus. The cameraman, who had been in the pressroom and briefing roo

DefenseFeb. 25, 2020

Ex-president to be released following reappeal

Former President Lee Myung-bak is set to be released from jail later Tuesday, six days after he was put into custody following a court ruling, as he reappealed against the recent ruling. The release comes after an appellate court sentenced him to 17 years in prison last week on charges of bribery and embezzlement. He was taken back into custody after he was released on bail on health concerns in March 2019. Lee, who re-appealed last week‘s ruling, is known to have cited relevant law to

Social AffairsFeb. 25, 2020

Virus-positive Mongolian dies in S. Korea

A Mongolian patient, 35, died 5:50 p.m. on Tuesday while receiving isolated treatment for COVID-19, or the new coronavirus, at a hospital in South Korea. He was taken to Myongji Hospital in southern Gyeonggi Province on Monday for esophageal hemorrhage, after which he tested positive for the virus. The hospital said he was immediately transported to a negative pressure room as he was in a critical condition, and in light of his travel history. At 10 a.m. Tuesday, he suffered a sudden cardiac

Social AffairsFeb. 25, 2020

Nexon gives W2b to Korean Red Cross to help fight COVID-19

Nexon Korea said Tuesday it has donated 2 billion won ($1.6 million) to Korean Red Cross for crisis management amid ongoing COVID-19 spread. Its subsidiary Neople has also joined the effort. The donation will be used to prevent the further spread of COVID-19 infections, through emergency medical and relief aid. Nexon allocated 500 million won from the donation for Jeju Island, where the Neople headquarters is located. KRC President Park Kyung-seo expressed his gratitude to Nexon and pledg

IndustryFeb. 25, 2020

Seoul stocks rebound as investors scoop up undervalued assets

South Korean shares rose more than 1 percent Tuesday as investors went bargain hunting, after COVID-19 fears led to the sharpest fall in 16 months in the previous session. The benchmark Kospi opened slightly low at 2,075.55 -- down 3.49 points, or 0.17 percent, from the previous session. The index fluctuated between losses and gains in the early morning, then moved upward throughout the day to close at 2,103.61. Institutional and individual investors scooped up undervalued shares, with net pu

MarketFeb. 25, 2020

Korea ramps up testing capacity for COVID-19

When dealing with an infectious disease with no available vaccine or treatment, the only containment strategy is testing and diagnosing suspected cases fast and isolating confirmed patients, according to Korean medical experts on Tuesday. Addressing a press conference, six medical societies developing, conducting and quality-controlling tests for the novel coronavirus COVID-19 said as many as 15,000 tests can be done in a day by around 12,000 specialists at 77 medical institutions across

TechnologyFeb. 25, 2020

S. Korea reports 10th death from coronavirus as total cases near 1,000

South Korea reported its tenth fatality from the new coronavirus and 144 new confirmed cases on Tuesday, bringing the total number of infections here to 977. A 58-year-old man linked to a hospital in the southeastern county of Cheongdo died of COVID-19, according to a statement from the Korea Center for Disease Control and Prevention. The number of newly reported virus cases in the daily update was smaller than the spike of 231 new cases a day earlier. Two clusters of infections -- at a br

Social AffairsFeb. 25, 2020

Presidential office, ruling party to speed up economic aid for COVID-19

An economic aid package and extra budget will be drawn up as quickly as possible to combat the effects of the COVID-19 outbreak, the presidential office, government and ruling Democratic Party of Korea agreed Tuesday. The move comes a day after President Moon Jae-in raised the possibility of the additional funds to manage the economic fallout of the outbreak. Speaking at Monday’s meeting with top aides and infectious disease experts, Moon called on the government to consider all possibl

PoliticsFeb. 25, 2020

Market eyes fixed on BOK’s imminent growth rate adjustment

Anxiety is mounting that South Korea, reeling under the prolonged impact of the fast-spreading novel coronavirus, may have no choice but to lower its already modest growth prospects for 2020. While speculations burgeoned that the central bank may cut its outlook by 0.2 percentage point to 2.1 percent, several global investing institutions set their estimation in the 1 percent range, some going as low as the zero percent range. The Bank of Korea’s upcoming Monetary Policy Board, slated

EconomyFeb. 25, 2020

[Robert J. Fouser] Developing an appropriate response to COVID-19

As news of the surge in coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases in Daegu spread, The Drudge Report, a sensationalist site run by investigative reporter Matt Drudge, ran a photo of a thermal imaging device monitoring people at Seoul Station. A few weeks earlier, the same site had a photo of a group of demonstrators in Seoul calling for a ban on travel from China. The linked to an article on the spread of “Sinophobia” worldwide. These images touch on an important question that has been

ViewpointsFeb. 25, 2020

[Kim Seong-kon] Wavering between hope and despair

The world is now experiencing an unprecedented crisis due to a new coronavirus pandemic. So is South Korea, where the number of COVID-19 patients are increasing exponentially each week. At the same time, unfortunately, we have so many other compelling issues to deal with these days. Recently, I had a long conversation with professor Lee O-young, an eminent literary critic and former minister of culture, on a variety of issues we are now facing. When our conversation drifted into North Korea&rs

ViewpointsFeb. 25, 2020

Hong Sang-soo's latest film gets premiere at Berlinale

Korean auteur Hong Sang-soo’s “The Woman Who Ran” got its world premiere at the 70th Berlin International Film Festival on Tuesday. Three more screenings of the film are expected through Friday at the annual film festival, where it is competing for the Gold and Silver Bear prizes, the highest honors of the event. Hong’s film is competing against 17 other titles from 17 countries. This is Hong’s fourth time in competition at the Berlinale, following “Night

FilmFeb. 25, 2020

[Monitor] Coronavirus depresses consumer sentiment index

Consumer sentiment in South Korea has dropped noticeably since the outbreak of COVID-19, according to data released by the Bank of Korea on Tuesday. The index, however, was calculated before the rapid increase in the number of infections here, meaning sentiment has probably fallen lower since then. The consumer composite sentiment index totaled 96.9 in February, down 7.3 points from a month ago. A similar drop was seen in June 2015, when Middle East respiratory syndrome was in the news. The s

IndustryFeb. 25, 2020

Potential clusters of COVID-19 virus emerge outside Daegu

South Korea reported a surge in cases of the novel coronavirus on Tuesday, with most cases traceable to a branch of a minor Christian sect in Daegu and a hospital in a neighboring county, amid the government’s struggle to prevent its spread outside Daegu. 　 Fears about the community spread of COVID-19 are growing, with new cases occurring in 21 people at a facility for the mentally challenged, a pastor at a megachurch in Seoul and a Korean Air cabin crew member. 　 As of Tuesday afternoon

Social AffairsFeb. 25, 2020

[Graphic News] Rice consumption dips to all-time low in 2019

　South Korea’s per capita annual rice consumption fell to a record low in 2019 amid changes in diet and eating habits, data showed. 　Per capita average annual rice consumption hit a fresh low of 59.2 kilograms last year, down 3 percent from a year earlier, according to data compiled by Statistics Korea. 　It marked the first time for the amount to fall below the 60-kilogram threshold. 　The latest figure indicates Koreans consumed around 162 grams of rice on a daily basis. (Yonhap)

FoodFeb. 25, 2020

With new director at helm, Korea National Contemporary Dance Company announces 2020 program

With new artistic director Nam Jeong-ho at the helm, the Korea National Contemporary Dance Company has announced its 2020 season program, featuring dances inspired by diverse subjects, from primitive rituals to artificial intelligence. At “Opening,” the first production to open 2020, the national dance troupe will feature two dances -- “Beyond Black” and “The Rite of Spring” -- from April 17-19 at the Seoul Arts Center.   “Beyond Black,” cre

PerformanceFeb. 25, 2020

Chinese students returning from winter break face 14-day isolation

Chinese students enrolled in South Korean universities are returning in growing numbers this week after their winter break in China ahead of the start of the spring semester, putting local health authorities and school officials on the highest alert to halt the spread of the coronavirus outbreak. Most local universities have already mapped out plans to isolate their Chinese students in separate dormitory buildings for about two weeks, the known incubation period of COVID-19, and closely monito

Social AffairsFeb. 25, 2020