Asia steps up checks as China virus kills six, infects nearly 300

BEIJING (AFP) -- Asian countries on Tuesday ramped up measures to block the spread of a new virus as the death toll in China rose to six and the number of cases jumped to almost 300, raising concerns in the middle of a major holiday travel rush.Nations across the Asia-Pacific region stepped up checks of passengers at airports to detect the SARS-like coronavirus, which first emerged in the central Chinese city of Wuhan.Fears of a bigger outbreak rose after a prominent expert from China's Nat

World NewsJan. 21, 2020

Trump calls impeachment trial 'disgraceful' and a 'hoax'

DAVOS (AFP) -- US President Donald Trump branded his impeachment trial a "hoax" in the Swiss resort of Davos on Tuesday, hours before senators were to start debating a push to remove him from office.Asked by reporters why he was in Davos, not back in Washington, Trump said: "We're meeting with world leaders, the most important people in the world and we're bringing back tremendous business." "The other's just a hoax," he said. "It's the witch hun

World NewsJan. 21, 2020

France, US agree to extend digital tax row talks

PARIS -- Presidents Emmanuel Macron and Donald Trump have agreed to extend negotiations on a dispute over a French tax on digital giants to the end of the year, postponing Washington's threat of sanctions against Paris, French officials said Tuesday.French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire, speaking before a Brussels meeting with EU counterparts, said: "Macron and Trump had a very constructive discussion... and they agreed to avoid all escalation between the US and France on this digital tax

World NewsJan. 21, 2020

[Herald Interview] Lawyer on mission to redeem justice failures

Our criminal justice system is not perfect, and most vulnerable to its flaws and errors are the society’s disadvantaged and marginalized, according to one lawyer helping exonerate those wrongly convicted.The celebrated lawyer, Park Joon-young, gained fame for defending men and women who have fallen victim to wrongful convictions, working to prove them innocent.“Laws may be designed to protect the citizens, but they are not foolproof -- because at the end of the day, their execution i

Social AffairsJan. 21, 2020

[Graphic News] No. of traffic fatalities in Seoul drops 19%

　The number of traffic accident deaths in Seoul fell 19.1 percent last year from a year earlier, data showed.　A total of 246 people died in traffic accidents in Seoul in 2019, down from 304 tallied a year earlier, with a daily tally of 0.67, according to the data compiled by the Seoul Metropolitan Government and the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency. (Yonhap)

Social AffairsJan. 21, 2020

Why Chen’s engagement is dividing EXO fans

A score of protesters took to the street in Gangnam on Sunday afternoon demanding that K-pop singer Chen leave EXO, the band he’s been part of for over eight years.One female protester said she feels betrayed by the 27-year-old singer for announcing his engagement and his fiancee’s pregnancy without even a “sorry” in a letter last week.“He’s pursuing his happiness at the expense of other people’s dreams, youth and passion,” she said while protestin

K-popJan. 21, 2020

[Trudy Rubin] Which 2020 Democrats are best on foreign policy?

Although foreign policy has hardly figured in the Democratic primaries, the impeachment trial reminds us it’s time to look at which Trump opponent would make the best commander in chief.Almost any candidate would be preferable to a president who disgraces his office by trying to blackmail a foreign leader into investigating his Democratic opponent. And Trump’s second demand of Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy -- to pursue a debunked conspiracy theory that Ukraine, not Ru

ViewpointsJan. 21, 2020

[Kim Seong-kon] Joseon era of 19th century vs. 21st century Korea

Many analysts and historians point out that the current political situation of South Korea resembles that of the Joseon era in the late 19th century. To say the least, it would be embarrassing and disheartening if 21st century Korea still could not overcome the traumatic situation it experienced in the late 19th century. Nevertheless, we may be able to obtain some insights and hindsight from the comparison.In the late 19th century, Joseon, which changed its name to Korea later, was helplessly lo

ViewpointsJan. 21, 2020

Korea's exports to rebound next month: finance minister

South Korea's finance minister voiced hope on Tuesday that the nation's exports are likely to post a monthly gain next month.Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki made the remarks as exports fell 0.2 percent in the first 20 days of January, marking the lowest rate of decline in a year, as outbound shipments of semiconductors rebounded.January exports are unlikely to rebound due to fewer working days later this month, Hong said, as the Lunar New Year holiday begins on Friday.Last year, the Lunar New Year

EconomyJan. 21, 2020

McDonald’s Korea CEO resigns for personal reasons

McDonald’s Korea CEO Cho Ju-yeon resigned from her post last week due to “personal reasons.” Cho sent an email to all employees on Tuesday to announce her resignation, without elaborating on the reason, industry officials said. However, a McDonald’s Korea official said Cho was leaving due to personal reasons unrelated to the company. While McDonald’s Korea does not have a designated tenure for the CEO position, Cho’s resignation was a planned move, the officia

ConsumerJan. 21, 2020

Korean stage actors make way to Broadway, West End

Like the rest of the global entertainment industry, the musical theater scene has been paying attention to the issue of racial diversity. Backed by the movement, more Korean stage actors are making their way to overseas productions, including on Broadway and West End.While the 2020 Korea Musical Awards took place Monday, stage actors who starred in overseas musical productions -- Kim So-hyang, Kim Soo-ha, Park Young-ju and Choi Eun-sil -- shared their experiences at the Musical Global Network Co

PerformanceJan. 21, 2020

[Newsmaker] 8,093 foreigners in Korea without permission leave voluntarily

The Justice Ministry said Tuesday that 8,093 foreign nationals who had been staying in Korea illegally voluntarily left in the period of one month, thanks to new incentives that exempt them from penalties if they leave by June 30 and allow them to reenter the country on short-term visas.The daily average number of those leaving Korea more than doubled after the incentives were introduced on Dec. 11, the ministry said.From March 1, those found to have overstayed their visas will be slapped with f

Social AffairsJan. 21, 2020

Moon stresses military reform, innovation

The military will focus on strengthening its ability to respond to nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction in 2020, and on applying cutting-edge technologies to its defense systems, the Ministry of National Defense said Tuesday. The plans were revealed in an annual briefing session for President Moon Jae-in at the Gyeryongdae complex -- an Army, Navy and Air Force headquarters near Daejeon. At the briefing, Moon stressed the importance of defense, pointing to the increased def

DefenseJan. 21, 2020

Samsung’s financial units brace for changes with new CEOs

South Korea’s largest conglomerate on Tuesday appointed new chief executives -- all in their 50s -- in an apparent move to tackle challenges in the fast digitalization of the capital market and diversify its business portfolio for sustainable growth.Samsung Group’s insurance unit, Samsung Life, has appointed Jeon Young-muk as its new CEO. He has served as CEO of Samsung Asset Management since 2018. Samsung Life vice presidents -- Kim Dae-hwan and Shim Jong-keug -- have been tapped to

MarketJan. 21, 2020

Hyundai’s Chung Euisun presents 3 directions for hydrogen society in Paris

Global communities need to seek ways to advance a hydrogen society based on three aspects -- cost reduction through technological innovation, expansion of public receptivity and establishment of a safety management system -- according to Hyundai Motor chief Chung Euisun, who attended a CEO event of a global alliance for hydrogen technologies in Paris on Monday. “There is a no shortcut to the future hydrogen society. It is most important for the hydrogen industry to establish a specifi

MobilityJan. 21, 2020

Cheonghae, Korea’s first overseas anti-piracy unit

The Cheonghae unit, deployed to safeguard a strategic waterway in the Middle East, is South Korea’s first overseas anti-piracy unit, best known for its highly publicized 2011 “Operation Dawn of Gulf of Aden.” 　In a dramatic rescue mission, Cheonghae’s commandos stormed a Korean tanker that had been hijacked by pirates off Somalia. All 21 crew members were rescued, and eight of the 17 pirates were killed. Five more pirates were captured, and four escaped. The tanker’

DefenseJan. 21, 2020

Posco Chemical signs W1.8tr deal to supply anode for LG Chem’s EV battery

Posco Chemical signed with LG Chem to supply the latter with anode for electric vehicle batteries through end-2022, the companies said Tuesday. The deal is worth 1.8 trillion won ($1.54 billion).An anode is a core material that determines the capacity and output of a battery.  The anode Posco Chemical will provide LG Chem is high-nickel NCM, short for nickel, cobalt and managnese. The greater percentage nickel accounts for in an anode, the better output the battery has, making it better sui

IndustryJan. 21, 2020

‘Most CEOs attending WEF pessimistic on 2020 economic growth’

A majority of corporate honchos attending the annual World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, have given the thumbs down to global economic growth this year, a survey by global accounting and consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers showed Tuesday.Over 50 percent of the corporate leaders have lowered their forecast for this year’s global economic growth pace, amid lingering uncertainties such as excessive regulations and the prolonged US-China trade war.The survey conducted between Septem

EconomyJan. 21, 2020

Celltrion to open China’s biggest biologics facility in Wuhan

Celltrion announced Tuesday that it would build its first plant in Wuhan, China, saying it would be the country’s biggest biologics plant. Celltrion Group said it had the full support of the Hubei provincial government in setting up the plant, which would be able to manufacture 120,000 liters of biologic drugs. China’s largest current facility can produce 5,000 liters. The city in central China has a geographical advantage in shipping its products to all four corners of the country.

TechnologyJan. 21, 2020