1 in 4 seniors prefer using assets over leaving them to children

One in four South Korean senior citizens wish to use their assets for themselves and their spouses rather than passing them on to their children, according to government data on Wednesday. The 2023 survey of 10,078 senior citizens by the Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs, Gallup Korea and the Health Ministry between Sept. 4 and Nov. 12 last year showed that 24.2 percent of the respondents chose to prioritize using their assets for their own and their spouse during their lifetime inst

Social AffairsOct. 16, 2024

‘North Korea can’t afford war while sending shells to Russia’: ex-Yoon adviser

Rep. Lim Jong-deuk, former deputy national security adviser to President Yoon Suk Yeol and lawmaker on the National Assembly National Defense Committee, on Wednesday allayed concerns of North Korea waging war on account of its arms trade with Russia. “North Korea is in a difficult position to start a war at this point for a number of reasons. One is that North Korea is already sending large quantities of artillery shells and missiles to Russia, and likely to send troops as well,” he

PoliticsOct. 16, 2024

Korea's well-to-do live longer, healthier lives: report

People with higher incomes are likely to live longer and healthier lives than those with lower incomes, government data showed Tuesday. The "healthy life expectancy" -- defined as the period of years one is expected to live with no major health issues -- was 73.4 years in 2021 for South Koreans in the top 20 percent of incomes, according to Ministry of Health and Welfare data submitted to Rep. Kim Nam-hee of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea. But for those in the bottom 20

Social AffairsOct. 16, 2024

Court recognizes misogyny as motive for hate crime for 1st time

An appellate court ruled Tuesday that the assault on a female convenience store clerk by a man in Jinju, South Gyeongsang Province, allegedly motivated by her short haircut, constituted a misogynistic hate crime. The landmark ruling is the first time a Korean court has explicitly recognized misogyny as a condemnable motive in a criminal case. The Changwon District Court upheld the lower court's decision to put the attacker behind bars for three years for aggravated assault, destruction of p

Social AffairsOct. 16, 2024

[Korea Quiz] K-drama feels and foods

Find the answer at the bottom. In Korean, the terms sweet potato (고구마) and cider (사이다) are often used as metaphors to describe emotions evoked by fiction, TV dramas, or other narratives. In this context, the sweet potato, commonly featured in various Korean dishes, refers to moments in a story that feel stifling, frustrating, or slow. Eating a sweet potato without water can make one feel like they’re choking or struggling to swallow, which parallels the experience of watching charac

Hashtag KoreaOct. 16, 2024

'Rapping granny' of Chilgok passes away at age 87

Octogenarian rapper Seo Mu-seok, who inspired many by pursuing her musical dreams into her late 80s, passed away Tuesday at the age of 87. Seo died Tuesday morning at a hospital in Daegu, according to North Gyeongseong Province's Chilgok-gun officials. She had been diagnosed with stage three lymphoma in January, and doctors had told her that she had three months to live. Seo made her musical debut last year as a member of the seven-member musical act, Suni and the Seven Princesses, made up

Social AffairsOct. 16, 2024

Top 0.1% of Koreans make 1.8b won a year; 126 pay no tax

Government data showed Wednesday that the top 0.1 percent of earners in South Korea made an average of 1.8 billion won in 2022, and that 126 of them paid no tax due to various deductions and exemptions. The combined income of a total of 26.2 million South Koreans came to 1.59 quadrillion won ($1.17 trillion) in 2022, while the combined income of the top 0.1 percent -- a group consisting of 26,231 individuals -- amounted to 47.1 trillion won, according to National Tax Service data submitted to Re

Social AffairsOct. 16, 2024

[Photo News] Maserati's first electric SUV

Maserati unveiled its first fully electric sport utility vehicle, the Grecale Folgore, in Korea on Wednesday, showcased in nero tempesta black (left) and dark aurora blue. Named after the Italian word for lightning, the Folgore is powered by CATL’s battery that provides up to 500 kilometers of range by Worldwide Harmonized Light Vehicles Test Procedure standards, with Korean certification still pending. It offers comparable performance to luxury electric SUVs like the Porsche Macan with 82

MobilityOct. 16, 2024

[Exclusive] Weverse accused of exploiting labels, fans with new mandatory paid-membership service

Weverse Company, a global fan platform run by Hybe, is facing backlash for alledgely forcing its partner labels into a mandatory paid membership service, sparking accusations of monopolistic practices. The new "digital membership" service, set to launch on Dec. 1, compels over 130 music labels to participate, raising concerns about coercion, unfair revenue-sharing and exploiting fan loyalty for profit. According to Rep. Lee Jung-mun of the Democratic Party of Korea, Weverse emailed 130

K-popOct. 16, 2024

S. Koreans head to polls in local by-elections

South Koreans voted Wednesday to elect the education chief of Seoul and four local government heads, with the result expected to serve as a litmus test of public sentiment since the April general elections. Up for grabs in Wednesday's by-elections are five local administrative seats — the superintendent of the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education, as well as the heads of Busan's Geumjeong District, Incheon's Ganghwa County, and the Yeonggwang and Gokseong counties in South

PoliticsOct. 16, 2024

N. Korea's state media keeps mum about its explosion of inter-Korean roads

North Korea's state media on Wednesday remained silent about its explosion of inter-Korean roads connected to South Korea the previous day. North Korea blew up parts of the Gyeongui and Donghae roads north of the Military Demarcation Line on Tuesday, a move seen as highlighting its commitment to severing ties with South Korea. In August, North Korea cut off the Gyeongui and Donghae railways. The Rodong Sinmun, the North's main newspaper targeting the domestic audience, did not carry an

North KoreaOct. 16, 2024

Seoul education chief by-election pits conservative ex-lawmaker against progressive professor

Voters in Seoul headed to the polls on Wednesday to select the city's new education superintendent in a by-election, with a close race expected between a conservative former lawmaker and a progressive honorary Seoul National University sociology professor. The superintendent seat of the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education is one of five local administrative positions up for grabs in Wednesday's by-elections, with voting running from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. The position was vacated when lef

PoliticsOct. 16, 2024

US urges N. Korea to stop actions that raise conflict risk after blowing up of cross-border roads

The United States called on North Korea Tuesday to stop actions that would increase the risk of conflict, after Pyongyang blew up roads linked to South Korea in a rancorous removal of land routes once seen as a symbol of inter-Korean cooperation. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller made the call, reiterating Washington's calls for Pyongyang to come back to diplomacy. "We are monitoring the situation in the DPRK in close coordination with our Republic of Korea allies," he

Foreign AffairsOct. 16, 2024

[영어답게 표현하기] 유용한 비즈니스 영어 표현들

〈순간적이고 급격한 움직임〉 1. capsize [kǽpsaiz] 전복시키다 ‘배가 전복되다’ 혹은 ‘배를 전복시키다’라는 의미를 지닌 단어다. The storm capsized our boat, and we had to swim to shore wearing our life vests. 폭풍에 배가 뒤집어져서 우리는 구명 조끼를 입고 해안까지 헤엄쳐 가야 했다. ● 선박 전복 사고 후 어제까지 8명의 시신이 수습되었다. Eight bodies were retrieved as of yesterday after the boat capsized. 2. catalyst [kǽtəlist] 촉매 ‘촉매’를 뜻하는 단어인데, 비유적으로 변화를 촉진하는 요인이라는 의미로도 쓴다. Lower corporate taxes serve as a catalyst for increasing foreign dire

English EyeOct. 16, 2024

RIAD launches new AI-powered platform for booking group travel

RIAD Corporation, a South Korean travel startup specializing in B2B trade, has launched a new AI-powered trading platform called RIA, aimed at automating the coordination of group bookings between hotels and travel agents. The new platform allows business clients to save time when handling group bookings, streamlining the process from days of back-and-forth communication to just minutes. “Traditionally, the group booking process relied heavily on analogue methods such as emails, phone call

TechnologyOct. 16, 2024

S. Korea, US, Japan to hold vice-ministerial talks amid N. Korea tensions

Senior diplomats from South Korea, the United States, and Japan were set to meet in Seoul on Wednesday amid rising tensions following North Korea's destruction of roads to the South and accusations of drone flights by the South over its capital. The three-way talks come a day after the North blew up cross-border roads in a move underscoring its commitment to completely sever ties with the South after North Korean leader Kim Jong-un vowed to abandon the goal of unification and treat the Sout

Foreign AffairsOct. 16, 2024

Seoul shares open sharply lower on US losses

South Korean stocks started sharply lower, tracking overnight losses on Wall Street. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index lost 29.41 points, or 1.12 percent, to 2,604.04 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, US stocks closed sharply lower due to poorer-than-expected earnings outlooks of chip equipment-maker ASML Holdings. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.75 percent, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite tumbled 1.01 percent. In Seoul, most shares opened weaker across the

MarketOct. 16, 2024

[Graphic News] School violence reports reach 11-year high

A national survey by the Ministry of Education revealed that reports of school violence among elementary, middle and high school students in 2024 have increased for the fourth consecutive year, reaching the highest level in 11 years. The survey, conducted on 3.98 million students from fourth grade through high school and across 17 metropolitan and provincial education offices, showed that 2.1 percent of students experienced school violence. Up from 1.9 percent last year, this represents the hi

Social AffairsOct. 16, 2024

[Jon D. Michaels, David L. Noll] Vigilante democracy raging in US

The insurrection at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, was aimed at preventing the peaceful transfer of power after Donald Trump lost the US presidential election. This was clearly illegal, and the Justice Department has prosecuted hundreds for their crimes that day. Had they been successful, the plan for Jan. 7 and beyond was to legalize such attacks on democracy. While many Americans were shocked and chastened by the riot, one faction was energized by the events, which they saw as the first fruits

ViewpointsOct. 16, 2024

[Kim Seong-kon] The Nobel Prize in Literature and the task of translation

The news that novelist Han Kang has won the 2024 Nobel Prize in Literature came as a wonderful surprise to the Korean people. We feel it's been a long time coming: Whereas Japan already has three Nobel laureates in literature and China has two, Korea had none until last week. At last, Korea has become a country with a Nobel Prize winner in literature. These days, Korea is well known to the world, thanks to the immense popularity of Hallyu. In a sign of this recognition, McDonald's sold

ViewpointsOct. 16, 2024