[News Focus] High youth unemployment continues during Moon’s term

SEJONG -- Young Koreans in their 20s and early 30s have been frustrated with a tough hiring market, despite the Moon Jae-in administration’s pledge to prioritize job creation for the young generation. It has been nearly four years since President Moon Jae-in took office. But labor indexes suggest that the administration’s performance in the employment sector has fallen far short of the expectations many young job seekers had in 2017. The percentage of unemployment and underemploym

April 22, 2021

1 in 3 households own pets in 2020: survey

About 1 in 3 South Korean households raised pets in 2020, a survey showed Thursday, with the number of pet dogs and cats here reaching 8.6 million. The number of households raising pets was estimated at 6.38 million in 2020, up 8 percent from the previous year's 5.91 million, according to the survey conducted by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. The figure roughly translates into 28 percent of the country's 23 million households. The calculation was based on the annual surve

April 22, 2021

Nearly 2m vaccinated in S. Korea as inoculation rollout speeds up

South Korea has inoculated nearly 2 million people so far as the country ramps up its COVID-19 immunization drive by providing more shots and securing more doses. An accumulated 1,903,767 people were administered with their first shots as of Wednesday as part of the nationwide campaign that kicked off on Feb. 26, accounting for 3.66 percent of the country's 52 million population, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. An accumulated 60,622 people have been fully vaccinat

April 22, 2021

New virus cases in 700s for 2nd day; vaccinations set to top 2m

South Korea reported more than 700 new virus cases for the second straight day on Thursday amid lingering woes over another wave of the pandemic as the country's vaccination campaign gathers pace, with vaccinations set to top 2 million. The country identified 735 more COVID-19 cases, including 715 local infections, raising the total caseload to 116,661, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. The figure was the highest since Jan. 7 when the country reported 869 cases. It

April 22, 2021

COVID-19 vaccines are coming, government tells pandemic-weary Koreans

South Korean officials are struggling to put herd immunity anxieties to rest, as COVID-19 vaccinations have hit bumpy ground here amid a sluggish rollout and supply shortages. With only about 3 percent of the 51 million population at least partially vaccinated to date, doubts are setting in over the administration’s proclaimed goal of having herd immunity by November. The administration estimates vaccination coverage of 70 percent would be required to reach that threshold. Still, achi

April 21, 2021

Soongsil University team wins government project on AI security

A Soongsil University team has been selected for a government-funded project developing information technology security, the university said Wednesday. The team, led by professor Choi Dae-seon of Soongsil University’s Department of Software, will receive 3.75 billion won ($3.35 million) over the course of six years in a program sponsored by the Ministry of Science and ICT’s Institute for Information and Communications. The team will focus on analyzing security threats against edge

April 21, 2021

[News Focus] Achievement gaps widen as remote learning continues amid COVID-19

Classrooms centered on remote learning are interfering with learning and compounding existing achievement gaps among students in South Korea, a report has found. The report released Tuesday showed that the achievement gap among middle school students grew faster in 2020 than in previous years. The authors asked the educational authorities to improve online learning systems and interaction among students and teachers. According to a study by the Seoul Education Research and Information Institut

April 21, 2021

Schools to tighten COVID-19 rules with rise in new cases

The Ministry of Education on Wednesday declared a three-week intensive period for checking COVID-19 rules for all schools, universities and private educational facilities nationwide, responding to a recent spike in in-school transmissions of the coronavirus. The declaration came as the number of COVID-19 infections among students and teachers has recently exceeded 2,000 in one and a half months after the spring semester began in early March. During the special period, students, teachers and sc

April 21, 2021

New virus cases back to over 700; vaccination drive to ramp up

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases bounced back to over 700 Wednesday as the country is ratcheting up efforts to boost vaccination rates amid growing concerns over another wave of the pandemic. The country reported 731 more COVID-19 cases, including 692 local infections, raising the total caseload to 115,926, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. Wednesday's daily caseload was sharply up from 532 cases on Monday and 549 cases on Tuesday. It is also the first time

April 21, 2021

[Herald Interview] When your whole family gets COVID-19

A family of four in Gimpo, Gyeonggi Province, all came down with COVID-19 in late February, two of them with a foreign “variant of concern” that was still scarce in South Korea at the time. They were “presumptively the first community spread of the variant of COVID-19” in the country, and the “first untraceable variant cases.” The mother in her late 40s was the first in the family to test positive for the disease on Feb. 22, on the final day of her home qu

April 20, 2021

[News Focus] Marriages between Koreans, foreigners at 5-year low

SEJONG -- Of all marriages in South Korea, the percentage of international marriages -- marriages between Koreans and foreign nationals -- plummeted again last year, possibly because of the COVID-19 pandemic, government data showed. The percentage of international marriages had bounced back in the years 2016 through 2019 after a decadelong decline. In 2000, when the nation started compiling data on marriages between Koreans and foreigners, international marriages made up only 3.4 percent of al

April 20, 2021

Negotiations begin on 2022 minimum wage

Negotiations for next year’s minimum wage are expected to be anything but easy, with labor and business representatives again proposing radically different figures from the very start. The Minimum Wage Commission on Tuesday afternoon convened its first plenary meeting with its 27 members -- nine representatives each from labor, business and government. The commission has until mid-July to determine the new rate, which is to be formally announced Aug. 5. The first plenary meeting merely w

April 20, 2021

S. Korea confirms 321 cases of emerging COVID-19 variants

South Korea has identified a total of 321 cases of "emerging" variants of the novel coronavirus since December, health authorities said Tuesday. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said these variants are different from the three most-known mutations from Britain, South Africa and Brazil that are known to be more transmissible. There is no indication yet whether these new strains are more deadly than current circulating variants of the virus, the KDCA said. Of the

April 20, 2021

[Newsmaker] Nuclear experts call on Japan to nix Fukushima water release plan

A group of South Korean nuclear researchers on Tuesday called on Japan to withdraw its decision to release contaminated water from its crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant into the sea, urging for more information over the plan. South Korea has expressed concerns over Japan's announcement last week to release about 1.3 million tons of radioactive water into the Pacific Ocean from the plant, citing potential health risks. A group of experts at the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute said J

April 20, 2021

New virus cases in 500s for 2nd day; Seoul aims to vaccinate 3m by end-April

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases remained in the 500s for the second day Tuesday as health authorities vow to accelerate the country's nationwide vaccination campaign targeting the vaccination of 3 million by the end of this month. The country is also seeking to sign a "swap" deal with the United States to secure enough vaccines amid woes over supply shortage. The nation reported 549 additional COVID-19 cases, including 529 local infections, raising the total caseload to 115

April 20, 2021

Female S. Korean diplomat stationed in Costa Rica dies in apparent suicide: ministry

A female South Korean diplomat stationed at the country's Embassy in Costa Rica has died in an apparent suicide, the foreign ministry said Monday. The official died early last week and is believed to have taken her own life, a ministry official said. The ministry declined to provide more details, citing the privacy of the deceased and the family. Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong has ordered a thorough probe into the death, the official added. The ministry is discussing funeral procedures wit

April 19, 2021

AstraZeneca vaccines for 3.5m people to arrive in May-June

South Korea will bring in another 7 million doses of AstraZeneca‘s COVID-19 vaccines, enough for 3.5 million people, between May and June, health authorities said Monday. AstraZeneca vaccines will make up about 60 percent of the country’s rollout by the end of June, with a goal set to vaccinate 12 million out of the country’s population of 52 million. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency confirmed that AstraZeneca vaccines for 1 million people will arrive in the c

April 19, 2021

Korea keeps serious vaccine safety issues quiet

South Korean government officials are failing to share sensitive COVID-19 vaccine safety issues transparently, a move that experts fear may fan public skepticism. A previously healthy front-line worker in her 40s is hospitalized with a serious neurological condition after receiving AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine last month, the parliamentary health and welfare committee said Sunday. The 45-year-old nursing assistant received her first AstraZeneca shot March 12. Soon after, she develope

April 19, 2021

Oceans minister nominee vows measures against Fukushima water release

South Korea's oceans minister nominee said Monday the country will spare no efforts to protect the public from any harm stemming from the anticipated release of radioactive water from the Fukushima plant in Japan and bolster the monitoring of imported seafood products. Last week, the Japanese government said it will release into the sea the radioactive water, which has been stored in tanks at the wrecked Fukushima nuclear plant, possibly starting in 2023. "We are preparing detailed counte

April 19, 2021

Minor quake hits waters off S. Korea's southwestern region: KMA

A 3.7 magnitude natural earthquake struck South Korea's southwestern waters on Monday afternoon, with no damage expected, the weather agency said. The quake occurred at around 2:20 p.m. in waters 54 kilometers northwest of Heuksan Island, part of the southwestern South Jeolla Province, 15 kilometers under water, according to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA). The epicenter was at 35.07 degrees north latitude and 125.08 degrees east longitude. No damage is expected from the quake,

April 19, 2021