[Graphic News] Massachusetts named best place to live in US

　Massachusetts has been named the best state to live in the United States in a recent survey. 　WalletHub, a Washington-based personal finance website, has ranked the 50 states’ “livability” according to their affordability, economy, education and health, quality of life and safety in 2022. 　Massachusetts topped the list garnering 62.65 points out of 100. The state ranked first in “education and health,” fourth in “safety” and sixth in “quality o

WorldAug. 25, 2022

[Graphic News] S. Korean battery makers’ H1 market share falls amid Chinese advance

　The global market share of major South Korean battery makers fell in the first half of this year from a year earlier amid strong growth of Chinese rivals, a report showed.  　LG Energy Solution, SK On and Samsung SDI together accounted for a combined 25.8 percent share for the January-June period in terms of the total amount of battery energy registered, according to the report by market tracker SNE Research.  　That marks a 9.1 percentage point decline from the previous year’s

World BusinessAug. 18, 2022

As Beijing rages over Taiwan, mood on China's streets muted

BEIJING (AFP) -- China’ thunderous response to US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s Taiwan visit brought cross-Strait tensions to their highest level in years and sparked an outpouring of nationalist zeal online, but the mood on the streets in mainland China is a little more circumspect. Enraged by Pelosi’s trip, Beijing last week launched some of its largest-ever military drills encircling the island while suspending cooperation with the United States on issues including climate

World NewsAug. 9, 2022

[Graphic News] Ronaldo and Maguire most abused on Twitter

　Manchester United duo Cristiano Ronaldo and Harry Maguire were the most abused players on Twitter last season, according to a new report. 　Nearly three quarters of Premier League soccer players received abusive messages with some of them receiving daily abuse. 　The report, carried out by The Alan Turing Institute and Ofcom and using a new machine-learning technology, analyzed 2.3 million messages directed at Premier League players over the first five months of the 2021-22 season. 　It found

WorldAug. 8, 2022

[Graphic News] Iceland tops gender gap report for 2022

　Efforts to close the global gender gap improved slightly this year after the COVID-19 pandemic delayed gender equality by at least three decades, the World Economic Forum said. 　In its 16th Global Gender Gap Report, the WEF said overall gender disparity across politics, work, health and education improved and it will now take 132 years to reach full parity compared with 136 years last year. Before the pandemic, the gap was set to close within 100 years. 　Iceland topped the ranking for the 13

WorldAug. 4, 2022

Uber courts drivers by letting them pick rides

SAN FRANCISCO (AFP) -- Uber on Friday said it will let drivers in the United States see trip details before deciding whether to accept them -- a new feature long sought by drivers. A common lament by drivers at the app-summoned ride platform has been that they have to accept a request before learning where trips will take them, or how profitable they will be. "Our new trip request screen makes it easier for drivers to decide if a trip is worth their time and effort by providing all the de

World BusinessJuly 30, 2022

[Newsmaker] Elon Musk fires back at Twitter in court battle

AFP -- Elon Musk on Friday filed claims against Twitter as he fights back against the tech firm's lawsuit demanding he be held to his $44 billion buyout deal. Musk's counter-suit was submitted along with a legal defense against Twitter's claim that the billionaire is contractually bound to complete the deal he inked in April to buy Twitter, the Chancery Court in the state of Delaware said in a notice. The 164-page filing was submitted as being "confidential," meaning the documents we

World BusinessJuly 30, 2022

[Graphic News] Monkeypox cases in non-endemic countries

　Around 65 countries in which monkeypox is not endemic have reported outbreaks of the viral disease as confirmed cases cross 15,600. 　The rapidly spreading monkeypox outbreak represents a global health emergency, the World Health Organization‘s highest level of alert, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on July 22. 　The illness, which spreads through close contact and was first found in monkeys, has rarely spread outside Africa, where it is endemic, until this year. (Re

WorldJuly 27, 2022

[Graphic News] World food prices fall in June

　World food prices fell for a third consecutive month in June, but remained close to record-high levels set in March, the United Nations’ food agency said. 　The Food and Agriculture Organization’s food price index, which tracks the most globally traded five major food commodities - cereal, meat, dairy products, vegetable oils and sugar - averaged 154.2 points last month versus a revised 157.9 for May. 　The May figure was previously put at 157.4. 　Despite the monthly decline, the

WorldJuly 22, 2022

[Graphic News] Negative image of China still prevails

　Advanced nations continued to assess China’s national image negatively, according to Pew Research Center. 　Northern powers of US, Canada and Germany saw China unfavorably as 82 percent of Americans and 74 percent of both Canadians and Germans had negative views of China as shown in the center’s surveys conducted from January to June. 　The numbers turned out worse for China’s Pacific neighbors. Eighty-seven percent in Japan, 86 percent in Australia and 80 percent in South Ko

WorldJuly 21, 2022

[Graphic News] World population to reach 8 billion this year: UN

　The United Nations estimated that the world’s population will reach 8 billion on Nov. 15 and that India will replace China as the world’s most populous nation next year. 　In a report released on World Population Day, the UN also said global population growth fell below 1 percent in 2020 for the first time since 1950. 　According to the latest UN projections, the world’s population could grow to around 8.5 billion in 2030, 9.7 billion in 2050 and a peak of around 10.4 billion

WorldJuly 20, 2022

[Graphic News] Korea’s top 3 EV battery makers show sluggish sales growth

　Korea’s Electric Vehicle Battery industry showed slow sales growth as its global market share in the first five months dropped by 9.5 percentage points from last year, according to the battery industry tracker SNE Research’s June report. 　LG Energy Solution, the country’s top battery maker, took 14.4 percent of the market. The figure shrank by 9.2 percentage points from last year’s 23.6. Samsung SDI’s share also went down by 1.5 percentage points from 5.9 percent

World BusinessJuly 19, 2022

[Graphic News] S. Korea tops COVID Resilience Ranking

　South Korea ranked first in the COVID Resilience Ranking surveyed by Bloomberg in June. This was the last result of the monthly survey which assessed 53 countries’ 11 indexes under the categories of reopening progress, COVID-19 status and quality of life. 　Korea jumped up by five notches from the previous month, dropping Norway, the May champion, to fourth place. United Arab Emirates, Ireland, Norway, and Saudi Arabia followed South Korea in this survey. 　It was the first time that Seo

WorldJuly 18, 2022

[Graphic News] Seoul ranked 10th best city for startup ecosystem in 2022

　Seoul was selected as the 10th best city for startups in an annual report released by research firm Startup Genome, city officials said. 　The Global Startup Ecosystem Report 2022 by the firm, dedicated to improving the startup ecosystem of each city, surveyed 280 cities across some 100 nations for the latest results announced in London, the officials said. 　The report ranked Seoul as 10th strongest in the startup ecosystem category, up from 16th last year and 20th in 2020. 　The report put t

World BusinessJuly 15, 2022

[Graphic News] Elon Musk’s Twitter followers top 100 million

　Tesla founder Elon Musk joined the ranks of celebrities who have more than 100 million Twitter followers, in early July, according to a US media tracker. 　Musk had 100.6 million followers on July 8, placing 6th after former US President Barack Obama, Justin Bieber, Katy Perry, Rihanna and Cristiano Ronaldo, according to Social Blade. The business magnate’s topping of 100 million came 13 years after he opened his Twitter account in June 2009 . 　With his account, the billionaire Tesla CE

WorldJuly 11, 2022

[Newsmaker] Musk ditches Twitter deal, triggering defiant response

SAN FRANCISCO -- Elon Musk on Friday pulled the plug on his $44 billion deal to buy Twitter, accusing the social media giant of "misleading" statements about the number of fake accounts, a regulatory filing showed. Musk's effort to terminate the deal that he inked in April sets the stage for an epic court battle over a billion-dollar breakup fee and more. "Mr. Musk hereby exercises (the) right to terminate the Merger Agreement and abandon the transaction," his lawyers said

World BusinessJuly 9, 2022

[Interactive] Apple named world’s most valuable brand

　Apple reclaimed its title as the world’s most valuable brand, according to a survey from Kantar BrandZ, knocking rival Amazon off the top spot for the first time in three years. 　The iPhone maker’s brand value reached $947 billion this year, while Amazon slipped to third, according to Kantar’s survey published June 15. Apple was last ranked the most valuable brand in 2015. 　Louis Vuitton became the first luxury brand to reach the top 10 after experiencing 64 percent growth

WorldJuly 9, 2022

[Graphic News] Vienna returns as world’s ‘most livable city’

　The Austrian capital Vienna has made a comeback as the world’s most livable city, according to an annual report from the Economist. 　Vienna snatched the top spot from Auckland, New Zealand, which tumbled down to 34th place due to coronavirus pandemic restrictions, according to the report by the Economist Intelligence Unit. 　Europe boasted six out of the top 10 cities. The Austrian capital was followed by the Danish capital Copenhagen and Switzerland’s Zurich. Fellow Swiss city Ge

WorldJuly 8, 2022

[Graphic News] SNU places 29th in QS World University Rankings

　Seoul National University ranked 29th overall in the 2023 QS World University Rankings 2023, scoring its highest placement so far. 　SNU received particularly good reviews in academic reputation (98.6 points) and graduate reputation (97.8 points). 　Massachusetts Institute of Technology remained at the top place for the 11th consecutive year, followed by the University of Cambridge, Stanford University, Oxford and Harvard. 　The QS rankings were based on academic reputation, employer reputatio

WorldJuly 6, 2022

[Graphic News] A global look at mass deaths of trafficked migrants

　Fifty-three migrants died after being abandoned in a tractor-trailer in the sweltering Texas heat on June 27, one of the worst tragedies to claim the lives of migrants smuggled across the border from Mexico to the US. 　The deaths were the latest in what has become a global series of mass deaths occurring during human trafficking attempts.

WorldJuly 4, 2022