Korea records first-ever drop in fuel-powered vehicle count

South Korea saw its first-ever decline in the overall number of registered fuel-powered vehicles last year, as reported by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport on Friday. The total number of registered vehicles powered by gasoline, diesel and liquefied petroleum gas fell by 85,000 to 23.647 million last year. This 0.4 percent decrease, the first since record-keeping began in the 1960s, was mainly driven by a downturn in diesel and liquefied petroleum gas vehicles, despite the regis

Jan. 19, 2024

Increasingly more North Korean dissenters escaping to South

South Korea on Thursday reported a recent increase in defections of elite and younger North Koreans, who say they left because they are anti-regime. The Ministry of Unification in Seoul overseeing inter-Korean affairs said the number of defectors to the South hit 196 in 2023, which is about the triple the number of the two preceding years -- 2022’s 67 and 2021’s 63 -- when COVID-19 was still raging. According to the ministry, the defections of members of the North Korean elite seen l

Jan. 18, 2024

[Out of the Shadows] Body heat scanners help hunt for drugs at airport

INCHEON -- Blue lights flashed on a walk-through screening machine after a man with drugs strapped to his left abdomen and his right thigh stepped into the checkpoint at Incheon International Airport Terminal 1. A group of airport security personnel immediately rushed in to check the substances hidden on the man’s body. The scripted demonstration arranged by the Korea Customs Service officials painted how the latest scanning technology has become a quintessential part of the airport's drug

Jan. 17, 2024

2023 was hottest year in recorded history, pouring rain and warming oceans

South Korea experienced the hottest year in its recorded history in 2023, marking an all-time high in the average yearly temperature and among the most intense rains and hottest ocean temperatures in recorded history, according to the state weather agency. The Korea Meteorological Administration on Tuesday announced its analysis of temperatures across the country, which showed that South Korea's yearly average was 13.7 degrees Celsius for last year, breaking the previous record of 13.4 degr

Jan. 16, 2024

Harvard Business School studies CJ's K-food success

  Korean food giant CJ CheilJedang's success in globalizing its K-food portfolio has been recently chosen as a subject for a case study at a Harvard Business School lecture in the US. This is the first time a Korean food brand to be featured in such a capacity at the HBS, according to CJ CheilJedang. Titled "CJ Foods: The Path to Global Food Leadership," the research delves into the company's management strategy, achievements, and the secrets behind its success in pioneering overs

Jan. 15, 2024

Pet cloning in Korea raises concerns over bioethics, regulatory void

A pet owner nuzzles her puppy Tico after months apart in a heartwarming video uploaded to YouTube on New Year’s Day. But this is no ordinary reunion. Tico died in November 2022. The puppy in the video is a clone made to replace her. For some viewers, this last detail adds a bitter aftertaste to the touching scene. Animal rights advocates have expressed concern over what cloned dogs go through, and what the surrogate mothers to the cloned pets have to go through to meet the desires of a sin

Jan. 14, 2024

Taiwan president-elect Lai to face China's ire after victory

TAIPEI -- Taiwan's new president-elect, Lai Ching-te, is likely to face his toughest task yet when he takes office in May and has to deal with the ire of China which has repeatedly denounced him as a dangerous separatist. Lai, who won Saturday's election, repeatedly said during the campaign that he wanted to keep the status quo with China, which claims Taiwan as its own, and offered to talk to Beijing. "We don't want to become enemies with China. We can become friends,&qu

Jan. 14, 2024

Biden gives greetings on Korean American Day

US President Joe Biden issued a message to celebrate Korean American Day on Saturday, highlighting Korean Americans' "immense contributions" to the United States and their efforts to "enrich" the country. Korean American Day honors the Korean American community's contributions and marks the arrival of the first Korean immigrants to the US on Jan. 13, 1903. In 2005, both the House of Representatives and Senate passed resolutions for celebration of the day. "Thro

Jan. 14, 2024

Bong Joon-ho questions legitimacy of drug probe into Lee Sun-kyun

Cultural figures including internationally acclaimed “Parasite” director Bong Joon-ho criticized police and media outlets in connection with the death of actor Lee Sun-kyun. They said they would band in unity to submit the so-called “Lee Sun-kyun Act” to protect artists’ human rights. Lee, 48, died last month amid a weekslong police investigation into allegations he had used illegal drugs. The Association of Solidarity of Cultural Artists, a newly established organi

Jan. 12, 2024

US SEC OKs bitcoin ETFs in watershed for crypto market

WASHINGTON/NEW YORK -- The US securities regulator on Wednesday approved the first US-listed exchange traded funds to track bitcoin, its Chair Gary Gensler said, in a watershed for the world's largest cryptocurrency and the broader crypto industry. The US Securities and Exchange Commission approved 11 applications, including from BlackRock, Ark Investments/21Shares, Fidelity, Invesco and VanEck, among others, according to a notice on its website. Some products are expected to begin trading as ea

Jan. 11, 2024

48 countries, EU unite in condemning NK-Russia arms transfer

A united front of 48 countries, alongside the European Union, unequivocally expressed their condemnation in the "strongest possible terms" against North Korea's export of ballistic missiles and Russia's recent use of the ballistic missiles in the assault on war-torn Ukraine. The joint statement, featuring endorsements from foreign ministers of South Korea, the United States, Japan, Ukraine, and other participating countries, was issued on Wednesday, Seoul time. "Our gove

Jan. 10, 2024

[AtoZ into Korean mind] 'Aegyo': The psyche behind childlike adults

“Cuteness or charm, esp. of a sort considered characteristic of Korean popular culture. Also: behavior regarded as cute, charming or adorable. Cf. kawaii n.” – Oxford English Dictionary Ever encountered someone deliberately using or prolonging their “ng” or “o” sounds to sound cute? Like saying, “hajang,” instead of “haja” (let’s do it). This intentional mispronunciation, akin to baby talk, functions as one form of "

Jan. 9, 2024

North Korea makes no mention of leader's 40th birthday

North Korean state media outlets remained silent on the presumed 40th birthday of their leader Kim Jong-un on Monday. The Korean Central News Agency, Rodong Sinmun, Korean Central Television and Korean Central Broadcasting Station have yet to make any report on Kim's birthday. Kim is known to have been born on Jan. 8, 1984, though the North has not officially confirmed the date. Earlier in the day, state media outlets carried reports on Kim's visit to a newly built chicken factory wh

Jan. 8, 2024

One in 7 Korean women in 20s underweight: study

One in nearly six or seven Korean women in their 20s are underweight, and almost half of these young women weighing less than average or classified as normal weight attempt to lose more weight to cater to Korea’s strict beauty standards idealizing thin bodies, a report showed Monday. According to a study published by the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency on the percent of South Korean adults who attempt to lose weight and related factors using the Body Mass Index classification,

Jan. 8, 2024

Celine Song’s ‘Past Lives’ named Best Picture by National Society of Film Critics

Korean Canadian filmmaker and playwright Celine Song’s directorial debut, “Past Lives,” was named Best Picture of 2023 at the National Society of Film Critics Awards. “Past Lives,” a semi-autobiographical romantic drama film about Korean writer Nora (Greta Lee) living in New York who reunites with her childhood sweetheart, Hae-sung (Teo Yoo), after 20 years, won the top prize at the 58th annual awards. Other contenders were “Oppenheimer” and “The Z

Jan. 7, 2024

Korean tourist shot dead in Guam

A South Korean national was killed in a gun attack in the US territory of Guam on Thursday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Friday. According to the ministry, a South Korean tourist visiting Guam was taken to a hospital, where he died, after being shot in a robbery. Local media outlets reported the shooting happened at Gun Beach in Tumon at around 8 p.m. Thursday. The victim, assumed to be in his 50s, was promptly taken to a hospital in the area. The beach is located at the northern end of

Jan. 5, 2024

S. Korean All-Star closer Go Woo-suk signs with San Diego Padres

South Korean All-Star closer Go Woo-suk is now a member of the San Diego Padres. The Padres announced Wednesday that Go has agreed to a two-year contract with a mutual option for a third year in 2026. The Padres did not disclose financial details. Earlier in the day, New York Post columnist Joel Sherman tweeted that Go had signed a two-year deal worth $4.5 million. A major league source confirmed to Yonhap News Agency that the guaranteed amount of Go's contract is indeed $4.5 million over t

Jan. 4, 2024

2023 marks ‘hottest year on record’

The year 2023 was Korea's “hottest year on record,” according to the Korea Meteorological Administration on Wednesday. South Korea’s average annual temperature was 13.7 degrees Celsius, the highest average annual temperature since 1973, when weather records were first collected by the administration, the KMA said. The average annual temperature last year was 0.3 degrees higher than the previous record of 13.4 C in 2015. According to the KMA’s data, between January to Nove

Jan. 3, 2024

Prosecution launches special team to investigate stabbing of Lee

Prosecutor General Lee One-seok on Tuesday ordered the Busan High Prosecutors’ Office to form a special investigative team to look swiftly into the stabbing of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea leader during his visit to Busan at the hands of an unidentified man. He also ordered prosecutors to team up with the police to investigate the case thoroughly, according to the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office. “The prosecutor general has asked that a special probe team be formed

Jan. 2, 2024

Wishes of hope, better times in the Year of the Blue Dragon

As 2024 begins, those born in the Year of the Dragon are celebrating the return of their zodiac sign after 12 years. The year 2024 is the Year of the Blue Dragon, known as the “gapjin” year in the 60-year sexagenary cycle, which is based on 10 heavenly stems and 12 earthly branches. The Korea Herald interviewed five individuals born in the Year of the Dragon to hear their wishes before Lunar New Year on Feb. 10. Kim Hye-young, born in 1988, lives on Jeju Island. The new year is par

Jan. 1, 2024