South Korea’s exports of fishery products grew 20.5 percent on-year in the first 10 months of this year, data showed. Outbound shipments of fishery products reached $2.24 billion during the January-October period, compared to $1.86 billion tallied a year earlier, according to the data from the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries. Exports to China rose 48.1 percent to $540 million, and those to the United States and the European Union surged 24.2 percent and 39.4 percent, respectively. Sales

Economy Dec. 29, 2021

　North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is the third most-searched politician by internet users worldwide this year, data showed . 　Online searches for Kim totaled a monthly average of 1.9 million, behind US President Joe Biden, who topped the list with 7 million searches, and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson with 2 million, according to German data analytics firm Statista. 　Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel ranked fourth with 1.4 million searches. 　The most-searched keyword related to the

World Dec. 29, 2021

South Korea’s exports of kimchi climbed nearly 14 percent in the first eight months of 2021 on growing overseas demand for healthier food amid the new coronavirus pandemic, data showed. Outbound shipments of kimchi reached $111.5 million in the January-August period, up 13.8 percent from a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service and the food industry. In contrast, imports of kimchi shrank 9.7 percent on-year to $86.1 million over the cited period, resulting in

Economy Dec. 28, 2021

More than 22 million Afghans will suffer “acute food insecurity” this winter, UN agencies said, warning the already unstable country faces one of the world‘s worst humanitarian crises. The crisis is already bigger in scale than that facing Yemen or Syria, and worse than any food insecurity emergency apart from the Democratic Republic of Congo, officials said. According to the statement issued by the World Food Program and the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, one in two A

World News Dec. 28, 2021

　South Korea has the third-highest ratio of youth “not in education, employment or training,” or NEET youth, among members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, a report showed. 　The average monthly number of NEET people aged 15-29 in the country is estimated at 1.56 million in the January-October period, according to the report from the Korea Employment Information Service. 　Of the total, 778,000 were preparing for employment or seeking jobs, with another

World Dec. 28, 2021

　The numbers for suicides as well as traffic and crime-related deaths fell in 2020 due largely to various social distancing schemes imposed over concerns of the COVID-19 pandemic, the government said. 　According to the Interior Ministry, the combined number of deaths connected to traffic accidents, crimes and suicides stood at 16,439 in 2020, down from 17,350 a year earlier. 　In terms of types, traffic deaths fell 15.9 percent to 2,858, and those connected to five major crimes, such as murder

National Dec. 27, 2021

　Tottenham Hotspur’s South Korean star Son Heung-min has been named the country’s top athlete for the fifth straight year in a national poll. 　Gallup Korea announced the findings of its annual survey on athletes. In a poll of 1,700 South Koreans over the age of 13 from Nov. 5 to 28, Son earned overwhelming support of 72.8 percent as the top South Korean athlete for 2021. 　Respondents could select up to two athletes. 　Son has developed into one of the Premier League’s most d

Sports Dec. 24, 2021

　The proportion of one-person households in South Korea hit a fresh record high last year, as the number of such households has continued to increase amid a delay in marriage and rapid aging, data showed. 　One-person families accounted for 31.7 percent of the total last year, up from 30.2 percent the previous year, according to the data from Statistics Korea. 　Households consisting of a single member totaled 6.64 million in 2020, up from 6.15 million a year earlier, the statistics agency said

National Dec. 23, 2021

　Isolation. Anxiety. Uncertainty. The stresses of the coronavirus pandemic have taken a toll on Americans of all ages, but a new poll finds that teens and young adults have faced some of the heaviest struggles as they come of age during a time of extreme turmoil. 　Overall, more than a third of Americans ages 13 to 56 cite the pandemic as a major source of stress, and many say it has made certain parts of their lives harder. But when it comes to education, friendships and dating, the disruption

World Dec. 22, 2021

　Samsung Electronics retained the top spot in the global smartphone market in the third quarter of the year, a report showed.  　The world‘s largest smartphone maker held a market share of 20 percent in the July-September period, followed by Apple with 14 percent and Xiaomi with 13 percent, according to a report from market researcher Counterpoint Research.  　During the three months, the South Korean tech giant shipped 69.3 million smartphones, up 20 percent from the previous q

Business Dec. 21, 2021

　The United States is by far the biggest contributor to global plastic waste in the world, according to a new report submitted to the federal government that called for a national strategy to tackle the growing crisis. 　Overall, the US contributed around 42 million metric tons in plastic waste in 2016 - more than twice as much as China and more than the countries of the European Union combined, according to the analysis.  　On average, each American generates 130 kilograms of plastic wast

World Dec. 20, 2021

　The average life expectancy of South Korean babies born last year reached 83.5 years, more than seven years longer than two decades ago, data showed, amid improved public awareness about health and a better medical system. 　The average life expectancy at birth in 2020 was 2.4 months longer than a year earlier, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. 　Compared with 10 and 20 years ago, the average life expectancy became 3.2 years and 7.5 years longer, respectively. 　The reading a

National Dec. 17, 2021

　South Koreans’ overseas card spending declined 14.8 percent in the third quarter from three months earlier as the government tightened rules on withdrawals of money from automatic teller machines and the won depreciated against the dollar, central bank data showed.  　According to the data by the Bank of Korea, the amount of money spent overseas by South Koreans with cards, including credit and debit cards, came to $2.88 billion in the July-September period, down from $3.37 billion

Business Dec. 16, 2021

　Some 2.9 billion people - 37 percent of the world’s population - have still never used the internet, the United Nations said, despite the COVID-19 pandemic driving people online. 　The UN’s International Telecommunication Union estimated that 96 percent of those 2.9 billion live in developing countries. 　The agency said the estimated number of people who have gone online rose from 4.1 billion in 2019 to 4.9 billion this year, partially due to a “COVID connectivity boost.&rdq

World Dec. 15, 2021

　South Korea’s imports of whisky soared more than 70 percent in the first 10 months of the year as more people drank at home amid the coronavirus pandemic, data showed. 　The value of whisky imports came to $93.21 million in the January-October period, up 73.1 percent from a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service and the local liquor industry. 　It represents the first on-year increase in the country’s whisky imports since 2014. 　Industry sources attribu

Business Dec. 14, 2021