South Korea continues to have the lowest birthrate in the world this year amid fast growth of its elderly population, a United Nations report showed. 　The country’s total fertility rate per woman amounted to 1.1 in 2021, unchanged from a year earlier, according to the report from the UN Population Fund. 　The fertility rate refers to the average number of children each woman is expected to give birth to over her lifetime. 　South Korea’s rate is the lowest among all 198 countri

National May 6, 2021

　South Korea’s exports of autos grew 31.4 percent on-year in the first quarter on the back of brisk shipments of sedans and eco-friendly vehicles, data showed. 　The country’s outbound shipments of cars came to $11 billion in the January-March period, compared with $8.37 billion the previous year, according to the data compiled by the Korea Customs Service. 　Imports of autos rose 21.8 percent on-year to $2.9 billion, the data showed. 　Overseas shipments of sedans and eco-friend

Business May 5, 2021

　Cases of cyberbullying involving elementary to high school students increased sharply last year as the new coronavirus pandemic turned many classes online, a survey showed. 　According to the survey released by the Blue Tree Foundation, cyberbullying accounted for 16.3 percent of all school bullying cases experienced by respondents last year, up more than threefold from 5.3 percent in 2019. 　The survey canvassed 6,230 students attending elementary, middle and high schools in 17 cities and

National May 4, 2021

　Military expenditure worldwide rose to nearly $2 trillion in 2020, defying the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, researchers said. 　Global military spending increased by 2.6 percent to $1.98 trillion in 2020, when global gross domestic product shrank 4.4 percent, according to a report from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. 　The fact that military spending continued to increase in a year with an economic downturn meant the “military burden,” or the s

World May 3, 2021

　The majority of respondents to a Japanese poll said they would prefer to see Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga resign either immediately or by fall, according to a local press report. 　A recent survey showed 47 percent of 1,000 polled said they would prefer Suga resign in September, when a ruling party leadership contest is scheduled to take place, the Yomiuri Shimbun reported. 　Another 12 percent of respondents said they would prefer Suga “resign immediately,” indicating

World April 30, 2021

　Nearly 1 out of 3 middle and high school students in South Korea mulled suicide over the past year due to academic burden, a survey showed. 　In a poll of 5,669 middle and high school students conducted by the state-run National Youth Policy Institute from July to October last year, 27 percent said they had thought of taking their own life within the last year. By gender, 35 percent of female students said so, compared with 19.6 percent of male students. 　Asked about the reasons for thinki

National April 29, 2021

　South Korea’s population continued to decrease during the first quarter of this year as deaths outnumbered births, government data showed. 　As of March 31, the nation’s registered population stood at 51,705,905, down 0.24 percent from 51,829,023 tallied at the end of 2020, when the population fell for the first time on record, according to census figures from the Ministry of Interior and Safety. 　Natural decrease accounted for 10,370 while the remaining 116,177 people were der

National April 28, 2021

　The number of South Korean stay-at-home fathers reached an all-time high in March as fewer women took charge of bringing up kids, government data showed. 　A total of 13,000 South Korean men outside the labor force were in charge of child care last month, up 6,000 from a year earlier, according to the data from the Korean Statistical Information Service. 　It was the largest number since data tracking began in 1999. 　Those in their 30s and 40s accounted for 74.5 percent of stay-at-home dad

National April 27, 2021

　Sales at South Korea’s major fried chicken franchises jumped in 2020 as people relied on food delivery amid the coronavirus outbreak, industry data showed. 　Kyochon, the biggest franchise, saw its top line surge 17.8 percent on-year to 447.6 billion won ($398 million) last year, and sales of No. 2 BHC shot up 25.7 percent to 400.4 billion won. 　It marks the first time that local chicken franchise sales have exceeded the 400 billion won mark. 　No. 3 player BBQ sales soared 32.1 perc

Business April 26, 2021

　South Korea’s two major electronics firms - Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics - were among the top five players in the European smart home market in the fourth quarter of last year, a report showed, as they push to increase connected devices amid the pandemic-induced stay-at-home trend. 　Samsung was the third-largest vendor of smart home devices, including smart TVs, smart speakers, thermostats and home security products, in Europe after shipping 4.91 million units in the Octob

World Business April 23, 2021

　If you’re wealthy, the Asia-Pacific region is the most expensive place to live, with Shanghai overtaking Hong Kong as the priciest city in the world. 　Those are some of the key findings from a Julius Baer Group report about luxury lifestyles, which stated that part of the reason for the region’s success was its swift recovery from the coronavirus pandemic. By contrast, the Americas were the most affordable because of the slumps in the US and Canadian dollars and sharp devaluati

World April 22, 2021

　Transactions on mobile games in South Korea reached a record high in the first quarter of this year, data showed, amid the pandemic-driven online gaming trend. 　Mobile game transactions stood at 1.66 trillion won ($1.48 billion) in the January-March period this year, compared with 1.48 trillion won the previous year, according to local mobile app tracker IGAWorks, which reviewed data from 40 million mobile devices running on Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android. 　IGAWorks said the

Business April 21, 2021

　Noise complaints surged more than 60 percent last year, as people spent more time at home amid the COVID-19 pandemic, a state environment promotion agency said. 　The Korea Environment Corp. said its hotline dedicated to the matter received 42,250 complaints last year, a 60.9 percent year-on-year increase. 　There were 12,139 requests for on-site inspections to determine the level of noise, a 52.3 percent increase from 7,971 requests in 2019. (Yonhap)

National April 20, 2021

　More than half of unmarried South Koreans in their 30s live with their parents, a report showed, as young people delay marriage amid the economic slowdown. 　A total of 54.8 percent of single Koreans in their 30s live with their parents, according to the report from Statistics Korea. 　The report showed that 62.3 percent of unmarried people aged between 20 and 44 lived with their parents. (Yonhap)

National April 16, 2021

  　The era of space tourism is on the horizon 60 years after Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first person in space. 　From Yuri Gagarin to the first man on the moon and the robot that landed on a comet, we look at 10 key dates in space exploration. (AFP) 1. 1957: Sputnik 　Moscow launches the first satellite, Sputnik 1, Oct. 4, 1957, ushering in the Cold War tussle for the cosmos. 　The beach ball-sized aluminum sphere takes 98 minutes to orbit the Earth and sends back the first mes

World April 15, 2021