South Korea’s car sales fell 15 percent last month from a year earlier as the spreading coronavirus outbreak affected vehicle production and sales. 　The country’s five carmakers - Hyundai Motor, Kia Motors, GM Korea, Renault Samsung Motors and SsangYong Motor - sold a combined 597,826 vehicles in March, down from 702,929 units a year ago, according to data from the companies. 　The lower sales largely resulted from suspended operations of Hyundai and Kia’s major overseas

Industry April 6, 2020

　South Korea will stop overseas election affairs for the April polls in 41 diplomatic missions of 25 nations, including the United States, over the coronavirus pandemic until April 6, according to the National Election Commission. 　The move followed last week’s decision to suspend the election process in Italy and 16 other countries and territories over the COVID-19 pandemic. 　The total affected diplomatic missions reached 65 in 41 countries, the NEC said. An estimated 80,500 voters

Politics April 5, 2020

　People in South Korea spent more time using applications on their mobile devices last month, data showed, amid the spread of the novel coronavirus. 　Koreans spent an average of 3.9 hours a day on mobile apps in February, up 7 percent from a year ago, according to global mobile data analytics firm App Annie. 　Korea was the No. 2 country in the world in terms of the average time that people spent on mobile apps. China topped the list with five hours, while Japan was No. 3 with 3.5 hours.

World News April 1, 2020

　South Korean exports to China are picking up in March as the new coronavirus retreats in the neighboring country, data showed. 　Daily exports to the world’s second-largest economy averaged $436 million during the first 10 days of this month, up 20.8 percent from the same period in February, according to the data from government and industry sources. 　Yet the daily average was down 8.2 percent from the same period a year earlier. 　Daily exports to China soared to $530 million in the

Industry March 31, 2020

　South Korea reported a net decrease in its population for the third consecutive month in January, due mainly to the critically low birthrate that has plagued Asia’s fourth-largest economy for years. 　Only 26,818 infants were born in January, down 11.6 percent on-year, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. The number of births has fallen on-year for a whopping 50 consecutive months, dating to December 2015. 　The number of deaths, on the other hand, advanced 4 percent on-y

Social Affairs March 30, 2020

　With the 2020 Olympics postponed until 2021, there are fears the delay will shatter the gold medal hopes of many aging athletes. 　AFP Sport looks at six evergreen stars for whom a delayed Tokyo Games might be a step too far. 　 1. Roger Federer 　The 20-time Grand Slam champion, who will be 40 in August 2021, won Olympic gold when he partnered Stan Wawrinka to the men’s doubles title at the 2008 Beijing Games. Federer was a quarterfinalist in singles in China and a silver medalist in 2

Sports March 29, 2020

　More than 880,000 people worldwide died from exposure to secondhand smoke in 2016, compared with nearly 950,000 in 1990, an analysis published by JAMA Network Open concluded. 　This despite the fact that there were more smokers globally in 2016 - nearly 1 billion, thanks in large part to the increasing popularity of the habit in Asia and Africa - than in 1990, when roughly 850 million people smoked worldwide. 　The figures suggest that one nonsmoker died from exposure to secondhand smoke for

Technology March 26, 2020

　Starting Sunday, all people traveling to South Korea from Europe are required to take COVID-19 tests and undergo a two-week quarantine regardless of symptoms. 　Of the 1,444 people who landed in Korea from Europe on Sunday, 19 tested positive for the virus, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 　As of Tuesday, the KCDC, said, Korea had reported 9,037 cases total, including 171 imported cases. Of the 76 new cases reported Tuesday, 22 of the patients had been inf

Social Affairs March 25, 2020

　The number of South Koreans getting married sank to an all-time low in 2019, government data showed, as young people increasingly delay marriage amid a prolonged economic slowdown. 　The number of couples tying the knot in Asia’s fourth-largest economy reached 239,200 in 2019, down 7.2 percent from the previous year, according to the data from Statistics Korea. 　The figure is the lowest since 1970, when the statistical agency began compiling related data. (Yonhap)

Social Affairs March 24, 2020

　South Korea’s exports of protective masks surged nearly 23-fold in February from a year earlier amid the global outbreak of the new coronavirus, data showed, although the volume is likely to plummet this month in line with the export ban. 　Outbound shipments of textile articles, which include masks, came to $157 million in February, up from $6.85 million a year earlier, according to the data compiled by the Korea International Trade Association. It also more than doubled from $70 mil

Business March 23, 2020

　The number of foreigners staying in South Korea fell nearly 4 percent in January this year, after topping a landmark 2.5 million the previous month, government data showed. 　According to data released by the Ministry of Justice, 2,426,433 foreigners were residing in the country as of the first month of 2020, marking a decline of 3.9 percent from 2,524,656 last December. 　The ministry also said the number of Korean nationals leaving the country in January increased 7.4 percent on-month to

Social Affairs March 22, 2020

　South Korean adults spent less time reading books last year, in contrast to children, a survey said. 　According to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism’s latest survey on the reading habits of  Koreans, adults read an annual average of 7.5 books in 2019, marking a decline of 1.9 books from 9.4 books read in 2017. 　On the other hand, elementary, middle and high school students read an average of 40.7 books annually, up 6.4 books from 34.3 books recorded two years ago, the

Social Affairs March 19, 2020

　The World Health Organization called for countries to test suspected cases of COVID-19, as the rest of the world registered more infections and deaths in the pandemic than China. 　The worst affected countries in terms of fatalities are mainland China, with more than 3,200 deaths, Italy with more than 2,000 deaths, over 853 in Iran and above 300 in Spain. 　The death rate is highest among more elderly groups and poses a higher risk to people with preexisting health conditions, such as diabe

Social Affairs March 18, 2020

　The number of traffic fatalities in South Korea fell 11.4 percent last year from a year earlier, data showed. 　A total of 3,349 people died from car accidents in 2019, down from 3,781 tallied a year earlier, according to data compiled by the Land and Transport Ministry and the National Police Agency. 　The annual number of traffic deaths in the country has fallen steadily every year since 2015. (Yonhap)

Social Affairs March 17, 2020

　Samsung Electronics retained its dominant position in the South American smartphone market last year, data showed. 　Samsung accounted for 38 percent of the South American smartphone market in 2019, up 1.4 percentage points from a year earlier, according to market researcher Counterpoint Research. 　Motorola was the runner-up with a 15.5 percent market share, up 2.7 percentage points from a year ago, while Huawei Technologies came in third place and LG Electronics and Apple were fourth and

World Business March 16, 2020