The number of people killed in large commercial airplane crashes rose in 2020 to 299 worldwide, even as the number of crashes fell by more than 50 percent, a Dutch consulting firm said. 　Aviation consulting firm To70 said in 2020 there were 40 accidents involving large commercial passenger planes, five of which were fatal, resulting in 299 fatalities. In 2019 there were 86 accidents, eight of which were fatal, resulting in 287 fatalities. 　Large commercial airplanes had 0.27 fatal acciden

World News Jan. 6, 2021

　South Korea’s population fell year-on-year for the first time in 2020, census data showed, with a record low number of births being surpassed by deaths. 　According to the latest census figures released by the Ministry of Interior and Safety, Korea had 51,829,023 people as of Dec. 31, 2020, down 20,838 from the end of 2019. 　The population had increased in each of the previous 10 years, though the growth rate had fallen steadily - from 1.49 percent in 2010 to just 0.05 percent by 201

National Jan. 5, 2021

　South Korea has the fastest 5G download speed in the world, reaching over 350 megabits per second, a report showed. 　The country’s 5G download speed stood at an average 351.2 Mbps, followed by Saudi Arabia at 272.8 Mbps and Taiwan at 247.7 Mbps, industry tracker Opensignal said in a report, citing data collected between Sept. 1 and Nov. 29 in 15 global markets with 5G networks. 　The result marks an improvement for South Korea from a previous report by Opensignal in October, which ha

Technology Jan. 4, 2021

　K-pop superstars BTS ranked as the sixth-most-tweeted-about people globally, data from Twitter showed, reflecting the seven-member group’s strong influence on the social media platform. 　While US President Donald Trump and President-elect Joe Biden topped the list, BTS was one of two music acts to make the list of the 10 most-tweeted-about global figures. The other was American rapper Kanye West. 　BTS also topped Twitter’s list of the most-tweeted-about K-pop accounts globally

K-pop Dec. 31, 2020

　South Korea was the 10th-largest arms exporter in the 2015-2019 period, accounting for 2.1 percent of the world's total defense exports, an annual government report showed. 　According to the Global Defense Market Yearbook 2020 published by the Defense Agency for Technology and Quality, Britain, Iraq and Indonesia were the main buyers of South Korea’s defense products during the period. 　South Korea ranked 11th in last year's report. 　The United States remained the top arms exporte

Defense Dec. 30, 2020

　Samsung Electronics was the top global smartphone manufacturer in the third quarter of the year, a report showed, as demand for its mobile devices increased in advanced markets amid the pandemic. 　Samsung led the industry in terms of smartphone production with 78 million units in the July-September period, up 42 percent from a quarter earlier, and accounted for 23.2 percent of the total share, according to market researcher TrendForce. 　Samsung was followed by Chinese players Oppo and Xi

Business Dec. 29, 2020

　The number of malaria infections in North Korea nearly halved in 2019 from a year earlier, a UN agency’s report showed, as global aid organizations have worked to help with the impoverished country’s fight against the contagious disease. 　According to the report by the World Health Organization, North Korea reported a total of 1,869 malaria cases last year, compared with 3,698 tallied a year earlier. 　The North had reported over 10,000 malaria cases annually from 2008-2014, b

North Korea Dec. 28, 2020

　South Korea’s video game market was the fifth largest in the world in 2019, falling one position from the previous year, a report showed. 　The country's video game market reached sales of 15.6 trillion won ($14.2 billion) last year, up 9 percent from the previous year, according to an annual report by the Korea Creative Content Agency. 　The country ranked behind the United States, China, Japan and the United Kingdom in the global video market worth a total $186.5 billion last year.

World Business Dec. 25, 2020

　Samsung Electronics was the world's fifth-largest computer monitor vendor in the third quarter of the year, a report showed, as its shipments increased significantly amid the pandemic. 　The South Korean tech giant had a market share of 9 percent in the global computer monitor market in the July-September period, up from 6.8 percent a year ago, according to market researcher International Data Corp. 　Samsung’s computer monitor shipments jumped 52.8 percent on-year to 3.37 million u

Business Dec. 24, 2020

　A record number of journalists were imprisoned worldwide during 2020, as governments cracked down on coverage of the coronavirus pandemic or tried to suppress reporting of civil unrest, the Committee to Protect Journalists said. 　At least 274 journalists were in jail as of Dec. 1, the most since the New York-based group began collecting data in the early 1990s, the report said, up from at least 250 last year. 　Protests and political tensions were the cause of many arrests, with the most m

World News Dec. 23, 2020

　Seven out of 10 South Koreans plan to travel abroad after coronavirus vaccines are developed, a survey showed. 　According to Incheon International Airport Corp.'s recent survey, 70.2 percent of South Koreans and 82 percent of foreign nationals said they have overseas travel plans after the development of COVID-19 vaccines is completed. 　The survey was conducted on 1,000 Koreans and 600 foreign nationals from China, Japan, Vietnam and other countries from Oct. 30 to Nov. 20. 　As for the

National Dec. 22, 2020

　A majority of Japanese people oppose holding the coronavirus-postponed Tokyo 2020 Olympics next year, favoring a further delay or outright cancellation of the massive event, new polling showed. 　The new data shows public sentiment has shifted little since the summer, when surveys in Japan also found only a minority backing plans to hold the Games next year, despite the imminent arrival of new vaccines. 　A poll released by national broadcaster NHK found just 27 percent of respondents suppo

World Dec. 21, 2020

　German Chancellor Angela Merkel has been named the world‘s most powerful woman for the 10th straight year, according to Forbes’ 100 most powerful women 2020 list. 　President of the European Central Bank Christine Lagarde, US Vice President-elect Kamala Harris and President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen took second, third and fourth place, respectively. 　Lee Boo-jin, the eldest daughter of Samsung’s late Chairman Lee Kun-hee and president of Hotel Shilla,

World Dec. 18, 2020

　North Korea's trade with China plunged more than 70 percent in the first nine months of the year due to Pyongyang’s border closure with its ally to stem the spread of the new coronavirus, a report showed. 　Exports and imports between the two countries came to $530 million in the January-September period, down 73 percent from a year earlier, according to the report by the Korea International Trade Association. 　North Korea's exports to its biggest economic partner nose-dived 70 perce

North Korea Dec. 17, 2020

　US and Chinese companies dominated the global arms market in 2019, while the Middle East made its first appearance among the 25 biggest weapons manufacturers, a report from the SIPRI research institute said. 　The US arms industry accounted for 61 percent of sales by the world‘s top 25 manufacturers last year, ahead of China’s 15.7 percent, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. 　Total sales among the top 25 rose by 8.5 percent to $361 billion - 50 t

World Dec. 16, 2020