Samsung Electronics was the fourth-largest vendor of wearable devices in the third quarter of the year, a market report showed, amid soaring global demand for wearables. 　Samsung shipped 11.2 million units of wearable devices in the July-September period, up 32.2 percent from a year earlier, for a market share of 9 percent, according to the latest report from market tracker International Data Corp. 　Apple solidified its top position with a 33.1 percent share after shipping 41.4 million

Business Dec. 15, 2020

　Samsung Electronics was the second-largest smartphone vendor in the African smartphone market in the third quarter of the year, a report showed, as the South Korean tech giant tries to expand its presence against Chinese competitors. 　Samsung accounted for 20 percent of the African smartphone market in the July-September period in terms of units, down from a 24 percent share a year ago, according to market researcher International Data Corp. 　China’s Transsion continued its dominan

World Dec. 11, 2020

　Single-member households in South Korea surpassed 30 percent of the total for the first time in 2019, data showed, amid a delay in marriage and a rapidly aging population. 　One-person families accounted for 30.2 percent of the total last year, up 29.3 percent from the previous year, according to data by Statistics Korea. 　Households consisting of a single member totaled 6.15 million in 2019, up from 5.85 million the previous year, the statistics agency said. (Yonhap)

National Dec. 10, 2020

　Output of domestic alcoholic beverages decreased by over 10 percent over the past five years, but alcohol imports nearly doubled during the same period, government data showed. 　Production of alcoholic beverages made in the country came to 337 million kiloliters in 2019, down 11.3 percent from 380 million kiloliters in 2014, according to the data from the National Tax Service. 　In contrast, South Korea imported 460,000 kiloliters of alcoholic beverages last year, up 125 percent from 2014,

National Dec. 9, 2020

　South Korean babies born in 2019 can be expected to live more than 83 years, data showed, amid improved medical systems and public awareness about health. 　Life expectancy at birth averaged 83.3 years last year, six months longer than a year earlier, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. 　Compared with 10 earlier, the average life expectancy was 3.2 years longer. The tally also marked a sharp hike from 62.3 years in 1970, when the country began compiling related data. 　Bab

National Dec. 8, 2020

　About 40 percent of parcel delivery drivers in South Korea work more than 14 hours a day during peak seasons, government data showed. 　The Labor Ministry released its study on the working conditions and health of couriers following a recent series of deaths of workers, apparently from overwork. The survey was conducted online on 1,862 workers at four major logistics companies from Nov. 1-13. 　The survey found that 41.6 percent worked 14 hours per day during busy times of year, including

Business Dec. 7, 2020

　Around 84 percent of local newspapers and magazines have experienced severe business difficulties due to the new coronavirus pandemic, a recent survey showed. 　According to the survey published by the Korea Press Foundation, 33.4 percent of newspaper and magazine companies said the management crisis was very severe, while 50.8 percent answered it was somewhat severe. 　Only 13.3 percent of respondents said the crisis was not that severe, while a mere 2.5 percent, most of which identified a

Business Dec. 4, 2020

　One in 5 US adults, aged 50 to 80, would like to get vaccinated for COVID-19 right away, a new poll found. 　Another 46 percent would also like to get the COVID-19 vaccine, but would first wait until others receive it, according to the National Poll On Healthy Aging from the University of Michigan. 　Nearly half were also worried about the safety of a vaccine that is developed quickly. 　Twenty percent were unsure about getting the vaccination, and 14 percent did not want to get vaccin

World Dec. 3, 2020

　South Korea has been ranked 4th among 53 countries in the world that have handled the coronavirus pandemic most effectively, according to a COVID Resilience Ranking by Bloomberg. South Korea received a resilience ranking of 82.3. 　The report scores economies of more than $200 billion on 10 key metrics: From growth in virus cases to the overall mortality rate, testing capabilities and the vaccine supply agreements places have forged. The capacity of the local health care system, the impact

World Dec. 2, 2020

　South Korea‘s alcohol imports fell for the first time in 10 years in 2019, amid a boycott of Japanese beer due to a bilateral trade row, data showed. 　South Korea’s liquor imports came to 466,000 kiloliters in 2019, down 6 percent from the previous year, according to data from the Korea Customs Service and local alcohol industry. 　It represents the first on-year decrease since 2009, shortly after the global financial crisis. 　Last year’s decline was attributed mainly to

Business Dec. 1, 2020

Samsung Electronics remained the world's leading TV vendor in the third quarter of the year, a report showed, as it accounted for one-third of the market amid the pandemic. The South Korea tech giant had an all-time high 33.1 percent market share in the global TV market in the July-September period in terms of revenue, according to data from industry researcher Omdia. Samsung sold $9.3 billion worth of TVs in the third quarter, up 22 percent from a year earlier, the data showed.

Business Nov. 30, 2020

　Tesla co-founder Elon Musk passed Bill Gates to become the world’s second-richest person. 　The 49-year-old entrepreneur‘s net worth soared $7.2 billion to $127.9 billion, driven by yet another surge in Tesla’s share price. Musk has added $100.3 billion to his net worth this year, the most of anyone on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, a ranking of the world‘s 500 richest people. In January he ranked 35th. 　His advance up the wealth ranks has been driven largely by

World Nov. 27, 2020

　KT, a South Korean telecom giant, and its affiliate had the most number of pay TV subscribers in the country in the first half of this year, maintaining the top status in terms of market share, ministry data showed. 　The mobile carrier and its satellite TV unit KT Skylife had a combined 31.4 percent share of the market, or 10.7 million subscribers, in the January-June period, followed by LG Uplus and its pay TV unit LG HelloVision at a total 25.1 percent, according to the Ministry of Scien

Business Nov. 26, 2020

　The number of South Korean students in the United States dropped this year, a US report showed, amid the coronavirus pandemic that has led to a plunge in the number of travelers between the two countries. 　However, the number of US students in Korea has jumped sharply over the same period, according to the report from the US State Department. 　In the 2019-2020 school year, the number of Korean students enrolled in US schools came to 49,809, down 4.7 percent from a year earlier, according

World Nov. 25, 2020

　Paris and Switzerland’s Zurich tied Hong Kong as the world’s most expensive cities this year as the COVID-19 pandemic impacted the prices of everyday items, according to a report from the Economist Intelligence Unit. 　Singapore fell to fourth place as foreign workers left the country after losing their jobs. 　The research was based on the prices of 138 everyday goods and services in around 130 cities worldwide.

World Business Nov. 24, 2020