Public attitudes about the economy have become bleaker as the coronavirus pandemic continues to weigh globally, according to a Pew Research Center survey released recently. 　Overall, a median of only 31 percent of adults across the surveyed nations assess their country’s current economic situation as good, while more than two-thirds say conditions are bad. 　In Germany, while the majority continue to view the economy positively, the percentage who view it negatively has more than dou

World Business Sept. 10, 2020

　Retail sales in South Korea advanced 4.4 percent in July from a year earlier as online platforms enjoyed a spike in demand for groceries and home appliances amid the new coronavirus pandemic. 　The combined sales of 26 major offline and online retailers reached 11.46 trillion won ($9.67 billion) last month, up from 10.98 trillion won a year earlier, according to data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. 　Online platforms led the growth, with their revenue advancing 13.4

Business Sept. 9, 2020

　LG Chem became the largest supplier of electric vehicle batteries in the first seven months of this year, data showed. 　Based on the global usage of EV batteries, LG Chem’s market share stood at 25.1 percent in the January-July period, compared with 10.6 percent a year earlier, according to market tracker SNE Research. 　The data showed that 13.4 gigawatt-hours of energy from LG Chem’s EV batteries was used in the January-July period, compared with 6.8 gigawatt-hours a year ear

World Business Sept. 8, 2020

　South Korea’s coffee imports expanded more than 5 percent in the first seven months of the year despite the coronavirus outbreak, data showed Tuesday. 　Imports of coffee stood at 90,355 metric tons in the January-July period, up 5.37 percent from a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service. 　It marks the first time that Korea’s coffee imports exceeded the 90,000-ton level in the first seven months of any year. (Yonhap)

Business Sept. 7, 2020

　More than two-thirds of South Korean small and medium-sized enterprises have suffered setbacks in their sales following the coronavirus outbreak in February, a poll showed. 　According to a nationwide survey of 1,000 SMEs with sales of 100 million won ($84,300) or more, 77 percent of respondents said their sales had dipped since the COVID-19 outbreak, compared to a year earlier. 　Those companies reported an average decrease of 39.2 percent in sales over the cited period. 　Of the companies

Business Sept. 4, 2020

　South Korea’s total fertility rate hit a record low of 0.92 in 2019, government data showed, in a clear warning to the nation’s economy that a population decline lies ahead. 　The total fertility rate refers to the average number of children a woman bears in her lifetime. 　The 2019 figure is far below the replacement level of 2.1 that would keep Korea’s population stable at 51 million. It also represents a sharp drop from 1970, when the government began to compile relevan

Social Affairs Sept. 3, 2020

　Home transactions in South Korea reached a new all-time high in July despite government measures to rein in soaring housing prices, data showed. 　The number of homes changing hands nationwide stood at 141,419 last month, up 110 percent from a year earlier, according to the data from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. 　The July reading was also up 2.1 percent from the previous month and is the largest monthly number since 2006, when data tracking began. 　In the first seve

National Sept. 1, 2020

　The number of foreigners overstaying in South Korea increased 10 percent on-year in May, as travelers and migrants were stranded by strict border controls around the world due to the novel coronavirus, data showed. 　The number of foreigners illegally staying in the country reached an all-time high of 396,654 in the month, according to the Korea Immigration Service. 　Of them, about 296,000, or 75 percent, were visitors who entered the country without visas for a 90-day stay. The number o

Social Affairs Aug. 31, 2020

　The number of vehicle registrations in South Korea exceeded 24 million in the first half, helped by strong demand for environmentally friendly models, the Transport Ministry said. 　Accumulated auto registrations came to 24.02 million at the end of June, up 1.4 percent from 23.68 million at the end of December, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said in a statement. 　The first-half registrations showed that 1 in every 2.16 South Koreans owns a car, it said. 　Robust domes

Business Aug. 28, 2020

　Samsung Electronics maintained its dominant status in the global DRAM market in the second quarter of the year, a report showed, as the pandemic drove demand for server chips. 　The South Korean tech giant’s market share in the global DRAM market stood at 43.5 percent in the April-June period, down 0.6 percentage point from three months earlier, while its revenue increased 13.8 percent to $7.4 billion over the cited period, according to data from market researcher TrendForce. 　Its

World Business Aug. 27, 2020

　South Korea saw the addition of 38 new public libraries nationwide last year thanks to the government‘s efforts to enhance access to libraries in recent years. 　According to a recent statistical survey by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and its affiliated Korea Culture and Tourism Institute, the number of public libraries reached 1,134 as of 2019. 　This is in line with the average annual 3.8 percent increase in the number of public libraries registered since 2016. 　Th

Social Affairs Aug. 26, 2020

　Sales of instant noodles in South Korea soared to an all-time high in the first half of the year due to the coronavirus outbreak, data showed. 　Local shipments of instant noodles, or “ramyeon” in Korean, came to 1.13 trillion won ($950 million) in the January-June period, up 7.2 percent from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by Nielsen Korea and released by industry leader Nongshim. 　The first-half tally represents the largest half-year sales figure on record. 　N

Business Aug. 25, 2020

　More than one-third of children and adolescents across the United States eat fast-food each day, according to new figures from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 　In 2018, 36 percent of young people ate fast food every day, an increase from 34 percent of in 2011, researchers said. 　Up to 14 percent of young people obtained 25 percent to 45 percent of their daily calories from fast-food - up from just over 12 percent in 2011, agency researchers said. 　The percentage is hig

World News Aug. 24, 2020

　South Korea’s exports of coronavirus test kits have declined since their peak in April, leading to a plunge in stock prices of test kit makers, data showed. 　With the coronavirus pandemic raging across the globe, many countries had scrambled to import Korean COVID-19 test kits, in a boon to local manufacturers. 　According to data from the Korea Customs Service, the value of test kit exports came to $214 million in April, a more than eightfold jump from $24 million in March. 　Howe

Business Aug. 20, 2020

　Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe received the lowest approval rating in a recent survey covering six countries and their response to the global coronavirus pandemic. 　The poll conducted by US-German communications consultancy Kekst CNC shows Abe is under fire for his handling of the health crisis as speculation grows in Japan that Abe could leave office before the end of his term in September 2021. 　The survey, which polled 1,000 respondents from the US, Britain, Germany, Sweden, France

World News Aug. 19, 2020