An Army soldier and an Air Force officer have tested positive for the new coronavirus, the defense ministry said Thursday. The soldier, based in the northeastern border county of Hwacheon, was confirmed to have contracted COVID-19 while away from his base on vacation, and the Air Force officer in Osan, 55 kilometers south of Seoul, was found to be infected after coming into contact with a civilian virus patient, according to the ministry. The latest cases raised the total number of infections

Social Affairs June 17, 2021

South Korean left-hander Yang Hyeon-jong has been demoted to the minor leagues by the Texas Rangers. In a roster move made Wednesday (US time), Yang was replaced with right-hander Ian Kennedy, who has been on a 10-day injury list. "Manager Chris Woodward said the staff wants Yang to get more reps and starts at Triple-A Round Rock before getting back up to the big leagues," the Texas Rangers said on its website. The 33-year old south paw was removed from the rotation in late May afte

Baseball June 17, 2021

The conservative main opposition People Power Party (PPP) has seen an influx of new members, especially those in their 20s and 30s, in the wake of the sensational ascent of young new party leader Lee Jun-seok. According to party officials, some 23,000 people nationwide have joined the PPP as new members since May 12, including 10,000 who joined through online processes. The figure marks about a tenfold increase from the same period a year earlier, which came amid Lee's surprise ascent to the p

Politics June 17, 2021

Hyundai Motor Co. said Thursday it has resumed operations of a local plant following a one-day suspension due to lack of semiconductors. Hyundai halted the Asan plant, which produces the Grandeur sedan, on Wednesday, causing production losses of 1,027 vehicles, the company said in a regulatory filing. The company has temporarily halted some of its domestic plants on a chip shortage. It has seven domestic plants -- five in Ulsan, one in Asan and one in Jeonju -- and 10 overseas plants -- four

Mobility June 17, 2021

South Korea will closely monitor the financial market as market volatility could increase following the Federal Reserve's signal of an earlier-than-expected rate hike, a senior government official said Thursday. After freezing its key rate at near zero at a policy meeting, the Fed signaled an earlier-than-expected rate increase in 2023 as US inflation is rising amid an economic recovery. The US central bank also hinted it began discussing when to taper bond-buying programs. Bearing the Fed's s

Economy June 17, 2021

South Korean battery maker LG Energy Solution Ltd. said Thursday it has completed the supply of its battery system to the world's largest energy storage system (ESS) that has come online in the United States. LG Energy, a battery unit under LG Chem Ltd., said its lithium-ion batteries are now running on US power generation firm Vistra Energy's 1.2 gigawatt-hour (GWh) ESS facility in California. In December, Vistra connected the ESS facility to its 1,020-MW combined cycle gas turbine power pla

Industry June 17, 2021

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases remained in the 500s for the second day Thursday as health authorities are set to announce the vaccination plan for the next quarter that centers on people aged under 60 and priority groups. The country reported 540 more virus cases, including 523 local infections, raising the total caseload to 149,731, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. The latest tally is similar to 545 cases Wednesday, sharply up from 373 on Tuesday. The co

Social Affairs June 17, 2021

South Korean stocks opened lower Thursday as the Federal Reserve made comments about an earlier-than-expected timeline for a rate hike. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 19.61 points, or 0.6 percent, to trade at 3,259.07 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Stock prices fell after the key stock index finished at an all-time high the previous session, taking a cue from Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell's comment that the Fed began discussing measures to sca

Market June 17, 2021

The global memory chip market is forecast to increase 32 percent this year, a report showed Thursday, boding well for South Korean chipmakers that dominate the sector. Sales growth for the DRAM market is expected to reach 41 percent in 2021, the second largest among 33 integrated circuit (IC) products, while that of NAND flash is projected to be 22 percent, according to the latest McClean report released by market researcher IC Insights. "It is expected that the price per bit of DRAM wi

Economy June 17, 2021

South Korea's top economic policymaker said Thursday the government will focus on increasing the housing supply in a bid to curb market expectations for continued rises in home prices. Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said the supply of homes is expected to increase after 2022 as the construction of new properties has increased since May. Amid sluggish housing transactions, the growth of home prices has picked up in recent months in Seoul on expectations for eased rules on the reconstruction of ol

Economy June 17, 2021

North Korea held a key Workers' Party meeting for the second day with a focus on economic issues, according to state media Thursday, amid speculation that foreign policy could also have been discussed. Photos released by the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) showed leader Kim Jong-un presiding over a panel discussion during the second-day plenary meeting of the party's Central Committee on Wednesday. Foreign Minister Ri Son-gwon was seen taking down notes in one of the photos. Ri's at

North Korea June 17, 2021

South Korea's leading steelmaker Posco is likely to post a record operating income for the second quarter of the year on a recovery in global demand, according to market forecasts Thursday. Eight local brokerages' median estimate for Posco's operating profit stands at 1.93 trillion won ($1.73 billion) for the April-June, up more than 10 times from a year earlier, according to an analysis of their forecasts by Yonhap Infomax, the financial news arm of Yonhap News Agency. The figure marks the la

Industry June 17, 2021

BARCELONA -- South Korean President Moon Jae-in attended a major annual economic forum of Spain with King Felipe VI on Wednesday. Addressing the inaugural dinner of the three-day event in Barcelona, Moon proposed that the two countries spearhead preparations for the post-coronavirus era via a win-win approach. "The two countries have complementary industrial structures," he said. "Synergy through cooperation would be great." He pointed out that Spain is a global leader in

Foreign Affairs June 17, 2021

  　Two Spanish companies will invest a combined $200 million in the renewable energy business in South Korea, Seoul‘s trade ministry said Wednesday. 　 　Madrid-based Ocean Winds decided to make an initial investment worth $100 million to establish an offshore wind power plant in Incheon, west of Seoul, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. 　 　Ocean Winds was founded in 2019 as a joint venture of Spanish energy enterprise EDPR and French company ENGIE to invest in wi

Foreign Affairs June 16, 2021

South Korean conglomerates appear to be gradually changing their recruitment methods in favor of experienced workers and year-round recruitment of new employees. A public organization said Wednesday that major domestic companies are planning to fill about 40 percent of their new job openings with experienced workers, as opposed to fresh university graduates, in the second quarter of this year. According to the Korea Employment Information Service (KEIS), 137 out of the nation's top 500 compani

Industry June 16, 2021