Cooperation on COVID-19 vaccines will be a key agenda item during the upcoming summit between the leaders of South Korea and the United States, a senior Seoul official said Wednesday. "One of the main agenda items is vaccine partnership between the two countries," Lee Ho-seung, President Moon Jae-in 's chief of staff for policy, said during a radio interview. Moon and US President Joe Biden are scheduled to hold an in-person summit at the White House on May 21, focused on North Kor

Foreign Affairs May 12, 2021

   Samsung Electronics and LG Group decided Wednesday to offer paid leave to workers who receive a COVID-19 vaccine shot following health authorities' recommendation. Samsung's decision came one day after its labor union requested paid time off for COVID-19 vaccinations. Employees who take a day off to get vaccinated will be paid for that day. If an employee shows signs of side effects after the shot, the company will then grant paid leave for two more days. The union had demande

Technology May 12, 2021

South Korea's leading shipbuilder Samsung Heavy Industries said Wednesday that it has completed a research and development plant related to liquefied natural gas. The plant set up at its shipyard on Geoje Island, 398 kilometers south of Seoul, will develop and test key technologies needed to transport, store and supply LNG, Samsung Heavy Industries said. The R&D plant will help the shipbuilder widen the technological gap with other rivals in manufacturing LNG carriers and LNG-propelled sh

Industry May 12, 2021

Two foreign nationals arrested for posting threatening flyers at the French Embassy in Seoul last November were released on Wednesday after receiving suspended sentences from a court. The Seoul Western District Court sentenced the two men -- one from Russia and the other from Kyrgyzstan -- to imprisonments of six months each, suspended for one year, on charges of posting threats against the diplomatic mission. The two, both known to be 26-year-old Muslim believers, were arrested for posting fo

Social Affairs May 12, 2021

South Korea and Israel on Wednesday signed a free trade agreement (FTA) centered on broadening economic ties, a move that could help Asia's No. 4 economy speed up exports of cars and auto parts. Trade Minister Yoo Myung-hee officially signed the pact with her Israeli counterpart Amir Peretz during a ceremony in Seoul, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The two sides struck the deal in 2019, three years after they launched negotiations. "The FTA with Israel will not

Foreign Affairs May 12, 2021

South Korean stocks fell over 1 percent for the second straight session Wednesday as foreign investors dumped local shares amid growing worries over inflation. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) dropped 47.77 points, or 1.49 percent, to close at 3,161.66 points. Trading volume was high at about 1.4 billion shares worth some 22.2 trillion won ($19.83 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 705 to 178. Foreigners offloaded a net

Market May 12, 2021

The education ministry is looking at fully resuming in-person classes in the fall, an official said Wednesday, as online classes have been blamed for widening learning gaps between children. Currently, schools follow the government's COVID-19 guidelines in determining how many students are allowed to learn in-person while the rest study remotely. The proportions range from up to two-thirds capacity to online only, depending on the social distancing level in place. The official, who spoke on th

Social Affairs May 12, 2021

JEONJU -- Police raided the North Jeolla Province government office Wednesday over alleged land speculation by a public servant. The Jeonbuk Police Agency said it searched the office and the home of the employee hired by the provincial government, located in Jeonju, about 240 kilometers south of Seoul. The suspect's computer files, mobile phone and related documents were seized in the process. The police said the public servant is suspected of using insider information to buy a plot of land ne

Politics May 12, 2021

President Moon Jae-in gave Cheon Dae-yeop, a veteran judge, a certificate of appointment as a new Supreme Court justice on Wednesday. The president took note of Cheon's "firm faith in judicial independence, a guarantee of basic rights and the protection of the socially underprivileged," according to Cheong Wa Dae spokesperson Park Kyung-mee. "As the Supreme Court's ruling has a profound impact on our society and future generations, the burden will be heavy as a Supreme Court jus

Politics May 12, 2021

Lee Sung-yoon, chief of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors Office, was indicted Wednesday over allegations that he exercised undue influence in 2019 to stop an inquiry into the allegedly illegal exit ban imposed on a former senior official. The decision by the Suwon District Prosecutors Office came two days after an indictment was recommended by an independent panel created to review the validity of an ongoing investigation into Lee. Lee is accused of abusing his power in June 2019 to bloc

Politics May 12, 2021

A total of 49 people have tested positive for COVID-19 in connection with an internet cafe in northern Seoul, the metropolitan government said Wednesday. The first case was a customer who tested positive on May 3, after which a total of 44 people tested positive by Monday, followed by four more on Tuesday, according to the local government. All of them live in Seoul except for one. An epidemiological survey found that the business followed COVID-19 protocols, but ventilation was difficult and

Social Affairs May 12, 2021

Four Marines and three Army soldiers have tested positive for the new coronavirus, the defense ministry said Wednesday. The Marines, based in the southeastern city of Pohang, were confirmed to have contracted COVID-19 upon returning from vacation while under a cohort isolation, according to the ministry. The other three soldiers, each based in Seoul, the northeastern county of Inje and the southeastern city of Ulsan, were found to be infected after coming into contact with virus patients. The

Defense May 12, 2021

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases rose back above 600 on Wednesday, with health authorities remaining on alert over a potential spike amid spreading variant cases. The country reported 635 more COVID-19 cases, including 613 local infections, raising the total caseload to 128,918, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. Wednesday's figure jumped from 511 cases Tuesday, 463 Monday and 564 Sunday though it is lower than the 701 Saturday. The daily caseload usually spi

Social Affairs May 12, 2021

Hyundai Motor Co. sold more than 500,000 units of vehicles under its independent Genesis brand since its launch five years ago, the company said Wednesday. Hyundai sold 378,999 Genesis vehicles in the domestic market and 121,192 units overseas since November 2015, the company said in a statement. The Genesis brand has advanced to the United States, Canada, the Middle East, Russia, and Australia, with a plan to make inroads into China and Europe this year. The Genesis lineup consists of the G9

Mobility May 12, 2021

Samsung Electronics Co.'s share in the global DRAM market declined slightly in the first quarter of the year, a report showed Wednesday, though it maintained the dominant status amid bullish demand for memory. The South Korean tech giant posted a 42 percent share of the global DRAM flash market in terms of revenue in the January-March period, down only 0.1 percentage point from a quarter earlier, according to market tracker TrendForce. Samsung's revenue came to $8.07 billion in the first three

Industry May 12, 2021