South Korea's new coronavirus cases dropped below 4,000 on Sunday, but the number of deaths and critically ill patients hit fresh highs, spawning concerns about the further spread of COVID-19 under eased virus restrictions meant for a gradual return to normal life. The country reported 3,928 new COVID-19 cases, including 3,893 local infections, raising the total caseload to 440,896, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). The tally was down from 4,068 on Saturday b

Social Affairs Nov. 28, 2021

Prosecutors on Saturday questioned a former Supreme Court justice suspected of having helped clear Lee Jae-myung, now the ruling Democratic Party's presidential nominee, of an election law violation charge last year in return for a post-retirement job. The Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office brought in Kwon Soon-il, sources said, as investigators are accelerating a probe into a high-profile urban development corruption scandal involving an asset management firm, called Hwacheon Daeyu A

Social Affairs Nov. 27, 2021

South Korea's military reported nine additional COVID-19 cases Saturday, bringing the total caseload among its personnel to 2,273. Among the new cases, a draftee of an Army unit in Yeoncheon, 62 kilometers north of Seoul, and another in Pocheon, 50 km northeast of Seoul, tested positive before and after their return to the units from vacation, respectively. An officer of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in Seoul contracted the virus after a family member was infected. The other cases include an of

Social Affairs Nov. 27, 2021

South Korea's new coronavirus cases rose above 4,000 with the numbers of deaths and critically ill patients hitting fresh record highs Saturday, deepening worries about the further spread of COVID-19 under a phased scheme for a gradual return to normal life. The country reported 4,068 new COVID-19 cases, including 4,045 local infections, raising the total caseload to 436,968, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency. The number was up 167 from 3,901 on Friday but down fro

Social Affairs Nov. 27, 2021

South Korean stocks are likely to continue fluctuating in a tight range next week amid concerns about a rise in new coronavirus cases and the rising inflation pressure. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index closed at 2,936.44 points Friday, down 1.16 percent from 2,971.02 points a week ago. After a technical rebound on Monday, the key stock index lost for a fourth consecutive day Friday amid woes over rising inflation and a sharp spike in new virus cases. Investors took to the sid

Market Nov. 27, 2021

The wife of late former President Chun Doo-hwan, widely criticized for the bloody crackdown on a 1980 pro-democracy uprising in the southwestern city of Gwangju, issued an apology on Saturday for the "pains and scars" inflicted during his presidency. Lee Soon-ja made the apology in the first such move by Chun's family, as the bereaved family was preparing to carry his coffin out of a hospital in Seoul. Chun died Tuesday at age 90 from chronic ailments. "On behalf of my husband

Politics Nov. 27, 2021

President Moon Jae-in on Friday appointed two deputy directors of the National Intelligence Service (NIS), the presidential office said. Moon appointed Park Sun-won, head of the NIS's planning and coordination office, as the first deputy director, while choosing Chun Se-young, senior official at the NIS's counter-espionage team, as the second deputy director. The first deputy director is tasked with gleaning intelligence on North Korea and overseas affairs, while the second deputy director is

Politics Nov. 26, 2021

Banks' average interest rate on mortgage loans rose to the highest level in about three years, central bank data showed Friday, as the government has tightened lending rules to rein in soaring household debt. According to the data by the Bank of Korea (BOK), banks' mortgage loan rate averaged 3.26 percent in October, up 0.25 percentage point from a month earlier. This marked the highest since November 2018, when the corresponding rate was 3.28 percent. Banks' unsecured loan rate also rose 0.4

Market Nov. 26, 2021

Yoon Seok-youl, the presidential nominee of the main opposition People Power Party, is neck and neck with ruling Democratic Party candidate Lee Jae-myung with 42 percent support against 39.8 percent, a survey showed Friday. The difference between the two was 2.2 percentage points, which was within the margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points at a 95 percent confidence level, according to the survey of 1,005 adults conducted Tuesday and Wednesday by the Korea Society Opinion Instit

Politics Nov. 26, 2021

Some 900 victims of the brutal crackdown on a 1980 pro-democracy uprising in the southwestern city of Gwangju launched a damage suit against the government Friday, a law firm said, days after the death of former President Chun Doo-hwan, accused of ordering the crackdown. LKB & Partners said it has filed the suit on behalf of the plaintiffs who were subject to brutal violence by soldiers during the democracy protests in May 1980 in Gwangju, 330 kilometers south of Seoul, to demand the govern

Social Affairs Nov. 26, 2021

South Korea on Friday launched an early warning system to monitor some 4,000 key industry materials and items to prevent the recurrence of a crisis similar to the ongoing supply crunch of urea solution used to reduce emissions in diesel vehicles. The shortage of urea solution has exposed vulnerabilities in the country's supply chain and prompted the government to set up a task force on economic security meant to ensure stable supply chains. Items listed on the early warning system include magn

Industry Nov. 26, 2021

Yoon Seok-youl, the presidential candidate of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP), on Friday slammed the Moon Jae-in administration's nuclear phase-out policy, calling it "disaster caused from ignorance." The nuclear phase-out scheme set by Moon's government centers on slowly breaking away from nuclear energy by refraining from building additional plants while retiring old ones. Under the roadmap, South Korea plans to decrease the number of nuclear plants in operation to 17 b

Politics Nov. 26, 2021

Ruling Democratic Party presidential nominee Lee Jae-myung pledged Friday to expand government subsidies for the electric vehicle industry and increase the production of the cars. In a Facebook post, Lee said government subsidies have fallen far short of the amount needed to produce enough EVs to meet consumer demand. He noted the biggest obstacles to getting more EVs on roads are their high price and lack of charging facilities. "I will drastically expand the scope of subsidies in order

Politics Nov. 26, 2021

South Korea is monitoring North Korea's nuclear and missile activities in close cooperation with the United States, the unification ministry said Friday, following reports the North appears to be continuing the operation of a nuclear reactor at its mainstay Yongbyon complex. 38 North, a US monitoring website, said Wednesday steam was detected emanating from the 5-megawatt reactor in an indication at least one generator is in operation, citing recent satellite imagery. Asked to comment on the r

North Korea Nov. 26, 2021

The remains of a soldier killed in the 1950-53 Korean War have been identified through DNA analysis more than a decade after they were recovered from a former battle site, the defense ministry said Friday. The identification of the remains of Pfc. Lim Ho-dae came as his daughter registered her DNA sample with the government. She was less than a month old when her father joined the war. Lim's remains were excavated from Hwacheon, 118 kilometers east of Seoul, in 2010. He was found along with ot

Defense Nov. 26, 2021