The CEO of Binggrae Co., South Korea's major dairy maker, was indicted for assaulting a police officer under the influence of alcohol, judicial officials said Thursday. The Seoul Western District Prosecutors Office indicted Kim Dong-hwan, the oldest son of Kim Ho-youn, the former chairman of the food company, on charges of obstruction of official duties last week. Kim, 41, is accused of beating a police officer who arrived at the scene after a resident filed a complaint against him for kick

Social Affairs Aug. 22, 2024

The number of patients hospitalized for COVID-19 showed signs of abating, health authorities said Thursday. Although the weekly number of COVID-19 inpatients grew last week, the growth rate of hospitalization plunged, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency. The number of COVID-19 patients in 220 hospitals last week came to 1,444, up 5.7 percent from a week earlier, the KDCA said. That compared with 1,366 patients in the second week of this month, up 55.2 percent from a week

Social Affairs Aug. 22, 2024

The chief of the financial regulator on Thursday emphasized the need to reform the country's online payment system following massive payment delays at two e-commerce platforms. Kim Byoung-hwan, head of the Financial Services Commission, said the government will also seek to establish new regulations governing payment gateway (PG) service providers. "The recent TMON and WeMakePrice incident was a problem that occurred under the complex payment system in a newly emerging industry such as

Economy Aug. 22, 2024

South Korean stocks opened higher Thursday after the minutes from the Federal Reserve's rate policy meeting showed that the "vast majority" of its policymakers support a rate cut next month. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 7.53 points, or 0.28 percent, to 2,708.66 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, the Fed released the minutes of the FOMC meeting on July 30-31, which showed that the policymakers believed that it would "likely be appropriate t

Market Aug. 22, 2024

The "vast majority" of the US Federal Reserve's policymakers indicated it might be appropriate to start lowering the benchmark interest rate next month should progress on inflation continue, the minutes of the central bank's monetary policy meeting last month showed Wednesday. The Fed released the minutes of the Federal Open Market Committee meeting on July 30-31. At the meeting, the bank held its key rate at the 5.25 to 5.50 percent range for an eighth consecutive time, but

Economy Aug. 22, 2024

Nearly 3,000 people have experienced heat-related illnesses this summer as scorching heat continues to plague South Korea, authorities said Wednesday. A total of 98 people were taken to emergency rooms due to heat-related illnesses on Tuesday alone, bringing the total number of such patients to 2,994 since May 20, when the government began monitoring such cases for the year, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency. It is the second-largest tally ever, with the country report

Social Affairs Aug. 21, 2024

Kia Tigers left-hander Yang Hyeon-jong was crowned the new career strikeout king in South Korean baseball Wednesday, proving that nice guys can finish first in sports. Yang struck out Yoon Dong-hee of the Lotte Giants in the top of the third inning of the teams' Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) regular-season game at Gwangju-Kia Champions Field in Gwangju, some 270 kilometers south of Seoul. It was Yang's 2,049th career strikeout, moving him past former Hanwha Eagles pitcher Song Jin-

Baseball Aug. 21, 2024

President Yoon Suk Yeol warned Wednesday that North Korea would face the end of its regime should it attempt to invade South Korea, while inspecting an annual joint exercise with the United States. Yoon made the remark during his visit to the Ground Operations Command in Yongin, south of Seoul, where he received briefings on the Ulchi Freedom Shield. The joint military exercise began Monday for an 11-day run. "The North Korean regime is the most irrational group on Earth that can stage prov

Politics Aug. 21, 2024

South Korean stocks ended higher for the second straight session Wednesday as they waited for US payroll data and more clues over the US rate policy direction from this week's Jackson Hole symposium. The local currency fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) added 4.5 points, or 0.17 percent, to close at 2,701.13. Trade volume was moderate at 406 million shares worth 9.18 trillion won ($6.87 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 448 to 407. F

Market Aug. 21, 2024

The denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula would remain a US policy objective should Vice President Kamala Harris win the White House race in November, a former Pentagon official said Tuesday, dispelling concerns about the exclusion of the goal in the Democratic Party's new policy platform. Colin Kahl, former undersecretary of defense for policy, made the remarks, saying that people appear to be "overreading" the platform. He is known to have participated in a process to write t

Foreign Affairs Aug. 21, 2024

South Korea's exports increased 18.5 percent on-year in the first 20 days of August, data showed Wednesday, on the back of solid outbound shipments of chips. Outbound shipments reached $33.1 billion in the Aug. 1-20 period, compared with $27.9 billion tallied a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service. Imports grew 10.1 percent on-year to $34.6 billion during the period, resulting in a trade deficit of $1.47 billion. By sector, exports of semiconductors jumped 42.5

Economy Aug. 21, 2024

The finance ministry said Wednesday it will extend the tax cut on fuel for automobiles by another two months until the end of October as concerns linger over the Middle East crisis. South Korea has been applying a 20 percent discount on gasoline consumption and a 30 percent discount on diesel and liquefied petroleum gas consumption, which were supposed to expire at the end of this month. While the country previously applied a 25 percent and a 37 percent cut on gasoline and diesel prices, respect

Economy Aug. 21, 2024

South Korean stocks opened lower Wednesday, tracking overnight losses on Wall Street ahead of the Jackson Hole meeting later this week. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) dropped 5.28 points, or 0.2 percent, to 2,691.35 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, major US indexes lost ground to take a breather from a recent rally, with AI chip giant Nvidia down more than 2 percent. Investors' eyes are on Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's speech at the upcomi

Market Aug. 21, 2024

President Joe Biden approved a secret strategy earlier this year to focus on China's growing nuclear threats and prepare the United States for possible coordinated nuclear challenges from North Korea, China and Russia, The New York Times reported Tuesday. Biden's approval in March of the revised strategy, called the "Nuclear Employment Guidance," came amid North Korea's advancing nuclear and missile threats, China's rapid expansion of its nuclear arsenal and Russia&

Foreign Affairs Aug. 21, 2024

Prospects of Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's visit to South Korea remain undecided, a presidential official said Tuesday, following a media report of a potential bilateral summit with President Yoon Suk Yeol next month. Japan's Kyodo News earlier reported Kishida is considering holding summit talks with Yoon in South Korea early September before stepping down from office, citing diplomatic sources. "The Japanese side has expressed an intention for Prime Minister Kishida

Politics Aug. 20, 2024