Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki will leave for the United States this week to attend a Group of 20 (G-20) meeting of finance chiefs and central bankers to discuss global economic and financial issues, the finance ministry said Monday. Hong will head to Washington on Tuesday to attend the G-20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors' meeting set for Wednesday, according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance. The gathering is meant to lay the groundwork for the G-20 summit scheduled for Oct.

Economy Oct. 11, 2021

Samsung Electronics Co. said Monday it has partnered with some high-profile filmmakers to produce movies with its Galaxy smartphones as the South Korean tech giant aims to better promote its mobile devices. Samsung started a campaign called "Filmed #withGalaxy" with an aim to encourage people to expand their creativity with Galaxy smartphones. Joe Wright, who is best known for directing the romantic drama film "Pride and Prejudice," is the first participant of the campaign,

Industry Oct. 11, 2021

Five more draftees at an Army boot camp just south of the inter-Korean border have tested positive for the new coronavirus after cluster infections were reported at their base, the defense ministry said Monday. The new cases raised the number of infections reported at the boot camp in the border county of Yeoncheon to 39. Four soldiers in the southeastern city of Busan and one in the eastern coastal town of Yangyang were also confirmed to have contracted COVID-19 after virus cases were report

Defense Oct. 11, 2021

Prosecutors on Monday questioned the owner of an asset management firm at the center of a snowballing regional development corruption scandal over allegations that his firm received massive business favors in exchange for bribes. Kim Man-bae, a former journalist, is facing a series of allegations in connection with how his previously little-known firm, Hwacheon Daeyu, was selected as a civilian partner for the 2015 development project in the city of Seongnam, south of Seoul, and reaped astronom

Politics Oct. 11, 2021

The top diplomats of South Korea and the United Arab Emirates have held talks in Dubai to discuss ways to deepen cooperation between the two countries, the foreign ministry said Monday. Sunday's talks between Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong and his UAE counterpart, Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, came as Seoul seeks to further strengthen the bilateral relationship, which was elevated to a special strategic partnership in 2018. Chung expressed hope for the success of the UAE's "Projec

Foreign Affairs Oct. 11, 2021

Asiana Airlines Inc., South Korea's second-biggest airline, will resume offering business class services on domestic flights starting next month, industry insiders said Monday, as it tries to improve profitability amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Asiana will begin running business class cabins on select domestic flights Nov. 5, according to company officials. The full-service carrier had removed business class seats on domestic flights in November 2003. Business class services will be available o

Industry Oct. 11, 2021

South Korea's daily new COVID-19 cases stayed below 2,000 for a third straight day Monday as health authorities brace for potential upticks after another extended weekend. The country added 1,297 more COVID-19 cases, including 1,284 local infections, raising the total caseload to 332,816, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). This is the first time since Aug. 2 that daily cases were counted in the 1,200s. The country added eight more deaths from COVID-19, raisin

Social Affairs Oct. 11, 2021

Powered by a blistering final round, South Korean Im Sung-jae has captured his second career PGA Tour title. Im won the Shriners Children's Open at TPC Summerlin in Las Vegas on Sunday (local time), after pouring in nine birdies in a bogey-free final round of 62. By finishing at 24-under 260, Im will cash in a winner's check of $1.26 million. Im, the 2018-19 PGA Tour Rookie of the Year, picked up his first title at the Honda Classic in March 2020. He joins Choi Kyoung-ju, Yang Yong-eun, Bae Sa

Golf Oct. 11, 2021

World No. 2 Ko Jin-young has found the LPGA winner's circle for the third time in 2021, while also tying a scoring record held by a legend and making a late-season push for the Player of the Year award. Ko went wire-to-wire to capture the Cognizant Founders Cup at the par-71 Mountain Ridge Country Club in West Caldwell, New Jersey, on Sunday (local time). After shooting a five-under 66, Ko finished at 18-under 266, four strokes better than Caroline Masson of Germany. This was Ko's 14th consecu

Golf Oct. 11, 2021

Regardless of what their head coach says, South Korean players should know this will not be just another match. South Korea will face Iran in their first away match of the final Asian qualification round for the 2022 FIFA World Cup on Tuesday. The kickoff at Azadi Stadium in Tehran is 5 p.m. (local time), or 10:30 p.m. in Seoul. At No. 22, Iran are the highest-ranked team from Asia, 14 spots above South Korea. Iran are also leading Group A of the ongoing phase with three straight wins, having

Soccer Oct. 11, 2021

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un stressed the need to improve people's living conditions, as he held a lecture to mark the 76th founding anniversary of its ruling Workers' Party, state media said Monday. He delivered the message during his "important" speech, titled, "Let us further improve party work in line with the demands of the period of fresh development of socialist construction," according to the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). Kim said the party has defi

North Korea Oct. 11, 2021

North Korea is accelerating the drive to construct new apartment buildings in its capital city, state media showed Sunday, as it aims to provide 10,000 new homes within this year and 40,000 more by 2025. North Korea has cleared tens of thousands of square meters of land in the western Pyongyang area of Mangyongdae to build more homes, according to its official Rodong Sinmun newspaper and Uriminzokkiri, a propaganda website. North Korea claims Mangyongdae is the birthplace of Kim Il-sung, its

North Korea Oct. 10, 2021

South Korea's daily new COVID-19 cases remained below 2,000 for a second straight day Sunday amid concerns over the spread of the virus during and after another extended weekend. The country added 1,594 more COVID-19 cases, including 1,560 local infections, raising the total caseload to 331,519, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency. Daily infections fell below the 2,000 mark Saturday after reporting more than 2,000 cases per day from Wednesday to Friday. The daily figu

Social Affairs Oct. 10, 2021

The Seoul city government has prohibited South Korea's major umbrella labor group from staging street rallies this month in accordance with a law on preventing the spread of infectious diseases, an official said Sunday. The measure came in response to a formal report submitted by the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions on its plan to hold outdoor rallies in some areas of the capital on Oct. 20. The KCTU stated it will carry out a general strike on the day. City authorities, however, sent an o

Social Affairs Oct. 10, 2021

South Korean actress Jeon Jong-seo said Friday it was a fresh experience to play a wordless character with supernatural powers as a foreign actor in her first English-language film "Mona Lisa and the Blood Moon." "This was my first American project, and it required all actors go through audition," Jeon said during a special talk session at the 26th Busan International Film Festival that kicked off Wednesday. "I also joined the cast through audition. I sent my clips to

Film Oct. 8, 2021