South Korean cinema chain operators remained in a slump in the second quarter of 2021 but found a glimmer of hope for a rebound amid the protracted novel coronavirus pandemic, financial data showed Tuesday. CJ CGV, the No. 1 multiplex operator under the wing of entertainment giant CJ Group, said its operating loss reached 57.3 billion won ($49.9 million) over the April-June period, narrowing from an operating deficit of 130.5 billion won a year ago. Its sales shot up 288 percent to 161.7 billi

Film Aug. 10, 2021

A top financial regulator called Tuesday for banks to set up tighter supervision of household debts as policymakers voiced warnings against growing financial imbalances amid a surge in home prices. Eun Sung-soo, the outgoing chairman of the Financial Services Commission (FSC), made the remarks at a meeting with chief executives of financial holding firms earlier in the day. Eun also urged banks to preemptively act to keep household debts in check, the FSC said. Eun's remarks came as the Bank

Economy Aug. 10, 2021

Will she stay or will she go? It was on Sunday that the South Korean volleyball icon Kim Yeon-koung announced her retirement from international play, following the team's loss to Serbia in the bronze medal match at the Tokyo Olympics. But a little over 24 hours later, Kim didn't seem so sure anymore. Kim and the rest of her team arrived back home Monday night from Tokyo, greeted by dozens of fans at Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul, after making a surprising run to the semifinals

Olympic Games Aug. 10, 2021

Samsung Electronics Co. was the world's fourth-largest vendor of Android 5G smartphones in the second quarter of the year, a report showed Tuesday, as Chinese makers aggressively expanded their presence. Samsung had a market share of 16.5 percent in the April-June period after shipping 15.6 million units of 5G smartphones powered by the Android operating system, according to market researcher Strategy Analytics. China's Xiaomi led the market with a share of 25.7 percent after its shipments soa

Industry Aug. 10, 2021

South Korea and the United States on Tuesday began a preliminary training in the runup to next week's annual summertime military exercise amid the North's warning it will take a toll on inter-Korean relations, sources said. The four-day crisis management staff training is aimed at checking the military's response to unexpected situations before a war breaks out. It will be followed by the main computer-simulated Combined Command Post Training scheduled for Aug. 16-26, according to the sources.

Foreign Affairs Aug. 10, 2021

Sales of department stores in South Korea grew at the fastest-ever clip in the second quarter of the year amid the coronavirus pandemic, data showed Tuesday. Local department stores saw their sales in terms of constant prices soar 20.3 percent on-year in the April-June period, according to the data from the Korean Statistical Information Service (KOSIS). It was the largest-ever on-year increase for the second quarter since data tracking began in 1995. Industry watchers attributed the second-q

Economy Aug. 10, 2021

St. Louis Cardinals' South Korean pitcher Kim Kwang-hyun has landed on the injured list (IL) for the third time this season. The Cardinals announced Monday (US local time) that Kim is back on the 10-day IL with left elbow inflammation and the move is retroactive to Sunday. The left-hander had previously made two trips to the IL, first in April and then in June, with lower back issues. After giving up two runs in four innings against the Kansas City Royals on Saturday, Kim admitted he had been

Baseball Aug. 10, 2021

WASHINGTON -- Nothing has changed for the need to maintain the joint defense readiness of South Korea and the United States, a Pentagon spokesman said Monday, emphasizing the importance of the allies' joint military exercises. John Kirby also reiterated any decision on the countries' joint military drills will be made jointly by the allies. "Nothing's changed about our need for readiness on the Korean Peninsula and our desire to work in lockstep with our ROK allies on a training regimen t

Foreign Affairs Aug. 10, 2021

South Korean superband BTS' Billboard-topping hit "Butter" came in at No. 4 on this week's Billboard main singles chart, slipping from last week's top spot. "BTS' "Butter" drops to No. 4 after nine weeks atop the Hot 100," Billboard said on its website on Monday (US time). "It posts a 10th week at No. 1 on Digital Song Sales (79,200, down 30%) and returns to its No. 20 high on Radio Songs (31.6 million, up 4%)," it added. The summery song had sat atop t

Performance Aug. 10, 2021

South Korean stocks opened lower Tuesday, tracking overnight losses on Wall Street over the resurgence of the new coronavirus and its delta variant. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) fell 4.68 points, or 0.14 percent, to 3,255.74 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Stocks retreated amid concerns that the highly contagious delta variant may hamper the ailing global economy. The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 0.3 percent, with the S&P 500 slipping 0.09 pe

Market Aug. 10, 2021

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases bounced back to above 1,500 on Tuesday, as the nationwide resurgence of COVID-19 cases continued amid the summer season. The country added 1,540 COVID-19 cases, including 1,476 local infections, raising the total caseload to 213,987, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). The latest caseload was up 48 from 1,492 the previous day. The country added nine more deaths from COVID-19, raising the death toll to 2,134. Health aut

Social Affairs Aug. 10, 2021

Samsung Group, the country's largest conglomerate, is likely to ramp up its investment and merger and acquisition with the parole of its leader despite controversy over the legitimacy, industry insiders said Monday. The parole board under the justice ministry approved Lee Jae-yong's release from jail after hours of review, making him free from Friday.  Samsung declined to comment on Lee's parole, but an official said the group breathed a sigh of relief following the justice ministry'

Industry Aug. 9, 2021

Countries have welcomed the restoration of inter-Korean communication lines in their joint statements adopted after a series of multilateral meetings led by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations last week, South Korea's foreign ministry said Monday.  Such phrases were included in all four chairman's statements from the ministerial meetings of South Korea-ASEAN, the East Asia Summit, ASEAN plus its three Northeast Asian dialogue partners -- South Korea, China and Japan -- and the

North Korea Aug. 9, 2021

Renault Samsung Motors Corp., the South Korean unit of Renault S.A., said Monday it will partner with Lynk & Co. to develop an environment friendly vehicle in the Korean market. Renault Group has announced it will form a joint venture with Geely, the Chinese owner of Volvo Cars, to develop a Renault-brand hybrid passenger car for sale in China and a Lynk & Co-brand eco-friendly model for Korea, a company spokesman said over the phone. Lynk & Co. is the automotive brand formed as a

Industry Aug. 9, 2021

South Korean stocks retreated for the third straight session Monday after choppy trading, as an estimate-beating improvement in US jobs data increased concerns about an early tapering. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) fell 9.94 points, or 0.3 percent, to close at 3,260.42 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 685 million shares worth some 15.5 trillion won ($13.5 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 647 to 208. For

Market Aug. 9, 2021