A Seoul court on Friday ruled against global video streaming giant Netflix in its prolonged network usage fee dispute with South Korean major internet access provider SK Broadband Inc. The Seoul Central District Court dismissed a request from Netflix to confirm that the United States-based video streaming service provider is not liable to pay network usage fees to SK Broadband. The court also rejected Netflix‘s request to confirm that it has no obligation to negotiate with the South Kore

Business June 25, 2021

South Korea's stock market reached an all-time high for the second consecutive day Friday, in sync with a global stock rally that stemmed from hopes of a quick economic rebound and a massive US stimulus package. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) rose 16.74 points, or 0.51 percent, to close at 3,302.84 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 1.2 billion shares worth some 18.4 trillion won ($16.3 billion), with gainers outnumb

Market June 25, 2021

The ruling Democratic Party (DP) on Friday decided not to postpone its primary elections to pick the standard bearer for next year's presidential election in March. The DP's supreme council made the decision at a close-door meeting held earlier in the day, confirming the party's schedule to pick its sole presidential candidate by Sept. 10. "The supreme council decided, via a unanimous agreement, to elect the (final presidential) candidate in accordance with the current party constitution

Politics June 25, 2021

Two soldiers tested positive for the new coronavirus following their recent vacation, the defense ministry said Friday. The latest cases raised the total number of infections reported among the military population to 1,012. Nationwide, South Korea reported 634 new cases, including 602 local infections, raising the total caseload to 153,789, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. The ministry said its inoculation program is going smoothly, with 91.4 percent of service mem

Social Affairs June 25, 2021

South Korea marked the 71st anniversary of the outbreak of the 1950-53 Korean War with a ceremony held for the first time in the southern city of Busan that served as a temporary capital during the conflict. Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum, Defense Minister Suh Wook and around 240 people, including veterans and bereaved family members, attended the ceremony held at the Busan Cinema Center, which was the site of an airfield used by United Nations forces during the war. "The choice of the event

Politics June 25, 2021

Choe Jae-hyeong, chairman of the Board of Audit and Inspection (BAI), plans to soon tender his resignation, a well-informed source said Friday, suggesting that the state audit agency chief has reached a decision to compete in next year's presidential race. The source close to the BAI head said that Choe will "arrange an occasion early next week to announce his decision," adding that the chairman will explain his future plans to his father over the weekend and reassure him amid concern

Politics June 25, 2021

The leaders of South Korea and eight Central American countries adopted a joint vision Friday for the development of comprehensive partnerships especially in the digital and environment-friendly sectors. The accord came at the first South Korea-Central American Integration System summit in 11 years. The regional group, widely known as SICA, consists of Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama and the Dominican Republic. During the virtual session, President Moon

Foreign Affairs June 25, 2021

With the start of the Tokyo Olympics about a month away, two key members of the South Korean baseball team are toiling in the minor league -- one sent down to rediscover his stroke and the other exiled for disciplinary reasons. A roster that already had a few question marks when it was announced on June 16 will be scrutinized even more in the coming days, as long as second baseman Park Min-woo and outfielder Park Kun-woo remain out of the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) spotlight. The NC Din

Baseball June 25, 2021

A group of South Korean researchers on Friday announced a method to produce environment-friendly fuels utilizing remains of high-fat infects, which is expected to lend support to the country's efforts to go carbon neutral by 2050. "Black soldier flies have great potential to be used to produce biodiesel, considering they feed on food waste and have a high fat content," the Korea Petroleum Quality & Distribution Authority (K-Petro) said in a statement. It added the method is signi

Economy June 25, 2021

South Korea said Friday it will strengthen support for homegrown COVID-19 vaccine development so that candidates can enter late-stage phase three clinical trials by the end of the year in a move to bolster its vaccine arsenal against the pandemic. The country will also step up efforts to develop messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccine technology to catch up to global pharmaceutical giants. The government has so far secured vaccines from multiple global pharmaceutical companies to inoculate nearly double

Social Affairs June 25, 2021

A little over half of South Koreans do not want the government to provide COVID-19 vaccination support to North Korea, according to a recent survey. In a joint survey by four polling agencies on 1,006 people aged 18 and older from Monday-Wednesday, 51 percent of respondents said they disapprove of delivering coronavirus vaccines to Pyongyang, while 45 percent said they were in favor of the idea. Last week, President Moon Jae-in said Seoul will push for cooperation with the North on COVID-19 va

North Korea June 25, 2021

Samsung Electronics Co. on Friday said it will begin running an in-house vaccination program for its workers next month to beef up antivirus measures amid the pandemic. The tech giant will inoculate employees aged 18-59 working at its plants in South Korea, as well as those dispatched from its partner companies, in cooperation with local health authorities. They will begin administering Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine at Samsung's in-house medical clinics July 27. Its affiliate Samsung Display Co.

Industry June 25, 2021

North Korea appeared to be marking the anniversary of the outbreak of the 1950-53 Korean War in a low-key manner Friday as it is striving to fight the global coronavirus pandemic and bolster its anemic economy. State media outlets have not reported on any anti-US public rallies on the occasion of the 71st anniversary of the war. North Korea had held such street demonstrations around this time almost every year until the first-ever Singapore summit was held in 2018 between leader Kim Jong-un and

North Korea June 25, 2021

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases stayed in the 600s for the third straight day Friday due to sporadic cluster infections as the country is set to implement eased social distancing rules starting next month. The country reported 634 new cases, including 602 local infections, raising the total caseload to 153,789, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. Cluster infections involving churches, restaurants, education facilities and hospitals continue to take place acro

Social Affairs June 25, 2021

South Korea's overseas direct investment declined 21.6 percent on-year in the first quarter amid the fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic, data showed Friday. The value of investments made by South Korean companies reached $11.2 billion in the January-March period, compared with $14.3 billion the previous year, according to the data by the Ministry of Economy and Finance. Such investments declined after a 4.7 percent on-year increase in the fourth quarter of last year. The country's overseas direc

Economy June 25, 2021