SPOTLIGHT

• Entertainment

  

  Actor So Ji-sub, TV presenter Cho Eun-jung tie the knot

  Actor So Ji-sub and former TV presenter Cho Eun-jung have tied the knot, So’s agency, 51k, said Tuesday. According to the agency, the 42-year-old actor and his girlfriend of two years registered their marriage Tuesday and are now officially husband and wife. “In respect to the couple’s wish to cherish their happiest and most important moment quietly, the wedding ceremony will be held in private with only family members present,” the agency said in a statement. “

• Theater

  

  NGC to highlight traditional art performers online

  Keeping up with the trend of online streaming for art performances amid the COVID-19 pandemic crisis, the National Gugak Center plans to support traditional art performers by streaming their performance videos online. The center will offer performance opportunities for 61 artist individuals and teams. Though the center is currently conducting its “Daily Gugak” series -- releasing a video clip that focuses on one instrument or art form at a time every weekday -- this time, the list

• K-pop

  

  (G)I-dle sings self-confidence in ‘I Trust’

  (G)I-dle returned with new album Monday, sending message of self-confidence. Six-piece act (G)I-dle’s third EP is fronted by lead track “Oh My God,” a dynamic urban hip-hop track that switches between various rhythms and melodies. Written and composed by bandleader Soyeon, the dynamic song alludes self-confidence, the main topic of the album, to complex feelings of love. “I believe that our (team) confidence comes from believing in myself,” explained Soyeon duri

• Arts&Design

  

  Global project ‘MaytoDay’ to remembering Gwangju Democratic Uprising to launch in May

  The Gwangju Biennale Foundation is embarking on a global project titled “MaytoDay” to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the May 18 Gwangju Democratic Uprising, hosting exhibitions around the world in an effort to promote the spirit of the democratization movement. The project, “MaytoDay,” will take place in five cities in four countries -- Taiwan, South Korea, Germany and Argentina -- from May to November. The project will also be showcased at next year’s Venic

LATEST NEWS

• 

  Industry

  Korean Air calls for 6-month work stoppage for 70 pct of workforce

  South Korea's No. 1 flag carrier, Korean Air Lines, said Tuesday that it will start a six-month-long work stoppage for more than 70 percent of its workforce, as the novel coronavirus wreaks havoc on the airline industry. The measure is part of an ongoing effort to survive the worsening business environment brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic that has caused air passenger movement to nosedive with countries around the world restricting movement of people. The stoppage, which will go into effec

• World News

  UK’s Johnson spends night in ICU; not on ventilator

  LONDON (AP) — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson spent the night in the intensive care unit of a London hospital with the new coronavirus, but is not on a ventilator, a senior government minister said Tuesday, as pressure grew on the government to release more details of Johnson’s condition. Johnson was admitted to St. Thomas’ Hospital late Sunday, 10 days after he was diagnosed with COVID-19, the first major world leader to be confirmed to have the virus. He was moved to t

• 

  Foreign Affairs

  Top diplomats of S. Korea, UAE hold phone talks over coronavirus response

  The top diplomats of South Korea and the United Arab Emirates held phone talks Tuesday over bilateral cooperation in fighting the new coronavirus, the foreign ministry here said. The conversation between Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha and her UAE counterpart, Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, came after South Korea shipped 51,000 coronavirus sampling kits in emergency exports to the Middle Eastern country last month. The UAE foreign minister expressed gratitude for Korea's cooperation in respond

• World News

  Virus puts UK PM in intensive care; Japan declares emergency

  London (AP) -- British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was in intensive care Tuesday fighting the coronavirus, while across the world, Japan’s leader declared a monthlong state of emergency for Tokyo and six other regions to keep the virus from ravaging the world’s oldest population. The 55-year-old Johnson, the world’s first known head of government to fall ill with the virus, was conscious in a London hospital and needed oxygen but was not on a ventilator, Cabinet minister Mic

• 

  Foreign Affairs

  Moon wishes for British prime minister's recovery

  South Korean President Moon Jae-in sent a message Tuesday to British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who is receiving medical treatment for novel coronavirus. Moon wrote, in English, on his social media account, "I was struck by the news that you had been admitted to intensive care," recalling that Johnson seemed to be "in good shape" two weeks earlier when he took part in the virtual summit of the Group of 20 major economies on the pandemic. Moon added, "I send my best

• 

  Foreign Affairs

  Moon’s ‘telephone diplomacy’ continues in wake of pandemic

  WHO chief requests Korea’s support for pandemic in Africa

• 

  Retail

  [Graphic News] Retail sales up 9.1% in Feb. amid virus pandemic

  　Retail sales in South Korea rose 9.1 percent in February from a year earlier as more people purchased daily necessities through online platforms amid the spread of the new coronavirus here, data showed. 　The combined sales of 26 major offline and online retailers reached 10.6 trillion won ($8.68 billion) last month, compared with 9.71 trillion won a year earlier, according to data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. 　The sharp increase came as online stores enjoyed a w

• 

  Industry

  Tax payment deferred for petroleum industry

  The South Korean government has initiated a temporary tax relief program for domestic petrochemical companies as global demand has plummeted amidst the worsening coronavirus pandemic. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said Tuesday it will allow 54 petrochemical companies to delay their tax payments on oil imports and sales of petroleum products for 90 days, giving financial room to cope with the effects of the COVID-19 outbreak. “Tax payments for April, May and June will be p

• 

  Technology

  South Korean research institute develops low-cost cold-chain safety sticker

  The Korea Research Institute of Chemical Technology on Tuesday announced that it has invented a cold-chain safety sticker that allows one to tell whether frozen food products have been mishandled during delivery. The nanofiber-film sticker, which costs around 120 won (1 cent) to produce, can be used when transporting different types of frozen foods, as well as expensive medicines and medical supplies, the research team said. The cold-chain sticker is designed to indicate how long frozen food

• 

  Politics

  Hit by coronavirus, overseas voter turnout at record-low

  Disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic, overseas citizens' voting in South Korea's parliamentary elections recorded the lowest-ever turnout of 23.8 percent, the National Election Commission (NEC) said Tuesday. Only 40,858 of 171,959 people eligible for overseas voting for the April 15 elections cast their ballots, amounting to the lowest rate since the system was introduced in 2012. The number was 45.7 percent in 2012 and 41.4 in 2016, according to NEC. Overseas voting was conducted from April

GRAPHIC NEWS

OPINION

• Viewpoints

  

  Mask up for yourself and others

  When I got out of my apartment and took the elevator down to the first floor, I happened to stand with a neighbor who did not wear a face mask. I got a little nervous about his apparent violation of basic guidelines to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus, but tried not to express such a feeling. But the thought of getting infected in an enclosed space made me feel uneasy during the brief elevator ride. Is this too much? Perhaps I overreacted a bit. But a number of people in South K

• Viewpoints

  

  Data sans politics can curb virus

  Back in the 1950s, Sgt. Joe Friday of the TV show “Dragnet” famously advised witnesses: “Just the facts, ma’am.” That phrase became a national slogan, long before the very concept of “facts” was clouded by social media. As the number of coronavirus cases soars, with Americans anxious to know when stay-at-home orders will end, we desperately need the facts, based on reliable data. Instead, we are deluged with COVID-19 misinformation from the White House

THE INVESTOR

• Mobile & Internet

  

  Tech firms mobilize AI capabilities to fight COVID-19

  Artificial intelligence has a great chance to prove its worth in the ongoing global war against the novel coronavirus. 　From garnering data about the pandemic to analyzing transmission patterns, providing information about prevention and diagnosing contamination, a variety of AI programs are being used to contain the virus spread and related treatments. 　IBM, the world’s leading cloud platform and computing business, is mobilizing its AI and supercomputing capabilities to support gover

• Economy

  

  Cyberattacks in Korea spike on virus crisis

  The number of cyberattacks in South Korea spiked in the first quarter this year, due to the number of people working remotely amid the novel coronavirus outbreak, according to SK Infosec on April 6. 　 The nation‘s biggest data security solution provider detected 1.74 million cyberattacks in the first quarter, up 21 percent on-year -- the monthly average reached 0.58 million, up from 0.48 million last year.  　The company said that there has been a significant increase in hacking

• Startups & Investors

  

  Grocery platform Kurly sees surge in revenue, operating loss

  Kurly, operator of grocery delivery platform Market Kurly, said Friday that its revenue soared but losses mounted last year. The South Korean startup best known for its dawn delivery logged 328.9 billion won ($267 million) in revenue in 2019, jumping 173 percent from the previous year. Its operating loss also soared by 179 percent to 97.5 billion won on-year as the company carried out aggressive investments in expanding logistics and marketing capacities.  Kurly opened three additiona

• Mobile & Internet

  

  Nexon wants employees to come back to office

  Korean game company Nexon said on April 2 it had decided to roll back its telecommuting, requiring all staff to report for duty starting next week. According to Nexon, all employees will have to come to work starting Monday, though exceptions will be made for those with special circumstances that need to be considered.  “To ensure the safety of employees, Nexon will employ safety measures including placing thermal imaging cameras at the entries of its headquarters, installing cu

K-POP

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  (G)I-dle sings self-confidence in ‘I Trust’

• 

  TVXQ’s Changmin releases first solo album

• 

  BIGBANG’s top 50 tracks, ranked

HERALD INTERVIEW

• Industry

  

  ‘With fried chicken, water beats beer’

• Industry

  

  ‘COVID-19 to affect humans’ short-term evolution’ Macrogen CEO

• K-pop

  

  DKB hopes to make splash with free-spirited, rebellious energy

• Music

  

  Lauv says working on two songs with BTS was natural progression

PHOTO NEWS

• Travel

  

  Befriend fluffy alpacas in Gangwon Province

  If you are looking for a picnic spot where you can bring your kids, trek through the woods and enjoy spring sunshine, check out this alpaca-themed park in Hongcheon, Gangwon Province. The park, named Alpaca World, sits on an 360,000 square-meter plot where visitors can walk through and take a monorail ride around the area.  At certain spots, visitors can experience the mild-tempered animals that may try to eat parsnips out of your hands. You and your children can approach the animals

VIDEO

• Education

  

  College students have tough time with online classes

• Education

  

  Online education now the new normal due to coronavirus pandemic

• Social affairs

  

  Koreans adapt to mask rationing system to protect themselves against coronavirus

• Culture

  

  Simple exercises to do at home to boost immunity

FEATURES

• Social affairs

  

  Korea’s virus fight ‘may drag on for months, years’

  Health care workers see second wave of outbreak coming their way

• Social affairs

  

  Red Cross delivers W33.4b worth of COVID-19 relief

  The Korean Red Cross said Tuesday that it had collected 53.5 billion won ($43.9 million) in donations since Feb. 27 to help fight the novel coronavirus, and spent 33.4 billion won of it on emergency relief. Masks, protective clothing and medical gloves worth 13.7 billion won have been delivered to medical institutions and staff treating COVID-19 patients. About 2.9 billion won was spent on providing masks and care packages to patients confirmed with the virus, and another 13.9 billion won wen

• Social affairs

  

  Schools prepare for online classes as virus shows no sign of abating

  Schools are likely to offer virtual classes, instead of opening on April 6 as scheduled, as the novel coronavirus continues to spread. The Education Ministry said last week it was mulling online classes to help schools meet the statutory yearly school days as the spring semester, which normally begins in early March, has already been postponed three times due to COVID-19. “We are considering both offline and online classes to prepare against possible community and classroom transmissio

• Industry

  

  Hanjin to ‘make painstaking self-rescue efforts’

  Cho Won-tae faces challenges over coronavirus-hit Korean Air, unfinished leadership dispute