The military on Monday reported 477 additional COVID-19 cases, raising the total caseload among its domestic personnel to 12,674. The new cases included 344 from the Army, 41 from the Air Force, 34 from the Marine Corps, 28 from units under the direct control of the defense ministry and 20 from the Navy. There were also nine infections from the ministry and one from the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Currently, 3,330 military personnel are under treatment. (Yonhap)

SK Group said Monday Chairman Chey Tae-won will assume the chairman title of its telecom unit SK Telecom to boost the group’s burgeoning artificial intelligence business. SK said the chairman will play a supporting role as he serves as an unregistered director on the board rather than participating in the daily operations directly. Chey has served as the chairman of SK Inc., the holding unit, as a board member, while taking the chairman post of SK Innovation, the chemicals and energy u

Beach pollution is a serious problem. Some 11 million metric tons of plastic waste end up in the ocean annually, according to a 2020 study co-authored by researchers at the Pew Charitable Trusts. Against this backdrop, one couple in Gangneung on the east coast of South Korea in Gangwon Province have embarked on a mission to clean up Korea’s shores and the ocean. “We have actually been keeping record of trash on the beaches even before the pandemic began and masks are now much more

The average monthly salary of wage earners in South Korea rose 3.6 percent on-year in 2020 despite the COVID-19 pandemic, a government report showed Monday. Wage workers in Asia's fourth-largest economy earned a monthly average of 3.2 million won ($2,669) in December 2020, up from 3.09 million won a year earlier, according to the report from Statistics Korea. The average salary of the median income bracket came to 2.42 million won, up 3.5 percent from the previous year. The figure for workers wi

Actor Park Bo-gum began his final military vacation Monday, effectively ending his active-duty service as he is not required to return to his base under an antivirus guideline, Navy officials said. Earlier in the day, Petty Officer Second Class Park left his Navy unit in the Gyeryongdae military headquarters, 160 kilometers south of Seoul, as he started the vacation that would last until his official discharge date on April 30. Troops were usually obligated to be present at their bases on the fi

Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering Co. (KSOE) said Monday it has received an order for a liquefied natural gas (LNG) carrier worth 260 billion won ($217 million). A 174,000-cubit meter LNG carrier will be constructed by Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries Co. in Yeongam, South Jeolla Province, and will be delivered to an unidentified client in the second half of 2024, the company said. Korea Shipbuilding has won 37 ship orders so far this year, valued at a combined $4.37 billion, accomplis

Foreign currency deposits at banks in South Korea dropped for the second straight month in January due mainly to decreased corporate deposits, central bank data showed Monday. Residents' outstanding foreign currency-denominated deposits reached $93.17 billion as of end-January, down $4.1 billion from the previous month, according to the data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). It represents the second consecutive month of on-month decline. In December, the country's foreign currency deposits decreased

Six out of 10 South Koreans are positive about the relaxation of COVID-19 curbs on businesses, a poll showed Monday. In the survey by the Korea Society Opinion Institute, 62.1 percent said the government should enhance the protection of severely ill patients and those with underlying conditions while easing the curfew on restaurants, cafes and other businesses. But 32.6 percent said restrictions on business hours should be maintained firmly until infections are back on the decline. The survey wa

Pledges and vows thrown to the wayside as candidates dredge up allegations against each other

South Korea said Monday it plans to step up the monitoring of local farms and implement stronger quarantine steps to curb the spread of African swine fever (ASF) and highly pathogenic avian influenza (AI). The country has reported an increase in the outbreak of ASF cases from wild boars in recent weeks, and a series of bird flu cases at local farms since November last year across the country. Swine fever has shown signs of spreading further to southern regions after being recently reported in th

Presidential candidate Ahn Cheol-soo of the minor opposition People's Party on Monday renewed his resolve to finish the presidential race on his own after scrapping a potential merger with main opposition candidate Yoon Suk-yeol. Ahn revealed in a Facebook post that he visited a museum dedicated to revered Korean independence fighter Ahn Jung-geun on Sunday just hours before he held a press conference to announce the withdrawal of his offer to merge campaigns with Yoon of the People Power Party

South Korea's unification ministry on Monday urged North Korea to return to dialogue amid speculation Pyongyang may resume major weapons tests following the end of the Beijing Winter Olympics. North Korea conducted seven rounds of missile tests in January, but refrained from shows of force during the Olympics period which ran from Feb. 4-20. Asked to comment on the possibility of Pyongyang resuming its weapons tests, Lee Jong-joo, spokesperson for Seoul's unification ministry handling inter-Ko