Market concerns over ‘Korea discount’ reemerge as Kospi drops rapidly on foreign, retail sell-offs　

South Korean contents enjoyed robust demand overseas in 2020, defying the overall decline in exports and tepid growth in the domestic market, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism data showed on Monday. A 2021 research study on the cultural content industry which encompasses 11 sub-areas showed that the exports in 2020 jumped 16.3 percent to $11.92 billion from the previous year. “Exports of cultural contents have been setting a new record each year, but this time it is worth n

South Korea's main stock index plunged to a 13-month low Monday, as investors dumped local stocks ahead of the US Federal Reserve's policy meeting this week. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi dived 42.29 points, or 1.49 percent, to close at 2,792 points. The Kospi closed below the 2,800-point mark for the first time since Dec. 23, 2020. Trading volume was moderate at about 468 million shares worth some 9.2 trillion won ($7.7 billi

People who have been hospitalized due to adverse events and allergic reactions to COVID-19 vaccines are exempt from the country’s vaccine pass mandate, starting on Monday. 　 According to the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters, the government will grant the exemption if people have received hospital treatments within six weeks after they received their first dose of COVID-19 vaccine. Those people who requested the government compensate them for vaccination side-eff

SEJONG -- Consumer prices of groceries and transportation in Korea climbed fastest in a decade in 2021, which have posed aggravated burden on households amid the pandemic, state data showed Monday. These two items were found to have led the instability in overall consumer prices last year, despite the Bank of Korea’s interest rate hikes twice in August and November. According to Statistics Korea, consumer prices of groceries rose 5.9 percent in 2021, compared to the previous year -- 6.2

Hanwha Q Cells said Monday that its CEO Lee Ku-hyung has been appointed the 14th chairman of the Korea New and Renewable Energy Association, a business lobby with some 420 member companies. Lee, who joined Hanwha Group in 1990, has served key positions at the group’s solar solutions unit Hanwha Q Cells, formerly Hanwha SolarOne, since 2011 and was promoted to the top position in September last year. Lee, whose term is three years, is expected to lead the association based on years of

The Polestar 2, the first Polestar car to hit the Korean roads, is a performance-driven car, living up to the reputation of the Swedish carmaker that was once Volvo’s racing skunkworks. With the new model, Polestar aims to compete head-on with the Tesla Model 3, the world’s most popular plug-in EV in 2020. At first sight, one can easily grasp that Polestar 2 displays Scandinavian aesthetics: clean and simple lines and functionality without sacrificing beauty. It has a clean-cut

Veteran actor Kim Eui-sung and journalist Choo Chin-woo’s political documentary about the monthslong candlelight protests in Korea that led to former President Park Geun-hye’s ouster, titled “Candlelight Revolution,” is finally set for release, a month ahead of presidential election. “I proposed this project to Choo,” Kim said during an interview with a group of reporters on Monday. “When I was traveling back in 2018, I was listening to the radio and h

Opposition parties People Power Party and the People’s Party are engaging in an escalating war of words, while putting down rumors of unification for the presidential election. On Monday, Lee Jun-seok, head of the People Power Party, hit back at Ahn Cheol-soo’s barbed comments, claiming it was the People’s Party that was “immoral” during the Seoul mayor election held last year. “Talking about the candidate in third place is now called ‘immoral,&rsqu

Korea mired in equality trap as semiconductor chip arms race intensifies

South Korea’s imports of beer recorded an all-time low last year, amid a nationwide boycott of Japanese beer and other products, data showed Monday. According to the Korea Customs Service, imports of beer decreased by 1.7 percent on-year to $223.1 million last year. The figure surpassed the record-low imports of $181.5 million in 2016. The list of major beer import countries last year includes the Netherlands, followed by China, Belgium, Poland, Ireland, Germany and the Czech Republic.

GS Engineering and Construction said Monday it has signed a memorandum of understanding with California-based SG H2 to supply modules that will be used to construct green hydrogen plants. 　 The renewables project, led by SG H2 Energy’s special purpose company SG H2 Lancaster LLC, is expected to produce 11 tons of green hydrogen in Lancaster, California, an amount that can fuel 1,700 mid-size hydrogen-powered cars. The deal will mark the first time for a Korean firm to export hydrogen pl

Presidential candidate Yoon Suk-yeol of the main opposition People Power Party on Monday stressed the need to adopt strict measures to push North Korea’s denuclearization, and vowed to strengthen national defense, saying it is the key to prosperity and peace on the Korean Peninsula. Announcing his 20 election pledges on diplomacy and defense policies -- four on North Korea, 11 on diplomacy and five on national defense -- Yoon vowed to normalize inter-Korean relations and strengthen Sout