Two deaths related to omicron variant of the coronavirus were reported on Monday

Hyundai Motor Co., South Korea's biggest carmaker, said Monday its sales fell 11 percent last month from a year earlier amid global chip shortages. Hyundai Motor sold 334,242 vehicles in December, down from 375,193 units a year earlier, the company said in a statement. Domestic sales declined 3.5 percent to 66,112 units from 68,486 during the mentioned period, as the lack of semiconductor parts continued to affect vehicle production and sales, it said. Overseas sales also dropped 13 percent t

SsangYong Motor Co. said Monday its sales fell 17 percent last month from a year earlier as a prolonged chip shortage continued to affect its vehicle production. SsangYong Motor sold 8,755 vehicles in December, down from 10,561 units a year earlier, the company said in a statement. Domestic sales declined 31 percent to 5,810 units last month from 8,449 a year ago, while exports climbed 39 percent to 2,975 units from 2,142 during the same period, it said. For the whole of 2021, its sales dippe

Leaders of traditional banks say growing clout of Big Techs, fintechs are threats

With the success of Korean original content on Netflix in 2021, the makers and stars of “The Silent Sea,” the streaming provider’s last Korean release of 2021, might have felt under pressure. But actors Bae Doo-na and Gong Yoo are more than satisfied with their Netflix sci-fi mystery and hope the project can lead to the development of the genre in Korea. “I am well aware of the different opinions from the critics and the viewers. And I totally respect them all,”

The key benchmark Kospi and junior Kosdaq opened higher on Monday after their last trading session on Thursday, amid strong retail demand and foreign buying betting on a pandemic recovery. The Kospi, which ended at 2,977.65 for its final trading session in 2021, closed at 2,988.77, while the Kosdaq ended at 1,037.83, slightly up from 1,033.98 from the previous session. The rebound was backed by retail investors and foreigners, who snatched up a net 519 billion won ($435 million) and 266 billi

The metaverse, regarded as a technology whose emergence was seen as timely in the pandemic era, has cemented its position as a key avenue to pushing cultural experiences to another level. While prepandemic cultural contents were based on face-to-face experience, the virtual world-centered metaverse emerged as a notable alternative, offering a similar experience as face-to-face encounters as the coronavirus and a multitude of its variants have changed the way people interact. With the advances

South Korea’s key manufacturers, retailers and service providers on Monday vowed to prepare for a full business recovery from the prolonged pandemic crisis by initiating both technological and organizational innovation to tap into markets that had already gone through tremendous changes for last two years. “The paradigm shift that was brought by the COVID-19 crisis and challenges to overcome it lie ahead of us,” Cho Won-tae, the chairman of Hanjin Group and Korean Air CEO, sa

Speculation is growing that Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong may go on a work trip later this month possibly to China where the Korean tech giant is struggling to elevate smartphone and home appliance sales. According to industry sources on Monday, the de facto Samsung chief is expected to make another business trip during the court’s holiday recess that begins later this month. Lee has been appearing in court hearings every Thursday regarding the controversial merger deal

Main opposition party campaign leaders resign in hope for turnaround

Discourse with international politics scholars

LG Electronics said Monday it would introduce a new in-vehicle infotainment concept tailored to autonomous vehicles at CES 2022, indicating that its car cabins can turn into a space where passengers work, watch TV, exercise or experience camping virtually. Called LG Omnipod, the new mobility concept solution gives a glimpse of an on-the-road extension of one’s personal living space which is designed to function as a home office, entertainment center or lounge, LG Electronics said in a st

South Korean pharmaceutical giant Celltrion Inc. said Monday that its antibody treatment candidate against COVID-19 has shown safety in its clinical trial. Celltrion said it has enrolled 24 healthy volunteers in its global phase one clinical trial and confirmed the safety, tolerability and pharmacokinetics of CT-P63. Separately, Celltrion said that CT-P63 has maintained strong neutralizing ability against the omicron variant during pseudo-virus testing conducted by the U.S. National Institutes

A man has been taken into custody for assaulting three Mongolian men, according to Seoul police. The suspect, who was not identified, is being questioned for his part in an assault that occurred around 3:20 a.m. on Sunday near Sinnonhyeon Station in Gangnam, Seoul. Police believe other people took part in the attack, and are trying to track them down. The incident follows other assaults that have taken place involving Korean and Mongolian nationals in an apparent tit-for-tat. Early last mo