President Moon Jae-in on Saturday expressed hope that Christmas will serve as a day to care and give hope to each other as he also delivered message of encouragement to people suffering from COVID-19. "Helping hands that look around to see whether our neighbor is sick, eating meals, living in a warm room would be the heart of Jesus," Moon wrote in his message posted on Twitter on Christmas morning. "We are heading to a light. We will do our best to make the world a warmer place.

President Moon Jae-in will hold a luncheon with the chiefs of conglomerates, including Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong, to thank them for their participation in a government-led jobs project, Cheong Wa Dae said Friday. Other likely invitees to the lunch scheduled for Monday include the chiefs of KT, LG, SK, POSCO and Hyundai Motor Group, all of which took part in the project to create youth jobs. SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Eui-sun and LG

Hollywood’s “Spider-Man: No Way Home” by Jon Watts is likely to overtake director Ryoo Seung-wan’s “Escape from Mogadishu,” which sold more than 3.61 million tickets this year. Ryoo’s film, which is so far the most-watched film this year, was released with support from the Korean Theater Association. The association’s members include the top three multiplex operators: CGV, Lotte Cinema and Megabox. Earlier in June, the association decided to fo

Daebang Construction on Thursday said it would no longer seek the Cultural Heritage Administration’s approval to build a high-rise apartment complex near the UNESCO-listed royal tomb Jangneung in Gimpo, Gyeonggi Province. To better protect the scenery of the tomb site, the CHA had ordered a suspension of construction, and asked Daebang Construction to submit new building plans that would lower the height of the new apartments. Daebang Construction is now refusing to submit any modified

The Bank of Korea said Friday that it would adjust its monetary policy next year in an announcement seen as preparing for a rate hike to dampen inflation. The BOK, which raised the rate to 1 percent after two rate hikes in August and November this year to prop up the pandemic-hit economy, is expected to lift the rate in January when the bank’s seven-member board meets. BOK Gov. Lee Ju-yeol said he would not rule out a hike in the first quarter. “The financial imbalances -- manifes

South Korean technology giants’ plan to attend CES 2022 remains unperturbed so far, despite a series of announcements by US firms that they are suspending in-person events due to concerns about the spread of the omicron variant of COVID-19. Among notable exhibitors based in Korea -- Samsung, LG, Hyundai Motor, SK and Doosan -- none of them has yet to announce a withdrawal of an earlier plan to attend the world’s biggest consumer electronics show. There was also no talk yet about s

The number of South Koreans studying in foreign nations in 2020 dropped 41 percent from two years earlier amid the COVID-19 pandemic, data showed Friday. There were 171,343 South Korean students abroad at the end of last year, a decrease from 293,157 recorded at the end of 2018, according to the foreign ministry's report on Korean expatriates. The total number of South Koreans abroad fell 6.53 percent over the same period to 2.51 million, apparently affected by the virus situation. (Yonhap)

South Korea's Vice Foreign Minister Choi Jong-kun had discussions with Iran's top envoy here on "pending" bilateral issues Friday, his ministry said. Choi met with Ambassador Saeed Badamchi Shabestari and reaffirmed that Seoul will continue diplomatic efforts for progress in negotiations on Iran's nuclear program, taking the importance of Seoul-Tehran ties into consideration, it added. They also agreed to maintain close communication to resolve "pending" bilateral issues. T

Opposition parties call Moon’s decision a political move aimed at creating divide, while ruling party concerned of disappointed supporters

Ariel Miranda, the Cuban-born pitcher who won South Korean baseball's MVP award while setting a new strikeout record this year, will be back for another season. The Doosan Bears of the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) said Friday they have re-signed Miranda to a new one-year deal worth up to $1.9 million. The left-hander will make $1.6 million in salary and $300,000 in signing bonus. In his first KBO season, Miranda led the league with a 2.33 ERA and 225 strikeouts, two more than the previous

In fear of a far-right government, Chilean K-pop fandoms joined forces to support Gabriel Boric using memes, fancams and light sticks