Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum on Tuesday reiterated his opposition to a proposal from ruling party presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung to temporarily postpone heavy taxation on owners of multiple homes, saying it will bring down people's trust in government policies. Lee has been calling for the government to delay imposing a heavy capital gains tax on owners of multiple homes when they sell their properties, claiming that such a move will put more homes on the market and thus help stabilize soa

Treat yourself to a merry little Christmas -- with this perfect playlist. Here are 10 songs to spice up the wintery mood and ring in the holiday season.  1) “Butter (Holiday Remix)” - BTS K-pop sensation BTS surprised fans by dropping its fifth official remix of its megahit “Butter.” But this time, the septet went for a carol remix of their song to revel in the winter holiday mood and to thank fans for showing their continued support. The original music’s

President Moon Jae-in called on the government Tuesday to prepare for the scenario of the omicron variant becoming the dominant version of COVID-19 in the country while making sure to reinforce the country's medical capacity. Moon made the remarks at a Cabinet meeting held after the country reported 49 new omicron cases, bringing the accumulated total to 227. South Korea's daily COVID-19 cases have recently hovered in the 7,000's, marked by alarming growth in the number of critically ill patie

Virtual humans are everywhere: They promote products on social media, appear on billboard ads and now host infomercial shows. Lotte Home Shopping said Tuesday its virtual model Lucy will make her television debut as a show host on Wednesday for a special Christmas broadcast. Lucy is scheduled to appear in a teaser clip of the program and will introduce products offered on sale. This will be the first time the public gets to hear her voice, the infomercial channel said. Boasting 70,000 fol

South Korean stocks rebounded Tuesday, as investors sought to buy oversold stocks after the key index's recent plunge. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added 12.03 points, or 0.41 percent, to close at 2,975.03 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 396 million shares worth some 8.6 trillion won ($7.2 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 428 to 415. Institutions bought a net 601 billion won and foreigners purchased 3

As chip war intensifies, overcapacity expected by 2023

Four local governments in the central region of South Korea -- Daejeon, Sejong and the North and South Chungcheong provinces -- are gearing up in their shared bid to host the 2027 FISU World University Games. The Chungcheong Megacity Bid Committee, a joint organization launched by the local governments for the bid, has completed the needed procedures, and is now working on promotions with local residents. According to the CMBC, local residents in the Chungcheong Megacity region are supporti

The labor union of South Korea's biggest carrier Korean Air Lines Co. on Tuesday lodged a complaint against a female YouTuber who appears in underwear in a lookbook video before putting on flight attendant uniforms, alleging that she defamed the reputation of flight attendants. The complaint was filed with Seoul's Gangnam Police Station against the YouTuber who recently triggered a sexual commodification controversy by uploading an 8-minute video in which she appears only in underwear and chang

Starting next year, subway passengers in South Korea will be able to enjoy free Wi-Fi services that are 10 times faster, the Ministry of Science and ICT said Tuesday. According to the ministry, subway commuters will be able to use Wi-Fi 6E that has a more reliable internet connection, and is 10 times faster than the current Wi-Fi speed. The upgraded Wi-Fi speed will be on par with that of private telecoms networks. Previously, the ministry had limited the transmitted signal power level in su

A husband may face a criminal charge after he abandoned his wife along the expressway at midnight after an argument. The wife was found dead the next morning, about 700 meters from where she was left behind. The severity of her injuries suggested she had been hit by a car. Police are now reviewing the case to see if the husband could be charged with “death by abandonment,” which is punished by imprisonment of at least three years in South Korea. Should he be criminally charged?&

The Bank of Korea appears to be facing a dilemma ahead of its rate decision in January, as producer and consumer prices soar in defiance of anemic growth. Producer prices in November hit a record high, up 0.5 percent on-month and 9.6 percent on-year. The prices have been on a steady rise since November 2020, the longest since May 2011, when they ended a 19-month rally. “The base effect makes the (price) rises look worse than what they actually are. In November last year, oil and raw mate

Front-line doctors in Korea are calling on the government to retract new guidelines limiting the amount of time COVID-19 patients can be admitted to intensive care to 20 days. In an effort to ease the bed crisis, the government told hospitals last week that it would be imposing a cap of 20 days for how long a COVID-19 patient can stay in an intensive care unit. Beyond the 20-day period, the national health insurance waiver for COVID-19-related treatment costs will end for patients and hospit

Owners of restaurants, cafes and other small businesses plan to hold a rally in Seoul this week to protest the government's implementation of toughened gathering restrictions and business curfews, according an association of small merchants Tuesday. The so-called national emergency association of small business against COVID-19 said it plans to hold the rally Wednesday afternoon near Gwanghwamun Square in central Seoul. The number of participants was set at 299 in line with the latest gathering

New album reflects major shift in definition of love