ULSAN -- A city the size of Hong Kong churns out 5,400 cars every day, builds 12 percent of the world’s ships and runs Asia’s third-largest petrochemicals complex. It’s no surprise that Ulsan has the highest carbon emissions per person in South Korea. The port city, sitting on the southeast coast of the Korean Peninsula, aims to turn its weakness into a strength by collecting massive waste hydrogen generated at petrochemical facilities and using it as a fuel to power the c

State money that covers 1 charger per station limits profits, leaves stations in deficit, city officials say

South Korea stepped up diplomacy last year to deal with emerging challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic and join global efforts to fight cross-border health threats, according to its annual diplomatic white paper published on Monday. The foreign ministry added a new chapter to the 2021 white paper to detail diplomatic activities in regard to protection of Korean nationals and businesses abroad, securing medical equipment, such as masks, and regional coordination against the pandemic. "The

South Korea and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) plan to co-host a road show this week with an aim to facilitate Korean startups' foray into the Asia-Pacific region and find ways to promote sustainable growth of developing nations, the finance ministry said Monday. The ADB Ventures Korean Roadshow will be held Friday both via YouTube streaming and at Dream Plus in Seoul's southern district of Gangnam, according to the finance and SME ministries. At the event, the Korean government plans to pro

President Moon Jae-in said Monday that South Korea's trade is expected to amount to an all-time high of more than $1.2 trillion this year on the back of strong exports in a sign that the nation's economic recovery is faster than anticipated. "Exports are forecast to exceed $630 billion and trade volume is expected to surpass $1.2 trillion," Moon told a ceremony marking the 58th Trade Day. In the first 11 months of this year, South Korea's cumulative exports came to $583.8 billion, th

Kyobo Life Insurance, one of South Korea's leading life insurers, said Monday that it has requested a reinvestigation into and punishment of some accountants of Deloitte Anjin accused of conspiring to inflate the prices of a put option that one of its strategic investors exercised years earlier. In October 2018, Affinity Equity Partners exercised a put option on 6 million shares in Kyobo Life Insurance at a strike price of 409,000 won ($345) per share after the insurer failed to deliver on its

South Korea's military reported 19 additional COVID-19 cases, all of which are breakthrough ones, Monday, raising the total caseload among its personnel to 2,531. Of the new cases, 13 people are from the Army, one from the Air Force, two from the Marine Corps and three from units under the direct control of the defense ministry, officials said. Of the cumulative cases in the military, 279 patients are still under treatment. Amid growing fears of the omicron variant, the military has toughen

Helping economically vulnerable people hit by the COVID-19 pandemic will be the top election pledge of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP)'s presidential candidate, Yoon Seok-youl, the party's campaign chief said Monday. Kim Chong-in, a veteran politician who recently accepted an offer to head Yoon's campaign, said the PPP nominee will focus on providing solutions for economically disadvantaged people amid growing economic inequality prompted by the pandemic. "How to revive peo

South Korea's Navy has selected the 2,500-ton frigate, Jeonbuk, as this year's "top gun" ship following an annual assessment of its warships' combat capabilities, officials said Monday. The frigate of the Third Fleet Command based in Mokpo, 410 kilometers southwest of Seoul, won the title after it passed final gunnery competitions that took place from September to October, the officials said. The competition to pick the top gun vessel has taken place annually since 1988. They are mea