Transactions among affiliates of South Korea's large business groups fell in 2020 from a year earlier on tough regulations, the antitrust regulator said Tuesday. The value of inter-affiliate transactions by 2,182 units of 71 large business groups amounted to 183.5 trillion won ($155 billion) last year, down 13.2 trillion won from 196.7 trillion won the previous year, according to the Fair Trade Commission. Such deals accounted for 11.4 percent of all business contracts clinched by them last ye

The number of multiple home owners in South Korea grew by the smallest number in six years last year due largely to heavy taxation on such people, data showed Tuesday. The number of multiple home owners had reached 2.32 million as of Nov. 1, 2020, up from 2.28 million the previous year, according to Statistics Korea. The 2020 growth marked the slowest gain since 2014, when the number of such people grew by 28,000. The portion of people who have two or more houses accounted for 15.8 percent of

South Korea saw its foreign population shrink by 3.2 percent in November last year from the previous year, the first such decline at least since 2006 amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the interior ministry said Tuesday. According to a report by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, the number of foreign residents, defined as foreign nationals residing in the country for more than 90 days or naturalized Koreans and their children, stood at 2.15 million in November in 2020, compared with 2.22 millio

Foreign currency deposits at banks in South Korea surged to a record high in October on expectations for a strong dollar, central bank data showed Tuesday. Residents' outstanding foreign currency-denominated deposits had stood at a fresh record of $100.77 billion as of end-October, up $6.57 billion from the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK). It marks the first time the country's foreign currency deposits have surpassed the $100 billion level. It also represents the third con

South Korea seeks to stage a large-scale military parade next year to mark the Oct. 1 Armed Forces Day, a defense ministry official said Tuesday, in what could be a major show of force just months after the launch of the country's next administration. The ministry has set aside 7.98 billion won ($6.75 million) for the parade likely to showcase the nation's state-of-the-art military hardware, though a final decision would be made by the new government to be launched in May, the official said. &

GWANGJU -- South Korea’s state-run energy firm, which announced last week a complete exit from coal by 2050, is headed in the right direction, says World Energy Council Secretary-General Angela Wilkinson. Speaking on the sidelines of the 2021 BIXPO energy forum hosted by Korea Electric Power Corp. in Gwangju, Wilkinson said the company’s “Zero for Green” carbon neutrality plan was a symbolic move. “Making public commitments together is a highly symbolic act, it&r

South Korea's military reported nine additional COVID-19 cases Tuesday, bringing the total caseload among its personnel to 2,135, the defense ministry said. Five of the newly added patients tested positive after their family members were infected, the data showed. A Marine Corps draftee stationed on the southern resort island of Jeju tested positive after a virus case was reported at the base. An officer at the arms procurement agency in Gwacheon, south of Seoul, tested positive after develop

A UN official on the human rights situation in North Korea has criticized China for sending back North Korean defectors, describing the practice as a serious challenge to international law, according to a news report Tuesday. "The issue is very serious and the government is challenging international law," Tomas Ojea Quintana, the special rapporteur on North Korea human rights, was quoted as saying by the Voice of America (VOA). He added, "I urge once again the People's Republic

Reporters covering the wife of the ruling party's presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung outside their home have been sent away by police after being warned of potential stalking offenses, officials said Tuesday. According to the Bundang Police Station in Seongnam, South of Seoul, five reporters who were covering Kim Hye-kyung, Lee's wife, in front of her home Monday have been sent away after being warned they could be in potential violation of the anti-stalking law. The journalists reportedly s