Prosecutors again demanded death penalty for the adoptive mother in a highly publicized child abuse case that led to the death of a 16-month-old baby girl. At the Seoul High Court on Friday, prosecutors asked for the highest criminal penalty for the defendant, surnamed Jang, who was indicted in December on charges of fatally abusing her adopted daughter named Jeong-in from March to October 2020. The child was found to have suffered severe abdominal injuries and internal bleeding due to Jang&rs

SK Bioscience announced Friday positive results from phase 1 and 2 clinical studies of its COVID-19 vaccine candidate GBP510, increasing the prospect of Korea’s first homegrown coronavirus vaccine debuting next year. The Korean firm said people who received the vaccine candidate had neutralizing antibodies at levels 3-6 times higher than those of people who recovered from COVID-19. No severe side effects were reported during the clinical studies, it added. The phase 1 and 2 clinical

Former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl won the presidential nomination of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) on Friday. Yoon won 47.85 percent of votes cast in a four-day poll of party members and the general public this week, followed by Rep. Hong Joon-pyo with 41.50 percent. Former Rep. Yoo Seong-min won 7.47 percent, while former Jeju Gov. Won Hee-ryong won 3.17 percent. The results were announced at a national convention at the Kim Koo Museum and Library in Seoul. (Yonhap)

Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering Co. (KSOE) said Friday it has obtained a 748 billion-won ($632 million) deal to build three LNG carriers. The vessels will be delivered to an Oceania customer from the second half of 2024, the company said in an emailed statement. With the latest deal, KSOE has bagged orders worth $20.9 billion so far this year, far exceeding this year's order target of $14.9 billion. KSOE, the subholding company of Hyundai Heavy Industries Holdings Co., operates

South Korea on Friday signed a deal with US pharmaceutical giant Pfizer Inc. to buy 30 million doses of its COVID-19 vaccine to be administered next year, bringing the total amount to 60 million, health authorities here said. The deal is a follow-up to an earlier deal signed in August that secured 30 million doses and had an option for an additional 30 million doses, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). The contract is part of South Korea's plan to secure enough

The center of Seoul is expected to be crowded with nearly 4,000 demonstrators taking part in more than 20 rallies of varying sizes on the first weekend after the easing of gathering restrictions under the government's "living with COVID-19" scheme, police said Friday. Before this month, rallies and demonstrations, except for one-person protests, were banned across Seoul as part of authorities' anti-coronavirus campaign. With the launch of the "living with COVID-19" strategy

Convenience store chain operator BGF has confirmed Friday its plan to acquire a stake in engineering plastic resin maker Kopla for at least 180.8 billion won ($152.6 million), in a strategic move to enter into a new business, sending its shares jumping nearly 30 percent at some point. According to filings with the Financial Supervisory Service, BGF is poised to acquire 11 million common shares of Kopla from Kopla President Han Sang-yong and his affiliated parties and through a new rights offer

Korea Communications Commission Chairman Han Sang-hyuk tested positive for COVID-19 Friday, after one employee from the commission was found to be infected with the virus.  Han was fully vaccinated, local reports said. As Han attended a National Assembly session Tuesday, attendees have been told to get tested by the health authorities, among them Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum. Following chairman Han’s test results, the government requested the National Assembly Budget Settlement Co

The Supreme Prosecutors Office (SPO) was raided Friday as part of a probe into allegations that a sitting prosecutor conspired with the main opposition party to investigate pro-government figures when opposition presidential contender Yoon Seok-youl was in office as prosecutor general, sources said. Authorities are currently looking into suspicions that Son Jun-sung, a prosecutor who previously served at the SPO, asked the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) to file a complaint against pro

The presidential office Cheong Wa Dae has launched a task force to tackle supply shortages of urea water solution (UWS), a key material used in diesel vehicles to reduce emissions, an official said Friday. "We will establish a comprehensive response system like we have for material, components and equipment sectors so that we can utilize various channels to check cooperation in industrial and logistics communities, and diplomatic efforts with urea production countries, like China," sa

LG Uplus Corp., South Korea's third-largest mobile carrier, said Friday its third-quarter net profit fell 47.7 percent from a year earlier due mainly to the sale of its business unit. Net profit for the three months that ended in September fell to 211 billion won ($177.1 million) from a profit of 403.4 billion won in the year-ago period, the company said in a regulatory filing. Operating profit increased 10.2 percent to 276.7 billion won, the highest quarterly figure since 2010, while sales in

The global DRAM market for 2022 is expected to log similar yearly sales on solid demand despite falling prices, a recent report has said. Market researcher TrendForce said in its latest report released Thursday DRAM sales are expected to grow 0.3 percent to reach $91.54 billion next year. DRAM bit supply and demand are expected to increase by 18.6 percent and 17.1 percent year-on-year, respectively. The average selling price of DRAM is predicted to fall by 15 percent, with the drop being more

South Korea will continue close communications with key UN Security Council (UNSC) members, the unification ministry said Friday, after China and Russia again proposed easing sanctions against North Korea. Deputy ministry spokesman Cha Duck-chul said South Korea was aware that the two countries have circulated such a draft resolution to UNSC members, and that it will closely monitor related moves at the council. "The government will ... continue close communications with the United States

The former head of K-pop powerhouse YG Entertainment on Friday denied allegations of threatening a whistleblower in an attempt to block an investigation into a drug scandal involving a singer-rapper with the company. Former YG Entertainment CEO Yang Hyun-suk has been indicted for allegedly threatening and coercing a whistleblower who testified to police about drug suspicions surrounding B.I, a former member of YG's boy band iKON, in August 2016. In a court trial held in Seoul, Yang told a judg

The US assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs plans to visit Seoul next week as part of his first Asian trip since taking office in September, the US State of Department said Friday Daniel Kritenbrink will arrive in Japan on Sunday (local time) on the first leg of his six-day regional trip and then move to South Korea on Nov. 10 to stay there for three days, the department said. "During his visits, Assistant Secretary Kritenbrink will meet with senior government o