Household debt-to-income ratio in Korea surpasses 200% in 2020

The making of tteok, or Korean rice cakes, has been designated as the 145th National Intangible Cultural Heritage, the Cultural Heritage Administration announced Monday. The designation recognizes the making and sharing of Korean rice cakes as Korea‘s traditional culture and way of life. Tteok-making’s long history, a wealth of historical documents and archives about tteok, the unique regional variations and continued efforts to keep the tradition alive were some of the reasons behi

“Neighbours,” a film by Kurdish Swiss director Mano Khalil, won the Best Picture Award at the Gangneung International Film Festival, which ended Sunday. During the 10-day festival, which kicked off Oct. 22 with Albert Birney’s “Strawberry Mansion,” 116 films from 42 countries were screened at five theaters in Gangneung, Gangwon Province, on South Korea’s east coast.   The winners of the International Narrative Competition Awards, created last year, wer

Artificial intelligence may hold the key to many of the world’s pressing issues such as climate change, said Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Kim Ki-nam on Monday. Speaking at an annual AI forum, hosted by his company, the senior executive stressed the wide-reaching capability of AI, not just for businesses, but for the betterment of humankind. “The advancement of AI is going beyond the electronics industry and expanding to various fields, such as basic science. We expect AI to

South Korean stocks advanced Monday after a three-day loss, largely on investors' move to cash in the recent gains and strong exports in October. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) rose 8.26 points, or 0.28 percent, to close at 2,978.94 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 469 million shares worth some 9.3 trillion won ($7.9 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 496 to 358. Foreigners sold a net 358 billion won, whil

Hyundai Motor Co., South Korea's biggest carmaker, said Monday its sales fell 21 percent last month from a year earlier due mainly to global chip shortages. Hyundai Motor sold 307,039 vehicles in October, down from 387,197 units a year earlier, the company said in a statement. Domestic sales declined 12 percent to 57,813 units from 65,669, as the lack of semiconductor parts continued to weigh on vehicle production and sales, it said. Overseas sales dropped 23 percent to 249,226 from 321,528 a

The justice ministry acknowledged Monday that human rights violations occurred at a detention center for illegal immigrants in June after an investigation into allegations that an inmate suffered torture-like treatment. The investigation came after the inmate from Morocco in his 30s filed a petition with the national human rights watchdog, claiming he was maltreated while being detained in June at an immigration processing center in Hwaseong, about 40 kilometers south of Seoul. He accused offi

Renault Samsung Motors Corp., the South Korean unit of Renault S.A., said Monday its sales jumped 54 percent last month from a year earlier on strong exports. Renault Samsung sold 11,627 vehicles in October, up from 7,533 units a year earlier amid the extended COVID-19 pandemic, the company said in a statement. Domestic sales fell 30 percent on-year to 5,002 units from 7,141, while exports soared to 6,625 units from 392 on robust sales of its SUV models, it said. Strong overseas demand for th

Despite economic figures signaling labor market recovery, virus-hit job seekers struggle to find quality jobs

The top nuclear envoys of South Korea and China held a videoconference Monday to discuss measures for an early resumption of the Korean peace process, including the proposed declaration of a formal end to the 1950-53 Korean War, Seoul's foreign ministry said. Noh Kyu-duk, the special representative for Korean Peninsula peace and security affairs, held the virtual talks with his Chinese counterpart Liu Xiaoming to explain Seoul's efforts to revive stalled dialogue with North Korea and requested

South Korea under renewed pressure to play a bigger role in creating US-led new supply ecosystem

SsangYong Motor Co. said Monday its sales plunged 53 percent last month from a year earlier on weaker demand for its models and a prolonged chip shortage. SsangYong Motor sold 4,749 vehicles in October, down from 10,197 units a year earlier, the company said in a statement. Domestic sales dropped 57 percent to 3,279 units last month from 7,612 a year ago, while exports declined 42 percent to 1,500 units from 2,585 during the same period, it said. From January to October, sales fell 22 percent

NTCK opens ‘online theater,’ offering performances with extra features such as barrier-free services, director’s cut

Just days ahead of the theater release of Marvel Studio’s “Eternals,” Naver Webtoon unveiled the movie’s Korean webtoon version Sunday. The first two episodes, titled “Intelligent Design 1“ and ”Intelligent Design 2,” have a 9.26 rating on the Naver platform as of Monday. Celebrating the release of the film, the first four episodes are available free of charge, Naver Webtoon said. The webtoon, based on the Marvel Comics series of the same titl