Starbucks Coffee Korea said Friday it will stop using disposable cups at all of its stores on South Korea's southern resort island of Jeju within this year in the latest move to protect the environment. Starbucks said it eliminated all single-use cups at four of its stores on Jeju in July during a trial run before applying the policy to all of its 23 operations on the island. The four stores only use multiuse cups, both for drinking inside the shops and for take-out. Customers are asked to pay

South Korea will temporarily cut fuel taxes to soften the blow of skyrocketing gasoline prices, which put upward pressure on inflation, First Vice Finance Minister Lee Eog-weon said Friday.  “The government will temporarily lower fuel taxes. We’ll finalize further details, including the extent of fuel tax cuts and when the envisioned measure will take effect, as soon as possible,” Lee said, adding that the formal announcement will be made during a government meeting nex

South Korean actor Ma Dong-seok, also known as Don Lee, said Friday that his character Gilgamesh in the upcoming superhero movie "Eternals" reflects his unique personality and signature action style. "Since the zombie thriller 'Train to Busan' (2016) was released about five years ago, I've received some offers from Hollywood," he said during an online press conference with Korean media. "A few years ago, I got a call from a casting director of 'Eternals' after I lost so

South Korea will launch a nationwide shopping festival next month to boost domestic consumption amid the pandemic, the industry ministry said Friday. The annual Korea Sale FESTA will kick off Nov. 1 for a 15-day run, both online and offline, and a total of 1,276 companies have expressed their intention to take part in the event, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The government plans to issue discount coupons and hold various events in cooperation with retailers and 17 pr

Bending without breaking, South Korea held world No. 1 United States to a scoreless draw in the first of their two women's football friendlies on American soil. Goalkeeper Yoon Young-geul made key saves, and the visitors played some dogged defense against the American onslaught at Children's Mercy Park in Kansas City, Kansas, on Thursday (local time). The draw snapped the US home winning streak at 22 matches. The last time the US had failed to win at home was also against South Korea -- a 1-1

The top US envoy for North Korea will visit Seoul this weekend, with his arrival delayed a day for an unspecified reason, an informed source said Friday. Sung Kim, special representative for North Korea, was initially scheduled to begin a three-day trip here Friday for consultations with his South Korean counterpart, Noh Kyu-duk. But his itinerary has changed, and he plans to fly to Seoul on Saturday, according to the source, who requested anonymity and did not elaborate on the reason. Kim and

It happened back in 2014 when I was in Geneva, Switzerland, serving as a delegate of Permanent Mission of the Republic of Korea. I had a skin rash so I visited a local hospital, where they tested my antimicrobial susceptibility before giving me any treatment. The hospital ran this test to see if there were any antibiotics that my body was resistant to. Little did I know before I got tested that there were not many effective antibiotics left for me. Fewer antibiotic options meant fewer treatm

A North Korean delegation is expected to attend a UN  climate conference slated to kick off in Britain later this month, a Seoul official said Friday. Officials at the North Korean Embassy in London will participate in the 2021 UN Climate Change Conference, known as COP26, which will run from Oct. 31 to Nov. 12 in Glasgow. "As far as I know, the North Korean mission in Britain is sending a delegation," a foreign ministry official said. According to a recent US intelligence repo

The issuance of derivatives-linked securities (DLS) in South Korea tumbled more than 50 percent on-year in the third quarter of the year amid the coronavirus pandemic, data showed Friday. The country's DLS sales stood at slightly over 3 trillion won ($2.6 billion) in the July-September period, down 51.2 percent from a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Securities Depository (KSD). The amount was also down 27.7 percent from the previous quarter. DLS tracks the performance of in

South Korea's military reported six additional COVID-19 cases Friday, bringing the total caseload among its personnel to 1,992, the defense ministry said. Four Army officers and two draftees tested positive for the virus, according to military data. Five of them were fully vaccinated. Of the cumulative cases in the military, 1,923, or 96 percent, have been fully cured, with 69 still under treatment. (Yonhap)

South Korea will kick off an annual military exercise next week to strengthen defense readiness, officials said Friday, amid lingering tensions over North Korea's recent submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) test. The Hoguk exercise will run from Monday to Nov. 5 across the country, involving the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps., to enhance interservice cooperation, according to the officials at the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The North has often responded angrily to such an exercise,

Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum said Friday hard-hit businesses and low-risk facilities will be the first to benefit from eased COVID-19 restrictions starting next month. Kim made the remark during a meeting of a government-civilian panel overseeing the transition to life after COVID-19. "The return to normal will proceed in stages and systematically," he said. "We will take drastic and active steps to ease the virus restrictions starting with businesses and neglected groups that ha

Korean Air Lines Co., South Korea's biggest carrier, said Friday it has partnered with Boeing to jointly develop an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) in preparation for future mobility demand. Korean Air signed a memorandum of understanding with Boeing's subsidiary Insitu for technical cooperation to develop a lightweight and modularized tactical vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) UAV at the 2021 Seoul International Aerospace and Defense Exhibition (ADEX), the company said in a statement. "

The Navy received an upgraded destroyer on Friday, after more than a year of refurbishment aimed at bolstering anti-submarine and other capabilities, the state arms procurement agency said. The 3,200-ton Gwanggaeto the Great destroyer was handed over to the Navy, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration said, as South Korea seeks to strengthen subsurface operations amid renewed tensions over North Korea's recent test of a new submarine-launched ballistic missile. The destroyer was sent f

South Korea reported 1,440 new daily cases Friday in a downward trend in its coronavirus infections as its strong vaccination push seems to be helping prevent the spread of the coronavirus from spinning out of control. The new tally, including 1,420 local infections, brought the total caseload to 348,969, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. Friday's number is down one from the 1,441 counted the previous day. It is also down 117 from a week ago. The death toll came to