Flight attendants are seen at Incheon Airport Terminal 2 on Thursday, as the gradual increase in the number of international flights has prompted airline employees to return to work. According to the aviation industry, Korean Air employees’ leave of absence rate this month recorded less than 20 percent. Flight attendants all over the airport industry have been on extended leave due to a pandemic-induced hiatus, but employees have been sequentially coming back since the beginning of this ye

South Korea’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said Wednesday it is implementing a new clean hydrogen certification system from 2024 that evaluates corporate carbon footprints based on the amount of carbon emissions, not the type of production process. The new scheme will determine whether hydrogen can be classified as “low carbon” by analyzing the amount of carbon generated during its production -- the lower the emissions, the greater the incentives for companies. Th

Among Korean teenagers, female students made purchases mostly at coffee shops while male students spent their money on food delivery and late-night snack shops the most, data showed Tuesday. According to KB Kookmin‘s card analysis of debit card sales, 14 percent of male middle and high school students holding KB debit cards, paid for food delivery and late-night snacks, while 11 percent spent their allowances at hamburger restaurants and coffee shops. The analysis further showed that 19

For Oh Ju-ha, a housewife in her 50s, having samgyetang, or ginseng chicken soup, has for many years been a way to endure the highest temperatures of summer. But she is having second thoughts this year. “I’m thinking about making kongguksu (soy milk noodle soup) for this chobok, instead. It’s also high in protein, and not as ridiculously expensive as samgyetang,” she said. Chobok is traditionally the beginning of the most sweltering days of the year in Korea. Oh is one

Amid a constant influx of new technologies that has changed the way we live, work and communicate, COVID-19 has drastically accelerated digital transformation. The expedited digitalization has prompted to expand the industrial scope of future markets where national borders and the boundaries between the online and offline world are becoming ever more blurred. Thus, at present, major economies across the globe fiercely compete with one another to get ahead in future promising industries. Agains

The Philippine Board of Investments, the lead industry and investment promotion agency in the country, said it is eyeing South Korean electric vehicle parts and semiconductor firms to further grow their businesses and make it happen in the Philippines. Trade Undersecretary and BOI managing head Ceferino Rodolfo made this statement during an online briefing with South Korean companies in April on the recently-enacted Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises Act and the Strategic In

A handful of large companies in South Korea continued to dominate the country’s exports and imports, according to data released by the Korea Customs Service and Statistics Korea.As per the export data, 805 large companies -- just 0.8 percent of total exporting firms -- accounted for 66.6 percent in 2018, an on-year increase of 0.3 percentage point.The value of imports by 1,092 large businesses increased by 0.2 percentage point to reach $323 billion, having a 61 percent share of all imports

Top trade officials from South Korea, China and Japan agreed Sunday to accelerate their trilateral free trade talks and ramp up efforts to conclude a mega Asia-Pacific trade deal, Seoul's trade ministry said.South Korea's Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Sung Yun-mo met China's Commerce Minister Zhong Shan and Japan's Economy and Trade Minister Hiroshi Kajiyama for talks in Beijing on how to accelerate regional free trade negotiations, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.T

South Korea’s exports of agricultural products to China showed signs of rebounding last month, following the announcement that South Korea and China had decided to begin normalizing bilateral relations in October.　　According to the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade on Thursday, exports of agricultural and livestock products to China -- excluding marine products -- reached roughly $165 million in November. The figure marks a 4.1 percent increase compared to the same month last year.　In addition t

More than 40 percent of China's service sector has remained closed despite a bilateral free trade agreement with South Korea, a report said Thursday, suggesting the Seoul government should do more to open the neighboring market in upcoming trade talks with Beijing.The Korea-China FTA took effect in December 2015 after years of negotiations, with tariffs on about 90 percent of goods to be eventually removed over the next two decades. South Korean Trade Minister Yoon Sang-jick (R) and his Chinese

South Korea will step up economic cooperation with Russia and northern states in various areas, including energy, shipbuilding, fishery and transportation, to foster future growth drivers and stabilize regional security, a presidential committee said Thursday. The Presidential Committee on Northern Economic Cooperation unveiled its plan in its inaugural meeting hosted by chairman Song Young-gil, attended by ministers of finance, foreign affairs, unification, trade and other related organizations

WASHINGTON -- South Korea pushed Wednesday to stop the United States from restricting imports of its solar cells, saying such a move would only harm US interests.A government delegation, including officials from the foreign and commerce industries, made the case at a public hearing at the office of the US trade representative, the foreign ministry said in a statement."An increase in solar cell prices caused by import restriction measures would bring enormous costs to the US public interest," it

South Korean economists and ordinary citizens alike want the next administration to make economic growth and income distribution its top priorities, a survey said Sunday.The same survey found that many of the respondents view the country's political and parliamentary capacities as below par. (Yonhap)The Korea international Trade Association polled 1,000 people, including 321 economic experts, from March 21-27 on what they wanted the next government to focus on for short- and midterm policies. Re

South Korea, China and Japan will hold a new round of talks on a three-way free trade agreement in Tokyo next week, South Korea's trade ministry said Sunday.South Korea's top negotiator Lee Sang-jin is set to meet with his Chinese and Japanese counterparts from Monday through Thursday, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.(Yonhap)The 12th round of talks come amid growing US protectionism and Chinese economic retaliations against South Korea over the ongoing deployment of an ad

The ratio of South Korea's household debt to the country's gross domestic product is much higher than the average for the group of 35 mostly rich nations, central bank data showed Thursday.The proportion of South Korea's household debt to the GDP stood at 91 percent at the end of 2015, compared with the average of 70.4 percent for the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the Bank of Korea said in a report to the parliament.(Yonhap)South Korea's household debt has been on the ri