The defense ministry said Monday it will look into 21 officials over suspected real estate speculation amid public fury in the wake of massive speculation cases involving employees of the state land developing firm. The ministry has been looking into thousands of employees since late March after some of its officials were suspected of exploiting undisclosed information related to the relocation or development plans of military bases for their personal real estate transactions. After looking i

South Korean manufacturers' domestic supply rose for the first time in a year in the first quarter of 2021 as the country's economy is on a recovery track on robust exports, data showed Monday. The manufacturing domestic supply index stood at 105.6 in the January-March period, up 3.3 percent from a year earlier, according to the data from Statistics Korea. The index, which measures both locally produced goods and imports, serves as a major indicator of domestic demand trends. The quarterly in

Construction equipment maker Doosan Infracore said Monday that it has rolled out a prototype of battery packs for construction equipment and agriculture machinery. The battery packs comprised of battery modules, battery management systems and cooling systems will enable Doosan Infracore to release 1.7-ton electric excavators by early next year, the company said. Doosan Infracore said it aims to post 500 billion won ($448 million) in sales of its battery packs in 2030. The battery packs could

President Moon Jae-in's approval rating has seen a slight rebound from last week's record-low figure according to a poll released Monday, the fourth anniversary of his inauguration. In a four-day weekday poll by Realmeter on 2,015 voters nationwide conducted last week except on the Children's Day holiday, Moon gained support from 36 percent of respondents, up 3 percentage points from the all-time low of 33 percent recorded the previous week. Moon's disapproval rating fell 2.3 percentage point

President Moon Jae-in on Monday agreed to modify some of his real estate policies, calling them a main reason for voters' "severe punishment" for his party in recent local by-elections. "(My government) has failed to achieve the aim of stabilizing property prices and (the party) received a severe punishment for that," Moon said during a press conference at Cheong Wa Dae held to mark the fourth anniversary of his inauguration. He picked the real estate problem when asked by

South Korea is seeking to develop an advanced robot to conduct surveillance missions in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) and other risky regions, the arms procurement agency said Monday. The Defense Acquisition Administration (DAPA) began receiving applications from companies and research institutes for advanced technologies and ideas to build a small surveillance robot, agency officials said. The new platform will be designed to be capable of conducting surveillance missions in areas where troops

A South Korean panel of experts said Monday that the vaccine for the novel coronavirus by US pharmaceutical company Moderna Inc. showed more than a 94 percent efficacy rate and is eligible for use. The advisory board consisting of outside experts announced its review on the efficacy and safety of the Moderna vaccine, according to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. The panel's review is the first step of three separate independent evaluations before the ministry gives final approval. The p

Two more Army soldiers have tested positive for the new coronavirus, raising the total caseload reported among the military population to 837, the defense ministry said Monday. A soldier based in the central city of Sejong was confirmed to have contracted COVID-19 after virus cases were reported at his unit, while another soldier in Dongducheon, north of Seoul, was found to be infected after coming into contact with a civilian patient while away from his base, according to the ministry. As of

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases rose by the smallest number in a week on Monday due to fewer tests over the weekend, but health authorities remained worried over a potential spike amid spreading variant cases. The country reported 463 more COVID-19 cases, including 436 local infections, raising the total caseload to 127,772, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. Monday's figure fell from 564 Sunday and 701 Saturday as fewer people took virus tests over the week

South Korean pharmaceutical giant Celltrion Inc. has begun the global supply of its COVID-19 antibody treatment starting with Pakistan, according to the company's affiliate on Monday. Celltrion Healthcare, which handles Celltrion's overseas business, said it has signed a contract with a Pakistan state-run company to export 100,000 tablets of Rekirona, which is enough for 30,000 people. "Talks are also currently under way to export Rekirona to other countries in Europe and South America, a

South Korean stocks opened higher Monday on strong advances by bio and chemical shares. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 23.87 points, or 0.75 percent, to 3,221.07 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. The KOSPI got off to a solid start after increasing in the past three sessions. Investor sentiment remained high despite increased valuation pressure as disappointing US jobs data eased concerns about earlier-than-expected inflation. Top cap Samsung Electronics

South Korean cities from Suwon to Busan are lining up to host a possible new museum for late Samsung Chairman Lee Kun-hee's vast art collection, with many claiming to be the ideal spot because of their special ties to the Lee family. Samsung and the culture ministry announced April 28 that Lee's family would donate some 23,000 pieces from his art collection, including masterpieces by Korean and Western artists, such as Kim Whan-ki, Claude Monet and Salvador Dali. Lee died in October. The Natio

SK IE Technology Co. (SKIET), a battery materials subsidiary of refinery and battery firm SK Innovation Co., is slated to debut on South Korea's main stock market Tuesday, with its post-debut price movement a focal point. Mirroring huge investor interest, SKIET drew a record 80.9 trillion won ($72.2 billion) in deposits from retail investors during the two-day subscription period that ended on April 29. The amount surpassed the previous record set by SK Bioscience Co., which drew 63.6 trillion

South Korea's antitrust regulator is reviewing punitive actions against the country's leading shipper, HMM Co., and other local shipping lines over suspected price fixing, industry sources said Monday. The Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) informed them that it has completed its probe into allegations that HMM and others colluded to fix higher freight rates for a Southeast Asian sea route, according to the sources. Since December 2018, the KFTC has been investigating the suspected price fixin

South Korea's minor bourse saw its turnover recently plunge below the 10 trillion-won ($8.98 billion) mark following a partial resumption of short selling, data showed Monday. The daily turnover of the tech-heavy KOSDAQ market averaged about 8.8 trillion won over the last five sessions, far lower than the April figure of the 12 trillion-won range, according to the data from the Korea Exchange. The daily turnover began to dwindle on April 30, one day before the country's financial regulator all