Most highways and roads remained clogged with heavy traffic early Wednesday, as people were traveling back to Seoul on the last day of the Chuseok holiday. Major highways, running through the central part and along the western coast of the country, were jammed with vehicles, with the road congestion likely to peak at about 4-5 p.m., according to Korea Expressway Corp. As of 9 a.m., the estimated travel time to Seoul was 5 hours and 20 minutes from the southern port city of Busan, about 4 hours

Hyundai Motor Co. and its affiliate Kia Corp.'s environment friendly vehicle sales in the United States more than doubled in August compared with a year ago, led by solid demand for their hybrid sport utility vehicles, industry data showed Wednesday. Hyundai and Kia sold a combined 8,312 eco-friendly cars in the US in August, a 124.4 percent jump from a year earlier, according to their data. Hyundai's eco-friendly car sales soared 245.4 percent on-year to 5,817 units in August, far surpassing

South Korea is planning to spend about 23.2 billion won ($19.5 million) in next year's official development assistance (ODA) projects for war-torn Afghanistan, a document showed Wednesday. The Office for Government Policy Coordination under the Prime Minister's Office said in the document submitted to Rep. Tae Young-ho of the main opposition People Power Party that its committee handling the development aid has reached the decision on the 2022 ODA budget for Kabul, according to Tae's office.

South Korea's airlines have drastically reduced their aircraft fleets over the past two years as demand for air travel dried up due to the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic, industry data showed Wednesday. The total number of aircraft operated by the nation's 10 carriers currently stands at 372, down from 414 in 2019, according to the data compiled by the transport ministry. Korean Air Lines Co., the country's leading full-service carrier, operates 159 planes, down from 170 in 2019, and its smalle

INCHEON -- South Korea has imported twice as many cats and dogs this year compared with two years ago as people spend more time at home amid the protracted COVID-19 pandemic, customs data showed Wednesday. According to the data by the regional customs office in Incheon, a main gateway for trade located about 40 kilometers west of Seoul, the number of cats and dogs brought in to the country via air carriers reached 10,241 in the January-August period this year, including 7,961 canines and 2,280

NEW YORK -- South Korea's first lady Kim Jung-sook met with young Korean Americans working in art and culture fields in New York on Tuesday (local time) to discuss the future of Korean popular culture. The meeting took place at Korean Culture Center New York while she was visiting the city this week with President Moon Jae-in, who attended the UN General Assembly. Brian Jon, the founder of the Asian American Youth Council (AAYC) who is known for his campaign that led to the first designation

South Korea's daily coronavirus cases stayed in the 1,700s for the second consecutive day on Wednesday despite fewer tests during an extended Chuseok holiday, raising concerns over a spike in new infections across the nation after the holiday. The country reported 1,720 new COVID-19 cases, including 1,703 local infections, raising the total caseload to 290,983, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). The latest caseload was slightly down from 1,729 on Tuesday, but

US President Joe Biden said Tuesday that his country seeks to completely denuclearize the Korean Peninsula through diplomacy. The US president made the remark shortly after he said the US will return to full compliance of the nuclear deal with Iran should the Middle Eastern country chooses to do so. "Similarly, we seek serious and sustained diplomacy to pursue the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula," Biden said while delivering his first in-person remarks at the U.N. G

Cytiva, a US producer of vaccine materials, has decided to invest $52.5 million in South Korea for two years beginning next year, Cheong Wa Dae said Tuesday. The announcement came at a ceremony in New York, attended by President Moon Jae-in, on partnerships between South Korea and the US, it added. Cytiva, which provides technologies to advance the development and manufacturing of therapeutics, has already submitted a report to South Korea's Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy for its plan

NEW YORK -- South Korean President Moon Jae-in suggested once again in his United Nations speech Tuesday that the two Koreas and the United States, probably joined by China, declare a formal end to the 1950-53 Korean War. "I propose that three parties of the two Koreas and the US, or four parties of the two Koreas, the US and China come together and declare that the War on the Korean Peninsula is over," he said, addressing the 76th session of the UN General Assembly here. "When

　South Korean superband BTS addressed the U.N. General Assembly Monday and praised the world‘s young people for welcoming the challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic. 　The septet flew to New York to speak in person at the 76th U.N. 　General Assembly’s Sustainable Development Goals Moment event as special presidential envoys for future generations and culture. 　  Following a speech by President Moon Jae-in, the K-pop act took the podium at the U.N. General Assembly Hal

The leaders of South Korea and Britain had discussions Monday on setting up a bilateral COVID-19 vaccine swap during their summit talks here, Cheong Wa Dae said. 　Prime Minister Boris Johnson welcomed progress in consultations on the issue. President Moon Jae-in also said it demonstrates friendly ties between the two sides, as they met each other on the sidelines of a U.N. General Assembly session, according to Cheong Wa Dae spokesperson Park Kyung-mee. 　The president expressed hope that the

South Korea‘s daily coronavirus cases increased to over 1,700 on Tuesday despite fewer tests over the weekend, adding to woes that infections could further increase after the Chuseok holiday in the wider capital area. 　The country reported an additional 1,729 COVID-19 cases, including 1,697 local infections, raising the total caseload to 289,263, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). 　It was the third straight day the daily caseload fell under 2,000, but t

A 2.2 magnitude earthquake struck southwestern South Korea early Monday, but no damage was reported, the weather agency said. The quake hit some 20 kilometers northeast of Boseong County in South Jeolla Province, some 395 kilometers from Seoul, at 6:58 a.m. from a depth of 8 km, according to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA). The epicenter was located at a latitude of 34.88 degrees north and a longitude of 127.25 degrees east. The maximum seismic intensity scale was 3, which means

South Korea's daily coronavirus cases fell to around 1,600 on Monday due to fewer tests over the weekend, but concerns have grown further over a surge in infections after the Chuseok holiday amid the fast spread of the virus in the greater Seoul area, officials said. The country reported an additional 1,605 COVID-19 cases, including 1,577 local infections, raising the total caseload to 287,536, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). It was the second straight day