Human Rights Watch and three other human rights organizations have sent a joint letter to President Moon Jae-in and the National Assembly calling for the revision of a media bill accused of undermining press freedom. The legislation calls for punitive damages up to five times more than usual if a media outlet is found guilty of running false or manipulated news reports. Critics argue that it could be used to silence critical media. The letter points out that the bill defines "false or manip

The delinquency rate for South Korean banks' won-denominated loans rose in July due to an increase in overdue corporate loans, the financial regulator said Thursday. The rate for bank loans more than 30 days overdue stood at 0.27 percent at the end of July, up from 0.25 percent the previous month, according to the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). Compared with a year earlier, the rate was down 0.09 percentage point in July. The delinquency rate for corporate loans rose 0.03 percentage poi

South Korea's public account surplus turned to deficit in 2020 as the government increased fiscal spending to cushion the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, central bank data showed Thursday. In 2020, the country's public account deficit came to 50.6 trillion won ($43.3 billion), according to preliminary data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). The deficit compared with a 14.7 trillion won surplus in 2019, when the country's public account balance continued to stay in the black for the fifth consecut

Samsung Electronics Co. said Thursday its technology conference will take place online for the first time next month amid the pandemic. The South Korean tech giant said it decided to hold the Samsung Developer Conference (SDC) on Oct. 26. The event was canceled last year due to COVID-19 concerns. The SDC, which started in 2013, is an annual event that brings thousands of developers, content creators and designers to discuss future technologies and services. Samsung has been also unveiling its

LG Uplus Corp., a major South Korean telecom operator, said Thursday it aims to increase sales from its smart factory solutions business by sevenfold within five years as part of its broader push to boost its enterprise-focused services. The telecom operator has recently been developing industrial solutions that use its 4G and 5G networks to automate workload and improve safety. The carrier said in an online briefing its smart factory solutions are currently used in 150 locations across the co

D aewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co. (DSME) said Thursday it has developed a technology to store carbon dioxide captured in ship engine emissions. The technology developed in cooperation with a local ship part supplier, HI AIR Korea Co., will help ships in operation reduce their carbon dioxide emissions to brace for environment regulations by the International Maritime Organization (IMO), DSME said. The IMO aims to cut carbon dioxide emissions from international shipping by more

South Korea's exports of fishery products rose nearly 18 percent on-year in the first eight months of 2021 amid the pandemic, data showed Thursday. Outbound shipments of fishery products reached $1.74 billion over the January-August period, compared to $1.48 billion tallied a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries. The ministry attributed the growth to more people visiting restaurants around the globe compared to the previous year, which boosted the demand for seafood

South Korea's trade ministry said Thursday it has been maintaining robust trade with Britain on the back of their free trade agreement (FTA), which was revamped earlier this year, despite London's divorce with the European Union. South Korea and Britain held their first meeting of the trade committee of goods virtually to discuss a wide array of commerce issues and follow up on the bilateral FTA, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The two countries implemented the pact i

SK Innovation Co. said Thursday it has received shareholders' approval to split off its battery unit to focus on new growth drivers. With the approval, the refinery-to-battery subsidiary under South Korea's No. 3 conglomerate, SK Group, will be split into two entities that are respectively in charge of its battery and petrochemical businesses. The new entities will be officially launched Oct. 1. SK Innovation will serve as a holding firm in charge of developing its eco-friendly business port

E-Mart24 Inc., the convenience store arm of South Korean retail giant Shinsegae, said Thursday it will open its fourth store in Malaysia late this month as part of its overseas push. The new outlet, slated to open at the end of this month, will be located in a residential-commercial district in the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur. E-Mart24 opened its third outlet in the Malaysian state of Selangor on Thursday after launching its first store in an office district in Kuala Lumpur in June this

South Korea's daily coronavirus cases fell under 2,000 on Thursday, but health authorities are keeping their guard up against potential virus flare-ups after an upcoming major holiday as infections continue to spread in the capital area. The country added 1,943 COVID-19 cases, including 1,921 local infections, raising the total caseload to 279,930, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). The latest caseload was down from 2,080 cases the previous day. Daily cases

South Korean stocks opened flat Thursday amid easing concerns about a global economic recovery. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 1.84 points, or 0.06 percent, to trade at 3,151.56 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. In Seoul, market bellwether Samsung Electronics declined 0.26 percent, with No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix losing 1.86 percent. Internet portal operator Naver added 1.5 percent, but giant pharmaceutical firm Samsung Biologics decreased 1.6 percent.

Samsung Electronics Co. said Thursday it has signed a partnership with the Louvre, the renowned art museum in Paris, to expand its art subscription service on TV amid the pandemic-driven stay-at-home trend. Under the deal, those who own Samsung's Frame TV can now see some 40 famous art pieces at the Louvre, including Leonardo Da Vinci's "Mona Lisa," through its Art Store art subscription platform. The Art Store, currently available only on the Frame TV, offers more than 1,500 art p

Tottenham Hotspur's South Korean star Son Heung-min will miss the club's continental match this week with a leg injury sustained on recent international duty. Tottenham will face the French club Stade Rennais FC in Rennes, France, on Thursday to open Group G action at the UEFA Europa Conference League. After arriving in France on Wednesday, Tottenham head coach Nuno Espirito Santo told reporters that Son didn't travel with the Premier League club. Son was one of three Tottenham players missing i

Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said Thursday that state-backed funds will extend loan maturity and rollover interest payments again for smaller firms and merchants hit hard by the pandemic. State-run agencies and funds set up to assist small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and micro business owners will extend the measures by another six months until March next year, Hong said. The move follows similar measures taken by local banks as part of efforts to support smaller companies and merchant