South Korean manufacturers' business confidence fell for the fifth consecutive month in August due to the economic fallout from the prolonged virus pandemic, a poll showed Monday. The country's professional survey index (PSI) for the manufacturing sector's business conditions came to 109 this month, down from 114 in July, according to the poll carried out by the Korea Institute for Industrial Economics & Trade (KIET). A PSI reading above 100 means optimists outnumber pessimists. The survey

North Korea's official newspaper called Monday for putting socialist ideology ahead of anything else, stressing that ideologically arming people should be the basis for moving science and technology and other areas forward. The Rodong Sinmun, the official newspaper of the North's ruling party, made the appeal in an editorial, saying that emphasizing the economy while being negligent in ideological education will only result in the collapse of the foundation of socialism. "We must maintain

The ASEAN-sponsored economic research agency on Monday raised its 2021 growth forecast for the South Korean economy to 3.9 percent, citing solid recovery in exports and facility investment. The projection by the ASEAN+3 Macroeconomic Research Office (AMRO) marks an increase from its March estimate of 3.2 percent. The agency forecast Asia's fourth-largest economy would expand 3 percent next year. The Singapore-based organization was established in 2011 to promote macroeconomic and financial sta

Tottenham Hotspur's South Korean star Son Heung-min was selected to the national team Monday ahead of two World Cup qualifying matches despite whispers of a possible injury. Head coach Paulo Bento picked the longtime national team captain, along with 25 other players for World Cup qualifiers against Iraq and Lebanon at home next month. South Korea will first host Iraq at 8 p.m. on Sept. 2 at Seoul World Cup Stadium in the nation's capital. Then on Sept. 7, South Korea will face Lebanon at 8 p.

The South Korean action thriller "Hostage: Missing Celebrity" topped the local weekend box office in its first week of release, data showed Monday. The movie about the kidnapping of star Hwang Jung-min garnered a combined 454,000 ticket sales over the Friday to Saturday period, bringing its combined total to over 638,000 since its release last Wednesday, according to data from the Korean Film Council. The disaster comedy film "Sinkhole" dropped to second place with 326,000

South Korea's daily new coronavirus fell below 1,500 on Monday due to fewer tests over the weekend, as health authorities extended the toughest virus curbs for another two weeks to battle the worst wave of the pandemic. The country added 1,418 more COVID-19 cases, including 1,370 local infections, raising the total caseload to 237,782, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). Monday's tally was down from 2,052 on Friday, 1,880 on Saturday and 1,628 on Sunday. But t

South Korean stocks opened higher Monday, helped by robust economic data that fueled optimism for a quick economic rebound from the pandemic. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) rose 19.61 points, or 0.64 percent, to 3,080.12 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Stocks got off to a bullish start as South Korea's exports jumped 40.9 percent on-year in the first 20 days of August on high demand for chips, autos and petroleum goods. Top cap Samsung Electronics added 0.6

Samsung Heavy Industries Co. said Monday it has signed a 461 billion won ($392 million) order to construct two liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers. Under the deal with an Oceanian shipper, Samsung Heavy will deliver the vessels by September 2024, the shipbuilder said. With the latest order, the shipbuilder has attained 78 percent of its annual order target of $9.1 billion won, winning orders for 54 ships worth $7.1 billion won. The shipbuilder narrowed its net loss in the second quarter from

South Korea's exports jumped 40.9 percent on-year in the first 20 days of August on the back of robust demand for chips, autos and petroleum products, customs data showed Monday. The country's outbound shipments stood at $32.2 billion in the Aug. 1-20 period, compared with $22.9 billion a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service. Imports soared 52.1 percent on-year to $35.8 billion, resulting in a trade deficit of $3.5 billion during the cited period, the data showed.

The southern coastal region is forecast to be hit by heavy downpours and strong winds Monday, as Typhoon Omais is projected to make landfall there later at night, the national weather agency said. The typhoon was located at some 500 kilometers southwest off Jeju as of 9 a.m. and advancing slowly toward the Korean Peninsula at 31 kph, the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) said. It is projected to pass the southern resort island of Jeju at night and be downgraded to an extratropical cycl

North Korea has developed real-time PCR (polymerase chain reaction) coronavirus testing equipment on its own, state media said Monday, as the country continues to fight against the global pandemic. Scientists and workers at the 111 Factory in Pyongyang have developed the equipment, which meets global standards, for the first time in the country, the Rodong Sinmun, the organ of the North's ruling Workers' Party, said. Many countries currently use PCR as a standard test for COVID-19 that works b

File this under "something you don't see very often in sports." South Korean golfers have been shut out at LPGA majors this year, the first time that's happened since 2010. Kim Sei-young ended the AIG Women's Open at Carnoustie Golf Links in Scotland in a tie for 13th on Sunday (local time). She was tied for eighth after 54 holes at six-under par but finished her tournament at the same score after an up-and-down 72 in the final round. The country has been a dominant force in women's

Kim Sei-young finished tied for 13th at the final major tournament of the 2021 LPGA season in Scotland, leaving South Korea without a major champion for the first time in 11 years. Kim shot an even-par round of 72 at the AIG Women's Open at Carnoustie Golf Links in Carnoustie, Scotland, on Sunday (local time). With a four-round total of six-under 282, Kim ended in 13th place with six others. Anna Nordqvist of Sweden won the championship at 12-under 276. Kim started the final round at six-under

South Korea and the United States on Monday discussed humanitarian aid to North Korea, the US nuclear envoy said after talks with his counterpart in Seoul amid heightened tensions over Pyongyang's angry protest against military exercises between the South and the US Amb. Sung Kim also said the US does not have a hostile intent to the North, stressing that the ongoing South Korea-US military exercise is "purely defensive" in nature and renewing his offer to "meet with my North Kore

Figure skaters Hannah Lim and Quan Ye have become the first ice dancing duo representing South Korea to win a medal at an International Skating Union (ISU) Grand Prix event. Lim and Quan finished third in the first leg of the ISU Junior Grand Prix season in Courchevel, France, on Saturday (local time). They scored 89.05 points in free dance Saturday, after earning 55.22 points in rhythm dance the previous day. With a combined 144.27 points, Lim and Quan earned the bronze medal behind Katarina Wo