A senior Japanese diplomat stationed in Seoul returned home Wednesday, about a month after he came under fire for his remarks disparaging South Korean President Moon Jae-in's efforts to improve relations with Tokyo. Hirohisa Soma, deputy chief of mission at the Japanese Embassy in Seoul, took a flight home from Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul, earlier in the day, according to diplomatic sources. Soma has been criticized after telling a South Korean reporter during a lunch meeting

South Korea's fisheries output rose 5.2 percent on-year in the first half of this year on the back of improved production from the aquaculture sector, data showed Wednesday. The total fisheries output amounted to 2.3 million tons in the January-June period, compared with 2.2 million tons tallied a year earlier, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries. In terms of value, the output came to 4.45 trillion won ($3.86 billion), up 8.7 percent on-year. The aquaculture

More than 8 out of 10 South Koreans think colleges are too expensive and that tuition should be halved from the current level, a poll showed Wednesday. In the online poll of 1,000 people nationwide released by Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA) Korea, 83.9 percent of the respondents said college tuition is overpriced. Only 14 percent and 2.1 percent said it is reasonable or low-priced, respectively. Also, 79.7 percent said tuition costs need to be reduced, while 14 percent said it needs

Chinese Ambassador to Seoul Xing Haiming called Wednesday for concerted efforts to foster peace on the Korean Peninsula at a "complicated" juncture amid renewed inter-Korean tensions over the ongoing South Korea-US military drills. Xing made the remarks at a forum, after North Korea repeatedly bashed the South and the United States for pressing ahead with their annual drills, calling the maneuvers the "most vivid expression" of the US' hostile policy to it and warning of a &

The defense ministry reported six additional coronavirus infections Wednesday, raising the total caseload among the military population to 1,542. The infected individuals include three Army soldiers and a Marine, as well as a Seoul-based officer at the South Korea-US Combined Forces Command and a military civilian employee, according to the ministry. They were all confirmed to have contracted COVID-19 after developing symptoms or coming into contact with an individual who had tested positive.

Seoul reported 661 new COVID-19 cases Wednesday, a daily high that coincided with a record-breaking number of new infections in the country, health authorities said. Seoul added 650 local infections and 11 cases from overseas arrivals, up 24 from the previous record high of 637 on July 13. The country as a whole posted 2,223 new cases, the highest number since the pandemic began, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency. Seoul and the surrounding area have been under the s

South Korean budget carrier Air Premia Co. has begun services on the Gimpo-Jeju route to meet travel demand amid the extended COVID-19 pandemic, the company said Wednesday. Last month, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport issued an air operator certificate to Air Premia to allow the carrier to use aircraft for commercial purposes. On Wednesday, Air Premia started daily flights connecting Gimpo to the country's southern resort island of Jeju with the 309-seat B787-9 passenger jet,

South Korea plans to spend 37.5 billion won ($32.6 million) next year to purchase domestic drones for the military as part of efforts to help the local industry have stable demand for growth, the defense ministry said Wednesday. The budget is more than sixfold the amount allocated for this year, which stood at 6.2 billion won, according to the ministry. The plan was unveiled at a committee meeting to discuss the development of the local defense industry in Seoul, jointly headed by Defense Mini

North Korea has allowed foreigners to visit 22 more facilities in Pyongyang, Russia's Embassy in Pyongyang said, in an apparent move to ease coronavirus-prompted restrictions for access to public areas. On its Facebook page, the embassy said it has received a notice from the Protocol Department of the North's foreign ministry, saying that 22 facilities were added to the list of 299 cultural, sports, entertainment facilities and retail outlets in Pyongyang that foreigners can visit. Among them

North Korea did not answer South Korea's phone calls via liaison and military hotlines for the second consecutive day Wednesday, officials said, as Pyongyang is ramping up criticism against the South for going ahead with its summertime exercise with the United States. The calls via the inter-Korean liaison office and military communication channels in the eastern and western border regions went unanswered at 9 a.m., after the North began to shun their regular calls from Tuesday afternoon, accor

South Korea's exports rose 46.4 percent on-year in the first 10 days of August on the back of robust demand for chips and petroleum products, customs data showed Wednesday. The country's outbound shipments stood at $12.7 billion in the Aug. 1-10 period, compared with $8.69 billion a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service. Imports jumped 63.1 percent on-year to $17.4 billion, resulting in a trade deficit of $4.69 billion during the cited period, the data showed. By

South Korea reported job additions for the fifth straight month in July, but the growth pace slowed as employment in face-to-face service segments was hit hard by the fourth wave of the pandemic, data showed Wednesday. The number of employed people reached 27.65 million last month, 542,000 more than a year earlier, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. The July additions were lower than an on-year increase of 582,000 the previous month. Amid an economic recovery, the country has

North Korea on Wednesday slammed South Korea and the United States again for going ahead with its joint military exercise, warning it will make the allies feel a serious security crisis every minute. Kim Yong-chol, head of the North's United Front Department handling inter-Korean affairs, made the remarks in a statement carried by the official Korean Central News Agency, saying the South Korean authorities have defied the opportunity to make a turn in relations. The denouncement comes just a d

WASHINGTON -- The United States holds no hostile intent toward North Korea, a State Department spokesman said Tuesday, in reaction to a statement by North Korea denouncing the US and South Korea over their joint military exercises. The spokesman, Ned Price, said he had no comment on the statement issued by North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's sister, Kim Yo-jong, but insisted that the joint military drills are purely defensive in nature. "First, let me reiterate that the joint military exerc

South Korean stocks opened lower Wednesday as a spike in new coronavirus cases weighed on investor sentiment. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) fell 7.24 points, or 0.22 percent, to 3,235.95 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Stocks got off to a weak start as South Korea reported a record number of daily coronavirus cases above 2,200, stoking concerns of a growing nationwide outbreak despite toughened restrictions. Market bellwether Samsung Electronics fell 0.87