Slightly more than half of all South Koreans do not support the idea of postponing the regular joint summertime military drills between Seoul and Washington, a poll showed Monday. In the poll of 500 people aged 18 and older nationwide conducted by Realmeter last Friday, 50.4 percent of the respondents said they do not agree with calls for delaying the allied military drills. Meanwhile, 45.3 percent said they do. Talk of delaying or scaling down the annual joint military exercise set to take pl

Video game developer Krafton Inc. is slated to debut on the country's stock market this week, marking one of the largest initial public offering (IPO) events this year. The developer behind the global hit "PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds" (PUBG) will go public on the main bourse Tuesday, with its offering price set at 498,000 won ($433.99). The firm is valued at 24.35 trillion won based on the offering price, set to become the No. 1 gaming stock here, dethroning the current top cap NCS

Heavy rains brought by tropical storm Lupit led to flooding in parts of Gangwon Province along the east coast and in the southeastern port city of Busan, authorities said Monday. The eastern coastal city of Sokcho, 213 kilometers northeast of Seoul, received 67.5 millimeters of rain per hour on Sunday afternoon, according to the Gangwon provincial government. Flooding was reported at 26 houses, seven shops and one road, with the city government planning to carry out on-site inspections Monday

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases fell back to below 1,500 on Monday on fewer tests over the weekend as the country has extended its highest virus rules for another two weeks due to relentless spread of the virus. The country added 1,492 COVID-19 cases, including 1,455 local infections, raising the total caseload to 212,448, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). The latest caseload was down 237 from 1,729 the previous day, falling below the 1,700s for the

SEJONG -- Payments made with cards in South Korea expanded 7 percent in July from a year earlier despite a resurgence of coronavirus infections, a report showed Monday. Spending made with credit, debit and prepaid cards issued by major card firm Shinhan Card Co. stood at 14.1 trillion won ($12.3 billion) in July, up from 13.1 trillion won a year earlier, according to the report from the office of Rep. Park Kwang-on of the ruling Democratic Party. It was up 11.4 percent from the same month in 2

South Korean stocks opened lower Monday as an estimate-beating improvement in US jobs data increased concerns about an early tapering. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) fell 15.98 points, or 0.49 percent, to 3,254.38 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Investor sentiment weakened as US jobs data in July logged a steeper hike than the market consensus, fueling investor worries that the US Fed may pivot from its dovish stance and consider accelerating its timeline fo

Former President Chun Doo-hwan left for the southwestern city of Gwangju on Monday to attend an appellate court hearing on a defamation case after having failed to show up twice. The 90-year-old Chun, who served as president from 1980 to 1988, departed from his home in western Seoul at 8:25 a.m. to attend his hearing at the Gwangju District Court's appellate division in Gwangju, about 330 kilometers to the south, in the afternoon. He came out of his house in a gray suit, accompanied by his wif

A five-story building in the southwestern city of Gwangju collapsed during a demolition process due to improper excavation procedures that added excessive weight near the bottom, the transport ministry said Monday. The building collapsed on June 9 and fell onto a bus that was stopped at a bus stop near the construction site, leaving nine people dead and eight others seriously injured. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said the demolition team didn't abide by the excavation wor

South Korea's newly appointed Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo said Monday he will make efforts to promote multilateralism in global trade and cope with the looming protectionism by expanding the country's free trade network. "We plan to play a leading role in establishing a new multilateral economic-trade regime in the Asia-Pacific region, which will emerge as the key pillar of the global economy in the future," Yeo said in his inauguration speech. In line with such efforts, Yeo added the

TOKYO -- It was nearly six decades ago in Tokyo that Choi Kui-sung became the first South Korean modern pentathlete to participate in the Olympic Games. Now in 2021, the country finally has an Olympic medalist in the sport, as Jun Woong-tae captured the historic bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics on Saturday. History has come full circle, and Choi, now 80, couldn't be prouder. "Not just anyone can win an Olympic medal. (Jun) has done such a wonderful job and I am proud of him," Choi

TOKYO -- Over the past decade or so, South Korean middle blocker Yang Hyo-jin has had a front row seat watching her longtime national teammate, Kim Yeon-koung, evolve from a 20-something prospect to one of the world's best volleyball players. After Kim, 33, announced her retirement from international play Sunday, in the aftermath of South Korea's loss to Serbia in the bronze medal match at the Tokyo Olympics, Yang reflected on what Kim has meant to her and to volleyball in South Korea. "I

The Olympic flame that has been burning for the past two weeks in Tokyo was extinguished Sunday, closing the first Summer Games held during the global coronavirus pandemic with a celebration of great athletic feats. That the Tokyo Olympics even happened, albeit one year later than scheduled, is an accomplishment in and of itself. The buildup to the multisport competition was met with skepticism from both home and abroad, with many wondering if it was feasible to bring over 11,000 athletes fro

The South Korean military reported four additional COVID-19 cases, the defense ministry said Sunday, bringing the total caseload among its personnel to 1,533. Two new conscripts at an Army boot camp in Paju, 30 kilometers north of Seoul, tested positive, in addition to two Army officers based in Busan and North Chungcheong Province's Okcheon County, respectively. The two conscripts showed symptoms of COVID-19 after coming in contact with a person with COVID-19 in the same Army unit. A total of

TOKYO -- South Korea has concluded the Tokyo Olympics with six gold, four silver and 10 bronze medals. The country didn't pick up any medal Sunday, the final day of competitions. The women's volleyball team had South Korea's last opportunity for a medal but lost to Serbia in the bronze medal match by 3-0 (25-18, 25-15, 25-15) at Ariake Arena in Tokyo. Ranked 12th in the world and not considered a medal threat, South Korea made a valiant run to the semifinals here. With captain Kim Yeon-koung l

Tropical storm Lupit is approaching the East Sea near South Korea and is forecast to pour heavy rains on the country's east coast, the weather agency said Sunday. Around midnight, Lupit is predicted to land on Japan's Kyushu before presumably passing further northward between the South Korean side of the East Sea and the northern coast of Japan the next morning, the Korea Meteorological Administration said. As of 11 a.m., Lupit's central pressure stood at 992 hectopascals, and it is estimated