North Korea's official newspaper on Thursday ran detailed reports about recent spikes in coronavirus infections in South Korea. In an article with a headline mentioning South Korea's coronavirus conditions, a rarity, the Rodong Sinmun provided information on the latest COVID-19 confirmed cases in the South. "Reports show that a huge stir is being caused as the number of new coronavirus infections in South Korea has spiked," the paper said, mentioning the number of confirmed cases h

South Korea's chief nuclear negotiator, Noh Kyu-duk, spoke by phone with his US counterpart, Sung Kim, on Thursday and discussed efforts to advance the peace process on the Korean Peninsula, the foreign ministry said. During the phone call, Noh and Kim discussed how to work together to swiftly implement agreements reached between President Moon Jae-in and US President Joe Biden at their May 21 summit and to make substantive progress in efforts to realize complete denuclearization on the penins

Ham Sang-wook, deputy foreign minister for multilateral affairs, has met top officials of the Democratic Republic of the Congo to discuss bilateral ties and exchanges during his trip to the country, the foreign ministry said Thursday. Ham paid courtesy calls on President Felix Tshisekedi and Foreign Minister Christophe Lutundula Apala Pen'Apala during his trip to Kinshasa from Monday through Thursday -- the first such visit by a senior Seoul official since the peaceful transfer of power in DR C

Singers Kim Hee-chul and Momo have separated, roughly 1 1/2 years after acknowledging their romantic relationship, their agencies confirmed Thursday. SJ Label, which manages Super Junior, and JYP Entertainment, which represents TWICE, confirmed the couple has broken up without providing further details. The two celebrities, who are respective members of popular K-pop acts Super Junior and TWICE, were rumored to be dating since 2019. They acknowledged their relationship in January last year. T

The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld rulings for three former National Intelligence Service (NIS) chiefs convicted of providing illegal funds to the office of then President Park Geun-hye. The three chiefs -- Nam Jae-joon, Lee Byung-kee and Lee Byong-ho -- were indicted on charges of sending 3.5 billion won ($3.1 million) from the agency's special activities funds to Cheong Wa Dae on a monthly basis while in office. The top court confirmed the rulings handed down to them in a retrial in Januar

Excess funds held by South Korean households and nonprofit agencies fell in the first quarter from a year earlier as banks tightened lending rules, the central bank said Thursday. Net financial funds -- the value of financial assets minus financial liabilities -- held by local households and nonprofit organizations serving households amounted to 44 trillion won ($38.5 billion) in the first quarter, down from 65.9 trillion won a year earlier, according to preliminary data from the Bank of Korea

Eight more newly enlisted soldiers have tested positive for the new coronavirus, bringing the total of recent infections at an Army boot camp to 61, the defense ministry said Thursday, as South Korea braces for another wave of infections. The conscripts at the Korea Army Training Center in the central city of Nonsan were confirmed to have contracted COVID-19 after 53 others were found to be infected the previous day, according to the ministry. "We are trying to confirm the source and rout

The remains of a public toilet with an advanced purification facility, presumed to be built about 150 years ago, were discovered at a Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910) palace in Seoul, a government agency said Thursday. The toilet ruins, which have the form of a rectangular stone pit measuring 10.4 meters in length, 1.4 meters in width and 1.8 meters in height, were uncovered at Gyeongbok Palace in the heart of the capital, according to the Ganghwa National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage. Th

BTS and Tomorrow X Together (TXT) -- both managed by K-pop powerhouse Big Hit Music -- have simultaneously landed on Billboard's Pop Airplay chart with their all-English tracks. BTS ranked No. 11 with "Butter" on the latest version of the radio chart, which reflects weekly data from around 160 U.S. radio stations. The chart, which counts the top 40 songs, is seen as a gauge of local popularity. The upbeat summer number, which has topped Billboard's main singles chart for the sixth st

The number of video content evaluated by the local media rating authority increased more than 80 percent in the first half of this year from a year ago amid the protracted novel coronavirus pandemic, data showed Thursday. The Korea Media Rating Board (KMRB) reviewed 6,784 shows for online streaming platforms and video-on-demand services in the first six months of 2021, up 81.3 percent from the same period last year, according to the data by the KMRB. A total of 1,674 films were evaluated by th

South Korea's tax revenue increased 10.8 trillion won ($9.5 billion) in May from a year earlier amid an accelerating economic recovery and a boom in property and stock markets, the finance ministry said Thursday. The country collected 28.4 trillion won in taxes in May, compared with 17.6 trillion won the previous year, according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance. The government said capital gains tax income rose amid a boom in asset markets and corporate tax income also extended gains. I

South Korea reported the highest daily COVID-19 cases since the pandemic hit the nation early last year on Thursday as the country braces for another wave of the pandemic, prompting authorities to consider imposing tougher virus curbs. The country recorded 1,275 more COVID-19 cases, including 1,227 local infections, raising the total caseload to 164,028, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. It marked the highest number since Jan. 20 last year, when the nation reported i

South Korean stocks opened higher Thursday as the US Federal Reserve's minutes signaled that the world's largest economy would not hurry its timeframe for tapering its asset purchasing program. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) rose 7.43 points, or 0.23 percent, to trade at 3,292.77 points as of 9:15 a.m. Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 0.3 percent, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite and the S&P 500 adding 0.01 percent and 0.34 percent, respecti

Marvel Studios' latest superhero movie "Black Widow" made a bullish start in South Korea, topping the local box office on the day of its release, data showed Thursday. The film attracted 195,000 moviegoers on Wednesday, far outnumbering runner-up "Hard Hit" with 20,000 and No. 3 "Cruella" with 15,000, according to the data from the Korean Film Council. Considering the fact that "Black Widow" hit local screens at 5 p.m., its opening score lived up to mark

Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors have become the first South Korean team to secure a knockout spot at the top continental club football tournament. Jeonbuk defeated Chiangrai United 3-1 in their Group H match at the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League at Lokomotiv Stadium in Tashkent on Wednesday (local time). Jeonbuk improved to 13 points on four wins and a draw to secure the top spot in the group with one match remaining against Gamba Osaka on Saturday. The AFC Champions League expand