SEOUL– President Moon Jae-in’s approval rating fell to a near record low, while that of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) rose to a new high after the PPP nominated a former top prosecutor as its presidential candidate, a poll showed Monday. Moon’s rating dropped to 34.2 percent, down 4.5 percentage points from … Read more
SEOUL– South Korea’s national debt ratio is expected to gain at the fastest clip among 35 advanced nations over the next five years despite its high financial soundness, an International Monetary Fund (IMF) report said Monday. Seoul’s ratio of national debt to its gross domestic product (GDP) is likely to reach 66.7 percent in … Read more
SEOUL– Marvel’s “Eternals” easily topped the South Korean box office over the weekend, pushing director Denis Villeneuve’s sci-fi epic “Dune” to a distant second, data showed Monday. “Eternals” drew an attendance of 1.138 million from Friday to Sunday, accounting for 82.4 percent of the period’s total ticket sales at local theaters, according to the … Read more
SEOUL– A total of 2,844 people were caught drunk driving in the first full week last week since the country eased virus curbs to gradually return to normalcy under its “living with COVID-19” scheme, police said Monday. Of them, 514 were caught Saturday, 427 on Friday and 417 on Sunday, and total of 2,091 … Read more
SEOUL– Asiana Airlines Inc., South Korea’s second-biggest airline, said Monday it will increase the number of flights to Singapore starting this month as the two countries recently signed a travel bubble agreement. A travel bubble refers to a quarantine-free travel partnership between two or more cities or countries with similar levels of COVID-19 cases. … Read more
SEOUL– Two old rivals in South Korean baseball will reacquaint themselves with each other in the penultimate stage of the postseason starting Tuesday. The Samsung Lions will host the Doosan Bears in Game 1 of the best-of-three second round at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at Daegu Samsung Lions Park in Daegu, some 300 kilometers southeast … Read more
SEOUL– South Korea’s military reported three additional COVID-19 cases Monday, bringing the total caseload among its personnel to 2,081, the defense ministry said. A Navy officer stationed in Jinhae, 410 kilometers south of Seoul, tested positive before participating in an educational program. A civilian worker of a unit under the direct wing of … Read more
SEOUL– Major South Korean brokerage house Meritz Securities Co. said Monday its third-quarter earnings rose nearly 18 percent from a year ago on increased fee income. Net profit stood at 191.2 billion won (US$161.3 million) in the July-September period, up 17.7 percent from a year earlier, the company said in a regulatory filing. … Read more