SEOUL– South Korean stocks traded 0.9 percent lower late Monday morning, led by a steep drop in steel and machinery stocks, as investors took to the sidelines ahead of the Federal Reserve’s policy meeting this week. The benchmark Korean Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) had dropped 21.36 points from the previous trading day to … Read more
SEOUL– K-pop girl group BLACKPINK has topped world’s largest music streaming service Spotify’s Global Top 50 chart with its latest single, “Shut Down,” for two days in a row, the group’s agency said Monday. The main track off the group’s second full-length album, “Born Pink,” bagged its second consecutive No. 1 on the global … Read more
SEOUL– Four pitchers who defied convention were added to the South Korean baseball league’s 40th anniversary team on Monday. The Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) has been unveiling four new members of its “KBO 40 Legends” team since July, as part of its commemoration of the 40th anniversary. The final four members of the team … Read more
SEOUL– Major South Korean shipyard Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering Co. (KSOE) said Monday it has bagged a 525 billion-won (US$378 million) order to build eight ships for two African shipping firms. Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries Co., a KSOE affiliate, will construct four 1,400-twenty-foot equivalent unit container vessels powered by liquefied natural gas, KSOE … Read more
SEOUL– South Korea’s new COVID-19 cases slowed to a 10-week low on Monday, showing signs of a downturn in the virus wave. The country reported 19,407 new COVID-19 infections, including 289 from overseas, bringing the total caseload to 24,413,873, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. The new daily figure is … Read more
SEOUL– Savings banks in South Korea saw their combined net profit decline 15.1 percent on-year in the first half despite increased interest income as they set aside more loan loss reserves amid heightened economic uncertainty, data showed Monday. The combined net income of 79 savings banks stood at 899.1 billion won (US$649.2 million) in … Read more
SEOUL– Hip-hop singer-songwriter Crush will release a collaborative single with BTS member J-Hope next week, the former’s agency said Monday. The song “Rush Hour” will hit music services Thursday, P Nation said in a release. Crush also unveiled part of the tune combining a funky sound and sensitive voice and teased the song’s … Read more
SEOUL– The ruling People Power Party (PPP) on Monday elected five-term lawmaker Joo Ho-young as its new floor leader. Joo beat two-term lawmaker Lee Yong-ho with 61 out of 106 votes at a general meeting of PPP lawmakers. Joo will serve as floor leader until April 2023. His election came less than … Read more