Tuesday July 07, 2020

 

 Round-up of important news from major Korean dailies and from international media today

The Korea Post (http://www.koreapost.com/)
“Let’s consume for the sake of others and to live together!”.
President Moon Jae-in urged the Korean people on July 2 to “Let’s consume for others’ sake and live together.” Here are excerpts from the message of President Moon:
Hello. As everybody knows, exports and domestic demand are the two pillars that shore up our economy. In fact, however, neither is it a good situation. Exports have fallen sharply in April, May, and June compared to the same months last year. One silver lining is that the decreases are becoming smaller than before, and thus, we expect significant improvements in the second half.

“Korea owes much to the Colombian soldiers who helped Korea protect her freedom, democracy”
Mayor Choi Moon-soon of the Hwacheon Country of the Gangwon Province said, “Korea owes greatly to the gallant soldiers of the Colombian Battalion troops who fought bravely and gallantly in Korea, especially in our county of Hwacheon-gun.”
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KBS (http://world.kbs.co.kr/english/news/)
S. Korea Reports 44 New COVID-19 Cases
South Korea reported 44 new COVID-19 cases amid continuing clusters
of infections across the nation.
The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention(KCDC) on Tuesday announced that the national tally hit 13-thousand-181, including the new patients compiled throughout the previous day.
Of the latest cases, 24 were imported from overseas while 20 were local transmissions, marking the first time in two weeks that foreign inflow outnumbered community infections.

N. Korea: No Intention to Sit Down with US for Talks
Ahead of the U.S. nuclear envoy for North Korea Stephan Biegun's trip to Seoul, North Korea has reaffirmed it has "no intention" to sit down with the United States for dialogue.
Kwon Jong-gun, director-general of the North Korean Foreign Ministry's department of U.S. affairs, made the remark on Tuesday in a statement carried by the Korean Central News Agency(KCNA).

Britain Slaps Independent Sanctions on N. Korea
Britain on Monday imposed sanctions against two North Korean organizations for their involvement in running prison camps, the first time it has done so without working through the European Union(EU).
The BBC reported that the sanctions targeted the North's Ministry of State Security Bureau and the Ministry of People's Security Correctional Bureau.
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Yonhap (http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr)
New virus infections below 50 for 2nd day, imported cases on higher plateau
South Korea saw its daily new virus cases hover below 50 on Tuesday for the second consecutive day, but a steady rise in both locally transmitted infections and imported cases continued to put a strain on the country's efforts to contain further spread.
The country added 44 cases, including 20 local infections, raising the total caseload to 13,181, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC).

U.S. bans foreign students from staying if all classes go online
The United States will not allow foreign students to stay in the country if all of their classes are moved online for the fall semester, the federal immigration authority said Monday.
The move is expected to impact South Korean students who are currently studying or plan to study in the U.S., where many classes have gone online due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Cabinet OKs gov't motion to seek ratification of key ILO conventions
South Korea's Cabinet on Tuesday approved a government proposal to seek parliamentary ratification of key International Labor Organization (ILO) conventions as part of ongoing efforts to improve workers' rights here.
South Korea joined the ILO in 1991, but has yet to ratify four of the eight core conventions aimed at protecting workers' basic rights.
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The Korea Times (http://www.koreatimes.co.kr)
US to withdraw visas for foreign students whose classes move online
International students in the United States on student visas cannot attend a university this fall if their studies are entirely online, Immigration and Customs Enforcement said Monday.
In a statement, ICE announced that students on non-immigrant F-1 and M-1 visas who attend universities that operate entirely online amid the COVID-19 pandemic "may not take a full online course load and remain in the United States."
"The U.S. Department of State will not issue visas to students enrolled in schools and/or programs that are fully online for the fall semester, nor will the U.S. Customs and Border Protection permit these students to enter the United States," ICE said.

S. Korea reports 44 new coronavirus infectionsv
South Korea saw its daily new virus cases hover below 50 on Tuesday for the second consecutive day, but a steady rise in both locally transmitted infections and imported cases continued to put a strain on the country's efforts to contain further spread.
The country added 44 cases, including 20 local infections, raising the total caseload to 13,181, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC).

Foreign tourists to Korea stay shorter, spend less in 2019: survey
Foreign tourists to South Korea stayed shorter and spent less money in 2019 than the previous year, a government survey showed Tuesday.
International tourists stayed an average 6.7 days in South Korea last year, down 0.5 from the previous year, according to the survey of 16,000 tourist arrivals taken by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the state-run Korea Tourism Organization (KTO).
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HanKyoReh Shinmun (http://english.hani.co.kr)
Will Biegun send a message to N. Korea during his visit to Seoul?
On July 7, US Deputy Secretary of State and Special Representative for North Korea Stephen Biegun will be kicking off a visit to South Korea, where he’s likely to meet a range of key officials in the South Korean government’s foreign policy and national security team. As attention turns to what message Biegun might send the North, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) printed a statement by North Korean First Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Choe Son-hui on July 4 in which she said that the North does “not feel any need to sit face to face with the US.”

Moon overhaul of foreign policy and national security personnel will hopefully lead to breakthrough in inter-Korean relations
South Korean President Moon Jae-in’s overhaul of his foreign policy and national security teams communicates his strong commitment to improving inter-Korean relations. On July 3, Moon unexpectedly nominated former lawmaker Park Jie-won, who played an instrumental role in organizing the first inter-Korean summit, as director of the National Intelligence Service (NIS). Moon also nominated Lee In-young, a lawmaker with the ruling Democratic Party, as Minister of Unification.

Gwangju upgrades disease alert from Level 1 to Level 2
After Gwangju’s disease alert status was upgraded from Level 1 to Level 2, residents remain tense. Attendance at weddings was sparse, while Buddhist temples and churches converted on-site services and ceremonies into online ones. A total of 12 weddings were scheduled throughout the city for July 5; seven only had around 20 attendees, while the remaining five were canceled. After it’d been revealed that confirmed COVID-19 patients had been to four of the wedding halls in question, the majority of guests at those halls simply relayed their cash gifts to the newlyweds and left.

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Chosun Ilbo (http://english.chosun.com)
Highly Infectious Coronavirus Strain Takes over
A highly infectious strain of coronavirus is spreading in Korea.
The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Monday that analysis of 313 genetic sequences of 2,362 new COVID-19 cases detected here since May showed that 98.4 percent were the "GH" strain that may be up to six times more infectious than the first.
"Most of the infections reported since May, including ones traced to Itaewon clubs... were the GH strain of the virus," KCDC chief Jung Eun-kyeong said. "Many people came to Korea from Europe and the U.S. in March and April and we believe the GH strain was introduced at that time."

Factory Lockdown Delays Space Rocket Launch
A three-stage space rocket under development by Korea could be delayed by another six months from the scheduled February, 2021 launch date due to glitches in parts manufacture.
The Korea Space Launch Vehicle-2 (KSLV-2), also known as Nuri, has been under development since 2010 with a view to sending a satellite into orbit in 2021.

Korean Air to Sell Inflight Catering, Duty-Free to Investment Firm
Korean Air will sell off its inflight meal and duty-free sales operations to Korea's second-largest equity investment firm Hahn and Company.
The sale will mark the first self-rescue measure for the cash-strapped carrier amid the coronavirus epidemic.
Industry insiders on Monday said that Korean Air reached a tentative decision to sell off the operations to Hahn and will submit the plan to its board of directors on Tuesday. Industry watchers estimate the sale to generate around W1 trillion (US$1=W1,196).

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The Dong-A Ilbo (http://english.donga.com/)
Oscar-winning film composer Ennio Morricone dies at 91
Italian film composer Ennio Morricone has died at the age of 91 on Monday (local time). He passed away in a hospital in Rome after suffering a fractured femur in a bad fall.
The Oscar-winning and hugely celebrated composer was a natural musician. He learned to play the trumpet and to write songs from a young age from his trumpeter father. He wrote his first compositions at age 6. Morricone entered the prestigious National Academy of Santa Cecilia when he was 12 and completed a four-year harmonics course in half a year.

Hyundai Motor to export hydrogen trucks for the first time in the world
Hyundai Motor Company has begun the mass-production of large hydrogen trucks for the first time in the world. The South Korean company will first export to Switzerland before dominating the global eco-friendly commercial vehicle market.
Hyundai Motor Company announced that 10 Xcients, its hydrogen truck model, were shipped from the Port of Gwangyang in South Jeolla Province to Switzerland on Monday. Large hydrogen trucks have been made into prototypes or display cars before by global automobile manufacturers, but Hyundai Motor Company is the first to be equipped with a large-scale manufacturing system for commercial sales.

COVID-19 Infections among families increase in India
Houses accommodating extended families have emerged as one of the major sources of COVID-19 infections in India, according to The Washington Post (WP) on Sunday. The WP reported that COVID-19 infections among families are on the rise and many of them die at home due to the shortage of hospital beds.
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The KyungHyang Shinmun (http://english.khan.co.kr/)
Three Major Issues that Will Determine the Fate of the Government: President Moon Personally Takes the Wheel
On July 2, President Moon Jae-in summoned Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Kim Hyun-mee to Cheongwadae (Cheong Wa Dae) and received a special report on the real estate policy. The next day, the president carried out a massive reshuffle of his foreign affairs and national security advisors in Cheongwadae and the government and prepared a line-up to step up as a mediator between North Korea and the United States. Earlier, he repeatedly urged lawmakers to launch an investigative agency overseeing crimes by senior public officials on schedule, tightening his grip on institutionalizing reforms in the Prosecution Service.

Number of Roadkill Increased 50% in 4 Years: Most Likely Sacrifice, the Water Deer
The number of roadkill on national highways increased by more than 50% in the past 4 years. The most number of accidents resulting in roadkill occurred in the Chungcheong region, and water deer was the most likely to die on the road.
According to the Ministry of Environment on July 5, water deer was the animal most likely to be hit by a car. Of the 71,999 animals that ended up as roadkill, 42,748 were water deer. They were followed by cats (15,717), raccoons (5,617), and dogs (3,737).

Justice Minister Choo Exercises Right to Intervene in a Criminal Investigation, Perhaps Forcing Prosecutor General Yoon to “Voluntarily” Resign
On July 2, Minister of Justice Choo Mi-ae exercised the right to intervene in a criminal investigation, instructing Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl to stop procedures concerning the alleged collusion between a senior prosecutor and the press. The minister ordered the prosecutor general to stop a review by an expert advisory council--gathered by Yoon--on the probe into the allegation and blocked the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office from supervising the investigation team at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office overseeing the case. This is the second time that a justice minister exercised the right to intervene in an investigation of an ongoing case, following an incident in 2005.
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Maeil Business News Korea (http://www.pulsenews.co.kr/)
Samsung Elec projects surprise earnings jump of more than 20% in Q2
Samsung Electronics Co. on Tuesday projected an operating profit of 8.1 trillion won ($6.8 billion) in the second quarter, faring far better than expected with more than 20 percent growth against the previous quarter and year.
The world’s largest chip and smartphone maker, in its preliminary report for the quarter ended June, said its operating profit likely gained 22.7 percent from a year earlier and 25.6 percent from the previous three months.

Korea’s current account deficit turns to surplus in May, but halved on year
South Korea’s current account deficit reversed to a surplus in May from a month ago, though nearly halved on year amid lingering coronavirus woes.
Korea posted a current account surplus of $2.29 billion in May, according to preliminary data from the Bank of Korea (BOK) on Tuesday.
This represents a turnaround from April’s $3.33 billion deficit, when the country logged its first negative account in a year as exports took a hit from the coronavirus pandemic.

Medytox shares jump on ITC ruling against Daewoong in botulinum toxin strain dispute
Medytox Inc. on Tuesday was resurrected from a shameful defeat from the revocation of its flagship botulinum toxin products at home after the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) delivered a ruling in its favor overnight against domestic rival Daewoong Pharmaceutical Co., sending its shares to the daily ceiling.

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What’s ticking around the world at this second?
See what the world media around the world have to report:
USA Today www.usatoday.com aallman@gannett.com
The New York Times www.nytimes.com inytletters@nytimes.com
Wall Street Journal www.wsj.com support@wsj.com, service@wsj-asia.com
Financial Times www.ft.com ean@ft.com
The Times www.thetimes.co.uk help@timesplus.co.uk
The Sun www.thesun.co.uk talkback@the-sun.co.uk
Chinese People's Daily www.people.com.cn kf@people.cn
China Daily www.chinadaily.com.cn circulation@chinadaily.com.cn
GwangmyeongDaily www.gmw.cn webmaster@gmw.cn
Japan's Yomiuri www.yomiuri.co.jp japannews@yomiuri.com
Asahi www.asahi.com customer-support@asahi.com
Mainichi www.mainichi.jp
Le Monde www.ilemonde.com
Italy LaRepubblica www.quotidiano.repubblica.it vittorio.zucconi@gmail.com
Germany Frankfurter AllgemeineZeitung www.faz.net anzeigen.ausland@faz.de
SüddeutscheZeitung www.sueddeutsche.de forum@sueddeutsche.de
AustraliaBrisbaneTime www.brisbanetimes.com.au syndication@fairfaxmedia.com.au
Sydney Morning Herald www.smh.com.au
Colombia Reports http://www.colombiareports.com
BogotaFree Planet http://www.bogotafreeplanet.com bfp@bogotafreeplanet.com
El Universal https://www.eluniversal.com.mx/english
Andes https://www.redaktionstest.net/andes-info-ec/
Ecuador Times https://www.ecuadortimes.net/
The Jordan Times https://www.jordantimes.com/
LSM.lv https://www.lsm.lv//
The Baltic Times http://www.baltictimes.com, lithuania@baltictimes.com, estonia@baltictimes.com, editor@baltictimes.com
El Pais https://english.elpais.com/
Philippine Daily Inquirer https://www.inquirer.net/
Daily News Hungary https://dailynewshungary.com/
Budapest Times https://www.budapesttimes.hu/

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The Korea Post is running video clips from the different embassies.

Azerbaijan: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OR8CBpcQ4WM
Sri Lanka: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hByX92Y2aGY&t=22s
Morocco: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jfFmp2sVvSE
And many other countries.

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