Monday August 10, 2020
Round-up of important news from major Korean dailies and from international media today
The Korea Post (http://www.koreapost.com/)
“We promote religious, cultural exchanges with many countries, including Japan, China”
Ven. Youngsan Hongpa, chief abbot of the Myogak-sa Buddhist Temple in Seungin-dong near the East Gate in Seoul, said, “We are making substantial efforts to promote the Buddhist and cultural exchanges between Korea and many countries of the world, especially with Japan and China.”
At a recent interview with The Korea Post media, publisher of 3 English and 2 Korean-language media outlets since 1985, Ven. Hongpa then said, “We had a special tripartite Buddhist program this year among Korea, China and Japan this year, but we had to postpone it to some other appropriate time due to the continuous spreading COVID-19 contagious disease.
The Korean Buddhist Gwaneum Order, of which Ven. Hongpa is the leader as chief abbot, ranks among the fourth or fifth largest among all Korean Buddhist orders, with the Chogye Order leading the Buddhist world in Korea with a 40 to 50 percent share.
“Korea’s spectacular development is for Côte d'Ivoire a model to emulate”
“Côte d'Ivoire was the first African country to establish diplomatic relations with the Republic of Korea (south) on July 23, 1961, and since that date, the two countries have continued to maintain relations of sincere friendship and frank cooperation.” So said Ambassador Sylvestre Kouassi Bile of the Republic of Cote d’Ivoire in Seoul in an exclusive interview with The Korea Post media at his office in Seoul on Aug. 3, 2020.
Then he disclosed Korea’s spectacular development in the time span of half a century is for Côte d'Ivoire a model to emulate.”
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
KBS (http://world.kbs.co.kr/english/news/)
Typhoon Jangmi to Hit S. Korea Monday with More Rain
South Korea will receive more rain through Tuesday as another typhoon is approaching the country.
The season's fifth typhoon, Jangmi, is heading north at speeds of 45 kilometers per hour and is expected to arrive in waters 80 kilometers southeast of Jeju Island at around 9 a.m.
The tropical storm is forecast to make landfall on the southern coast near Busan at around 3 p.m. and pass waters off Ulleung Island in the East Sea at 9 p.m. before exiting the Korean Peninsula.
31 Killed, 7,000 Displaced as Heavy Rain Batters S. Korea
At least 31 people died and eleven went missing this month as torrential rains triggered floods and landslides across the nation.
The Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters said that as of 6 a.m. Monday, 31 people died, eleven were missing and eight injured due to heavy rains since August 1.
According to the headquarters, since Friday, 13 people died and two others went missing in landslides and accidents caused by torrential rains in the southern region, including Jeolla provinces and Gwangju.
S. Korea Lifts Entry, Visa Restrictions on China's Hubei Province
South Korea has lifted entry and visa restrictions for China's Hubei Province, believed to be the epicenter of the COVID-19 outbreaks.
The Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters made the announcement on Monday, noting the virus situation has improved in China, and Hubei has not reported any cases recently.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Yonhap (http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr)
Typhoon Jangmi lands on S. Korea's southern coastal area
Typhoon Jangmi, the season's first typhoon to land here, arrived at the country's southern coastal area on Monday afternoon, keeping the country on alert over possible damage following the deadly downpours that recently battered its central region.
The typhoon landed on the southern tip of Geoje Island near Tongyeong in South Gyeongsang Province at 2:50 p.m. after forming at seas some 600 kilometers southwest of Okinawa, Japan, the previous day.
It was forecast to move away from the country toward the East Sea at around 6 p.m. after passing through the coastal area and the port city of Pohang, 374 kilometers southeast of the capital, according to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA).
New daily virus cases fall below 30 as church-linked infections again loom larger
South Korea's new coronavirus infections fell below 30 on Monday as imported cases slowed, but church-traced infections continued to strain the country's anti-virus fight.
The country identified an additional 28 virus cases, including 17 local infections, raising the total caseload to 14,626, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC).
It marked a slight drop from the 36 new virus cases, including 30 local infections, the previous day.
Imported cases, which fell to a single digit after increasing by double-digit numbers for 43 consecutive days, rebounded to 11.
Cluster infections break out at Seoul's Namdaemun Market
Eight merchants working at Namdaemun Market in central Seoul and at least one family member have tested positive for the new coronavirus, officials said Monday, raising concern about a fresh cluster of pandemic infections at the nation's largest traditional market.
According to municipal officials, eight merchants who belong to the sprawling market's women's fashion shopping mall, called Kennedy Complex, had been found to be infected with COVID-19 as of Sunday afternoon.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
HanKyoReh Shinmun (http://english.hani.co.kr)
Moon in process of tendering resignations from six senior secretaries
South Korean President Moon Jae-in is in the process of finalizing his decision about the group resignation tendered by Chief of Staff Noh Young-min and five senior secretaries at the Blue House to take responsibility for public anger over the real estate market. The soaring real estate prices that motivated the secretaries to tender their resignations present a troubling similarity, Blue House officials say, to the 2016 real estate controversy that precipitated the lame duck period of Roh Moo-hyun, South Korea’s previous progressive president. In a strange coincidence, both the Moon and Roh administrations ran into trouble with the real estate market in the fourth year of their five-year terms. Throughout the day on Sunday, speculation was rife in the Blue House about whose resignations Moon would accept.
Experts predict -0.9% growth rate for S. Korea in 2020 in KDI survey
South Korean economic experts predicted an economic growth rate of –0.9% for the country this year. This is a decrease from a previous projection during the first half of the year, coming amid the continuation of the global novel coronavirus pandemic.
On Aug. 9, the Korea Development Institute (KDI) published findings from a July survey of 20 South Korean experts in the August edition of its “Monthly Economic Trends.” The results showed the respondents predicting an average growth rate of -0.9% for the year. The rate, which is 0.6 percentage points lower than the -0.3% rate predicted in a survey last April, reflects a mood of growing pessimism about the domestic economy as a whole. The average projection for next year’s economic growth rate was 2.8%, 0.8 percentage points higher than the 2% recorded in the April survey.
Moon expresses regrets over N. Korea’s failure to give notice before opening floodgates of Hwanggang Dam
On Aug. 6, South Korean President Moon Jae-in commented on North Korea’s failure to give prior notification before opening the floodgates on the Hwanggang Dam, on the upper section of the Imjin River.
“If North Korea had let us know it was planning to release water from the Hwanggang Dam, it would have helped us manage the volume of water at the Gunnam Dam, but unfortunately that didn’t happen. South and North Korea had agreed to do that in the past, but that agreement isn’t being implemented,” Moon said while paying a visit to Gunnam Dam, in Yeoncheon County, Gyeonggi Province, on Thursday afternoon to inspect the government’s response to flood damage.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chosun Ilbo (http://english.chosun.com)
Dozens Dead, Thousands Homeless in Torrential Rains
Torrential downpours have left at least 38 people dead and 12 others missing while thousands have become homeless.
This year's monsoon rains have drenched without respite for over a month, triggering around 1,000 landslides across the country that caused nearly half of the fatalities. Some 9,491 homes were reported damaged.
The heavy rains reached southern Korea over the weekend, bringing 500 mm of rainfall over a two-day period. Many small towns and villages became submerged as rivers spilled over their levee.
Discontent Mounts over Real Estate Policies
The government is under growing public pressure to reverse to slew of increasingly frantic anti-speculation measures that have failed to tame real-estate prices.
People who own their home are worried about punitive taxes, while those who do not fear that they may never be able to afford one as prices continue to soar and housing loans have been restricted.
Only the cash-rich and the tax man seem to be laughing. Shim Kyo-eon at Konkuk University said the biggest cause of the public discontent is "uncertainty whether the government's policies are aimed at helping ordinary people or just political point-scoring."
Most Schools to Return to Daily Classes
Most schools across the country are expected to teach daily classes when pupils return from their summer break.
The Education Ministry has decided to let schools use their own discretion to manage their academic schedules amid the spread of coronavirus but urged them to keep numbers in attendance below two-thirds per day.
Most schools across the country plan to let all students attend at least some classes every weekday.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Dong-A Ilbo (http://english.donga.com/)
Trump says he will make deals with N. Korea if re-elected
U.S. President Donald Trump said Friday that he would make deals with North Korea if re-elected, speaking at a press briefing at his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey. This demonstrates that he is willing to resume talks with his North Korean counterpart but eliminates the possibility for the “October surprise.”
Hyundai Motor, SK donate two billion won each for flooding relief
Hyundai Motor Group and SK Group announced Sunday that it would donate two billion won each to Hope Bridge to aid recovery and support those affected by heavy rain and flooding. LG has also donated two billion won to Community Chest of Korea.
Seoul City holds video contest on future cultural heritages
The Seoul metropolitan government said Sunday that the city is holding a video contest on future legacies conveying the stories of its 470 future cultural heritages. Future cultural heritages are tangible and intangible cultural heritages that are worth inheriting to future generations among modern and contemporary cultural heritages within the city, which have yet to be registered as cultural heritages.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The KyungHyang Shinmun (http://english.khan.co.kr/)
“36% of Senior Officials Overseeing Real Estate and Financial Policies Own Multiple Properties Concentrated in Gangnam and Sejong”
Four out of ten senior officials in ministries and subsidiaries handling real estate and financial policies in South Korea, such as the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and the Ministry of Economy and Finance, owned multiple properties.
On August 6, the Citizens’ Coalition for Economic Justice held a press conference at their office building in Jongno-gu, Seoul and announced, “We analyzed the details of properties owned by 107 senior officials, grade-1 or higher, in ministries and subsidiary organizations that handled real estate and financial policies and confirmed that 39 (36%) owned two or more homes.” The latest analysis was based on the list of properties owned by civil servants released in March. Officials in ministries, subsidiaries and commissions handling real estate policies, such as the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the Ministry of Economy and Finance, the Bank of Korea, and the Financial Services Commission were included in the latest analysis.
The Korea Meteorological Administration’s Forecasts Missed the Mark: No One Can Withstand the Test of Extreme and Unusual Climate
This year, the nation received a lot of warnings particularly of summer heatwaves. The Korea Meteorological Administration, which releases the weather forecast for the next three months at the end of every month, released a forecast on May 22 and said, “The summer heat will begin in the second half of July,” and “The scorching heat will peak from the end of July to mid August.” At the time, the administration, surprisingly, went on to mention the number of days of a heatwave that was expected to hit the nation. They announced, “The heatwave will last twenty to twenty-five days, longer than the average year and the previous year.” It wasn’t just the Korea Meteorological Administration. The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration also predicted this year to be among the top ten hottest years in history.
Government Squeezes out Housing Supply and Seeks Clever Ways to End Speculation
The government announced that it would investigate the source of the money involved in the purchase of expensive homes with a price of 900 million won or higher at all times to prevent real estate speculation. They also released plans to launch an investigation if the housing prices in areas designated for development show signs of overheating.
Hong Nam-ki, deputy prime minister cum minister of economy and finance spoke at the first ministerial meeting to inspect the real estate market at the government office in Seoul on August 5 and said, “No matter how much we increase the supply of housing units, if we cannot stop illegal transactions and speculation by people with multiple properties, it will be difficult to stabilize the real estate market.” He further said, “We will constantly investigate the purchase of expensive homes valued at 900 million won or more with suspicious funding sources and regularly release the results.”
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Maeil Business News Korea (http://www.pulsenews.co.kr/)
Asiana Airlines snaps 6-quarter losing streak in Q2, swings to profit on cargo boom
Asiana Airlines Inc. joined its bigger domestic rival Korean Air Lines Co. to post surprise earnings in the second quarter as Korean full-service carriers kept busy delivering cargoes during the pandemic lull in passenger travel.
Korea’s No. 2 carrier, in its regulatory filing on Friday, said it delivered an operating profit of 115.1 billion won ($96.9 million) in the quarter ended June, resurrecting from six straight quarters in the red. It had lost 107 billion won a year earlier and 208.2 billion won in the previous three months.
Doosan Infracore sale heats up on mention of bidders, Hyundai Heavy denies interest
The sale of South Korea’s largest construction equipment maker Doosan Infracore Co. is gaining heat, with big names including Hyundai Heavy Industries Group being floated as potential buyers.
Credit Suisse, the lead manager of the sale, is set to kick off the tender for Doosan Group’s key unit this month, with an aim to start the actual bid in September, according to industry sources on Thursday.
LG Uplus Q2 winner in 5G with OP up 60% on yr vs 19% of KT, 11% of SKT
LG Uplus Corp. stood out in second-quarter performance among Korea’s three wireless carriers as the industry’s smallest pulled off a near 60 percent in operating profit while gains by bigger peers remained under 20 percent as its agile business focus to value-added contents on 5G network and TV paid off.
LG Uplus said in a regulatory filing on Friday that it raised 239.7 billion won in consolidated operating income in the second quarter ended June, up 5.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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/
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
What are you waiting for?
Use us!
The Korea Post media are more than eager to be used, and to serve you—with the following five news outlets, 34 years old this year!
Korean-language Internet edition: http://www.koreapost.co.kr
English-language Internet edition: http://www.koreapost.com
Korean-language print newspaper:
http://pdf.koreapost.co.kr/49/4901.pdf
http://pdf.koreapost.co.kr/49/4902.pdf
http://pdf.koreapost.co.kr/49/4903.pdf
http://www.koreapost.co.kr/pdf/list.php?category=&syear=2018&smonth=03&sday=26&hosu=40
English E-daily : http://www.koreapost.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=21302