Wednesday, January 18, 2021

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

The Korea Post (http://www.koreapost.com/)

“Black January”
Thirty-one years have passed since the January events of 1990 which went down in the history of Azerbaijan as “Black January”. On that day, the Central Soviet Authorities perpetrated an atrocious crime against Azerbaijani people. Hundreds of civilians were murdered or injured by the Soviet troops in Baku at one night, on an order from the USSR leadership that was trying to maintain the Communist regime in Azerbaijan.
In the fall of 1989, the national independence movement had reached incredible momentum with hundreds of thousands of people struggling for the ideals of freedom, independence and sovereignty to preserve the nation’s territorial integrity. Thousands of people protesting against the policy of the USSR held demonstrations in the central square (now AzadliqMeydani or Freedom Square) and on the streets of Baku. At that time, Azerbaijan was also subjected to aggression from neighboring Armenia. Armenia's territorial claims and separatist activities were supported by the ruling Soviet regime.

“We connect Korean and Indian businesses to explore mutually beneficial opportunities”
Chairman Sachin Satpute of the Indian Chamber of Commerce in Korea (ICCK) said, “Our members have been steadily growing with the membership base of around 65, and we help to connect Korean and Indian businesses to explore mutually beneficial opportunities.”
Speaking with The Korea Post media, owner of 3 English and 2 Korean-language media for the past 36 years, Chairman Satpute covered a wide range of topics interesting to the entire population of the world as well as 50 million in Korea and nearly 1.4 billion in India (Wikipedia).
Asked to introduce the major activities of the Chamber, Chairman Satpute said (1) We facilitate B2B and G2B meetings, (2) take lead in organizing investor camps in India, (3) help Korean businesses get first hand feel of the investment environment and support systems in India, (4) organize Speakers forum and seminars, and (5) in association with Embassy of India, we also support cultural events.

UFEZ officially launched as the hub of the hydrogen industry
The Ulsan Free Economic Zone Authority (UFEZ) will leap forward as a new industrial hub centered on the hydrogen industry. The UFEZ held an official opening event at Ulsan City Hall on Jan. 14 and presented such a vision.
The UFEZ was designated as a free economic zone in June last year and has been in operation since January 1 this year after completing preparations for securing the quota and recruiting the head of the agency.
In a speech at the opening ceremony, Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Sung Yoon-mo said, "We hope Ulsan will play a central role in regional development and job creation by fostering the hydrogen industry as a future new industry through convergence with major industries such as automobiles, shipbuilding and petrochemicals."

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KBS (http://world.kbs.co.kr/english/news/)

Daily COVID-19 Cases Fall to 389, Lowest in Nearly 2 Months
South Korea's daily COVID-19 cases fell to the 300 range for the first time in 54 days. 
The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency(KDCA) said Monday that 389 new infections were detected throughout the previous day, raising the country's accumulated caseload to 72-thousand-729.
The daily figure dropped by 131 from the previous day and fell to the 300s for the first time since November 25 at the start of the third wave of the epidemic. 
The fall, however, is partly attributed to drops in the number of people getting tested over the weekend. 

N. Korea Conducts Major Cabinet Reshuffle
North Korea reportedly convened a parliamentary session on Sunday and conducted a major reshuffle of Cabinet members in charge of economic affairs. 
According to the North's official Korean Central News Agency(KCNA) on Monday, the Supreme People's Assembly(SPA) held a session on Sunday at the Mansudae Hall in Pyongyang. 
During the session, the North's rubber-stamp SPA reportedly replaced six of eight vice premiers in charge of economic affairs. The replacements come as there has been little progress in the North's economy.  

Court to Rule on Samsung Electronics Chief's Bribery Case
An appeals court will give a verdict on Monday for Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong in a retrial of a bribery case involving jailed former President Park Geun-hye.
The Seoul High Court is set to hold a sentencing hearing at 2:05 p.m. for Lee, about 15 months after the first hearing of the retrial. 
In 2017, Lee was sentenced to five years in prison for providing bribes to Park's longtime friend Choi Soon-sil. He was freed the following year in an appeals court ruling. 

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Yonhap (http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr)

1st homegrown coronavirus medicine expected to be used from early Feb.:PM
SEOUL, Jan. 18 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's first homegrown coronavirus treatment candidate from Celltrion Inc. is expected to be used to treat patients starting early February, Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said Monday.
"We expect the drug to be used from early next month in antivirus activities in the field if the review process goes smoothly," Chung said during an interagency meeting on the COVID-19 response held at the government complex in Seoul.
The prime minister said health authorities convened a panel of experts to review the safety and efficacy of the drug. According to Chung, the government is scheduled to announce the results of the meeting later in the day.

 Appellate court to rule in Samsung heir Lee's bribery case
SEOUL, Jan. 17 (Yonhap) -- An appellate court will give a verdict on Monday for Samsung heir Lee Jae-yong in a retrial of a bribery case involving former President Park Geun-hye.
Lee, vice chairman of Samsung Electronics Co., faces charges that he bribed Park and her longtime friend, Choi Soon-sil, to win government support for a smooth father-to-son transfer of managerial power at Samsung. Park was later impeached and ousted from presidency for corruption and abuse of power.
Prosecutors are seeking a nine-year prison term for Lee, who was charged with giving 29.8 billion won (US$27.4 million) worth of bribes and promising 21.3 billion won.

N. Korea convenes parliamentary meeting after party congress
SEOUL, Jan. 18 (Yonhap) -- North Korea convened a parliamentary session in Pyongyang over the weekend to discuss personnel, budget and other issues in a follow up on decisions made during a recent ruling party congress, state media said Monday.
The North's rubber-stamp Supreme People's Assembly (SPA) meeting was held less than a week after Pyongyang wrapped up the eight-day congress of the ruling Workers' Party on Tuesday.
On Sunday, the SPA unanimously decided on the implementation of its five-year economic plan set forth at the congress and its organization reshuffle, and approved the state budget for this year, according to the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

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The Korea Herald (http://www.koreaherald.com)

N. Korea convenes parliamentary meeting after party congress
North Korea convened a parliamentary session in Pyongyang over the weekend to discuss personnel, budget and other issues in a follow up on decisions made during a recent ruling party congress, state media said Monday.
The North's rubber-stamp Supreme People's Assembly (SPA) meeting was held less than a week after Pyongyang wrapped up the eight-day congress of the ruling Workers' Party on Tuesday.
On Sunday, the SPA unanimously decided on the implementation of its five-year economic plan set forth at the congress and its organization reshuffle, and approved the state budget for this year, according to the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

1st homegrown coronavirus medicine expected to be used from early Feb.:PM
South Korea's first homegrown coronavirus treatment candidate from Celltrion Inc. is expected to be used to treat patients starting early February, Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said Monday.
"We expect the drug to be used from early next month in antivirus activities in the field if the review process goes smoothly," Chung said during an interagency meeting on the COVID-19 response held at the government complex in Seoul.
The prime minister said health authorities convened a panel of experts to review the safety and efficacy of the drug. According to Chung, the government is scheduled to announce the results of the meeting later in the day.

Myeong-dong: Korea’s largest shopping street faces extended crisis
Bustling, noisy and lively -- it is how Myeong-dong used to be described as Seoul’s premier shopping district.
Packed with tourists, food stands and long lines of shops, it is one of the most expensive shopping streets in the world, according to global property firm Cushman & Wakefield’s annual Main Streets Across the World report.
But a quick walk around the shopping district nowadays makes it clear that things have drastically changed -- and for the worse.

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The Korea Times (http://www.koreatimes.co.kr)
Now not yet time to discuss pardons of two ex-presidents: Moon
President Moon Jae-in on Monday assessed that now is not yet the time to talk about special pardons for two convicted former presidents.
"It's hard for the public, as well as myself, to accept the calls for special pardons when the (two former presidents) deny their wrongdoing and don't accept the results of the court rulings," Moon said during a New Year's press conference held at Cheong Wa Dae.
Moon was commenting on a national political debate on whether or not to offer pardons to Park Geun-hye and Lee Myung-bak, two former conservative presidents in jail on corruption and influence-peddling charges.

Nosediving movie theater business hampers CGV sale plan
With the movie theater industry facing unprecedented difficult times caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, CJ Group has shelved its plan to sell off its multiplex CGV cinema chain.
According to the Korean Film Council, Tuesday, only 10,776 people visited movie theaters here Monday, the lowest number recorded in the history of the Korean cinema business, breaking the former record of 14,519 tallied just a week ago.
Theaters also had the smallest number of visitors on the Jan. 8 to Jan. 10 weekend since the film council started to collect data in 2004.

New virus cases at almost 2-month low on fewer tests, infections slowdown
South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases rose by the smallest number in nearly two months Monday, apparently on the back of tightened social distancing measures and fewer tests over the weekend, but health authorities remain vigilant over potential upticks.
The country added 389 more COVID-19 cases, including 366 local infections, raising the total caseload to 72,729, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).
Monday's daily figure marked a sharp fall from 520 posted a day earlier and is the smallest daily caseload since Nov. 25.

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HanKyoReh Shinmun (http://english.hani.co.kr)

Why a 3% growth rate projection isn’t something to smile about
Will 2021 see us through the end of the long COVID-19 tunnel? President Moon Jae-in said in his New Year’s address on Jan. 4 that we would “overcome the virus without fail and regain our precious daily lives.” That’s our one wish above all else: to be able to take these awful masks off when spring arrives.
Moon also said the new year would see South Korea “making the leap to become an advanced country.” Economic forecasts for the coming year — the South Korean government’s and those of economic institutes in South Korea and overseas — have been bright. They’re generally predicting the South Korean economy will grow by around 3% compared with last year.

Breaking down Park Geun-hye’s 22-year sentence for influence peddling
After four long years, the last appeal has ended in the trial of former President Park Geun-hye, aged 69. Park was removed from her post amid candlelit rallies triggered by her exploitation of the powers of her office on behalf of a secretive advisor. On Jan. 14, the third panel of the Supreme Court, under Rho Tae-ak, upheld Park’s convictions for bribery, abuse of power, and inflicting loss on the state treasury, which carry a sentence of 20 years in prison.
Combined with a two-year sentence already handed down for Park’s interference in the nomination of party candidates, Park faces 22 total years in prison — with 19 years left to serve, since she was taken into custody on Mar. 31, 2017.

Park Geun-hye convicted of bribery but not abuse of authority, sentenced to 22 years
On Jan. 14, South Korea’s Supreme Court upheld former president Park Geun-hye’s conviction on charges of bribery and abuse of power, concluding judicial proceedings that have gone on for three years and nine months. This marked the fifth ruling since Park was arrested and indicted in April 2017 following her impeachment.
Previously, Park had been tried by a district court, a high court, and the Supreme Court, which remanded the case to the high court before hearing one final appeal. Altogether, Park is set to serve 22 years in prison.
There had initially been two separate cases against Park, one dealing with influence-peddling and the other with appropriating money from the special activity fund of the National Intelligence Service (NIS). But when the two cases reached the Supreme Court, they were merged and returned to the high court for further review.

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Chosun Ilbo (http://english.chosun.com)

1/4 of New Gangnam Homeowners Are Absentee Landlords
One-quarter of new apartment owners in Seoul's eye-wateringly expensive Gangnam area have their registered residence outside Seoul, which suggests they are either speculators or absentee landlords or both.
The government has rolled out an endless string of draconian measures to curb real-estate speculation, but the rich seem unfazed.
In the Gangnam, Seocho and Songpa districts in southern Seoul that make up greater Gangnam, it has become practically impossible to get a home loan and property taxes are sky-high. But demand has actually increased.

Court Recognizes Sexual Assault by Late Seoul Mayor
The Seoul Central District Court on Thursday sentenced late Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon's right-hand man to three years and six months behind bars for raping Park's secretary in April last year.
In deciding the case, the court also recognized that Park himself sexually assaulted the victim on several other occasions.
The police and prosecution had refused to bring a case because Park is dead and cannot be prosecuted, but the victim brought a separate case against her alleged rapist which cast an unexpected light on Park's conduct.

Lottery Sales Hit Record in Lockdown Gloom
Lottery sales hit a new record last year with W12.97 billion worth of tickets sold on a daily average (US$1=W1,098). Some 525 jackpot winners took home a total of W1.13 trillion between them.
According to data from the Ministry of Economy and Finance on Thursday, each Korean bought a lottery ticket every four days. A lottery game costs W1,000, and the maximum number of games per ticket is five.
Sales have increased every year since 2009. The worse the economy gets, the more lottery tickets are sold. The country's economy shrank for the first time last year since the Asian financial crisis in the late 1990s.

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The Dong-A Ilbo (http://english.donga.com/)

The middle aged joins the online commenting culture
Online commenting, often considered as a culture of the millennials, has been resonating recently among the middle-aged. They embraced this new culture as they started to spend more time online due to the spread of COVID-19.
But they tend to adopt different play tactics that are often more serious and active unlike the millennials who enjoy puns. Their comments often involve keywords related to health and more punctuation marks. Some use “hao” to finish their sentences, which is often used in romance comics, or use diphthongs wrongly because they are not used to mobile keypads. Many are not spaced correctly.
They often comment on videos related to trot songs, stocks, economy, and babies. A YouTube channel, with more than a million subscribers that is dedicated to economy, has got 900 comments on its video about bankruptcy in old age. Many commenters say they are in their 50s or 60s.

Pres. Moon to hold 100-minute online press conference
South Korean President Moon Jae-in will hold the first online press conference in line with social distancing rules where he will announce policy directions.
Under the theme of “South Korea, a nation that stays strong in times of crisis,” President Moon will answer questions from journalists about COVID-19 measures and social issues, politics and the economy and foreign relations and security at 10 a.m. on Monday.
It is also the first news conference held at Chunchugwan. The event will be held online for 100 minuets with only 20 journalists allowed at the event and 100 attending remotely. Screens will be installed on the left, right and front of the president to show journalists in real time.

Fiat, Peugeot merge to create world’s No. 3 automaker
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and the French Peugeot manufacturer PSA have officially announced their merger on Friday. The merged entity, Stellantis, has instantly emerged as the world’s third largest automaker.
FCA, the Italian-American automobile joint venture, and PSA issued a press release on Friday to announce the completion of their 52 billion-dollar merger. The two companies announced a merger plan in October 2019, and the merging plan was approved at their respective shareholders’ meetings early this month after the delay due to the COVID-19 pandemic
The annual sales of Stellantis in 2019 reached approximately 8 million units, which accounts for 9 percent of the global automobile market. Stellantis is expected to surpass General Motors, and rank No. 3, following Volkswagen and Toyota. Under the merger agreement, Stellantis will manage 14 auto brands including Peugeot, Citron, Chrysler, Jeep, Alpha Romeo, and Maserati, and will have 400,000 people on its payroll worldwide.
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The KyungHyang Shinmun (http://english.khan.co.kr/)

The Final Court Sentence for Park Geun-hye Could Be a Burden on President Moon
The Supreme Court, in a second ruling, upheld the sentence of 20 years in prison for former President Park Geun-hye (69, pictured), who stood on trial for abusing state authority and receiving the funds allocated to the special activity expenses of the National Intelligence Service (NIS).
The latest court decision once again turned the spotlight on the special pardon of Lee Myung-bak and Park Geun-hye, which stirred controversy when Democratic Party of Korea leader Lee Nak-yeon first suggested it early in the new year. The pardon is the sole right of the president, so the ball has practically been tossed to President Moon Jae-in. The president will have to make a difficult political decision after considering whether there is enough public consensus on the pardon for Lee and Park as well as the political position of the ruling party leader who first suggested the pardon for national unity.
Some experts pointed out that without a sincere apology and reflection by the two former presidents, a pardon would only ignite criticism that the president was abusing his right to grant pardons and would end up causing more conflict and division.

COVID-19 Contagion Through Individual Contact Increased 30% in Two Months: Government Expected to Extend Ban on Gatherings of Five or More People
The government is expected to adjust the physical (social) distancing measure on January 16, but the ban on private gatherings of five or more people is expected to be maintained. Health authorities believe a certain level of distancing has to be maintained, because individual contacts were the main route of contagion in the third wave of the novel coronavirus.
According to the “Contagion Routes in the Past Two Weeks” released by the Central Disease Control Headquarters on January 14, 40.7% of COVID-19 cases were transmitted through personal contact with a previously confirmed patient, such as family, acquaintance, and colleagues at work. In October 2020, before the third wave, cases through individual contact only accounted for 12.4% of the cases, but that rate has increased by nearly 30% in just two months. Meanwhile, clusters of transmission in public facilities dropped from 55.6% to 21.8%. Unlike the first two waves of the virus, where massive clusters of transmission accounted for the majority of cases, the third wave showed that contagion occurred sporadically in our daily lives.

After Fruitless 5 Years, Kim Jong-un Returns to the Parallel Development of Nuclear Weapons and the Economy
The topic on the last day of the eighth congress of the Workers’ Party of Korea, which closed after eight days, was a stronger military. The eighth party congress was at the center of attention as a forum where North Korea released its five-year economic development plan and its strategy on South Korea and the United States in response to the launch of a new administration in Washington. But the North failed to present any new domestic and foreign policies other than its existing policy to independently pursue economic recovery and only reaffirmed its determination to pursue technological advances in its nuclear program. This has led some experts to assess that Kim Jong-un has partially retreated even in the reform measures that his government had previously pledged.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un again stressed nuclear war deterrence and stronger military power in his concluding remarks at the eighth party congress on January 12 and said, “We will advance firmly grasping the task of further strengthening the quality of our national defense capability as an important task.” Chairman Kim acknowledged his failure in economic policies and stressed the solution of economic problems throughout the party congress, but his words also show that there was not much progress in the past five years other than the achievements in the military.
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Maeil Business News Korea (http://www.pulsenews.co.kr/)

Coupang’s potential Nasdaq listing raises hype in related stocks in Korea
The news that South Korea’s e-commerce giant Coupang Corp. passed the preliminary review for a Nasdaq listing gave a short-lived boost to shares of related stocks on home turf last week.
Dongbang, a transportation logistics contractor of Coupang, rose by daily gain limit of 30 percent for three sessions until Friday. They flew as soon as Coupang received the green light for a Nasdaq joining as early as March.
Shares in Dongbang fell 6.81 percent in Monday morning trading.

Korea’s secondary cell output, exports, local demand to surge in 2021
Outlook on South Korea’s secondary battery sector continues to look good this year after their output, exports and domestic consumption all rose last year thanks to strong demand for electric vehicles despite the pandemic-induced slowdown.
Production of secondary batteries, or rechargeable batteries, surged 20 percent on year to 23.3 trillion won ($21.1 billion) in 2020, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and Korea Battery Industry Association.
Exports gained 2.9 percent to hit a record high of 7.2 trillion won, extending the winning streak for the fifth straight year. Domestic demand expanded 11.6 percent to 5.3 trillion won.

Tesla Model Y to feature Hankook Tire’s 19-inch tires
South Korea’s top tire maker Hankook Tire & Technology Co. supplies its 19-inch tires to global electric vehicle giant Tesla’s Model Y sport utility vehicles produced at the Chinese plant in Shanghai, a move that is expected to help it further enhance partnership with global EV car makers.
The Korean tiremaker’s 19-inch tires are fitted on China-made Tesla Model Y that will be shipped to global markets, except for Korea where the U.S. factory-produced Model Y will be supplied, according to industry sources on Monday.
The Model Y is the newest model by Tesla to be out in Korea since the U.S. EV giant introduced the Model 3 in August 2019. It sold more than 70,000 units in the U.S. since the launch in early last year.
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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
Australia Brisbane Times  www.brisbanetimes.com.au  syndication@fairfaxmedia.com.au
Sydney Morning Herald   www.smh.com.au
Colombia Reports  www.colombiareports.com
Bogota Free Planet  www.bogotafreeplanet.com  bfp@bogotafreeplanet.com
El Universal  www.eluniversal.com.mx/english
Andes  www.redaktionstest.net/andes-info-ec/
Ecuador Times  www.ecuadortimes.net/
The Jordan Times  www.jordantimes.com/
LSM.lv  www.lsm.lv/
The Baltic Times  www.baltictimes.com lithuania@baltictimes.com, estonia@baltictimes.com, editor@baltictimes.com
El Pais  https://english.elpais.com/
Philippine Daily Inquirer  www.inquirer.net/
Daily News Hungary  https://dailynewshungary.com/
Budapest Times  www.budapesttimes.hu/
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The Korea Post is running video clips from the different embassies.
Azerbaijan:
 www.youtube.com/watch?v=OR8CBpcQ4WM
Sri Lanka:  www.youtube.com/watch?v=hByX92Y2aGY&t=22s
Morocco:  www.youtube.com/watch?v=jfFmp2sVvSE
And many other countries.
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