Headlines, April 10, 2020

Friday April 10, 2020

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

The Korea Post (http://www.koreapost.com/)
“Women take care of children, house work, but men also do when wives work”
The following are excerpts from an interview with Mrs. Nataliia Tymoshenko, spouse of the Ambassador of Ukraine in Seoul.—Ed.
Question: As was briefly introduced afore, the Korean people have a time-honoured expression, Naejo, which literally translates as “Domestic Support” and which means “Support and assistance given by a wife to her husband. How is this understood among non-Korean ladies?

‘Khoka, then a little boy, removed all the darkness, odds from Bangladesh’
The following article was contributed by the Embassy of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh in Seoul for publication on the occasion of the Independence Day of Bangladesh on March 26, 2020.—Ed. It was 1920, a century ago. It was a late spring evening, March the 17th. It was dark all around. It was one of the thousands of villages in Bangladesh - Tungipara at the present Gopalganj district. Born there was a baby boy, affectionately called ‘Khoka‘ - meaning a little boy - by his parents, who half a century later removed all the darkness and odds; changed the history of the Bengali nation and the world; created an independent and sovereign Bangladesh in 1971.

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KBS (http://world.kbs.co.kr/english/news/)
Early Voting for General Elections Begins
Two-day early voting for next week's general elections began on Friday amid the continued fight against the novel coronavirus.
According to the National Election Commission(NEC), eligible voters may cast their ballots at any of three-thousand-508 polling stations nationwide between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.

ASEAN Plus Three to Hold Virtual Summit on COVID-19 Pandemic
A special multilateral summit involving South Korea, Japan, China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations(ASEAN) will be held next week to discuss regional cooperation in combating the coronavirus outbreak.
South Korea's National Security Council(NSC) confirmed on Thursday that a ASEAN Plus Three video conference would be held. Seoul had pushed for the virtual summit to help coordinate international cooperation against the pandemic.

Moon Hopes 'Essential Exchanges' with India Will Continue Despite COVID-19
The leaders of South Korea and India spoke on the phone on Thursday to discuss cooperation and responses to the novel coronavirus.
Presidential spokesperson Kang Min-seok said in a news briefing that President Moon Jae-in held phone talks with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday afternoon for 35 minutes.

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Yonhap (http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr)
S. Korea begins 2-day early voting for April 15 parliamentary elections
South Korea kicked off two days of early voting for the April 15 parliamentary elections on Friday in the midst of its fight against the new coronavirus pandemic.
Eligible voters will be able to cast ballots at 3,508 polling stations nationwide from 6 a.m. to 6.p.m. through Saturday, according to the National Election Commission (NEC).

N.K. leader supervises mortar firing drill ahead of major parliamentary meeting
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has overseen a mortar firing drill, state media reported Friday, ahead of a key meeting of the country's rubber-stamp legislature to be watched closely for any message to the United States.
Kim's attendance in the exercise suggests that a politburo or a plenary meeting of the country's ruling Workers' Party, which used to be held on the eve of a Supreme People's Assembly session, did not take place, and therefore, Friday's SPA meeting may not lead to significant decisions.

Moon casts early vote for next week's general elections
Wearing a face mask against the coronavirus, President Moon Jae-in cast his ballot Friday, as South Korea began a two-day early voting for the April 15 parliamentary elections that are seen as a referendum on him.
He voted at a polling booth established inside a Samcheong-dong community service center near Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul.

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The Korea Herald (http://www.koreaherald.com)
S. Korea begins 2-day early voting for April 15 parliamentary elections
South Korea kicked off two days of early voting for the April 15 parliamentary elections on Friday in the midst of its fight against the new coronavirus pandemic.
Eligible voters will be able to cast ballots at 3,508 polling stations nationwide from 6 a.m. to 6.p.m. through Saturday, according to the National Election Commission (NEC).

NK leader supervises mortar firing drill ahead of major
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has overseen a mortar firing drill, state media reported Friday, ahead of a key meeting of the country's rubber-stamp legislature to be watched closely for any message to the United States.
Kim's attendance in the exercise suggests that a politburo or a plenary meeting of the country's ruling Workers' Party, which used to be held on the eve of a Supreme People's Assembly session, did not take place, and therefore, Friday's SPA meeting may not lead to significant decisions.

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The Korea Times (http://www.koreatimes.co.kr)
Korea begins two-day early voting for parliamentary elections amid pandemic
South Korea kicked off two days of early voting for the April 15 parliamentary elections on Friday in the midst of its fight against the new coronavirus pandemic.
Eligible voters will be able to cast ballots at 3,508 polling stations nationwide from 6 a.m. to 6.p.m. through Saturday, according to the National Election Commission (NEC).

Real estate markets losing steam amid COVID-19
The real estate market is showing clear signs of losing steam, with Seoul apartment prices dropping for the second consecutive week amid the continued COVID-19 pandemic.
A growing number of people with multiple homes have put their properties up for sale to avoid heavier capital gains tax which is putting more downward pressure on prices in the capital city.

North Korean leader supervises mortar firing drill
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has overseen a mortar firing drill, state media reported Friday, ahead of a key meeting of the country's rubber-stamp legislature to be watched closely for any message to the United States.
Kim's attendance in the exercise suggests that a politburo or a plenary meeting of the country's ruling Workers' Party, which used to be held on the eve of a Supreme People's Assembly session, did not take place, and therefore, Friday's SPA meeting may not lead to significant decisions.

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HanKyoReh Shinmun (http://english.hani.co.kr)
Americans can’t get tested or treated for COVID-19 unless in serious to critical condition
“K” is a 64-year-old Korean who runs a business in Fairfax County, Virginia. He felt a pang of fear when his wife, a 64-year-old nurse, came down with a fever and exhibited cold-like symptoms on Mar. 30. Four days before her symptoms appeared, a 90-year-old woman in his wife’s care had tested positive for the coronavirus.

S. Korea’s COVID-19 death toll tops 200; fatality rate veers toward 2%
As the number of deaths from the coronavirus in South Korea exceeds 200, the case fatality rate (the percentage of confirmed cases ending in death) is approaching 2%. Deaths are also occurring at a faster rate. Even though the number of new cases in the country has fallen, it would be rash to assume this crisis will wind down anytime soon. The government and experts reiterated the importance of social distancing and urged the public to remain alert.

S. Korea to temporarily suspend visa waivers and visa-free arrivals for countries with entry bans on S. Koreans
The South Korean government has announced plans to temporarily suspend visa waivers and visa-free arrivals for countries that have barred entry to South Korean nationals. Amid the possibility of the novel coronavirus re-spreading to Japan and other Asian countries after raging in Europe and the US, the decision signals its intent to respond proactively to the threat of infections arriving from overseas. Opinions in the healthcare community have been divided, with some predicting the measures will not be very effective and others suggesting it may help to prevent infections in the Seoul Capital Area (SCA).
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Chosun Ilbo (http://english.chosun.com)
Unprecedented Economic Downturn Forecast This Year
The Korea Economic Research Institute forecasts that the country's economy will shrink a whopping 2.3 percent this year. This is the first time a state-run think tank here has forecast negative growth for the economy.
The only times in modern history that Korea's economy shrank was in 1980 (-1.6 percent) during the second oil shock and in 1998 (-5.1 percent) during the Asian financial crisis.

Household Debt Hits New Record in March
Loans to households and businesses increased at the fastest rate in recent times last month due to the impact of the coronavirus epidemic.
Households took out mostly housing loans or money to go on a bargaining-hunting spree on the plunging Korean stock market, while businesses borrowed to meet their fixed overheads.

Parent Fear Online Classes Could Fuel Screen Addiction
Many parents are fretting about online classes that are supposed to make up for offline teaching because it means their children will be spending even more time glued to their screens.
A 37-year-old mother of an elementary schoolchild said, "I didn't even let my child watch TV until now, but my efforts are going to waste due to online classes." A message the mother received from her child's teacher a few days ago invited the student to conduct their roll call on Kakao Talk.

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The Dong-A Ilbo (http://english.donga.com/)
Reuters: U.S. ambassador to S. Korea wishes to resign after November
Foreign media reported that U.S. ambassador to South Korea Harry Harris expressed his wishes to resign after November. The U.S. embassy in Seoul has not strongly denied the claim, saying that Harris remains committed to strengthening the bilateral alliance, which has left many wondering what his next step would be.

Sanders drops out of 2020 Democratic race for president
Senator Bernie Sanders, who had been running for the Democratic nomination, announced to suspend his campaign on Wednesday. With Sanders quitting the race, the U.S. presidential election this year will likely be a rivalry between former Vice President Joe Biden and incumbent President Donald Trump.

Transfer fees of star footballers drop amid COVID-19
The novel coronavirus has made a dent worth 9 billion euros in the value of global football stars. On Thursday, Transfermarkt, a website specialized in transfer of football players, said the size of transfer fess has fallen a total 9 billion euros compared from late last year.

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The KyungHyang Shinmun (http://english.khan.co.kr/)
Prime Minister Chung, “Temporary Suspension of Visa Waivers to Countries Blocking Entry of South Koreans”
On April 8, Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun announced that South Korea would temporarily suspend the visa waiver program for countries that have banned the entry of South Koreans. The government enforced the strong measure to reduce the number of foreigners entering South Korea without a visa, as more and more foreigners from overseas are testing positive for COVID-19.

A “24-Hour Easy Connection Service” upon Arrival for Temporarily Suspended Mobile Phone Subscriptions of Koreans Overseas
The three mobile communication service providers have improved their services so Koreans who suddenly return from a long-term stay overseas due to COVID-19 can easily restore their mobile phone subscriptions, which they suspended before leaving the country. Such improvements were made after complaints of problems installing the government application, Home Quarantine Safety Protection, because people could not recover their mobile phone subscriptions when arriving outside of call center business hours (9 a.m. - 6 p.m.).
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Maeil Business News Korea (http://www.pulsenews.co.kr/)
S. Korea to more than double strategic reserve oil purchase in 2020
The South Korean government has set this year’s strategic reserve crude oil and diesel purchase target at 640,000 barrels, up 2.5 times from a year ago in a bid to take advantage of the recent crash in oil prices and aid local refineries grappling with virus-hit demand.

Korean biz owners use the bear market to expedite family deals to save gift tax
Family-run South Korean companies are capitalizing on the losses in corporate stock prices in the virus-stricken bearish market to exchange shares for hereditary succession and save gift tax dues.
According to a disclosure on Thursday, Korean bakery conglomerate SPC Group Chairman Hur Young-in a day earlier transferred 400,000 common shares in SPC Samlip, a factory bread and confectionary making unit, to his eldest son and vice chair Jin-soo.

Kia Telluride crowned World Car of the Year, the first for Korean brand
South Korea’s Kia Motors Corp. claimed double victory in 2020 World Car Awards.
The Kia Telluride seven-seat sports utility vehicle was named World Car of the Year at the 2020 World Car of the Year Awards, after beating other finalists – Mazda3 compact sedan and Mazda CX-30 compact SUV, the World Car Awards announced Wednesday (local time).
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Lee Kyung-sik edt@koreapost.com

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