Wednesday May 27, 2020

 

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

 

The Korea Post (http://www.koreapost.com/)
Pyunkang Hospital Hosts briefing on how to avoid COVID-19Dr.

Suh Hyo-suk of the Pyunkang Korean Medicine Hospital in Seoul is inviting ambassadors and madams to a briefing on how to ‘beat’ the fast-spreading COVID-19.

He is sure that the highly contagious disease can be brought under control through the use of traditional Korean medicine.

 

Aeroflot marks 30 years of operation between Korea and Russia
Aeroflot celebrates the 30 years of operation between the Russian Federation and the Republic of Korea,” said General Manager Alexander Sychugov of the Aeroflot Russian Airlines in Korea. Then he said that his company has one of the youngest fleets of any global carrier in the world operating more than 100 aircraft with an average aircraft age of 5 years.”

 

Special notice: The Korea Post is organizing a tour for the Ambassadors and Madams to the Pyeongkang Oriental Medicine Hospital on Tuesday June 9, 2010. Ambassadors and Madams are cordially invited to the Tour where an Oriental medicine pack against COVID-19 is presented to each Excellency. In the event of absence of Invitation, please advise the Editor at The Korea Post at 010-5201-1740. 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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

2.4 Million Students to Return to School amid COVID-19 Concerns

About two-point-four million students will return to school on Wednesday amid lingering concerns about the continued spread of the novel coronavirus.

The Education Ministry said in the second step of the country's phased school reopening, high school sophomores, middle school seniors and first and second grade elementary school students are returning to classrooms, along with kindergarten students.

 

S. Korea's Biz Sentiment Rebounds in May

South Korean firms' business sentiment rebounded for the first time in five months in May as domestic consumption is showing signs of recovery thanks to emergency coronavirus relief funds.

According to the Bank of Korea on Wednesday, the business survey index(BSI) for all industries came to 53 for the month, up two points from the previous month. The index had dropped for four straight months before plunging to the lowest point in over eleven years in April.

 

Pres. Office Rules Out Tax Hike to Finance Stimulus Measures

The presidential office has ruled out a tax hike as a "realistic" option to finance a set of stimulus measures the government has announced to overcome the COVID-19 crisis.

A Cheong Wa Dae official relayed the view in a meeting with reporters on Tuesday when asked about President Moon Jae-in’s call for aggressive fiscal policy during an annual national fiscal strategy meeting the previous day.

 

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

More students return to school in S. Korea

Despite lingering concerns over coronavirus, South Korea will take another step toward normalizing life Wednesday, sending some 2.37 million pupils across the country back to classrooms.

In the second phase of the country’s staged school reopening, which began a week ago with high school seniors, in-person classes will resume for students in kindergarten, second year of high school, third year of middle school and first two years of elementary school.

 

Prosecutors summon Samsung heir over controversial 2015 merger

Prosecutors summoned Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong as part of a probe into suspicions surrounding a 2015 merger between two key affiliates, which helped the scion secure control of the country’s largest conglomerate.

Samsung Group’s heir apparent appeared before prosecutors at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office on Tuesday morning to be questioned over the merger of Samsung C&T and Cheil Industries in 2015, as well as alleged accounting fraud at Samsung Biologics, which critics believe also helped him to cement his grip over the group.

 

Pandemic reshuffles market cap rankings, bio firms emerge

The market capitalization of large South Korean companies was hugely affected by the pandemic, with 89 of the nation’s top 100 by market value changing their rankings, according to latest data Tuesday.

Local corporate tracker Korea CXO Institute surveyed changes in the rankings of the top 100 companies in market capitalization between Jan. 2 and May 22.

 

The Korea Times (http://www.koreatimes.co.kr)            

Mookie Betts: 'Kang Baek-ho, Lee Jung-hoo have potential to make it to MLB'
Major League Baseball superstar Mookie Betts uploaded a video clip on YouTube about the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) games and its players on May 5 shortly before the league kicked off without fans for the coronavirus pandemic.
In the video, he introduced the KBO's top talents and their skills. It immediately went viral. His video excited Korean baseball fans. One fan wrote that a Major League superstar promoting Korean baseball was something he had never imagined experiencing in his life.

 

New US-China Cold War

Just short of calling it a "Cold War," the U.S. formally announced the onset of a new Cold War with China, with the public announcement of the "United States Strategic Approach to the People's Republic of China," May 20.

UNC concludes both Koreas violated armistice agreement in gunfire exchange in DMZ
The United Nations Command (UNC) announced Tuesday that it has concluded both South and North Korea violated the armistice agreement via a recent gunfire exchange in a central section of the demilitarized zone (DMZ).
It added it was unable to decide whether the first gunfire from a North Korean guard post was intentional or a mistake ― a different conclusion from the South Korean military's assumption that it was a mistake.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chosun Ilbo (http://english.chosun.com)
U.S. Warns of 'Calibrated' Response to N.Korea's Nuke Activities
A senior U.S. official has warned of a "calibrated" response to any renewed nuclear activities by North Korea.
The warning by White House National Security Adviser Robert O'Brien came in response North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's latest announcement of "new policies to further strengthen deterrence for a nuclear war."

 

Domestic Flight Passenger Numbers Surge

The number of passengers on domestic flights last weekend surged to the highest level since the coronavirus outbreak started.

According to the Korea Civil Aviation Association on Monday, some 137,980 passengers took domestic flights on May 23 and 24, even more than over the long weekend early this month (131,930).

 

 

Smaller Firms Lay off Half a Million Workers

Small and mid-sized companies laid off over half a million workers as their businesses were hit by the coronavirus crisis and other calamities.

The number of workers at small and mid-sized companies declined by more than 530,000 on-year in April. At big businesses with more than 300 workers staff numbers edged up despite the epidemic, but smaller firms laid staff off left, right and center.

 

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

Kospi recovered over 2,000 points in 2.5 months

Kospi recovered beyond 2,000 points for the first time in two and a half months with over one percent increase. As countries around the world start to resume economic activities suspended due to COVID-19, key stock markets in Asia showed an upward trend.

 

Chloroquine does no good to COVID-19 patients, says WHO

The World Health Organization (WHO) announced Monday to suspend all trials on hydroxychloroquine which U.S. President Donald Trump praised and took himself as a possible treatment for COVID-19. The WHO has been conducting clinical trials to find a safe and effective treatment for the virus at more than 400 hospitals in 35 countries.

 

Dutch PM could not visit dying mother due to COVID-19 restrictions

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte was unable to visit his dying mother in her final weeks in order to adhere to the country’s lockdown rules. Rutte has drawn widespread praise for practicing noblesse oblige unlike the leaders of the U.K., Austria, the U.S. and Brazil, who faced public criticism for violating COVID-19 safety rules.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The KyungHyang Shinmun (http://english.khan.co.kr/)

"Yoon Mi-hyang Took Advantage of the Elderly Comfort Women Victims"

Lee Yong-soo (92), an elderly comfort women victim in the Japanese military, who raised allegations of fraudulent accounting by the Korean Council for Justice and Remembrance for the Issues of Military Sexual Slavery by Japan (Korean Council) and refused to take part in the Wednesday demonstrations, held a second press conference in Daegu on May 25 and continued her attacks on the Korean Council. This came eighteen days after she first held a press conference in a cafe in Daegu on May 7. Former chairperson of the Korean Council and Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker-elect Yoon Mi-hyang did not appear at the conference.

 

We Can’t Prevent a Second Kim Yong-gyun with the Kim Yong-gyun Act Alone

Fatal accidents continue at workplaces. They are a repeat of accidents we have witnessed before, accidents involving explosions or workers getting caught in machinery, falling, or suffocating. After the death of Kim Yong-gyun, a non-regular worker who died at the Taean Thermal Power Plant, lawmakers amended the Occupational Safety and Health Act. The revised law was enforced this year, but things have not changed in the workplace.

 

Itaewon Cluster Transmission Leads to Senary Infection: The Nation Stands Nervous as More Students Prepare to Go to School

Due to a stream of COVID-19 transmissions that started from clubs in Itaewon, sporadic cases of infection continue throughout the nation. The cluster transmission that started in Itaewon has led to senary transmission as the virus jumped across singing rooms, pubs, private academies, and the first birthday party of a child. Schools have reopened beginning with high school seniors, and on the coming May 27, kindergarteners and students in grade one, two, nine and eleven will return to school. Gradually all students are expected to return to school soon, so stopping the spread of the novel coronavirus in the next couple of weeks will be critical in making our schools safe.

 

Maeil Business News Korea (http://www.pulsenews.co.kr/)

Samsung heir questioned by prosecutors over 2015 merger, power succession

Jay Y. Lee, vice chairman of Samsung Electronics Co. and de-facto head of Samsung Group, on Tuesday revisited the prosecution for questioning over illegalities in the 2015 merger of two key affiliates and hereditary succession, the last of the trial that started with the bribery case three years ago involving former president impeached for multiple corruptions.

 

S. Korea bans 31 diabetes drugs for suspected cancer-causing chemical

South Korea has banned the production and sale of 31 metformin-based diabetes drugs for the presence of a carcinogenic substance, even though they are not seriously harmful, according to national health authority.

The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety said a total of 288 active pharmaceutical ingredients and finished dosage forms of metformin circulating in Korea were identified with the substance, of which 31 exceeded the permitted level of N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA) classified as a probably carcinogenic to humans by the World Health Organization (WHO) International Agency for Research on Cancer.

 

Samsung SDI eyes No. 3 in global EV battery market with new Gen 5

South Korea’s Samsung SDI Co. is pinning high hopes on its new Gen 5 battery to break into the top three in the global electric vehicle battery market.

The battery-making unit of Samsung Group held a 6.0 percent share in the global EV battery market in the first quarter, climbing two notches on year to finish fourth, according to SNE Research.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


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 Heraldwww.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/38/3801.pdf
http://pdf.koreapost.co.kr/38/3802.pdf
http://pdf.koreapost.co.kr/38/3803.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=20833

저작권자 © The Korea Post 무단전재 및 재배포 금지