Monday, December 21, 2020
 

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

The Korea Post (http://www.koreapost.com/)
Ahn Cheol-soo declares his bid for Seoul mayoral by-election
Ahn Cheol-soo, head of the minor opposition People's Party, declared on Dec. 20 that he would run for the Seoul mayoral by-election, which is slated for April next year.
“I thought that I should throw myself into the race to prevent a Presidential power change from becoming impossible with a defeat in the Seoul mayor election," he said during a press conference at the National Assembly.
Ahn declared, "I decided to run in the by-election for Seoul mayor with the determination of “gyeoljahaeji” (solving problems I myself created) and to truly develop and innovate Seoul." In the Oct. 26 by-election for Seoul mayor in 2011, Ahn, the strongest candidate at the time, gave up his candidacy to the late former Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon.

Hanjin Group Chairman Cho Won-tae wins the French gold medal of merit for foreign affairs
Hanjin Group Chairman Cho Won-tae received a gold medal from Frank Riester, France's Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, at the Korea Furniture Museum in Seongbuk-gu, Seoul on December 17.
Chairman Cho said at the gala event, "It is a great honor to be awarded the French Medal of Merit for Foreign Affairs. I will take this as an encouragement to work harder for the development of bilateral relations between Korea and France."
The French Medal of Merit for Foreign Affairs is an honorary medal established in 2010 to express gratitude to those who have contributed to France and its people and is divided into three phases, gold, silver and bronze, according to their contributions.

Hanwha Energy sign a contract to sell 50MW solar power plant in Spain
Hanwha Energy concluded a contract to sell a 50MW solar power plant located in the Sevilla area of southern Spain on Nov. 27, the company said on Dec. 12.
After completing the development by acquiring the right to develop solar power in Sevilla, Spain in December 2018, Hanwha Energy began construction of the power plant in February this year and is set to start commercial operation in December.
The solar power plant is expected to produce energy that meets the power needs of 13,997 households, causing a reduction of 51,977 tons of greenhouse gases (CO2) emitted by 10,192 vehicles.
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KBS (http://world.kbs.co.kr/english/news/)
S. Korea's COVID-19 Cases Fall Below 1,000, Daily Death Toll Hits Record High
South Korea reported 926 new COVID-19 cases on Monday, falling below one-thousand for the first time in six days.
The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency(KDCA) said Monday that the new infections raised the country's accumulated caseload to 50-thousand-591.
The daily figure fell below the one-thousand mark for the first time since last Tuesday, but the drop is mainly attributed to a decrease in the number of people getting tested on weekends.

Seoul, Gyeonggi, Incheon Likely to Ban Gatherings of 5 or More People
Local governments in the greater Seoul area are likely to announce a ban on gatherings of five or more people this week as part of efforts to contain the relentless spread of COVID-19.
The Seoul Metropolitan Government said on Monday that related discussions are under way among the governments of Seoul and Gyeonggi Province and the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters.
Authorities have reportedly decided internally to issue an administrative order banning gatherings of five or more people from Thursday.

S. Korea's Exports Edge up 1.2% in First 20 Days of December
South Korea's exports edged up one-point-two percent on-year in the first 20 days of December.
According to tentative data from the Korea Customs Services on Monday, the country's outbound shipments stood at 30-point-eight billion U.S. dollars in the cited period, up one-point-two percent from a year earlier.
Compared to the same period last year, working days were down by point-five this year. Given the decrease, the daily average exports during the 20-day period grew by four-point-five percent.
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Yonhap (http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr)
New virus cases under 1,000 on fewer tests, daily death toll hits new high
South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases fell below 1,000 for the first time in six days Monday, mainly due to less testing over the weekend, as health authorities ramped up efforts to contain the faster spread of the virus. The daily virus death toll also hit a record high amid rising patients.
The country added 926 more COVID-19 cases, including 892 local infections, raising the total caseload to 50,591, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).
The tally marked a decline from 1,097 cases Sunday, 1,053 Saturday and 1,062 Friday.

S. Korea ups disinfection operations at wild bird habitats on avian influenza
South Korea said Monday that it has expanded disinfection operations at major wild bird habitats and poultry farms to cope with the rising number of highly pathogenic bird flu cases.
"Due to the influx of migratory birds into the country, contaminants can get into local farms at anytime," the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs said in a statement.
"As we are facing a grave situation, there will be zero tolerance of any violation of the quarantine guidelines," it added.

S. Korea's exports rise 1.2 pct in first 20 days of Dec.
South Korea's exports advanced 1.2 percent on-year in the first 20 days of December helped by strong sales of chips, customs data showed Monday.
The country's outbound shipments stood at US$30.8 billion in the Dec. 1-20 period, compared with $30.4 billion a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service.
Imports decreased 8 percent on-year to $27.7 billion in the 20-day period, resulting in a trade surplus of $3 billion, the data showed.
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The Korea Herald (http://www.koreaherald.com)
New virus cases under 1,000 on fewer tests, daily death toll hits new high
South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases fell below 1,000 for the first time in six days Monday, mainly due to less testing over the weekend, as health authorities ramped up efforts to contain the faster spread of the virus. The daily virus death toll also hit a record high amid rising patients.
The country added 926 more COVID-19 cases, including 892 local infections, raising the total caseload to 50,591, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).
The tally marked a decline from 1,097 cases Sunday, 1,053 Saturday and 1,062 Friday.

S. Korea's video game market ranked 5th largest globally last year: report
South Korea's video game market was the fifth largest in the world in 2019, falling one position from the previous year, a report showed Monday.
The country's video game market reached sales of 15.6 trillion won ($14.2 billion) last year, up 9 percent from the previous year, according to an annual report by the Korea Creative Content Agency.
The country ranked behind the United States, China, Japan and the United Kingdom in the global video market worth a total $186.5 billion last year.

Military hospital near Seoul begins receiving COVID-19 patients
A military hospital in Goyang, northwest of Seoul, began receiving coronavirus patients on Monday, the defense ministry said, amid a shortage of hospital beds due to a spike in the number of new infections.
The hospital can provide up to 80 beds for COVID-19 patients, according to the ministry.
Two other military hospitals in the southeastern city of Daegu and the central city of Daejeon also opened to civilians last week as part of the military's efforts to help the government's handling of the pandemic.
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The Korea Times (http://www.koreatimes.co.kr)
New virus cases under 1,000 on fewer tests, daily death toll hits new high
South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases fell below 1,000 for the first time in six days Monday, mainly due to less testing over the weekend, as health authorities ramped up efforts to contain the faster spread of the virus. The daily virus death toll also hit a record high amid rising patients.
The country added 926 more COVID-19 cases, including 892 local infections, raising the total caseload to 50,591, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).
The tally marked a decline from 1,097 cases Sunday, 1,053 Saturday and 1,062 Friday. In another grim milestone, the nation's total caseload exceeded 50,000. It took only 11 days for the total infections to surpass the 50,000 mark. South Korea's total caseload surpassed 40,000 on Dec. 10.

Law proposed to deport foreign nationals for false virus test results
Laws may be revised to enable the deportation of foreign nationals accused of submitting false PCR test results, an entry requirement for travelers from certain countries, in a bid to effectively prevent and control imported COVID-19 cases.
Independent lawmaker Lee Yong-ho said Sunday that he and 10 other lawmakers have proposed a revision bill to the Infectious Disease Control and Prevention Act, which will enable the deportation of foreigners who have violated immigration or quarantine laws.
Following the quarantine measures implemented by the health authorities in July, foreign arrivals from countries designated by the government as high-risk countries must submit certificates proving they have tested negative for COVID-19 on a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test.

KDB Life deal gets back on track
The Korea Development Bank (KDB) is expected to sign a stock purchase agreement with local private equity firm (PEF) JC Partners in the near future as the possible final act of its long-term attempts to sell KDB Life Insurance, sources said Monday.
JC Partners has recently attracted 150 billion won ($136 million) in funding from domestic small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and retail investors, on top of the combined 200 billion won funded by the KDB and Woori Bank previously, sources familiar with the issue said.
The funds came a few months after JC Partners, which was selected as the preferred bidder in July, had postponed taking over the life insurer, due to apparent difficulties in raising money for the acquisition.
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HanKyoReh Shinmun (http://english.hani.co.kr)
Yoon Seok-youl files administrative suit challenging 2-month suspension
Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl filed an administrative suit on Dec. 17 objecting to a two-month suspension from his duties approved by President Moon Jae-in. He also filed a request for a suspension of execution to suspend the validity of the disciplinary action.
At around 9 pm that day, Yoon’s attorney Lee Wan-gyu electronically filed an administrative suit and petition for suspension of execution with the Seoul Administrative Court. Explaining that this was a “legal action against the president’s actions and thus a legal action against the president,” Lee explained that Yoon’s basic position was one of “responding to damage to the Constitution and the rule of law in accordance with the procedures determined by the Constitution and law.”
The first of the filings to be heard is to concern the request for a suspension of execution, where Yoon plans to claim that the disciplinary action caused “irrevocable damage.” Lee explained that the suspension “halts the duties of the prosecutor general in an institution which upholds law and order, namely the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office of the Republic of Korea.”

US Forces Korea agrees to return 12 military sites to possession of S. Korea
The US has agreed to return 12 American military sites in the country to South Korea, including two athletic facilities in the Yongsan Garrison in Seoul. The two sides have decided to continue deliberations about cleaning up environmental pollution on the bases, which has long been a bone of contention.
On Dec. 11, the South Korean government announced that an agreement was reached during a virtual meeting of the 201st US-ROK Joint Committee of the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA). Under the agreement, South Korea will regain control of two sections of the Yongsan Garrison and 11 other American bases located in Seoul; parts of Gyeonggi Province; Nam (South) District, Daegu; Pohang, North Gyeongsang Province; and Taebaek, Gangwon Province.
The sections of the Yongsan Garrison that will be returned only represent a small portion of the entire garrison (53,418 out of 2,030,000 square meters). Even so, this is the first time the US military has relinquished any of the garrison.

Justice Ministry’s disciplinary committee says allegations against Yoon Seok-youl were sufficient grounds for termination
The Ministry of Justice(MOJ) prosecutor disciplinary committee deemed the grounds for disciplinary action against Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl to be “serious enough on the whole to qualify for termination,” it has been discovered.
While the committee judged Yoon to have engaged in serious improprieties including drafting a document “analyzing the political leanings” of judges, it ultimately decided to suspend him for two months in consideration of the “special factors” of disciplinary action against a prosecutor general.
According to a summary of the review and voting for Yoon’s disciplinary action that was made public on Dec. 17, the disciplinary committee concluded that his order to draft a document analyzing judges’ political leanings was “unacceptable” for a prosecutor general. The committee determined that Yoon drafted and distributed such a document to steer public opinion against judges “whose rulings are contrary to the prosecutors’ wishes,” adding that such surveillance amounted to “abuse in the form of propagating an unfavorable image to attack or slander [judges] and turn them into figures of mockery.”
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Chosun Ilbo (http://english.chosun.com)
Coronavirus Infections Spike to New Record
Coronavirus infections reached a daily record of 1,097 early Sunday as more than 1,000 people tested positive for five days in a row.
The accumulated number of patients crossed 50,000 that day, only 10 days after it surpassed 40,000, and deaths are expected to exceed 700 soon. Some 14.8 patients died on a daily average for five days since Dec. 15. About two dozen patients died overnight, bringing the total number of deaths to 698 as of Monday morning.
Fewer than 40 hospital beds for seriously ill patients are available nationwide, and none in Seoul.

Youngsters Seek Help as Lockdown Intensifies Family Conflict
Nearly 80 percent more adolescents sought counseling over family conflicts this year as lockdown threw Koreans into uncomfortable closeness day and night.
The number who sought counseling for mental health problems such as anxiety or depression also soared by more than 50 percent.
The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family on Thursday announced the figures based on statistics from the Youth Cyber Counseling Center for January to November.

Ex-President's Jail Sees Mass Coronavirus Infection
Some 186 people have tested positive for coronavirus at the Seoul Dongbu Detention Center, where former President Lee Myung-bak is incarcerated, but Lee tested negative.
In tests conducted on Dec. 17 of all 425 correctional officers and 2,419 inmates, one officer and 185 inmates tested positive, according to the Justice Ministry on Sunday. The tests came after 17 officers and inmates tested positive over the previous month.
"Most of the cases came from a ward accommodating new inmates," a ministry spokesman said. "We believe that the virus was spread by patients with no symptoms."
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The Dong-A Ilbo (http://english.donga.com/)
New strain of COVID-19 with 70% higher infectivity spreads fast in UK
The U.K. government announced an emergency lockdown in London and southeast England as the new strain of COVID-19 was spreading fast. London announced that the new virus’s infectivity was 70% higher, but vaccines were equally effective to it.
“We will introduce new restrictions in the most affected areas, specifically those parts in London, the southeast of England, which are currently in tier three. These areas enter a new tier four,” Prime Minster Boris Johnson said in a public announcement after discussing with the cabinet. They newly drew up tier four, the complete lockdown, after imposing tier three restrictions which is the highest level restrictions as they saw stronger measures were needed.
Tier four restrictions force all stores except essential facilities such as hospitals and pharmacies to close down, and everyone must stay at home except for when they go out for schooling or childcare purposes or when they cannot work from home. Those in tier-four areas are limited to meeting one other person from another household in an outdoor public space, and meeting people from other households indoors is banned.

Ahn Chul-soo declares bid to run for Seoul mayor 
“I am ready to sacrifice myself in the Seoul mayoral election to prevent a situation where the administration does not not change due to the opposition’s loss,” said Anh Chul-soo, head of the People’s Party. “I will run as the unified candidate for the opposition camp and take the lead in the effort to prevent the incumbent administration from continuously abusing power.” Ahn made the remarks on Sunday declaring his bid for the Seoul mayoral by-election in April next year. Ahn was considering his candidacy for the next presidential election, but has shifted his course to run for Seoul mayorship, the race for next year’s re-elections and by-elections, which are 108 days away, is picking up steam.
“If we do not judge and keep the incumbent administration in check now, the country will enter a dark age where student activists-turned politicians dominate and monopolize power forever,” Ahn told a press conference at the National Assembly on the day. “Witnessing the current situation of the Republic of Korea, I almost feel like throwing up blood, and I have thought to myself it is not the time for me to agonize over the presidential election.”

Hyundai Motor aims to return to Japanese market in 2022
Hyundai Motor Group is expected to return to the Japanese market in 11 years with its fuel cell electric vehicle (fcev) and electric vehicle (ev) models at the forefront.
The Nihon Keizai Shimbun reported on Sunday that Hyundai Motor plans to launch the NEXO or its flagship FCEV in the Japanese market in 2022. As the South Korean carmaker in September set up a website on passenger cars in the Japanese language and enthusiastically endorsed eco-friendly cars, industry observers projected that it will again knock on the door of the Japanese market.
Hyundai Motor started a market research last summer to make its way back to Japan, said the Nihon Keizai Shimbun. Apart from its previous failure in Japan with internal combustion cars, it expects that FCEVs and EVs will upgrade the company's image to win over the hearts of Japanese car buyers, according to the new report.
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The KyungHyang Shinmun (http://english.khan.co.kr/)
Who Will Lead the Investigations on the Government in the Absence of Yoon? Eyes on Personnel Transfers of Senior Prosecutors Early Next Year
How will the two-month suspension of Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl affect the prosecutors’ investigation of the Moon Jae-in government? The regular personnel promotions and transfers early next year are expected to replace many of the senior officials in the Prosecution Service, and experts expect this to hinder investigations linked to the government. However, some experts believe the disciplinary action against Yoon will not have any significant impact, for the suspension period is relatively short.
One investigation that is likely to be interrupted is the one on the alleged manipulation of a profitability evaluation of Wolsong Nuclear Power Plant Unit 1. On December 4, the Daejeon District Prosecutors’ Office arrested two officials at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy suspected of deleting or being involved in the deleting of massive data on the nuclear power plant--on charges of damaging public electronic records and violating the Board of Audit and Inspection Act--ahead of an audit by the Board of Audit and Inspection in November 2019.

President Moon to Reshuffle Cabinet to Turn the Tide in Time for the Launch of the Corruption Investigation Office Early Next Month
Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae’s resignation has drawn attention to the time and scope of the president’s next cabinet reshuffle.
Now that the disciplinary action against Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl has been executed and the future of Minister Choo has been determined, politicians from the ruling party are voicing the need to tend to public opinion, which deteriorated due to a prolonged confrontation between Choo and Yoon, and to change the mood in order to maintain the drive for state administration in the latter half of the president’s term. The second reshuffle expected early next year might be larger in scale compared with the first reshuffle early this month. The mood is leaning toward a reshuffle to overturn the current situation.
On December 16, President Moon responded to Minister Choo’s plans to resign and said, “I am grateful to her for faithfully completing the mission requested by our times.” He practically accepted her resignation. On December 17, a Cheongwadae official also said, “Minister Choo will remain in her position until a successor is nominated and undergoes a confirmation hearing at the National Assembly.” He stated the replacement of Choo as fact saying, “Since the president said he would carefully consider this, we ask that you wait and see.”

President Approves Suspension of Prosecutor General Yoon and Justice Minister Choo Opts to Resign: Yoon Warns of Legal Action
On December 16, President Moon Jae-in approved the justice ministry’s decision to suspend Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl from his duties for two months. Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae expressed her intention to step down when reporting the disciplinary measure against Yoon to the president this day. President Moon is expected to accept Choo’s resignation. Thus the extreme confrontation between Choo and Yoon, which had lasted longer than expected, is nearing an end. However, Yoon warned of legal action in response to the disciplinary measure. In addition, there is fierce opposition on the latest measure from the opposition party as well as the Prosecution Service, so the aftermath is likely to remain volatile for some time.
This afternoon at Cheongwadae, after Minister Choo reported the decision by the justice ministry’s disciplinary panel to the president, the president gave his approval, according to Chung Man-ho, senior Cheongwadae secretary for public communication at a press briefing.
President Moon said, “As the one who appointed the prosecutor general, I feel a heavy responsibility for the first ever disciplinary action against the prosecutor general,” and added, “I sincerely apologize to the people.”
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Maeil Business News Korea (http://www.pulsenews.co.kr/)
Korea’s 2020 auto exports to fall short of 2 million units first time in 16 years
South Korea’s automobile exports are expected to tally below 2 million units this year for the first time in 16 years amid global slump from yearlong pandemic crisis.
Total outbound shipment by Korea-based finished carmakers came to 1,714,702 units as of November, down 21.9 percent from a year-ago period, according to data released by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy on Sunday.
Given the 190,000 to 200,000 monthly average, the annual count could be lowest in nearly 20 years.

S. Korea to create industrial complex in economic zone near Vladivostok
South Korea is creating a mass-scale industrial complex near Vladivostok, the largest city in Primorsky Krai, Russia, to support Korean companies exploring resource and infrastructure developments in the Russian Far East under its pivot-North policy.
Korea Land & Housing Corporation (LH) said on Monday that it signed a final deal with Russia’s Far East Investment and Export Agency on the development of Korea-Russia Economic Cooperation Industrial Complex in Primorsky Krai (KICP) on Friday. The KICP project – which is in line with the government’s New Northern Policy – involves creating a 500,000 square meter industrial park near Vladivostok to host Korean small and mid-size companies.

FX deposits at Korean brokerages hit record high amid retail stock fad
Foreign money deposits trusted with Korean securities companies so far this year has topped $2 billion and more than tripled from last year’s balance as voracious stock appetite by Koreans have spilled over to overseas assets.
Korean brokerages held roughly $2.32 billion in foreign-denominated investor deposits as of Dec. 15 this year, compared with $667 million for the entire 2019, Korea Securities Depository said on Sunday.
Investment in foreign stocks surged during the period, with local investors scooping up $101.5 billion in offshore shares, up $21.7 billion from last year.

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Azerbaijan:
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Morocco:  www.youtube.com/watch?v=jfFmp2sVvSE
And many other countries.
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