Monday, February 8, 2021

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

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

“Bilateral cooperation continues to increase in oil, tourism, technology, clean energy, many other areas”

The following details were provided by the Embassy of the United Arab Emirates in Seoul for publication by The Korea Post media, publisher of 3 English and 2 Korean-language news publications.—Ed.

“If the economy is an organism ensuring the vital activity of society, spirituality is its heart and soul”

World historical experience shows that nations achieve progress thanks to spiritual cohesion, following their national idea. Today the issue of national ideology is very important in the country, which is moving towards building a new life and joining a number of developed states.

Amb. of Costa Rica in Seoul meets with Global Sae-A president

Mr. Alejandro Rodríguez Zamora, the Ambassador of Costa Rica in the Republic of Korea, met with the President of the Board of Directors of Global Sae-A, a manufacture in Costa Rica under the trade name Sae-A Spinning, S.R.L., a textile producer located in the Free Zone in the Cartago Province.

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

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

Gov't to Enforce Special Measures on Dept. Stores, Major Retailers ahead of Holiday

The government will enforce special quarantine measures on department stores and large-scale retailers during the Lunar New Year Holiday to prevent a spike in COVID-19 infections.   

WHO Team Finds ‘Important Clues’ Linking Pandemic to Wuhan Fish Market

A group of experts from the World Health Organization(WHO), which is investigating the origin of COVID-19, reportedly has found "important clues" in Wuhan, Hubei Province. 
Peter Daszak, a member of the team, told Bloomberg News on Saturday that the investigators have found some "real clues" that show the role of a seafood market in Wuhan in spreading the virus.  

Land Minister: Home Supply in Seoul May Surpass 320,000

Land Minister Byeon Chang-heum said on Sunday that more than 320-thousand homes could be supplied in Seoul, expressing confidence in the government's newly unveiled housing supply plan.

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

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

New virus cases under 400 for 3rd day ahead of eased social distancing

 South Korea's daily coronavirus cases were under 400 for the third consecutive day Sunday in the latest sign of a possible slowdown in the virus curve, with the country set to launch an eased social distancing scheme outside the greater Seoul area starting the next day.

S. Korea working to bring home seized sailors in Iran as early as this week

South Korea plans to help crew members aboard an oil tanker seized by Iran to return home as early as this week after Tehran's announcement that it will set most of them free, diplomatic sources said Sunday.

Ultrafine dust density falls to lowest for January

Last month's ultrafine dust density was the lowest for January since record keeping began in 2015, the environment ministry said Sunday.
The average PM 2.5 reading across the country was 20 micrograms per cubic meter, down from 26 micrograms per cubic meter in January 2020, the ministry said, referring to a measure for ultrafine particles smaller than 2.5 micrometers in diameter.

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

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

‘Stock investment: A lifelong game’

In his early 30s, Kim Dong-joo felt no need to make more money a few years after selling his own social commerce startup to the nation’s top mobile messenger operator Kakao.
The 2011 sale carried out in exchange for a huge stock option turned him into a man of fortune when Kakao made a backdoor listing after merging with then Kosdaq-listed internet portal Daum Communications in 2014.

New virus cases under 400 for 3rd day ahead of eased social distancing

South Korea's daily coronavirus cases were under 400 for the third consecutive day Sunday in the latest sign of a possible slowdown in the virus curve, with the country set to launch an eased social distancing scheme outside the greater Seoul area starting the next day.

Food poisoning cases fall to record low

The number of food poisoning cases last year was the lowest ever recorded as the COVID-19 pandemic forced cafeterias to close and increased an emphasis on personal hygiene, data showed Sunday.

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

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

Apple's obsession with secrecy increases burden on Hyundai-Kia

Will Apple walk away from negotiations on an alliance in driverless electric vehicles with Korea's top automotive conglomerate Hyundai Motor Group (HMG)?
The answer is "no" as the iPhone maker is set to seal a deal with the group, with affiliate Kia handling the "initial production" of Apple vehicles at its plant in the U.S. state of Georgia.

Netmarble eyes global market with big releases in 2021

Netmarble's earnings this year are expected to be good as the game giant is set to release big titles branching off from its popular intellectual property.
According to the company, Sunday, a series of titles based on storylines, characters and in-game universes of previous hit titles on the global market are set to be rolled out this year. 

Naver eyes acquisition of Vimosoft

Information technology (IT) giant Naver is considering investing in local software firm Vimosoft, well-known for developing a video-editing application called VLLO.
According to an industry source, Naver is in the early stage of talks to acquire a major stake in the software developer, which is displaying huge growth potential both domestically and in overseas markets.

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

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

Tesla creates 40,000 jobs in Germany but snubs the unions

That was what the spokesperson of German metalworkers’ union IG Metall recently told the Hankyoreh over email. The spokesperson was talking about Tesla’s Berlin Gigafactory, which is slated to begin operations this summer.

More than half of jobs at car factories to disappear by 2030

At 12:30 pm on Jan. 20, operations came to a sudden halt at Hyundai Motor’s No. 1 factory in Ulsan, which had been producing an Ioniq 5 test vehicle.
Workers had blocked the chassis from being brought in. Their reasons for doing so had to do with outsourcing key EV components.

Amsterdam is world’s healthiest city, report says

A new report finds that Amsterdam is the global city that supports the healthiest lifestyle.
Lenstore, an online contact lens retailer that also researches eye diseases, named the capital of the Netherlands first among 44 metropolises in its recently published Healthy Lifestyle Cities Report 2021. Seoul trailed far behind at 18th.

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

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

Korean Get Restive as Lockdown Ruins Lunar New Year

The government has extended the current lockdown for two more weeks until after Lunar New Year, which means gatherings of more than five people remain banned over the nation's biggest holiday. But many people intend to gather with their families anyway.

Worries Mount over Coronavirus Variants

The government on Thursday apologized for its tardy response to a recent spate of group infections with coronavirus variants.
Of 38 foreigners working in South Gyeongsang and South Jeolla provinces who tested positive for COVID-19 the previous day, four were confirmed to have the U.K. variant. None of the four had been overseas recently.

Gov't Unveils Massive Housing Plans for Seoul Region

The government hopes to fight a dire housing shortage in the Seoul metropolitan area by pushing forward urban reconstruction and redevelopment projects.
To attract private builders to the massive projects, the government will ease some regulations considered sacrosanct until now, including confiscation of excess profits from apartment renovations.

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

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

Biden benchmarks Roosevelt’s ‘fireside chats’

U.S. President Joe Biden benchmarked former President Franklin Roosevelt (1882-1945) who unprecedentedly served four terms by overcoming the Second World War. Biden consoled Americans suffering from COVID-19 and the economic downturn by publicizing a phone call with an unemployed citizen similar to Roosevelt’s “fireside chats.”

Woo Sang-ho, Chung Bong-ju agree to unify Seoul mayor candidacy

Woo Sang-ho of the Democratic Party of Korea, a candidate for the Seoul mayoral election on April 7, and backup candidate Chung Bong-ju of the Open Democratic Party have agreed to have a single candidate based on the premise of integrating the two parties.

Kia delivers 130 vehicles to Australian Open 

Kia Motors Corporation announced that it delivered official vehicles to the Australian Open, a tennis tournament to be held in Melbourne, Australia, and held an event to showcase the new logo on Sunday (local time), a day before the opening of the tournament.

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

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

Ruling Party Signals Launch of Judiciary Reforms: The Purpose of Reforms Could Pale if Attempt Ends with the Impeachment of an Individual Judge

On February 4, the National Assembly passed a motion to impeach a judge for the first time in the nation’s history, after lawmakers determined that the intervention in trials by Lim Seong-geun (Im Seong-geun), a chief judge at the Busan High Court who allegedly abused court authority, violated the independence of a judge stipulated in the Constitution.

Why the Concern for a “Spring Wave” ahead of the Launch of the Inoculation Plan

A series of risk factors are surfacing ahead of the first inoculation for COVID-19 in mid February. Authorities have confirmed the local transmission of a variant string of the virus and contagion linked to hospitals and blind spots in disease prevention continues.

“South Korea-Japan Underwater Tunnel” Surfaces as an Issue in the Busan Election: “Pro-Japan” “DJ Promoted It, Too”

On February 1, Kim Chong-in, head of the People Power Party emergency committee visited Busan and said, “We will actively review the construction of an underwater tunnel between South Korea and Japan linking Gadeok-do (in Busan) and Kyushu, Japan.” 

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

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

NCSoft closes 2020 with record earnings thanks to Lineage mobile games

South Korea’s leading mobile game publisher NCSoft Corp. posted record high earnings in 2020 as its household Lineage M mobile labels appealed stronger to homebound gamers around the world.

Korea’s C/A surplus at $75.3 bn in 2020, beating estimates due to lower imports

South Korea’s current account surplus stretched 26 percent last year from a year ago despite the Covid-19 fallout as imports dipped more than exports.
According to data released by the Bank of Korea (BOK) on Friday, the country’s current account surplus for 2020 stood at $75.28 billion, up 26.14 percent from the previous year.

Hyundai Wia said to be discussing $711 mn parts contract with Fiat Chrysler

Hyundai Wia Corp., South Korea’s factory machinery and auto parts making unit under Hyundai Motor Group, is likely to supply 800 billion won ($711.4 million) worth auto parts to Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA).

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

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/
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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, 35 years old this year!
Korean-language Internet edition: www.koreapost.co.kr
English-language Internet edition: 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=22078

저작권자 © The Korea Post 무단전재 및 재배포 금지