Fierce competition and social anxiety caused S. Korea's low birth rate crisis: report

SEOUL -- The Bank of Korea has identified intense competition as a significant factor contributing to the rapid decline in South Korea's birth rate. The central bank analyzed that the current fertility crisis could be attributed to the anxiety stemming from a low employment rate and the scarcity of high-quality jobs in the country. South Korea's birth rate in 2022 was 0.78 babies per couple. Data from the Bank of Korea (BOK) showed that there is a 90 percent probability that

December 7, 2023

Streaming platform Twitch to exit S. Korea due to 'prohibitively expensive' network costs

SEOUL -- One of the world's most popular online streaming platforms, Twitch, will exit South Korea in early 2024 due to extremely high network fees that are 10 times higher than in most countries, the streaming platform's CEO said through his blog. Twitch, with about 140 million monthly active users as of August 2023, offers creative online spaces for content creators called streamers who mainly broadcast their content live. Fans can choose and access their favorite streamer

December 7, 2023

S. Korea to offer psychological counseling for 1 mln people by 2027 against high suicide rate

SEOUL -- In a bid to curb South Korea's extremely high suicide rates, the country will provide counseling services for one million people by 2027. About 80,000 people struggling with emotional or mental challenges are expected to receive psychological counseling in 2024. Throughout Korea's history, individuals grappling with mental illness carried a stigma and were often considered untreatable, relegated to the shadows of society. Before the adoption of modern Western medici

December 6, 2023

Chinese ecommerce giant Alibaba promises to provide customer protection for S. Korean consumers  

SEOUL -- Aliexpress, the business-to-customer-focused ecommerce platform wing of China's online shopping titan Alibaba Group, has made promises to inject 10 billion won ($7.6 million) over the next three years in a bid to establish a safe shopping system that will protect the rights of customers and sellers including intellectual property. Alibaba Group operates three main shopping platforms -- Alibaba, Aliexpress, and Taobao. While Alibaba focuses on wholesale and business-to-b

December 6, 2023

Railway operator to commercialize AI-based railroad monitoring robot in 2024

SEOUL -- South Korea's public railway operator will commercialize a smart robot that monitors railway facilities automatically in the first half of 2024. The artificial intelligence-based robot will assist human workers in inspecting hazardous areas, especially during typhoons or heavy rainfall. The robot incorporates an LTE communication network, a camera, and a laser Imaging detection and ranging (LiDAR) sensor. While navigating the track, it transmits real-time images and ale

December 6, 2023

[COLUMN] Is it the end of dog farming?

SEOUL -- From time to time, I find myself wondering how future generations might look upon our era. Just as we find it hard to believe that nice, sophisticated people could own slaves, what do we do today that will make our great-grandchildren doubt our moral uprightness? There are some obvious candidates for disapproval – warfare, poverty, pollution, lon

December 6, 2023

YG Entertainment renews group contract with BLACKPINK members 

SEOUL -- K-pop girl band BLACKPINK has reached a consensus with its agency "YG Entertainment" to carry on with its group activities. The four-member band is currently discussing with its agency regarding the possibility of each member continuing individual activities. "We are happy to maintain our relationship with BLACKPINK," YG Entertainment's head Yang Hyun-suk said after signing the agreement with the group. The producer added: "BLACKPINK members wil

December 6, 2023

Hanwha Ocean becomes preferred negotiator for S. Korea's 3,600-ton attack submarine project

SEOUL -- Hanwha Ocean, the shipbuilding wing of South Korea's Hanwha Group, has become the preferred negotiator for a government contract designed to construct a 3,600-ton class "Jangbogo" attack submarine. This is the company's first submarine order since Hanwha Group became the owner of the Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering's shipyard through a $1.4 billion deal that was finalized in early 2023. South Korea has a three-stage project called KSS (Jan

December 6, 2023

Inflation of food prices accelerate despite slowed inflation of consumer prices

SEOUL -- Despite the slowed inflation of consumer prices in November, the inflation rate of food prices has become steeper, data released by South Korea's statistics information office showed. Among food ingredients, the increased rates of prices of salt, sesame oil, and pasta noodles were the biggest. The continued consumer price increase in South Korea was caused by high interest rates, high oil prices, and increased prices of agricultural products. Various factors such as abn

December 6, 2023

Megastore franchise Emart to open third store in Viet Nam

SEOUL -- Emart, the megastore wing of South Korea's retail conglomerate Shinsegae, will open its third store in Viet Nam in about a year after the launch of its first store in November 2022. Visitors can enjoy various types of food products such as pizza and Gimbap, a Korean dish of rice and other ingredients such as vegetables and meat wrapped in sheets of laver. Emart said in a statement that the third store, located in Ho Chi Minh City, will start operations on December 7. Th

December 6, 2023