SEOUL, Aug. 19 (Korea Bizwire) — As daily life becomes increasingly reliant on digital tools, a new government survey has found that nearly one in 12 South Korean adults lacks the basic digital skills needed to navigate common tasks such as booking train tickets through an app, checking online invitations, or sending money via banking apps. [...]
SEOUL, Aug. 19 (Korea Bizwire) — In a striking response to rising emotional isolation, Seoul’s “Hello Loneliness 120” helpline has received over 15,000 calls since its launch in April, far surpassing its annual goal by more than fivefold, according to the Seoul Welfare Foundation’s Isolation Prevention Center on Monday. Launched as South Korea’s first loneliness [...]
SEOUL, Aug. 19 (Korea Bizwire) – As South Korea grapples with relentless summer heat, an unlikely battleground has emerged: the thermostat. In office buildings and on subways, debates over air-conditioning settings have intensified, exposing a deep divide in how people experience temperature — and how they express it. Commuters trade complaints online, with some lamenting [...]
SEOUL, Aug. 19 (Korea Bizwire) – A government policy aimed at reducing smoking through tobacco tax increases appears to have only short-term impact, with a recent study revealing that the sales drop triggered by higher prices typically vanishes within four months. According to a new report released Monday by the Korea Institute for Health and [...]
DAEJEON, Aug. 19 (Korea Bizwire) – A South Korean research team has developed a novel AI-powered image sensor inspired by the human brain’s neural architecture, capable of recognizing visual information under extreme lighting conditions without the need for retraining or additional data correction. According to the National Research Foundation of Korea, the joint research team, led [...]
SEOUL, Aug. 19 (Korea Bizwire) — More than half of South Korean workers are now using generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools on the job, potentially contributing to a significant uptick in national productivity, according to a new report released by the Bank of Korea on Monday. The report, titled “Rapid Expansion of AI and Its [...]
SEOUL, Aug. 18 (Korea Bizwire) — As Portuguese soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo grabs global headlines with a 7 billion won diamond engagement ring, South Korea is witnessing its own wave of extravagant marriage proposals. Social media is awash with images of luxury handbags, five-star hotel suites, and designer jewelry, reflecting a growing trend of high-end courtship [...]
SEOUL, Aug. 18 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s major petrochemical companies are grappling with a deepening industry downturn, as key players reported average plant utilization rates falling below break-even thresholds during the first half of 2025, according to corporate filings reviewed on August 17. The average operating rates at leading firms—including Lotte Chemical, LG Chem, [...]
SEOUL, Aug. 18 (Korea Bizwire) — A year after its launch, “SEOULDAL,” the tethered gas balloon ride that offers panoramic night views of the city from 130 meters above Yeouido, has attracted more than 50,000 riders — nearly a third of them foreign visitors — without a single safety incident, according to Seoul city officials. The [...]
SEOUL, Aug. 18 (Korea Bizwire) — Hyundai Motor and Kia are accelerating their momentum in Saudi Arabia, the Middle East’s largest automotive market, by claiming the top two best-selling vehicles in the first half of 2025 — a region long dominated by Japanese brands like Toyota and Nissan. According to sales data released by Hyundai [...]