SEOUL, Aug. 30 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea extended a natural decrease in population in June as the fertility rate hit yet another record low, data showed Wednesday, reflecting the grim demographic trend. Only 18,615 babies were born in June, down 1.6 percent from a year earlier, according to the monthly report from Statistics Korea. [...]
SEOUL, Aug. 30 (Korea Bizwire) — The South Korean government provided more than 10,000 workers, including around 8,400 foreign workers, for local shipbuilders in the first half of 2023 in an effort to ease pandemic-related labor shortages, the industry ministry said Wednesday. A total of 10,104 South Korean and foreign workers were employed by shipbuilders [...]
SEOUL, Aug. 30 (Korea Bizwire) — The Seoul Metropolitan Government said Tuesday it will launch the Wheelchair-Accessible Restrooms Discovery initiative, a joint effort with the city’s residents. The project, set to operate from Sept. 1 to Dec. 9, aims to improve the convenience of outings for individuals using wheelchairs, including those who are disabled or [...]
SEOUL, Aug. 30 (Korea Bizwire) — The number of foreign seafarers on longline fishing vessels is set to increase by 2,500 individuals. The Ministry of Justice on Monday provided its final approval for a proposal that had been put forth by the National Federation of Fisheries Cooperatives (NFFC). In an earlier agreement between the Federation [...]
SEOUL, Aug. 30 (Korea Bizwire) — Prime Minister Han Duck-soo instructed the government Tuesday to review the development plan for the southwestern reclaimed wetland of Saemangeum from scratch in a bid to improve its economic benefits, government sources said. The nation has been pushing to turn the 409-square-kilometer reclaimed area in North Jeolla Province into [...]
SEOUL, Aug. 29 (Korea Bizwire) — The police have made the decision to provide each local police officer, including those stationed at district and police boxes, with a firearm within a three-year timeframe, according to NPA’s announcement on Tuesday. This initiative includes the issuance of a .38 revolver as well as a low-risk revolver (or [...]
SEOUL, Aug. 29 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea has tentatively allocated 520 billion won (US$393 million) in the state budget to be used in various support programs for Ukraine, including reconstruction-related projects, next year, according to the government’s budget proposal released Tuesday. Seoul’s funds earmarked for Ukraine-related projects for 2024 represents an over eightfold increase [...]
SEOUL, Aug. 29 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea will funnel 5 trillion won (US$3.8 billion) into research and development (R&D) next year to promote 12 strategic technologies as part of the country’s long-term growth plan to take the global lead in up-to-date technologies, the science ministry said Tuesday. The 2024 amount increased 6.4 percent from [...]
SEOUL, Aug. 29 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s rice paddy area decreased 2.6 percent in 2023 from a year earlier amid a reduction in domestic consumption, data showed Tuesday. The country’s rice cultivation area came to 708,041 hectares, compared with 727,054 hectares tallied a year earlier, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. South [...]
SEOUL, Aug. 29 (Korea Bizwire) — The school zone speed limit will be eased to up to 50 kilometers per hour from the current 30 kph during the night and early morning hours beginning next month, police said Tuesday. Under the revision, which will go into force Friday, the speed limit around schools, namely school [...]