SEOUL, August 2 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s emergency consumer coupon program, launched to revitalize local economies, achieved a 90% disbursement rate within just 11 days of rollout, but has since come under scrutiny over illegal cash conversions and human rights concerns related to the card’s design. The “Livelihood Recovery Consumer Coupons,” issued in prepaid [...]
SEOUL, August 1 (Korea Bizwire) — As South Korea prepares to review Google’s request to export high-resolution local mapping data next month, government officials are signaling that national security—not trade relations—will remain the key lens through which the issue is assessed. Despite recent speculation that the matter might surface in the context of U.S.-Korea trade [...]
SEOUL, August 1 (Korea Bizwire) — Amid rising temperatures and summer body pressures, South Korean health authorities are sounding the alarm over a disturbing body image trend spreading across social media platforms. The Korea Health Promotion Institute (KHPI) on Thursday warned against the glamorization of extreme thinness—particularly the so-called “bone arm” ideal—highlighting its potential harm [...]
SEOUL, Aug. 1 (Korea Bizwire) — AhnLab, a leading South Korean cybersecurity firm, reported Wednesday that phishing scams disguised as digital wedding invitations were the most common form of SMS-based cyberattacks in the second quarter of 2025. According to AhnLab’s “Q2 2025 Phishing SMS Trend Report,” such scams accounted for 28.10% of all phishing messages, [...]
SEOUL, July 31 (Korea Bizwire) — With the tariff deal concluded, South Korea may face the task of resetting key alliance issues with the United States, as the Donald Trump administration is pressing its allies to take on a greater share of defense and security responsibilities. The tariff agreement reached Thursday commits South Korea to [...]
SEOUL, July 28 (Korea Bizwire) — LG Electronics has launched a new clothing care device, the LG Styler S3WW, through Japan’s crowdfunding platform “Green,” marking a strategic move to gauge market demand and bolster brand presence in one of the world’s most competitive consumer electronics markets. The new model is a simplified, value-focused version of [...]
INCHEON, South Korea, July 26 (Korea Bizwire) — Hip-hop superstar Kanye West returned to the Korean stage on Saturday night, igniting a euphoric crowd of more than 26,000 fans at Incheon Munhak Stadium in his first full concert in the country in over a decade. Braving sweltering summer heat that lingered near 30°C even [...]
SEOUL, July 26 (Korea Bizwire) – As South Korea grapples with an intensifying pattern of extreme heat and heavy rainfall, sun parasols and rain boots are emerging as must-have items—transcending gender norms and seasonal fashion boundaries. Once seen as a distinctly feminine accessory, parasols are now gaining popularity among men, driven by practical concerns over [...]
JEJU, July 26 (Korea Bizwire) – In a groundbreaking achievement, South Korea’s National Institute of Biological Resources announced on July 24 that it has successfully tracked the full migration route of the lesser cuckoo (Cuculus poliocephalus)—a global first in ornithological research. The bird, which was tagged with a GPS transmitter on Jeju Island in May [...]
SEOUL, July 25 (Korea Bizwire) — Sales of multigrain instant rice are surging in South Korea, especially among younger consumers, as part of a broader shift toward health-conscious eating, NH NongHyup Bank reported Friday. Analyzing 4.2 billion transaction records from its NH Members loyalty program between January 2022 and June 2025, the bank found that [...]