SEOUL, Aug. 1 (Korea Bizwire) — Online shopping in South Korea rose around 10 percent in June from a year ago as the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions boosted demand for travel and leisure services and food, data showed Monday. The value of online shopping transactions came to 16.8 trillion won (US$12.9 billion) in June, up [...]
SEOUL, July 31 (Korea Bizwire) — Apartment transactions in South Korea fell more than 50 percent on-year in the first half of 2022 due mainly to the government’s tough lending curbs and rising interest rates, data showed Sunday. The number of apartments traded nationwide stood at 184,134 units in the January-June period, down 50.6 percent [...]
SEOUL, July 29 (Korea Bizwire) — Sales of cigarettes in South Korea gained 1.9 percent on-year in the first half of the year on weak demand for duty-free cigarettes amid the coronavirus pandemic and increased sales of heated tobacco products, the finance ministry said Friday. South Korean smokers purchased 1.78 billion 20-cigarette packs in the [...]
SEOUL, July 29 (Korea Bizwire) — Credit card spending in South Korea jumped in the second quarter, buoyed by eased antivirus measures, data showed Friday. Spending made with credit, debit and prepaid cards came to 280.7 trillion won (US$216.2 billion) in the April-June period, up 14.8 percent from a year earlier, according to the data [...]
SEOUL, July 29 (Korea Bizwire) — Exports of South Korean-made passenger cars expanded 2.5 percent in the first half of the year, thanks mainly to brisk overseas demand for green cars, data showed Friday. Local carmakers shipped passenger cars worth a combined US$22.3 billion during the January-June period, up from $21.7 billion a year earlier, [...]
SEOUL, July 29 (Korea Bizwire) — The National Police Agency on Thursday started issuing mobile driver’s licenses at 27 driver’s license examination centers and 258 police stations nationwide. Mobile driver’s licenses are issued onto a personal smartphone, in accordance with the Road Traffic Act and they carry the same legal validity as an actual license [...]
SEJONG, July 29 (Korea Bizwire) — Starting next month, all travelers entering South Korea through Terminal 2 of Incheon International Airport and Gimpo International Airport will be able to clear customs via a mobile app. The Korea Customs Service said Thursday it has released a newly developed “traveler’s customs declaration” app for smartphones and a [...]
SEOUL, July 29 (Korea Bizwire) — The Seoul Metropolitan Government on Thursday announced an initiative to add free Wi-Fi to streets and tourist attractions with a heavy floating population. In collaboration with the Ministry of Science and ICT and major telecom operators, the city government installed 23,476 Wi-Fi routers throughout the city during the period [...]
SEOUL, July 28 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s total population fell for the first time last year due to the country’s low childbirths and rapid aging, along with a decline in incoming foreigners during the pandemic, data showed Thursday. The country’s total population reached 51.74 million as of Nov. 1, 2021, down 91,000, or 0.2 [...]
SEOUL, July 28 (Korea Bizwire) — Retail sales in South Korea rose 9.3 percent on-year in the first half of this year amid eased COVID-19 curbs and the growth in people’s outdoor activities, the industry ministry said Thursday. The combined sales of 25 major offline and online retailers reached 82 trillion won (US$65.2 billion) in [...]