SEOUL, Sept. 14 (Korea Bizwire) — Various indices measuring the country’s overall levels of blood pressure, blood sugar and cholesterol levels in the liver among elementary, middle and high school students have worsened since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, data showed Tuesday. Rep. Shin Hyun-young of the Democratic Party shared reports from the Seoul [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 14 (Korea Bizwire) — Companies in South Korea saw their profitability shrink in the second quarter from a year earlier despite a sales jump due mainly to a rise in commodity prices, central bank data showed Wednesday. Their operating profit to sales ratio stood at 7.4 percent in the April-June period, down 0.3 [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 13 (Korea Bizwire) — The number of disposable cups consumed at major cafe and fast food chains topped 1 billion last year amid the COVID-19 pandemic, a report showed Tuesday. According to the environment ministry report submitted to Rep. Lee Joo-hwan of the ruling People Power Party, the number of disposable plastic and [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 13 (Korea Bizwire) — The government has seen nearly 560,000 outside hacking attempts into its key computer systems over the past six years, with a combined 43 percent from China and the United States, a report showed Tuesday. According to the interior ministry report submitted to Rep. Lee Hae-sik of the main opposition [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 13 (Korea Bizwire) — The number of South Korean firms unable to service their debts with earnings soared nearly 24 percent in 2021 from two years earlier amid the prolonged coronavirus outbreak, a report showed Tuesday. Asia’s fourth-largest economy had 2,823 “marginal companies” last year, up 23.7 percent from 2019 before the COVID-19 [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 10 (Korea Bizwire) — South Koreans’ consumption of flowers and ornamental plants rose 6.1 percent on-year last year on rising demand amid the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic and restrictions in outdoor activities, data showed Saturday. An average South Korean spent 12,386 won (US$8.90) on buying flowers and other plants in 2021, compared with 11,676 [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 10 (Korea Bizwire) — A majority of parents in South Korea were found to rely heavily on smartphones or tablet computers when tending to young children while carrying out daily tasks at home, a poll showed Saturday, a development that reflects the country’s growing smartphone addiction problem among young people. In the poll [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 8 (Korea Bizwire) — Close to one-third of South Koreans do not wish to receive an additional shot of the COVID-19 vaccine, even if the next wave of a pandemic is coming, a poll showed Wednesday. A research team from Korea University conducted a nationwide survey of 1,500 men and women over 19 [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 8 (Korea Bizwire) — Asset management firms in South Korea saw their combined net earnings plunge in the second quarter of this year due to massive investment losses amid sluggish financial markets, data showed Thursday. The combined net income of 380 firms came to 170.1 billion won (US$122.6 million) in the April-June period, [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 7 (Korea Bizwire) — Gender inequality is still widespread in South Korean when it comes to employment and wages, the gender ministry said Tuesday. The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family reported that the employment rate among women stood at 51.2 percent last year, which was 18.8 percentage points lower than the male [...]