SEOUL, Jan. 8 (Korea Bizwire) — The number of daily moviegoers plunged to a fresh record low this week, as new releases have been affected by the latest coronavirus resurgence in winter, data showed Friday. According to the data from the Korean Film Council (KOFIC), 14,000-16,000 people went to theaters daily this week, down from [...]
SEOUL, Jan. 6 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea plans to provide a huge chunk of its emergency handouts to smaller merchants hit hard by the new coronavirus outbreak by the Lunar New Year’s holiday in early February, the finance minister said Wednesday. The country plans to provide 9.3 trillion won (US$8.6 billion) in relief funds [...]
SEOUL, Jan. 5 (Korea Bizwire) — Online shopping in South Korea hit a record high in November as more people bought products via e-commerce platforms amid the new coronavirus pandemic, data showed Tuesday. The value of online transactions stood at 15.1 trillion won (US$13.8 billion) in November, up 17.2 percent from the previous year, according [...]
SEOUL, Dec. 31 (Korea Bizwire) — With the wedding aisle adorned with a load of white and pink flowers and fancy dining tables decorated for the occasion, 38-year-old Choi Yu-mi’s wedding looked like a typically lavish Korean marriage ceremony, except that the wedding hall held only dozens of guests, not hundreds. Tables laden with flower [...]
SEOUL, Dec. 31 (Korea Bizwire) — The spread of the coronavirus would accelerate the trend of low fertility and population aging in South Korea, the central bank report said Wednesday. In a recent study conducted by the Bank of Korea (BOK), the pandemic would have a limited direct impact on the local population primarily due [...]
SEOUL, Dec. 30 (Korea Bizwire) — With the pandemic’s end still a long way off, home shopping businesses are seeing reporting an increase in food sales. Among GS Shop’s total sales in the third quarter this year, food accounted for 29 percent, up 6 percentage points compared to last year and 4 percentage points higher [...]
SEOUL, Dec. 28 (Korea Bizwire) — Changes in consumer lifestyle following the onset of the coronavirus pandemic are being felt in convenience store sales. 7-Eleven’s transportation card recharge sales between January and December 22 were 48.4 percent lower compared to the previous year. Sales of standard garbage bags, in contrast, were 21.8 percent higher. During [...]
SEOUL, Dec. 25 (Korea Bizwire) — This year’s Christmas on Friday was unlikely any other, as the raging coronavirus pandemic forced churches to hold services online and kept people off the streets on a typically bustling and cheerful holiday. The landmark Myeongdong Cathedral in central Seoul held its Christmas Mass virtually for the first time, [...]
SEOUL, Dec. 25 (Korea Bizwire) — The Samsung Fashion Institute said Thursday it had selected ‘R.E.S.C.U.E.’ as next year’s fashion market keyword. ‘R.E.S.C.U.E,’ a combination of six phrases, refers to the urgent rescue that the fashion market is in need of. ‘R’ refers to ‘restoration first,’ meaning that the priority of the fashion market is [...]
SEOUL, Dec. 23 (Korea Bizwire) — This year will be a subdued holiday season for many South Koreans as winter destinations are closed and restaurants are banned from having groups of five or more people under toughened virus curbs. Authorities have repeatedly urged the public to cancel their year-end gatherings and trips to reduce risk [...]