SEOUL, Sept. 21 (Korea Bizwire) — Stung by the protracted new coronavirus outbreak, South Korean duty-free operators are struggling to overcome the industry-wide slump with belt-tightening measures, including increasing the number of closing days at some outlets in major local cities and cutting their overseas operations. Industry leader Lotte Duty Free began closing its outlets [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 18 (Korea Bizwire) — Two young brothers in Incheon who suffered severe burn injuries earlier this week were found to be abuse victims, in a tragedy that was compounded by the coronavirus pandemic. The boys, 8 and 10, were engulfed in flames on Monday while cooking instant noodles for lunch. Their mother was [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 18 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s exports of automobiles plunged nearly 16 percent in August from a year earlier, data showed Friday, due mainly to the global virus pandemic dealing a harsh blow to consumer sentiment around the world. Local carmakers shipped 136,538 units of cars overseas last month, down 15.8 percent from [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 18 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea said Friday the number of beachgoers plummeted 60 percent in 2020 from a year earlier, as the country limited the number of visitors to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus. The number of beachgoers this year came to 26.8 million, compared to 67.6 million posted a [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 17 (Korea Bizwire) — The number of film productions in South Korea decreased more than 20 percent in the first eight months of this year due to the protracted novel coronavirus pandemic, a report showed Thursday. A total of 18 films were shot from January through August, down 22 percent from 23 over [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 17 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea and China on Thursday began to operate irregular flights to allow Korean residents in China who returned here due to the coronavirus outbreak to go back, the transport ministry said. Korean Air Lines Co. and Xiamen Airlines will offer a total of seven flights from Incheon, west [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 11 (Korea Bizwire) — Many foreign students feel socially isolated, particularly those without any social communities in South Korea, following the coronavirus outbreak. The Ministry of Education reported that there were 160,000 foreign students residing in Korea as of last year, with most still residing in the country despite the onset of the [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 10 (Korea Bizwire) — Strict social distancing guidelines brought on by the coronavirus pandemic have prompted a growing number of South Koreans to read books to pass the time. South Korean online commerce giant 11st reported that sales of e-book readers and tablets jumped by 117 percent between Aug. 30-Sept. 6. Table lamp [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 7 (Korea Bizwire) — The National Assembly passed a bill to extend the family care leave of absence for employees up to 25 days Monday as the country struggles to fight a resurgence of new coronavirus infections. The assembly’s plenary session approved the bill to revise the Equal Employment Opportunity and Work-Family Balance [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 7 (Korea Bizwire) — Major South Korean companies saw their overseas sales tumble nearly 20 percent in the second quarter of the year during the coronavirus pandemic, data showed Monday. Combined overseas sales of the country’s top 100 firms by revenue totaled 146.3 trillion won (US$123 billion) in the April-June period, down 19.8 [...]