President Yoon to visit Lithuania for NATO summit meeting and Poland for state visit

SEOUL -- South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol will depart for a six-day visit to two European nations -- Lithuania and Poland. After attending a North Atlantic Treaty Organization summit meeting in Lithuania, the South Korean leader will move to Poland where he would discuss cooperation methods in defense and nuclear power sectors with Polish President Andrzej Duda. According to the presidential office, Yoon and First Lady Kim Geon-hee will depart for Lithuania on July 10 to attend t

July 10, 2023

S. Korea to restrict foreign workers' rights to change workplaces

SEOUL -- Starting on July 9, foreign labor workers in South Korea with the non-professional employment visa "E9" will only be allowed to change their workplaces within the same regional area where their previous workplace was located, except for very few special cases. The country aims to help South Korean employers in rural areas struggling with labor shortages due to the frequent turnover of migrant workers. E9 visa is mainly provided for those in the manufacturing sector.

July 6, 2023

S. Korean foreign minister to meet Japanese counterpart to discuss Fukushima water discharge

SEOUL -- Japanese foreign minister Yoshimasa Hayashi will meet his South Korean counterpart Park Jin at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations-related foreign ministers' meeting scheduled to be held in Indonesia in mid-July to seek understanding of the discharge of contaminated water, referred to as "treated water" by Japan, into the sea of Fukushima, according to Japanese daily newspaper Yomiuri Shimbun. Hayashi will also meet his Chinese counterpart through an individua

July 5, 2023

S. Korean police to provide emergency interpretation service for foreigners

SEOUL -- Police have adopted interpretation services to accurately communicate with foreigners in South Korea. Two English interpreters and two Chinese interpreters will help police officers to handle various types of emergencies. It's been difficult for foreigners to report a crime to the police due to the language barrier. The South Korean police communicated with foreigners through a 3-way phone call which involved a private interpretation company, but the method was not efficie

July 3, 2023

Southern port city to open 'K-pop high school' to nurture young artists

SEOUL -- The southern port city of Busan will embark on a preparation process to open a high school that will focus on the incubation of young K-pop artists including singers, performers, writers, and composers. The high school scheduled to open in 2028 will attract students from South Korea and abroad who wish to become the next-generation BTS and BLACK PINK. K-pop, which started as a sub-culture that was only popular among South Korean music lovers and a small number of foreign peopl

June 30, 2023

S. Koreans choose short affordable trip plans amid high inflation: survey

SEOUL -- In a bid to solve money problems in the era of high inflation, South Koreans chose to go on short, affordable trips rather than to go on luxurious trips that last for days, data released by Consumer Insight, a market research company, showed. According to a weekly survey of 500 consumers, conducted by Consumer Insight, a person who went on a trip in May 2023 spent an average of 230,000 won ($174) during an average trip duration of 2.96 days. The average amount of money spe

June 29, 2023

Seoul to allow passengers to tag out and reboard subway trains within 10 minutes

SEOUL -- Starting in July, Seoulites will be allowed to tag out and reboard subway trains within 10 minutes without paying an extra fare. Currently, passengers must pay for a new trip if they have to move through a toll gate to get to the other side of the platform or go to a toilet. These situations occur occasionally, especially when a person forgets to get off his or her destination station. According to Seoul, there were many complaints regarding the need to pay

June 29, 2023

Five S. Korean universities enter top 100 in global university ranking

SEOUL -- QS Quacquarelli Symonds, a Britain-based company specializing in the evaluation of higher education institutions, has included five South Korean universities in the top 100 on the list of 1,500 institutes in the world. Seoul National University ranked seventh among Asian universities, and 41st globally. QS determines the global ranking every year based on various factors such as academic reputation, faculty-student ratio, number of citations for academic journals, employme

June 28, 2023

Number of S. Korean overseas travelers slowly increase after reopening: market data

SEOUL -- The number of South Korean overseas travelers has exceeded 5 million in the first half of 2023, accounting for up to about 50 percent of the number of people who traveled to foreign countries in the first half of 2019, data released by the operator of the country's seven main airports showed. The state airport management body said the number of its total overseas flyers in 2022 was about 1.78 million. The Korea Airports Corporation (KAC) said in a statement that the nu

June 27, 2023

Whisky continues to attract young S. Korean consumers thanks to DIY cocktail culture: data

SEOUL -- Customs data showed that whisky is continuing to maintain its place as the favorite alcoholic drink among young consumers in their 20s and 30s thanks to various make-your-own cocktail recipes that are shared through social media platforms. Among simple cocktails, a highball is one of the most popular cocktails enjoyed by young consumers. Highball, a Japanese-style alcoholic cocktail that is based on an alcoholic spirit and a larger proportion of non-alcoholic base ingredie

June 26, 2023