Korean Air Force embraces memes, defying military stereotypes

SEOUL, May 17 (AJU PRESS) - The Korean Air Force has swiftly embraced Internet memes and cultural codes, as part of efforts to depart from stereotyped images of the military. By adopting this new approach, its official YouTube channel has proven to be successful, attracting 180,000 subscribers with over 100 million clicks on uploaded videos as of mid-May this year. The latest hit was a video dubbed "BOMB Yang Gang," which parodies "Bam Yang Gang," a song sung b

May 17, 2024

Korean spicy sauces gain global popularity

SEOUL, May 17 (AJU PRESS) – Fueled by the popularity of Korean foods like ramen and fried chicken, demand for the country's spicy sauces is rapidly growing overseas. According to data from the Korea Customs Service, exports of sauces this year until April were $130.93 million, a 6 percent increase from the same period last year. The United States was the largest market, accounting for 23 percent, followed by China with 12 percent, Japan with 9 percent, Russia

May 17, 2024

Culture minister advocates for Hangeul signboard for Gwanghwamun

SEOUL, May 17 (AJU PRESS) - Debates over the signboard of Gwanghwamun that leads to the main gate of Gyeongbokgung Palace in central Seoul have been reignited, coinciding with the birthday celebration of King Sejong the Great, who created Hangeul, the Korean alphabet. During an event Tuesday in the capital to mark the 627th birth anniversary of the king (1397~1450), Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Yu In-chon stressed the importance of replacing the current Chinese-wr

May 17, 2024

HYBE chairman ranks sixth among Korean business leaders in stock assets

SEOUL, May 17 (AJU PRESS) - Bang Si-hyuk, chairman of HYBE, the agency behind K-pop supergroup BTS, ranked sixth among Korean business leaders in terms of equity holdings, surpassing tycoons who head the nation’s second and fourth-largest conglomerates. According to analysis data from the Korea CXO Research Institute, Bang held about 2.5 trillion won ($1.8 billion) worth of shares as of Tuesday. The amount was higher than that of Chey Tae-won, chairman of SK Group, the nation&

May 17, 2024

More people fall victim to dating violence in Korea

SEOUL, May 17 (AJU PRESS) - Korea is grappling with a disturbing rise in dating violence cases in recent years, highlighting the urgent need for increased social awareness and preventive measures. The line separating lovers' conflicts from intimate partner violence has become blurred, raising questions about the boundaries that define dating abuse. Dating abuse encompasses any form of physical, sexual, or verbal abuse from a romantic or sexual partner, according to the Office

May 17, 2024

VISUALS: COEX hosting seafood fair

SEOUL, May 17 (AJU PRESS) - The 19th Seoul Seafood Show, featuring a variety of seafood and food ingredients from 16 countries, is underway at COEX in southern Seoul from May 15-17. About 180 companies have set up promotional booths for the event, hosted by the Korea Fisheries Association.

May 17, 2024

Opinion: Dow tops 40,000 as stock indexes continue to cross milestones − making many investors feel wealthier

SEOUL, May 17 (AJU PRESS) - The Dow Jones Industrial Average topped 40,000 for the first time on May 16, 2024. It spent the next few hours hovering around that mark, occasionally dipping under. But the breakthrough, even if fleeting, nonetheless marks another symbolic milestone in a monthslong bull market, coming three months after the S&P 500 index surpassed 5,000 for the first time. The Conversation asked Alexander Kurov, a financial markets scholar, to explain what stock in

May 17, 2024

British local government elections have national – and international - implications

KENOSHA, May 17 (AJU PRESS) - Britain’s local elections do not receive much international attention. That is a mistake. Generally, they are an excellent indicator of how the parties will do in the national elections. In the May 2 elections, the Liberal Democrats won big, with 768 gains. The Labour Party gained 545, the Greens 480, while the governing Conservative Party lost a massive 1783. This is the third successive year of significant Liberal Democrat advance.

May 17, 2024

Hyundai Elevator developing vertical airport for urban air mobility

SEOUL, May 16 (AJU PRESS) - A consortium led by Hyundai Elevator is developing a vertical airport for urban air mobility (UAM) as part of a state project to build highly automated air transportation systems in urban environments, the Korean company said. The top elevator maker in Korea said Wednesday its consortium has been selected by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport to develop a vertical airport, or vertiport, where aircraft land and take off vertically, and a s

May 16, 2024

Korean parents with infant have only 2.7 hours of daily free time, survey finds

SEOUL, May 16 (AJU PRESS) - Korean parents with a child under the age of three have the least amount of daily free time, averaging about 2.7 hours, according to a survey released Thursday. In contrast, young people in their 20s have the most, averaging 4.85 hours. Research firm Consumer Insight conducted the survey of 26,000 Korean adults and found that parents with an infant child had an average of just 2.69 hours of free time per day. The average daily spare time for all groups

May 16, 2024