Osaka selected by S. Koreans as favorite vacation spot in 1H 2023

SEOUL -- Osaka, Japan's western city where the country's main seaport nests, was South Koreans' favorite getaway destination during the first half of 2023, data released by the transport ministry showed. Among the list of top 10 tourist destinations, there were four Japanese cities while the other six were located in the Southeast Asian region. According to aviation traffic data released by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport on August 7, the flight route bet

August 7, 2023

S. Korea's catering giant Our Home partners with Viet Nam's private school operator to manage canteens

SEOUL -- South Korea's catering giant Our Home will manage school canteens run by FPT Education, a private school operator affiliated with Viet Nam's major IT service firm FPT Corporation. The food company will provide various South Korean food such as Bibimbap, a traditional Korean rice dish with pre-cooked herbs and meat, and Tteokbokki, finger-sized rice cakes simmered in fiery-red spicy chili sauce. Our Home said in a statement that the catering firm partnered with FPT

August 7, 2023

Seoul's southern district joins Viet Nam's healthcare exhibition to attract more medical tourists

SEOUL -- At an international exhibition to promote medical products and devices in Ho Chi Minh City, Gangnam, a southern district in Seoul well known for rapper Psy's 2012 song "Gangnam Style," is promoting South Korea's medical technology to attract more Vietnamese patients. In 2022, medical tourists from Viet Nam to Gangnam was the sixth largest group with 2,806 after the United States, China, Thailand, Japan, and Mongolia. Data released by South Korea's health

August 4, 2023

BLACKPINK's 'Pink Venom' surpasses 700 mln views on YouTube

SEOUL -- The music video for BLACKPINK's dance song Pink Venom has garnered more than 700 million views on YouTube, 350 days after its release on August 19, 2022. The song, which incorporated various genres including hip-hop and electronic dance music (EDM), entered the Billboard Hot 100 chart and topped the charts of major domestic online music streaming services in 2022. The music video exceeded 700 million views at 4:27 p.m. (0727 GMT) on August 4. The number of music vide

August 4, 2023

14 people injured in car and stabbing rampage in Seoul's satellite city

SEOUL -- A man in his 20s has hurt at least 14 people by intentionally hitting pedestrians with a car and stabbing people at a department store in Seongnam, a southeastern satellite city of Seoul. 12 victims were found to be seriously injured, including a woman in her 60s who was hospitalized with cardiac arrest. The police received the report around 5:59 p.m. (0859 GMT) on August 3. The incident happened near Seohyeon Station in Seongnam, around 20 kilometers (12 miles) southeast o

August 4, 2023

Convenience store chain GS25 to run about 280 stores in Viet Nam by 2023

SEOUL -- The operator of South Korea's convenience store franchise GS25 aims to increase the number of stores in Viet Nam to around 280 by the end of 2023 from the current 221. Along with Vietnamese food, the convenience store franchise operator is currently selling South Korean snacks including Tteokbokki, finger-sized rice cakes simmered in fiery-red spicy chili sauce. GS Retail, the operator of GS25, made a foray into the Vietnamese convenience store market in 2018. Accordin

August 4, 2023

S. Korea's fried chicken franchise Kyochon opens first store in Taiwan

SEOUL -- The operator of South Korea's popular chicken franchise Kyochon has opened the brand's first store in Taiwan's northern city, New Taipei City, with a population of around 4 million. Along with fried chicken, consumers can enjoy craft beer and fried noodles. The fried chicken brand's operator will open its second store in Taipei in October. The first Kyochon store was launched at a 40 square meter (430 square foot)-wide shopping mall in New Taipei City, Kyoch

August 3, 2023

NewJeans tops Billboard's top 200 popular albums chart with 'Get Up'

SEOUL -- K-pop super rookie band NewJeans has topped Billboard's top 200 popular albums chart with its mini-album "Get Up." The five-member band topped the Billboard chart about a year after its debut in July 2022. The album, released on January 21, arrived atop the list on Billboard 200 chart with 126,500 equivalent album units sold in the United States in the week ending July 27. The ranking is confirmed based on the number of album sales, track equivalent album (TE

August 3, 2023

V to be seventh BTS member to release solo album

SEOUL -- V, a member of BTS, will become the boy band's seventh member to roll out his first solo album after J-Hope, Jin, RM, Suga, and Jungkook. The 27-year-old will work with Min Hee-jin, a genius idol incubator who has planned concepts for K-pop superstar band NewJeans. Min is currently nurturing rookie artists and overseeing music production at ADOR, a subsidiary label of Big Hit, the agency of BTS. During her time at SM Entertainment, she designed costumes, styling, and a

August 2, 2023

​Sales of Hyundai and Kia cars exceed 140,000 in US, up 12.1 percent year-on-year

SEOUL -- Vehicles made by South Korea's Hyundai auto group are garnering explosive popularity in the United States. Sales of Hyundai vehicles in July 2023 soared 12.1 percent compared to the same period a year ago in the U.S. market, selling a total of 143,787. According to data released by Hyundai Motor America, Hyundai Motors sold 72,857 units in July, up 10.7 percent from a year earlier. Hyundai's American office said sales of its green vehicles such as Santa Fe Hybrid and I

August 2, 2023