Bang Si-hyuk, the chief producer for K-pop sensation BTS, will serve as executive producer in the upcoming reality TV show "I-Land," his company, Big Hit Entertainment, announced Tuesday. The new show airs on cable music network Mnet starting June 26. Bang will play a key role in unearthing and discovering fresh idol hopefuls and developing them into K-pop stars, the company said. The reality show is the first joint project between Mnet and Big Hit after the two established a joint

K-pop May 19, 2020

Starting Tuesday, anybody caught possessing or watching illegally filmed sexual videos could face up to three years in prison under revised laws on the aggravated punishment of digital sex crimes, government officials said. The government promulgated the revisions of the Criminal Act, the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment, etc, of Sexual Crimes, and the Act on Regulation and Punishment of Criminal Proceeds Concealment, which passed the National Assembly late last month, saying the

Social Affairs May 19, 2020

A fire at a research center of LG Chem Ltd. killed one worker and injured two others Tuesday, firefighters said. The blaze occurred at the company's catalyst lab in the central city of Seosan, some 120 kilometers south of Seoul, at around 2:20 p.m. Firefighters extinguished it at around 3:30 p.m. A 39-year-old researcher was killed and two workers, aged 47 and 27, respectively, suffered second-degree burns to the face and neck and were sent to a nearby hospital, they said. Fire authorities

Social Affairs May 19, 2020

South Korea plans to alleviate liquor regulations to assist struggling manufacturers and distributors, officials said Tuesday. 　 The new rules, if approved by the National Assembly, will allow alcoholic drink companies to partly consign their production to original equipment manufacturers and also to produce non-alcoholic by-products at their facilities. When it comes to minor changes in products, the current approval process would be replaced by a simple reporting requirement for efficiency. 　

Economy May 19, 2020

The US-led United Nations Command (UNC) is expected to come up with a report this week on its probe into a recent exchange of fire between South and North Korea inside the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), officials said Tuesday. On May 3, four bullets from North Korea hit a South Korean guard post in the central part of the DMZ, prompting South Korean troops to fire back. No casualties were reported on either side, and South Korean officials said the North's shooting appeared accidental. The UNC, wh

North Korea May 19, 2020

South Korean stocks closed sharply higher Tuesday, joining other Asian and global stock markets in a rally that came on hopes of a vaccine for COVID-19. The local currency sharply rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) spiked 43.50 points, or 2.25 percent, to close at 1,980.61, extending its winning streak to a third day. Trading volume was moderate at some 762 million shares worth about 11.7 trillion won ($9.55 billion), with gainers outnumbering l

Market May 19, 2020

When COVID-19 infections unexpectedly broke out at nightspots in the hip neighborhood of Itaewon, authorities were caught off guard by entry logs filled with false information. Thousands of people who were not accounted for apparently left inaccurate phone numbers, prompting authorities to instead scour mobile access records and credit card transactions to track people who were in the area. Facilities -- such as gyms, "pc bangs" and "noraebangs" -- currently require visito

Social Affairs May 19, 2020

They weren't supposed to be this good. By several measures, the Hanwha Eagles have been among the best pitching teams in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) this season. They own the second-lowest ERA with 3.31 and second-lowest walks and hits per nine innings (WHIP) with 1.24. Their starting pitchers have collectively the best ERA in the league at 2.23. In terms of opponents' on-base plus slugging percentage (OPS), the Eagles have been the stingiest with .674. And no team has served up few

Baseball May 19, 2020

The South Korean Buddhist community on Tuesday canceled the Lotus Lantern Festival slated for next week due to growing concerns over the recent resurgence of the novel coronavirus infections in the country. "No one can predict whether new cluster infections will happen again, regarding the recent nightclub-linked cases," the Association of Korea Buddhist Orders, whose members include the country's biggest Jogye Order, said in a press conference in Seoul. "We made the decision af

Social Affairs May 19, 2020

Two talented South Korean film directors are set to make their directorial debut in Hollywood, which is seemingly opening its doors to the colleagues of Oscar-winning Bong Joon-ho. Director Jang Joon-hwan will direct the English-language remake of his 2003 science-fiction cult movie "Save the Green Planet!," with a script written by Will Tracy, according to CJ ENM. CJ ENM, which is behind the family satire "Parasite" that won four Oscar trophies, including best picture, wi

Film May 19, 2020

Individual investors are flocking to direct stock investment, choosing to bet on their own picks over brokerage houses' funds, data showed Tuesday. Outstanding margin loans came to 9.95 trillion won ($8.14 billion) as of Friday, up 10.1 percent from a month ago, according to the data from the Korea Financial Investment Association (KOFIA). Margin loans refer to those that retail investors take out from brokerage houses to invest in stocks. A rise in outstanding margin loans usually points to

Market May 19, 2020

SEJONG -- Home transactions in South Korea sank more than 30 percent in April from the prior month due to tougher property rules and the coronavirus impact, government data showed Tuesday. The number of homes changing hands nationwide stood at 73,531 last month, down 32.3 percent from the previous month, according to the data from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. Yet the figure was up roughly 29 percent from the same month a year earlier, when housing transactions were ane

Economy May 19, 2020

The foreign ministry called in a senior Japanese diplomat on Tuesday to lodge a protest after Tokyo's latest annual diplomatic book repeated territorial claims to South Korea's easternmost islets of Dokdo. Kim Jung-han, director general for Asia and Pacific affairs at Seoul's foreign ministry called in Hirohisa Soma, a senior official from the Japanese Embassy in Seoul, to express regret over the book's content and urge for Tokyo to retract the claims. Soma walked into the ministry building a

Foreign Affairs May 19, 2020

South Korea said Tuesday it has developed a new test kit for the African swine fever (ASF) that can pave the way for the country to speed up its battle against the fatal animal disease and reduce its dependency on imported tools. The state-run Animal and Plant Quarantine Agency has completed the development of a kit that can test acute forms of ASF, under the cooperation with the Korea Research Institute of Bioscience & Biotechnology and Korea University. The country, which has been depen

Economy May 19, 2020

INCHEON -- The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Incheon traced to an infected private academy instructor at the center of the port city's latest outbreak of cluster infections have increased by eight to 25, the municipal government said Tuesday. The latest victims include a Chinese couple who used a taxi driven by a 66-year-old man who contracted COVID-19 after driving the instructor in Incheon, about 50 kilometers west of Seoul, on May 4, the government said. The Chinese couple, aged

Social Affairs May 19, 2020