Tue, 21-Oct-2025

Kim says outbreak causing ‘great upheaval’ in North Korea

North Korea

North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong Un, says a Covid outbreak is causing “great upheaval” in the country, which announced 21 new “fever” deaths on Saturday. Two days after confirming the first Covid-19 cases, the government announced that more than 500,000 people had become ill across the country. Despite activating its “maximum emergency quarantine system” to … Read more

Seoul’s military: North Korea launches ‘ballistic missile’

north korea

North Korea has launched a ballistic missile, according to the Seoul military on Thursday, only hours after Pyongyang proclaimed the country’s first-ever instances of Covid-19. South Korea’s Joint Chief of Staff informed AFP that “North Korea fired an unidentified ballistic missile towards the East Sea,”  into the East Sea. According to South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of … Read more

North Korea’s missile launches will be discussed in Seoul

north korea

Seoul: The US envoy to North Korea will meet with South Korean counterparts next week to discuss the international reaction to the North’s recent ICBM launches, the State Department announced. Pyongyang has so far ignored US Special Representative Sung Kim’s overtures, accusing Washington of pursuing hostile policies such as sanctions and military drills. North Korea … Read more

South Korea exports reaches all-time high last month

south korea

South Korean exports reached an all-time monthly high in March, mainly to strong demand for semiconductors and petroleum products, according to the Seoul Trade Ministry. Samsung Electronics, the world’s biggest smartphone manufacturer, is based in the country, and its processors are utilized in a wide range of products. Outbound shipments from South Korea totaled US$63.48 … Read more

South Korea reports record high of over 400,000 new COVID-19 cases

south korea

SEOUL – South Korea reported a record high of 400,741 new COVID-19 cases as of midnight Tuesday compared to 24 hours ago, raising the total number of infections to 7,629,275, the health authorities said Wednesday. The daily caseload was sharply up from 362,329 in the previous day, topping 400,000 for the first time, according to … Read more

Asian markets fall again, oil builds on gains as Ukraine war rages

HONG KONG – Asian markets mostly fell again Tuesday as investors try to assess the economic impact of the Ukraine war, while oil prices extended gains after rocketing to a near 14-year high. As Russia’s invasion of its neighbour continues, commodity prices have been sent to record or multi-year highs, forcing observers to re-evaluate their outlook … Read more

S.Korea reports 54,619 new COVID-19 cases

south korea

SEOUL – South Korea reported 54,619 more cases of COVID-19 as of midnight Sunday compared to 24 hours ago, raising the total number of infections to 1,405,246, the health authorities said Monday. The daily caseload was down from a record high of 56,431 in the previous day due to fewer tests over the weekend, but … Read more

4 dead, 4 injured in S.Korean factory explosion

S.Korean factory explosion

SEOUL – Four workers were found dead and four others injured in a factory explosion in South Korea’s southern city of Yeosu, Yonhap news agency reported Friday. The explosion occurred at about 9:26 a.m. local time (0026 GMT) at a petrochemical factory in the port city, some 450 km south of the capital Seoul. Of … Read more

S.Korea’s daily COVID-19 cases hit record high

south korea covid

SEOUL – South Korea’s daily number of COVID-19 cases hit a new record high due to the spread of the Omicron variant, the health authorities said Thursday. According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, the country reported 14,518 more cases of COVID-19 for the past 24 hours, raising the total number of infections … Read more

Crude hits 7-year high on recovery hope but equity rally runs out

crude oil

HONG KONG: Crude oil hit a more than seven-year high on Tuesday on optimism the global recovery will ramp up demand, but concerns about the end of long-running central bank support and rising Treasury yields saw most equity markets reverse early gains. After an almost uninterrupted rally from the early days of the pandemic, world … Read more

S.Korea reports 4,072 more COVID-19 cases

south korea

SEOUL, Jan. 18 (Xinhua) — South Korea reported 4,072 more cases of COVID-19 as of midnight Monday compared to 24 hours ago, raising the total number of infections to 700,102. The daily caseload was up from 3,858 in the previous day amid the spread of the Omicron variant, which the health authorities expected to become … Read more

S.Korea reports 4,167 more COVID-19 cases

south korea

SEOUL, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) — South Korea reported 4,167 more cases of COVID-19 as of midnight Wednesday compared to 24 hours ago, raising the total number of infections to 679,030. The daily caseload was slightly down from 4,385 in the previous day amid the tightened anti-virus measures. The recent resurgence was attributable to small cluster … Read more

S.Korea reports 4,416 more COVID-19 cases

S.Korea

SEOUL, Jan. 1 (Xinhua) — South Korea reported 4,416 more cases of COVID-19 as of midnight Friday compared to 24 hours ago, raising the total number of infections to 635,253. The daily caseload was down from 4,875 in the previous day, staying below 5,000 for two straight days. The recent resurgence was attributable to small … Read more

S.Korea reports 7,314 more COVID-19 cases

COVID-19

SEOUL, Dec. 18 (Xinhua) — South Korea reported 7,314 more cases of COVID-19 as of midnight Friday compared to 24 hours ago, raising the total number of infections to 558,864. The daily caseload was down from 7,434 in the previous day, but it hovered above 7,000 for four straight days. The recent resurgence was attributable … Read more

Asian, European traders welcome Fed tilt to fight inflation

 Asian and European markets

HONG KONG: The Asian and European markets rose on Thursday and the dollar held gains after the Federal Reserve laid out a more hawkish path by speeding up the taper of its pandemic financial support and indicated a number of interest rate hikes over the coming years. While the much-anticipated decision spells an end to the … Read more

S. Korea asks teenagers to receive COVID-19 vaccine amid rising cases

S. Korea asks teenagers to receive COVID-19 vaccine amid rising cases

SEOUL, Dec. 9 (Xinhua) — South Korea’s health authorities on Thursday asked teenagers to receive COVID-19 vaccine amid the rising infection cases of minors. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said in a statement that it strongly recommends the vaccination of teenagers as the number of confirmed cases continued to grow among unvaccinated … Read more

Hong Kong quarantine pushes Cathay pilots to ‘breaking point’

Hong Kong quarantine pushes Cathay pilots to 'breaking point'

HONG KONG, Cathay Pacific has been hit by a wave of pilot resignations in recent weeks as resentment over Hong Kong’s strict quarantine regime boils over and crew scramble for emerging opportunities overseas. The departures come as Hong Kong ties itself to Beijing’s closed-border zero-Covid strategy — a move that has kept the city coronavirus-free … Read more

Seoul trials pint-sized robots in nursery schools

Seoul trials pint-sized robots in nursery schools

SEOUL, Seoul has started trialling pint-sized robots as teaching aids in kindergartens — a pilot project the city government said would help prepare the next generation for a hi-tech future. The “Alpha Mini” is just 24.5 centimetres tall and can dance, lead sing-a-longs, recite stories and even teach kung-fu moves as children mimic its push-ups … Read more

Samsung forecasts near-30% jump in Q3 operating profit

Samsung

South Korean tech giant Samsung Electronics defied the global supply chain challenges to forecast a near-30-percent jump in third-quarter operating profits on Friday. The world’s biggest smartphone maker said it expected its operating profits to reach around 15.8 trillion won ($13.3 billion) in a regulatory filing, up 27.9 percent year-on-year. The company is the flagship subsidiary of the giant Samsung group, by far … Read more

Brendan Greene, the creator of PUBG, has left Krafton to start his own firm

Brendan Greene

The inventor of a popular game PUBG, Brendan Greene, decided to be independent. Krafton, the owner of PUBG, has split out his PlayerUnknown Productions studio, which will have a minority share in the corporation.

Greene stated, “I’m so very grateful to everyone at PUBG and Krafton for taking a chance on me and for the opportunities they afforded me over the past four years,”

He further added, “Today, I’m excited to take the next step on my journey to create the kind of experience I’ve envisaged for years. Again, I’m thankful for everyone at Krafton for supporting my plans, and I’ll have more to reveal more about our project at a later date.”

Greene left the essential PUBG team in 2019 and moved from Seoul (where Krafton is based) to Amsterdam to lead the PUBG Special Projects division.

PlayerUnknown Productions is “exploring the systems needed to enable massive scale within open-world games,” as per a press release. Prologue, for which Greene released an atmospheric teaser in late 2019, is the only game listed on the studio’s website, so it appears he’s taken that game with him.

Greene’s resignation from Krafton is important, as he is widely regarded as the creator of the battle royale genre, which has dominated the gaming industry in recent years. Greene rose to popularity before PUBG as a creator of ARMA 2 and H1Z1 battle royale mods.

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22 more US soldiers, 2 civilians test positive for Covid-19 

SEOUL: Twenty-two more US soldiers and two relevant civilians in South Korea tested positive for the Covid-19, the US Forces Korea (USFK) said Wednesday. The USFK said in a statement that 24 USFK-affiliated individuals were confirmed with the Covid-19 after arriving in South Korea between July 13 and August 8. Nine service members arrived at … Read more

BTS announces first New Year concert since COVID-19 shutdown

BTS Bang Bang Con 2021

South Korean boy-band sensation BTS will be welcoming the New Year with their first live concert. They were previously forced to call off a world tour because of the novel coronavirus, their management company, Bit Hit Entertainment said on Thursday. The concert – “2021 New Year’s Eve Live” – will be on December 31. It … Read more

South Korea: Seoul mayor found dead after ‘harassment allegations’

South Korea: Seoul mayor found dead after 'harassment allegations'

The mayor of the South Korean capital, Seoul, has been found dead after being accused of harassment. According to the details, Park Won-soon, 64, has long been seen as a possible South Korean presidential candidate. A former Seoul City employee had filed a police complaint against Park Won-soon alleging that the Seoul mayor had sexually … Read more

Seoul Witnesses sharp drop across Asian equity markets

Seoul

Seoul witnessed sharp drop across Asian equity markets Monday as South Korea announced a surge in COVID-19 infections, While oil plunged and safe haven assets in Seoul markets rallied on growing concerns about the global spread of the deadly virus. With outbreak showing little sign of easing investors increasingly concerned it could have a much … Read more

Public outpouring of grief at Goo Hara’s death continues

K-pop star Goo Hara found dead at her home

K-pop singer and former Kara band member Goo Hara has been found dead at her home in Seoul, according to police officials. Outpouring of grief and condolences following tragic death of K-pop star goo Hara continues. The body of Goo Hara, a former member of the girl group Kara, was found early on Sunday evening, … Read more

Seoul: Sheikh Rasheed addresses conference on Global Infrastructure

Sheikh Rasheed in Seoul

Federal Minister for Railways Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed said that up gradation of railway’s infrastructure was a key to regional prosperity and world’s economic progress. Addressing a three-day Cooperation Conference on Global Infrastructure in Seoul, Sheikh Rasheed said that Pakistan Railways (PR) converting Karachi to Peshawar railway track into double high-speed track. He said that the … Read more