Korea Times Finance Reporter
Lee Hyo-jin covers the Bank of Korea, the banking industry and broader financial news. Her previous beats include foreign affairs, North Korea and general reporting on Korean society.
The innovation committee of the ruling People Power Party (PPP) is struggling to carry out its mission to overhaul the conservative party after its reform proposals have faced stiff resistance by some of its political heavyweights.
The defense chiefs of South Korea and the United States agreed, Monday, to share the U.S.'s early warning system (SEWS) data on North Korean missiles, enabling Seoul to strengthen its defense posture against Pyongyang’s increasing nuclear threats.
DAEJEON – Silence filled the room as young men and parents waited anxiously to hear their fate at the Military Manpower Administration (MMA) headquarters in Daejeon, Nov. 2, during a lottery to select who would join the Korean Augmentation to the United States Army (KATUSA).
Flexible and transparent immigration policies are keys to the successful integration of migrants, according to Ihn Yo-han, chairman of the innovation committee of the ruling People Power Party (PPP), as Korea seeks to become more open to immigrants amid a labor shortage and low growth.
A plan by the ruling People Power Party (PPP) to incorporate Gimpo, a city in Gyeonggi Province, into Seoul, is stirring up controversy, since the move is apparently viewed as a tactic to woo voters in the capital and its surrounding regions ahead of parliamentary elections next year.
President Yoon Suk Yeol speaks during an economic policy meeting with housewives, office workers, small business owners and taxi drivers at a cafe in Mapo District, western Seoul, Wednesday. The president has convened 20 of the so-called Emergency Economic and Public Livelihood Meeting sessions so far, most of which were held in the former presidential office of Cheong Wa Dae. However, the latest event took place in the form of a town hall meeting, reflecting the government's intention to show it is actively listening to public opinion. Yonhap
A couple of years ago, artificial intelligence (AI)-based chatbot, Lee Luda, characterized as a 20-year-old female college student, became an instant hit among young Koreans. Developed by local startup company Scatter Lab, the service acquired about 800,000 users in just 20 days and saw people engage with it in casual small talk.
A steep increase in soldiers' salary is beginning to take a toll on the military budget, raising concerns about potential setbacks in the Yoon Suk Yeol administration’s plan to raise their monthly salaries to 2 million won ($1,480) over the next couple of years.
A major reshuffle of South Korea’s military brass has resulted in almost all four-star generals promoted under the previous government being set to retire.
As foreign tourists return to Seoul after three pandemic years, so is the illegal practice in the tourism industry known as "dumping tours," threatening to taint the reputation of Korea's capital city as a globally popular tourist destination.