South Korea - The Korea Times

Childbirths grow at fastest pace in 18 years on increased marriages

The number of babies born here rose at the fastest pace in 18 years in the first 11 months of last year, driven largely by an increase in marriages, government data showed Wednesday. A total of 233,708 babies were born between January-November in 2025, up 6.2 percent from the same period a year earlier, according to data from the Ministry of Statistics. It marks the steepest on-year increase since 2007. The ministry said the total number of newborns in 2025 is expected to rise for a second consecutive year and surpass 238,317 babies recorded in 2024. In November alone, 20,710 babies were born, up 3.1 percent from 20,083 a year earlier. The November figure was the highest for the month since 2019, when 23,727 babies were born, the ministry said, noting that births are gradually recovering to pre-pandemic levels. The number of newborns has been on an upward trend since July 2024. The country's total fertility rate, the average number of children a woman is expected to have in her lifetime, rose 0.02 from a year earlier to 0.79 in November. The ministry said the recent rise in births appears t

Jan 28, 2026By Yonhap

Childbirths grow at fastest pace in 18 years on increased marriages

Rural Korean town goes from ridicule to riches as gold prices skyrocket

In rural Hampyeong County, South Jeolla Province, stands a giant bat statue made of 24-karat gold. When it was completed in 2008, the statue came under fire for allegedly wasting taxpayer money. Nearly two decades later, rising gold prices have shifted the narrative, with the statue’s value now estimated at roughly 14 times its original production cost. According to the Korea Gold Exchange, the price of pure gold stood at a record 1,034,000 won ($714) per 3.75 grams as of Tuesday. The figure reflects a continuing upward trend after prices crossed the 1 million won threshold for the first time on Jan. 21, driven by a sharp rise in global gold prices and growing investor demand for safe haven assets. As gold prices continue to reach new highs, growing attention is being drawn to a giant bat statue in the rural county — or, more precisely, to its current value. Completed in 2008, the statue is made of 162 kilograms of pure gold and 281 kilograms of silver. At the time of construction, the material cost stood at roughly 2.7 billion won. Based on current prices, the gold alone is estimated

Jan 28, 2026By Hankookilbo

Rural Korean town goes from ridicule to riches as gold prices skyrocket

Ex-Constitutional Court justice joins KAIST to research law in age of AI

Moon Hyung-bae, former acting chief justice of the Constitutional Court, has begun a new chapter in academia after joining KAIST as a distinguished visiting professor, where he plans to delve into legal issues arising in the age of artificial intelligence (AI). Moon disclosed his new career earlier this week while speaking as a lecturer at a book presentation at Gwangju District Court. He said he was officially appointed on Jan. 9 as a distinguished visiting professor at KAIST’s Moon Soul Graduate School of Future Strategy and had already started commuting to campus. “I decided to take on this role because, as a legal professional, I believe I may be able to offer guidance on how KAIST can proactively respond to the AI era," Moon said. Moon identified personal data rights as the central legal challenge posed by artificial intelligence. “The biggest issue with AI is the right to informational self-determination,” he explained. “AI operates by collecting and processing personal data, which inevitably leads to conflicts with individuals’ rights to control their own information.

Jan 28, 2026By Anna J. Park

Ex-Constitutional Court justice joins KAIST to research law in age of AI

Which majors do international students choose most in Korea?

The global Korean wave, fueled by the popularity of K-pop and K-dramas, has helped put Korea on the global education map. However, the social sciences, not pop culture, have emerged as the most popular majors among international students. According to the 2025 Survey on Immigrants' Living Conditions and Labor Force, social sciences excluding Korean studies ranked as the most common major among foreign residents on student visas, accounting for 29.3 percent of the total as of May last year. Korean studies ranked second at 17.8 percent, followed by the Korean language at 16.6 percent and engineering at 15 percent. Engineering saw a notable increase of 3.3 percentage points from May 2023. In contrast, enrollment in humanities and arts declined by 3.2 percentage points, with their combined share falling from 17.2 percent in 2023 to 14 percent in 2025. The perceived quality of Korea’s academic programs was the top reason international students chose to study in the country, cited by 34 percent of respondents, according to government data. It was followed by alignment between Korean majors a

Jan 28, 2026By Jung Da-hyun

Which majors do international students choose most in Korea?

Kiosks nationwide must now meet accessibility standards

Starting Wednesday, most venues nationwide that use automated kiosks will be required to install models accessible to people with disabilities, as part of a broad expansion of accessibility rules as such systems proliferate rapidly. Under the updated standards, barrier‑free kiosks must include voice guidance, braille or raised buttons and adjustable screens or height to help users with visual or mobility impairments, while smaller businesses that qualify for exemptions may meet the mandate with alternative measures such as assistive devices or staff support. The requirement follows a 2021 amendment to Korea’s disability discrimination law that requires reasonable accessibility accommodations in kiosk design and operation, rolled out in phases to limit the burden on businesses. The mandate first took effect in 2024 for public institutions and workplaces with 100 or more full-time employees. Last year, it was extended to businesses with fewer than 100 workers, with a one-year grace period that ends this week. “In an era when kiosks are commonplace, guaranteeing access to information

Jan 28, 2026By Park Ung

Kiosks nationwide must now meet accessibility standards

Coupang CEO Rogers expected to attend police questioning on Fri.: sources

Harold Rogers, interim CEO of Coupang, is expected to attend police questioning later this week after previously failing to comply with a summons related to a massive data breach, sources said Tuesday. Rogers has told police that he would respond to a third request to appear for questioning on Friday after defying two previous summonses, they added. Rogers left Korea on Jan. 1 after attending a two-day parliamentary hearing into the retail giant's leak of personal information affecting about 33 million users. Police subsequently issued two summonses, but Rogers did not comply. He is reported to have reentered Korea last Wednesday.

Jan 27, 2026By Yonhap

Coupang CEO Rogers expected to attend police questioning on Fri.: sources

Foreign national in Incheon spotted collecting trash, inspires other residents

A quiet act of environmental stewardship by an American who recently moved to Incheon has drawn attention after a longtime local shared his experience online. According to a post uploaded to the Incheon Bupyeong District Office website on Monday, a 65-year-old resident who has lived in the area for two decades described witnessing an American man collecting trash alone on a nearby mountain trail, despite the cold weather. Titled "A Morning I Felt Ashamed of Myself," the post appeared on the district’s Let’s Give Praise message board, which is typically used by residents to commend local government officials. “I climb the mountain behind my house every day,” the post began. The resident, identified by the surname Park, wrote that on Jan. 17, he was hiking Jangsu Mountain in Bupyeong District as usual when he noticed something interesting: A man digging up trash that had been buried beneath the ground and gathering it into a single pile. “I stood there watching,” Park wrote. “Other residents glanced over, but no one spoke to him. So I went up, said hello, and asked why he was

Jan 27, 2026By Hankookilbo

Foreign national in Incheon spotted collecting trash, inspires other residents

Lost in translation: Local dialects pose hurdle for 6 in 10 non-skilled foreign workers

It turns out that for foreign workers here, mastering the Korean language is only half the battle — the other half is figuring out if you’re supposed to treat your boss like a deity or a drinking buddy. A new study reveals that 60 percent of foreign workers in Korea are marooned by the local lingo, challenged by regional linguistic nuances. According to a report released last week by the Human Resources Development Service of Korea, based on a survey of 1,067 E-9 visa holders last year, regional dialects and honorific speech emerged as the main communication barriers, cited by 63.9 percent and 60.4 percent, respectively. Korea’s linguistic map is carved by its geography, with mountain ranges long isolating five primary regional dialects: the Gyeonggi (standard Seoul), Gangwon, Chungcheong, Gyeongsang and Jeolla groups. The dialect of Jeju Island is so distinct that some linguists consider it a language in its own right. This regional variety is further layered by a rigid system of honorifics — a grammatical hierarchy of respect that dictates verb endings and vocabulary based on a

Jan 27, 2026By Park Ung

Lost in translation: Local dialects pose hurdle for 6 in 10 non-skilled foreign workers

InterviewKorea must treat foreign elder care workers as skilled pros, not cheap labor, experts warn

As Korea continues down the path of a super-aged society and grapples with growing labor shortages in elder care, one migration policy expert is urging the government to move beyond short-term fixes and build a system like Japan’s — one that treats foreign caregivers as skilled professionals rather than low-wage, disposable workers. By 2028, Korea is projected to face a shortfall of roughly 116,000 elder care workers, according to government and industry data. With older adults already accounting for more than one-fifth of the population — 10.84 million people, or 21.2 percent as of 2025 — the country is firmly a super-aged society. “Even now, the situation is extremely serious,” Kim Dong-seon, a visiting professor in the department of tourism and wellness at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, told The Korea Times in a recent phone interview. She recalled visiting the state-run Seoul Nursing Home, operated by the National Health Insurance Service (NHIS), where the waiting list was several times the facility’s capacity, yet beds still sat empty. “They cannot fill all t

Jan 27, 2026By Lee Hae-rin

Korea must treat foreign elder care workers as skilled pros, not cheap labor, experts warn

Analysis‘Yellow envelope law’ meets age of robot workers

Conflict over robots controlled by artificial intelligence (AI) is no longer a scenario in the distant future for Korea. It is unfolding in real time, as changes to the country's labor law give unions new leverage over how quickly and extensively companies can replace human workers with machines. Experts say the recently enacted pro-labor “yellow envelope law” set to take effect in March may slow the transition to robot labor. The law expands workers’ rights in labor disputes and limits employers’ ability to seek damages from unions over strike-related losses, giving unions more leverage. Paradoxically, it could also hasten automation, as companies rush to install robots before union power increases and their legal risks grow. Nowhere has that tension become more evident than at Hyundai Motor, which has become a test case for how far unions, employers and the government can go to shape the coming wave of “physical AI,” with AI robotic systems carrying out hands-on work on factory floors. The company announced last week that it plans to mass-produce Atlas humanoid robots at a

Jan 27, 2026By Jung Min-ho

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