yna--2020-01-31--(LEAD) Gov't vows efforts for police reform legislation

He added that the government will set up a team to prepare for the establishment of the separate corruption investigation @ @ @ @ @ his office .
The body is expected to set sail in July .

(ATTN: UPDATES with Cheong Wa Dae's briefing in last 7 paras)
SEOUL, Jan. 31 (Yonhap) -- South Korea will make efforts to get legislation of police reform bills passed in the first half of 2020 in its drive to follow up on the parliamentary passage of key prosecution reform bills, the prime minister said Friday.
Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun unveiled the government's steps to support the passage of bills to set up a non-prosecution body to look into corruption by ranking public officials and to grant police more investigative authority.
"(The government) will introduce an autonomous police force and set up a state investigative agency," Chung told reporters after briefing President Moon Jae-in on the issue.
The plan is aimed at balancing the reforms of the prosecution and police as the transfer of key investigative powers to the police spawned concerns about excessive police authority. Related police reform bills are pending.
An autonomous police system calls for provincial governments to oversee police stations and regional police agencies. Such police will mainly handle the security of people in cases of school and domestic violence, and traffic accidents.
The establishment of a state investigative agency is aimed at dispersing colossal police authority. An outside expert will head the agency and be in charge of police investigations, a move designed to prevent outside interference in probes.
"The government will do its best to prod parliament to complete the legislation of reforming the police under the 20th National Assembly session," Chung said.
Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun (C) announces the government's follow-ups to support the passage of key prosecution reform bills at the government complex building in Seoul on Jan. 31, 2020. (Yonhap)
He added that the government will set up a team to prepare for the establishment of the separate corruption investigation agency under the wing of his office. The body is expected to set sail in July.
The creation of such an agency and granting more investigative power to police are part of President Moon's election campaigns to reform the prosecution.
Chung's televised announcement came shortly after briefing President Moon Jae-in on the measures during a Cheong Wa Dae session joined by Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae and Minister of Interior and Safety Chin Young.
Moon reiterated the need to thoroughly reform the prosecution, saying the establishment of the non-prosecution body is "very meaningful," Choo said.
"For the reform of power organizations, there is a need to democratically disperse authority for the people and seek checks and balances among power agencies," Moon was quoted as saying.
Moon's office also said in a separate press briefing that he had called on Chung and the ministers to strive to "flesh out" reform plans including those on guidelines on investigation by prosecutors and police and organizational changes.
"A tough task starts now," Moon told them, noting that South Korea's law enforcement system is due to be modified for the first time since the liberation from Japan's 1910-45 colonial rule, according to Cheong Wa Dae's deputy spokesperson Han Jung-woo.
He emphasized the importance of collecting various opinions not just from the prosecutors' office and police but also from lawyers, academics and judges.
Moon put forward three principles in the process -- reform for the sake of the people, the exemplary function of the envisioned special anti-corruption unit and no weakening of the overall investigative power of the authorities -- Han said.
sooyeon@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-01-31--(LEAD) (Yonhap Feature) New coronavirus changes everyday life in S. Korea

`` It 's not that I stopped going out with my daughter , but even if I go out I @ @ @ @ @ her and get a taxi instead of using the subway , '' she said .

(ATTN: UPDATES with confirmed cases, details in paras 4, 10-11, 16-17)
By Lee Minji
SEOUL, Jan. 31 (Yonhap) -- Eleven days after South Korea confirmed its first case of a new type of coronavirus, concerns over the contagious disease have permeated everyday life, affecting people in different corners of the country.
Lee Ki-eun, mom to an 11-month-old toddler, is one of them.
"I didn't think much of the (outbreak) last week, but it started to weigh on me this week," said the Seoul-based illustrator on Friday.
South Korea has confirmed 11 cases so far, with nine of the cases -- including the first case of secondary infection here -- announced this week.
"It's not that I stopped going out with my daughter, but even if I go out I always put a mask on her and get a taxi instead of using the subway," she said.
Students at a high school in the southwestern city of Gwangju attend a graduation ceremony in their classroom instead of the school auditorium on Jan. 29, 2020. (Yonhap)
Other parents of young children also voiced concern over the virus that first emerged in the central Chinese city of Wuhan.
"I try to avoid crowded places and always make my son wear a mask and wash his hands," said a 34-year-old mother from Pangyo, south of Seoul.
"I can't help but send him to the nursery," said the mom, who works at a Seoul-based company and prefers to have her son stay at home.
Children wearing masks have become an everyday scene and coughing and sneezing in public transportation has started to invite suspicious stares from other passengers.
As demand has surged, a majority of masks for sale online have sold out. Some offline businesses, such as E-mart, are limiting the number of purchases for each customer to meet demand.
As getting a mask is becoming more difficult, some consumers have complained that sellers are canceling orders and raising prices to eke out higher margins during the mask craze.
In addition to the precautionary measure of asking students and teachers who have visited China to isolate themselves, some schools have extended their winter vacation to minimize exposure to potential coronavirus victims.
As of Friday, seven elementary schools in Seoul have extended their winter breaks. Two elementary schools in South Chungcheong Province near facilities hosting South Koreans evacuated from Wuhan have also rescheduled their vacations.
Participants wearing masks take part in a Confucian ceremony in the central city of Daegu on Jan. 31, 2020. (Yonhap)
The outbreak is also changing how Koreans celebrate two key academic milestones, the first day of school and graduation ceremonies.
A handful of middle schools and high schools across the country have scaled back their graduation ceremonies, by broadcasting the ceremony to students in their classrooms and preventing parents from attending the event.
Universities are not an exception, with graduations and entrance ceremonies scheduled throughout February posing potential risks.
Sungkyunkwan University, based in Seoul and Suwon, is one of the schools that has called off an entrance ceremony as well as several welcome events for freshmen.
"I understand the school's decision but still it's a bit discouraging. I was looking forward to meeting other students and learning about the school, but we won't have that chance this year," said a 20-year-old surnamed Lee, who is set to start his engineering degree at the school.
Rising concerns, meanwhile, have fueled the spread of fake news and scam messages in relation to the disease.
The government has vowed to take stern measures, with the police tightening online monitoring and launching probes into distributors of fake news.
On Thursday, President Moon Jae-in called for the people to "actively stand up against excessive anxiety and vague fear," calling the production of fake news a "grave criminal act."
mlee@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-01-31--(LEAD) S. Korea to send 2nd evacuation flight to Wuhan Friday night

Seoul earlier sought to send two planes each on Thursday and Friday for the evacuation mission , but the number @ @ @ @ @ one for each day amid speculation that Beijing wants to avoid the image of foreigners @ @ @ @ @ .

(ATTN: UPDATES story with plan for 2nd evacuation flight; TRIMS; CHANGES photo; ADDS byline)
By Song Sang-ho and Kim Seung-yeon
SEOUL, Jan. 31 (Yonhap) -- South Korea will send a second chartered flight to the coronavirus-hit Chinese city of Wuhan late Friday to evacuate some 350 South Korean nationals out of the region under lockdown, the foreign ministry said.
A Korean Air passenger jet is set to depart from Gimpo International Airport in western Seoul with a quick response team of around 20 medical and quarantine officials on board. The exact time of its departure has yet to be announced.
"We have received approval for the operation of a chartered plane through consultations with China," a ministry official told reporters. "One chartered plane will leave tonight."
The scheduled flight comes after South Korea's first evacuation plane flew out 368 South Koreans from Wuhan earlier in the day.
On Tuesday, South Korea announced a plan to bring its nationals home and said it had been in talks with Chinese authorities on sending the evacuation flights.
Seoul earlier sought to send two planes each on Thursday and Friday for the evacuation mission, but the number of flights was reduced to one for each day amid speculation that Beijing wants to avoid the image of foreigners leaving the country en masse.
Kang Hyung-sik, head of the ministry's international safety management bureau, said during a press briefing earlier that the government was making its best efforts to make sure the second flight can operate as planned.
Thursday's evacuation flight took off from Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul, at 8:57 p.m., after an hourslong delay caused by slower-than-expected approval from Chinese authorities.
South Korea confirmed five more cases of the virus Friday, bringing the total number of infections to 11. A day earlier, the country announced the first case of person-to-person transmission on its soil.
Wuhan, a city of 11 million people, has been under a lockdown aimed at blocking the spread of the virus.
Since the novel coronavirus first emerged in Wuhan late last month, China has reported more than 9,690 confirmed cases and 210 deaths. The virus has spread to around 20 countries, including the United States, Japan and Canada.
Authorities at Gimpo International Airport in western Seoul carry out quarantine work on the first evacuation flight that brought 368 South Korean citizens home from coronavirus-hit Wuhan, China, on Jan. 31, 2020. (Yonhap)
sshluck@yna.co.kr
elly@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-02-03--(2nd LD) Entry ban on foreigners traveling from Hubei takes force on Tuesday

Once they land , these travelers will be led to the designated quarantine inspection area , and they 'll be @ @ @ @ @ numbers .
And then using some 30 telephones installed at each of the three gates @ @ @ @ @ those numbers to see if the travelers can be reached .

(ATTN: ADDS info in paras 12-14)
SEOUL, Feb. 3 (Yonhap) -- Non-Korean travelers coming from or through China's Hubei province will be denied entry into South Korea starting on Tuesday, as the country is widening efforts to combat the continuing spread of the novel coronavirus.
The entry ban applies to all non-Korean travelers who over the past 14 days have stayed or traveled to the Chinese province, the home to Wuhan where the new coronavirus originated, according to a government announcement made Sunday.
It is part of South Korea's first border control measures taken to avert the further advance of the epidemic into the country.
In an add-on announcement Monday, the South Korean government said it will use a three-phased screening system to filter out foreign travelers from Hubei, first at the ticketing stage and then to at the entry and post-entry stages.
Foreigners who plan to travel to South Korea will be required to confirm whether they have been to Hubei over the past 14 days at the time of ticketing.
They will be then required to fill out and present a health check form to the quarantine office upon arrival in South Korea.
Through a further verification process following entry, any foreigners who are found to have presented false information on their health or travel history will be deported, according to the government announcement.
The justice ministry said later in the day that the operation of automatic immigration check systems for foreigners will be halted beginning Tuesday.
All foreigners arriving in the country must undergo a screening interview for the time being, the ministry said.
Also starting on Tuesday, Chinese travelers who try to enter South Korea with a passport issued by Hubei province will be selectively allowed into the country, while Korean visas approved by the South Korean Consulate General in Wuhan will be temporarily rendered ineffective, the government said.
Another major border control measure will also take effect Tuesday, putting the visa-free program for Chinese traveling to South Korea's Jeju Island on indefinite hold, according to the government.
In a related step, Incheon International Airport, the main gateway to South Korea located just west of Seoul, said it will assign three arrival gates exclusive to passengers flying in from China: two gates at Terminal 1 and another at Terminal 2.
Once they land, these travelers will be led to the designated quarantine inspection area, and they'll be asked to provide their phone numbers. And then using some 30 telephones installed at each of the three gates, airport officials will dial those numbers to see if the travelers can be reached.
At Terminal 1, passengers getting off the plane from China will leave through Gates A and F, situated at opposite ends. At Terminal 2, Gate A will be reserved for travelers flying in from China.
"The entry ban is the strongest (preventive) measure South Korea has ever taken against an epidemic," Vice Health Minister Kim Gang-lip said, adding that the government may consider further border control measures.
So far, South Korea has reported 15 confirmed coronavirus cases since the first case was verified on Jan. 20.
pbr@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-02-03--(3rd LD) 61 people quarantined for coronavirus checks, total infections still at 15

According to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ( KCDC ) , 75 others who came into contact @ @ @ @ @ to have contracted the novel virus will also be released from observation on Friday if @ @ @ @ @ sick .

(ATTN: ADDS more info in paras 10, 12)
SEOUL, Feb. 3 (Yonhap) -- South Korea on Monday reported no additional cases of the novel coronavirus and was conducting tests on 61 people quarantined with potential symptoms of the disease amid concerns over person-to-person transmissions.
The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) said, with the total number of infections steady at 15, it had checked 490 people since Jan. 3, with 414 testing negative. It stated that 913 people who have been in contact with the confirmed coronavirus patients are being closely monitored.
The KCDC said of the confirmed cases, nine have returned from China in recent weeks with five others presumed to have contracted the virus through person-to-person transmission. The center said it is identifying where infected people have visited and whom they met.
People wearing masks wait in line to go through quarantine at Incheon International Airport on Jan. 28, 2020. (Yonhap)
The KCDC said that all confirmed coronavirus patients are in stable condition and one person is being considered for release.
Under existing rules, a person who passes polymerase chain reaction tests twice within 24 hours can be released if he or she shows no other symptoms, but Seoul needs to evaluate this guideline in light of the characteristics of the new virus.
The KCDC said that it has released 45 people quarantined because they had contact with the country's first confirmed sufferer of the new coronavirus.
According to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC), 75 others who came into contact with the second person here to have contracted the novel virus will also be released from observation on Friday if none show signs of being sick.
They have been under observation for potential symptoms of the disease and to prevent its spread.
The country reported its first case of the potentially fatal disease on Jan. 20.
The first confirmed case involves a 35-year-old Chinese woman who showed signs of being sick when she arrived in the country and was held at Incheon International Airport.
Officials said the woman's condition has improved and that she's now able to carry out daily functions.
The second confirmed case was a 55-year-old man who returned from the Chinese city of Wuhan, the epicenter of the viral illness, on Jan. 22 and tested positive for the new strain of coronavirus two days later.
This patient has since tested negative in consecutive tests. Typically, those diagnosed with infectious diseases are considered fully recovered if they test negative twice within a 24-hour span. Health authorities here are gathering expert opinions on whether to apply the same standard to the coronavirus cases or to establish new criteria.
Since Jan. 3, the public health agency has tested 490 people for the coronavirus -- 15 are confirmed to have contracted it and 414 have been released from isolation. But 61 people are still being quarantined over possible infection.
yonngong@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-02-03--(2nd LD) Retailers in S. Korea close outlets due to new coronavirus

Lotte later announced it will reduce opening hours of four other duty-free shops , including its main location in Myeongdong @ @ @ @ @ Myeongdong store is normally open until 9 p.m. , but starting on Tuesday , doors @ @ @ @ @ p.m. Two other Seoul shops , at COEX and at Lotte World Tower , will @ @ @ @ @ p.m. , two hours earlier than normal .
One other Lotte duty-free location in Busan @ @ @ @ @ the capital , will close at 6:30 p.m. , instead of 8 p.m .

(ATTN: UPDATES with more info in paras 6-9)
By Kim Han-joo
SEOUL, Feb. 3 (Yonhap) -- A string of major retailers, including duty-free shops and hypermarket chains, across the country have temporarily shut down some of their stores, industry sources said Monday, stoking concerns that China coronavirus outbreak could affect consumer confidence in the sector.
Shilla Duty Free, one of the country's leading duty-free operator, on Sunday closed its two outlets in central Seoul and on the southern resort island of Jeju after two coronavirus-infected people had each visited the shops.
The country's 12th confirmed patient -- a 49-year-old Chinese man -- arrived Jan. 19 at Gimpo International Airport in western Seoul. He visited the duty-free shop inside Hotel Shilla on Jeju Island on Jan. 20 and on Jan. 27, according to the company.
Lotte Duty Free, another major player here, also shut down its outlet on Jeju Island starting late Sunday after it was confirmed that another Chinese patient had visited the outlet last month.
Doors are shut at a Shilla Duty Free shop in central Seoul on Feb. 2, 2020, after a coronavirus-infected person was confirmed to have visited it twice last month. (Yonhap)
"We just started banning new customers entering the shop and asking the customers to leave the outlet," a company official said. "We will announce the date of the re-opening after discussing the matter with health authorities and the Jeju provincial government officials."
Lotte later announced it will reduce opening hours of four other duty-free shops, including its main location in Myeongdong, central Seoul. The Myeongdong store is normally open until 9 p.m., but starting on Tuesday, doors will be shut at 6:30 p.m. Two other Seoul shops, at COEX and at Lotte World Tower, will also be closed at 6:30 p.m., two hours earlier than normal. One other Lotte duty-free location in Busan, 450 kilometers southeast of the capital, will close at 6:30 p.m., instead of 8 p.m.
Shinsegae, another big retailer, will follow suit. Beginning Tuesday, its two Seoul shops, in Myeongdong and in Gangnam, southern Seoul, will stay open from 9:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m, instead of the usual 9 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. slot.
Hours at Shilla IPark Duty Free in Yongsan, central Seoul, have been cut by two hours, and it will now be closed at 6:30 p.m.
Meanwhile, the department store AK Plaza in Suwon, 45 kilometers south of Seoul, will reopen for business on Tuesday. AK Plaza closed its doors on Monday after learning that the wife of the 15th confirmed patient had worked there, but she has since tested negative for the virus.
E-Mart Inc., the country's leading discount chain operator, said its store located in Bucheon, a city just outside of Seoul, has been closed since late Sunday as it was confirmed that the 12th patient and his wife, also the 14th confirmed case, had shopped at the site.
The company said disinfection operations have been made to prevent possible contamination, without disclosing details on re-opening.
The country's 12th case worked as a tour guide in Japan and came in contact with a Japanese national who was diagnosed with the infection. The guide was symptom-free upon arrival and had freely moved about the country.
An investigation by the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) confirmed that he had contact with a total of 138 people in Seoul, the surrounding Gyeonggi Province, and Gangwon Province.
A movie theater affiliated with CJ CGV, South Korea's largest multiplex cinema chain, in Bucheon has been closed since Saturday after the country's fifth patient was known to have gone there.
An outlet of Korean cuisine restaurant chain Hanilkwan in Seoul followed suit, as the third and fifth patients confirmed as infected with the virus dined together there on Jan. 22.
A sign announcing a suspension of business is on display at a movie theater in Seoul on Jan. 31, 2020, after the fifth patient confirmed as infected with the new coronavirus visited there. (Yonhap)
South Korea reported a total of 15 confirmed coronavirus cases early Monday. The death toll from the virus in mainland China has reached 361, topping that of the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) outbreak in 2003.
Amid the fast spread of the new strain of virus and new confirmed cases in the country, market watchers say the outbreak has just started to affect the local consumer sentiment.
"It looks like local consumer confidence just began being affected on news of new confirmed cases and the rising death toll in China, coupled with new confirmed cases in the country," said Park Sang-joon, an analyst at Kiwoom Securities Co.
"Consumer confidence in retail sector could possibly further be dented if the number of new cases in the country increases."
Others also say major local cosmetics and duty-free operators dependent on Chinese tourists could be hit hard amid concerns that the fast-spreading China coronavirus may hurt their sales and profitability.
"Stock price is likely to hit the bottom during this week," said Park Shin-ae, an analyst at KB & Securities Co, adding that Hotel Shilla, a duty-free operator, and Amore Pacific Co., the nation's leading cosmetics maker, could take the hardest hit.
Amid increasing concerns over further spread of the virus, the country's three major department stores suffered decreased sales over the weekend, compared to a year earlier.
Lotte Department Store's sales were down 11 percent compared to a year earlier, according to industry sources.
Shinsegae Department Store reported its sales were down 12.6 percent during the weekend compared to a year earlier, with its Myeongdong outlet reporting a 23.5 percent on-year decrease.
Duty-free stores, which are largely dependent on Chinese vendors, also logged decreased sales at their downtown outlets. Chinese vendors and individual Chinese merchants make duty-free purchases of such products as cosmetics in large quantities and sell them on back home.
The sources said Lotte Duty Free reported around a 30 percent decrease in sales over the weekend.
People wearing masks walk on their morning commute in Seoul on Feb. 3, 2020, amid the spreading coronavirus. (Yonhap)
khj@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-02-03--S. Korea beat Myanmar to open Olympic women's football qualifying

Australia , China , Thailand and Chinese Taipei have been placed into Group B in the third round , with @ @ @ @ @ there also reaching the next round .
The home-and-home series will pit the Group A @ @ @ @ @ runner-up , and the Group B winner against the Group A runner-up .
The two @ @ @ @ @ , scheduled for March 6 and 11 , will qualify for Tokyo 2020 .

SEOUL, Feb. 3 (Yonhap) -- Hosts South Korea hammered Myanmar 7-0 to start their Olympic women's football qualifying campaign on Monday.
Three different players each scored twice, including the country's all-time leading scorer, Ji So-yun, while Lee So-dam chipped in a goal for the Taeguk Ladies at Jeju World Cup Stadium in Seogwipo, Jeju Island.
This was the opening Group A match in the third round of the Asian qualifying for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, with Vietnam being the other nation in the group. Coached by Englishman Colin Bell, South Korea will next face Vietnam on Sunday. The top two teams from the group after the round-robin play will advance to the next round.
Ji So-yun of South Korea (L) celebrates a successful penalty against Myanmar with her teammate Park Ye-eun during the nations' Group A match in the third round of the Asian qualifying for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics on Feb. 3, 2020, at Jeju World Cup Stadium in Seogwipo, Jeju Island. (Yonhap)
Australia, China, Thailand and Chinese Taipei have been placed into Group B in the third round, with the top two teams from there also reaching the next round. The home-and-home series will pit the Group A winner against the Group B runner-up, and the Group B winner against the Group A runner-up. The two victorious nations from those matches, scheduled for March 6 and 11, will qualify for Tokyo 2020.
Women's football made its Olympic debut in 1996, and South Korea have never played at the quadrennial competition.
Against the 44th-ranked Myanmar, world No. 20 South Korea needed just six minutes to get on the board.
Kang Chae-rim was awarded a penalty when she was pushed down in the box by Tun Khin Marlar in the fifth minute. Ji stepped up and rolled her shot into the bottom left corner past Mya Phu Ngon for a 1-0 lead.
Colin Bell, head coach of the South Korean women's national football team, encourages his players against Myanmar during the teams' Group A match in the third round of the Asian qualifying for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics on Feb. 3, 2020, at Jeju World Cup Stadium in Seogwipo, Jeju Island. (Yonhap)
Lee So-dam doubled the lead in the 37th minute. Kang headed down a Shim Seo-yeon cross, and after the ball went off the leg of a Myanmar defender, Lee pounced on the loose ball and struck it into the top shelf.
Ji picked up her second goal of the match seven minutes into the second half. Park Ye-eun made a deft one-touch pass to spring Ji into the box, and the Chelsea FC Women attacker got behind the defense to put South Korea up 3-0.
Ji now has 57 goals in 122 international appearances.
Less than a minute later, Ji returned the favor to Park, as her diagonal pass set up Park's first career international goal in her fifth appearance.
Park picked up her second goal in the 71st minute, with Ji once again feeding her. This time, Ji sent in a sharp cross from the left wing, and Park beat goalkeeper Mya Phu Ngon to the ball and headed it in.
Yeo Min-ji came off the bench to join the party in the 81st minute, when she headed home a Lee So-dam corner.
Yeo then rounded out the scoring in the 89th, with Kim Hye-ri's sharp cross finding its way through the porous defense and landing on Yeo's feet for an easy score.
South Korea have now won all six meetings against Myanmar.
Ji So-yun of South Korea (R) scores her second goal against Myanmar during the teams' Group A match in the third round of the Asian qualifying for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics on Feb. 3, 2020, at Jeju World Cup Stadium in Seogwipo, Jeju Island. (Yonhap)
jeeho@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-02-03--Railway traffic between Russia, N. Korea suspended following coronavirus outbreak

Russian Railways earlier suspended passenger traffic with China last Friday .
The central Chinese city of Wuhan is the epicenter @ @ @ @ @ which has claimed hundreds of lives in China and has affected many others across the @ @ @ @ @ two confirmed cases of the virus , both Chinese nationals .

SEOUL, Feb. 3 (Yonhap) -- Russia's state-run railway company announced Monday it will suspend its passenger traffic with North Korea in order to prevent further spread of the novel coronavirus.
In a statement, Russian Railways said passenger train services between the two countries will remain grounded "until further notice." The company added the decision was "in accordance with a message from the North Korean Ministry of Railways" dated last Saturday.
The decision follows an earlier move to halt all air traffic between the two countries.
Russian Railways earlier suspended passenger traffic with China last Friday. The central Chinese city of Wuhan is the epicenter of the deadly virus, which has claimed hundreds of lives in China and has affected many others across the globe. Russia has had two confirmed cases of the virus, both Chinese nationals.
North Korea has also shut down all its air and railway routes across its borders with China. It has not yet reported an outbreak of the deadly virus.
This TASS photo from Feb. 1, 2020, shows the Beijing-Moscow train arriving at the Novosibirsk railway station in Novosibirsk, Russia. Railway traffic between Russia and China has been suspended until March 1, following the outbreak of the novel coronavirus, with only the Beijing-Moscow route being maintained. (Yonhap)
(END)


yna--2020-02-03--Coronavirus forces cancellation of cultural performances, events

Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra was scheduled to perform at Seoul Anglican Cathedral of St. Mary & St. Nicholas on Thursday , @ @ @ @ @ .
The orchestra said it was looking forward to playing before a sellout crowd but @ @ @ @ @ is more important than its concert .

SEOUL, Feb. 3 (Yonhap) -- The outbreak of the novel coronavirus has forced a series of cultural events and performances in and outside South Korea to be scrapped, with organizers trying to prevent its further spread.
YG Entertainment, a major K-pop talent management agency, said Monday that a Singapore concert by its boy group WINNER scheduled for Saturday has been canceled. Another YG act, AKMU, will not perform in Changwon, some 400 kilometers southeast of Seoul, on Saturday and Sunday as scheduled.
YG apologized to fans who have already purchased their tickets to these shows and added that other upcoming concerts could be affected.
Singer Kim Tae-woo has suspended his "SouL PooL" concerts, scheduled for Feb. 14 and 15 at Seoul's Sogang University, indefinitely. Tickets were set to go on sale at 7 p.m. Monday, but Kim's agency, P&B Entertainment, pulled the plug on it.
This sign put up at a multiplex cinema in Seoul on Feb. 3, 2020, provides a note on preventive measures against the novel coronavirus. (Yonhap)
Elsewhere, a children's musical, "Dinosaur Taru," will not premiere on Saturday in Seoul as scheduled. Its production company, Culture Holic, said it didn't want to put families' health at risk.
Another musical, "Jungle Life," was scheduled to run through Feb. 23, but its last performance will be Tuesday. "We Will Rock You," a musical that premiered in December, halted its run last Friday.
The press conference for the new Netflix show "My Holo Love" was supposed to be Tuesday, but it will be streamed online instead.
In cinema, the Wednesday premiere for the Ukrainian animated film "The Stolen Princess" has been postponed.
Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra was scheduled to perform at Seoul Anglican Cathedral of St. Mary & St. Nicholas on Thursday, but that has been suspended. The orchestra said it was looking forward to playing before a sellout crowd but that protecting people's health is more important than its concert.
South Korea has so far reported 15 confirmed cases of the coronavirus, with 61 potential cases under observation.
The country announced plans to adopt more stringent quarantine measures against the new coronavirus. People who show symptoms after arriving from China will be tested, while those who have been in contact with confirmed cases will be placed into self-quarantine.
Starting Tuesday, South Korea will deny entry to non-Korean travelers coming from or through China's Hubei province, whose city Wuhan is the epicenter of the virus.
(END)


yna--2020-02-03--Auto sales dip 6 pct in January amid slowdown

To offset the discontinuation of the Rogue production , Renault Samsung badly needs to secure output volume for the XM3 @ @ @ @ @ Europe .
But the company is still in talks with its parent Renault , and @ @ @ @ @ yet .

By Choi Kyong-ae
SEOUL, Feb. 3 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's passenger vehicle sales fell 6 percent last month from a year earlier as an economic slowdown weighed on demand for their models at home and abroad, industry data showed Monday.
The country's five carmakers -- Hyundai Motor Co., Kia Motors Corp., GM Korea Co., Renault Samsung Motors Corp. and SsangYong Motor Co. -- sold a combined 553,558 vehicles in January, down from 589,082 units a year ago, according to the companies' sales data.
The sales results reflect Hyundai and Kia's vehicle supply shortage and the three other carmakers' lack of new, competitive models amid lackluster sales particularly in China and other emerging markets.
This computer graphic image shows logos of the country's five carmakers: (clockwise from top L) Hyundai Motor, Kia Motors, SsangYong Motor, GM Korea and Renault Samsung Motors. (Yonhap)
The carmakers' overall domestic sales fell 15 percent to 99,602 vehicles in January from 117,464 units a year ago. Their overseas sales declined 3.7 percent to 453,956 from 471,618 over the cited period, the data showed.
Hyundai and Kia, the country's two biggest carmakers by sales, sold a combined 519,188 autos in global markets last month, down 1.2 percent from 525,264 a year earlier.
Their domestic sales fell 14 percent to 84,641 from 98,450 during the same period, while overseas sales rose 1.8 percent to 434,547 from 426,814, helped by robust sales of new models, such as the Palisade sport utility vehicle and the Grandeur sedan.
But Hyundai and Kia didn't expect any meaningful rebound in China, the world's biggest automobile market, for the time being.
Weak sales in China are expected to remain a headache for the carmakers in achieving their overall sales target of 7.54 million vehicles in global markets this year. They sold 7.2 million units last year, missing their target of 7.55 million units.
In China, Hyundai and Kia suffered declining sales due to tougher competition and lack of new models, though political tensions between Seoul and Beijing caused by the deployment of an advanced U.S. missile defense system, called THAAD, in South Korea in 2017 have since eased.
To offset weak demand in China, the carmakers said they will put a bigger focus on boosting sales in the U.S. market this year by launching Hyundai's Tucson SUV, Hyundai's independent Genesis brand's GV80 SUV and G80 sedan and Kia's Sportage SUV.
"With lower demand in advanced markets, a prolonged economic slowdown and spread of protectionism still seen as major challenges, we will focus on improving profitability based on competitive models and a fast decision-making process," Hyundai said in a statement.
The three other carmakers reported declines in January sales.
Renault Samsung was the worst performer. Its sales plunged 55 percent on-year to 6,233 units due to a lack of new models and continued labor disputes.
Renault Samsung and its union have yet to sign a wage deal for the year of 2019. The union has staged strikes in protest against the company's wage freeze proposal.
In October, the company reduced production at its sole plant in Busan, 454 kilometers southeast of Seoul, due to declining sales and a lack of a new vehicle for export.
Renault Samsung had produced about 100,000 Rogues at the Busan plant for exports on a manufacturing contract with Nissan. But Nissan cut its output allocation to the plant to 60,000 from 100,000 early last year due to output losses caused by the union's strikes.
To offset the discontinuation of the Rogue production, Renault Samsung badly needs to secure output volume for the XM3 compact SUV for export to Europe. But the company is still in talks with its parent Renault, and no decision has been made yet.
Renault Samsung's current lineup includes the SM3 compact, the all-electric SM3 Z.E. sedan, the QM3 small SUV and the SM5, SM6 and SM7 sedans.
GM Korea's sales declined 47 percent to 20,484 last year from 38,705 a year ago due to weak demand for its models, such as the midsized Colorado pickup truck and the Traverse SUV brought from the United States last year.
SUV-focused SsangYong Motor's sales fell 33 percent to 7,653 from 11,420 during the cited period as customers chose models from bigger rivals, such as Hyundai and Kia, over its SUVs, like the Tivoli SUV.
Adding to the woes of local carmakers, the rapidly spreading coronavirus is having an impact on the supply of auto components made in China and shipped to their plants in South Korea.
Leoni Wiring Systems Korea, Inc., the South Korean unit of German auto parts maker Leoni AG, recently decided to suspend operations at its wiring plant in China until Feb. 9.
SsangYong Motor plans to stop operations of its sole car assembly plant in Pyeongtaek, 70 km south of Seoul during the Feb. 4-12 period due to shortages of wiring parts.
The decision will soon affect the production of vehicles at GM Korea, Renault Samsung and SsangYong. GM Korea and Renault Samsung said they are closely monitoring the situation involving the novel coronavirus to minimize the impact on production.
Hyundai and Kia do not receive wiring parts from Leoni's Chinese plant, but they also expect a lack of wiring and other parts from South Korean suppliers that have plants in China.
Hyundai canceled overtime work over the weekend to produce the flagship Palisade SUV at the Ulsan plant in an initial countermeasure to manage its parts inventories.
Kia has started reducing production at its domestic plants for the same reason.
The new coronavirus emerged in the Chinese city of Wuhan late last year and has spread to more than 20 countries. In China, it has killed more than 360 and infected more than 16,400 people.
South Korea has reported 15 confirmed coronavirus cases as of Monday.
kyongae.choi@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-02-03--(LEAD) Entry ban on foreigners traveling from Hubei takes force on Tuesday

In an add-on announcement Monday , the South Korean government said it will use a three-phased screening system to filter @ @ @ @ @ , first at the ticketing stage and then to at the entry and post-entry stages @

(ATTN: ADDS info in paras 8-9)
SEOUL, Feb. 3 (Yonhap) -- Non-Korean travelers coming from or through China's Hubei province will be denied entry into South Korea starting on Tuesday, as the country is widening efforts to combat the continuing spread of the novel coronavirus.
The entry ban applies to all non-Korean travelers who over the past 14 days have stayed or traveled to the Chinese province, the home to Wuhan where the new coronavirus originated, according to a government announcement made Sunday.
It is part of South Korea's first border control measures taken to avert the further advance of the epidemic into the country.
In an add-on announcement Monday, the South Korean government said it will use a three-phased screening system to filter out foreign travelers from Hubei, first at the ticketing stage and then to at the entry and post-entry stages.
Foreigners who plan to travel to South Korea will be required to confirm whether they have been to Hubei over the past 14 days at the time of ticketing.
They will be then required to fill out and present a health check form to the quarantine office upon arrival in South Korea.
Through a further verification process following entry, any foreigners who are found to have presented false information on their health or travel history will be deported, according to the government announcement.
The justice ministry said later in the day that the operation of automatic immigration check systems for foreigners will be halted beginning Tuesday.
All foreigners arriving in the country must undergo a screening interview for the time being, the ministry said.
Also starting on Tuesday, Chinese travelers who try to enter South Korea with a passport issued by Hubei province will be selectively allowed into the country, while Korean visas approved by the South Korean Consulate General in Wuhan will be temporarily rendered ineffective, the government said.
Another major border control measure will also take effect Tuesday, putting the visa-free program for Chinese traveling to South Korea's Jeju Island on indefinite hold, according to the government.
The government also plans to build a separate arrival gate reserved for Chinese travelers in a bid to stiffen its health checks, it said.
"The entry ban is the strongest (preventive) measure South Korea has ever taken against an epidemic," Vice Health Minister Kim Gang-lip said, adding that the government may consider further border control measures.
So far, South Korea has reported 15 confirmed coronavirus cases since the first case was verified on Jan. 20.
pbr@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-02-03--(4th LD) S. Korea to adopt enhanced quarantine measures to fight coronavirus

The ministry also said it plans to start screening everyone who has been to China in the last 14 days @ @ @ @ @ no signs of the illness , as there are growing worries that those who arrived @ @ @ @ @ the virus to others .

(ATTN: UPDATES with more details in last 2 paras)
SEOUL, Feb. 3 (Yonhap) -- South Korea said Monday it will adopt more stringent quarantine measures against the new coronavirus by testing those who show symptoms after arriving from China and placing those who have been in contact with confirmed cases into self-quarantine.
The measures, to be effective Tuesday, came as the country braces for the further spread of the potentially fatal virus. So far, the country has reported 15 confirmed cases, with 61 potential cases under observation.
The country's health authorities said they will start testing anyone who arrives here from China and shows symptoms of the novel coronavirus, such as fever, within 14 days, although they are not classified as potential cases.
Doctors at the country's 532 clinics will be able to conduct detailed tests on people complaining of illness that may be linked to the new virus.
So far, only those with pneumonia-like conditions who visited the Chinese city of Wuhan or the surrounding Hubei province have been tested.
People wearing masks wait in line to pass the quarantine checkpoint at Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul, on Jan. 29, 2020. (Yonhap)
Common signs of infection include fever, coughing, shortness of breath, breathing difficulties and muscle cramps. In more severe cases, infection can cause pneumonia, acute respiratory syndrome and even lead to death.
Also, the health authorities said 913 people confirmed to have been in contact with the infected cases will be put under self-quarantine for at least two weeks, out of concerns over human transmission.
Of the 15 confirmed cases, nine were judged to be those who had come from China, with five others believed to be person-to-person transmissions that took place here. One is a Chinese man who is believed to have been infected during a stay in Japan.
The ministry also said it plans to start screening everyone who has been to China in the last 14 days, even if they show no signs of the illness, as there are growing worries that those who arrived here symptom-free could unwittingly spread the virus to others.
The move comes as the country said it will start restricting foreigners entering the country from Wuhan, the epicenter of the virus outbreak, with the visa-less entry of Chinese nationals to Jeju Island to be temporarily halted.
Seoul is, moreover, considering a move to expand the regions in China that will be subject to travel restrictions.
Medical workers at the National Medical Center wear protective masks and suits as they prepare to check people for the novel coronavirus on Jan. 29, 2020. (Yonhap)
South Korea reported no new cases of the novel coronavirus Monday and said it is conducting tests on 61 people quarantined with potential symptoms of the disease.
The health authorities have checked 490 people, 414 of whom tested negative, and stated that 913 people have been in contact with the confirmed coronavirus patients.
The ministry added that of the second batch of 333 people airlifted from Wuhan on Saturday, none have tested positive for the illness.
Of the 701 people transported from Wuhan on chartered flights late last week, only one has tested positive for the illness, with the others being housed in temporary facilities for two weeks to make certain they have not been infected.
The virus that was first reported in Wuhan late last year has so far killed 361 people and infected 17,363 people worldwide as of Monday.
Besides China, it has spread to 26 countries, including many parts of Asia, Europe, the Middle East and North America.
yonngong@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-02-03--Jin Air shifts to net loss in 2019 on lower demand on Japan, Hong Kong routes

In July last year , Japan tightened regulations on exports to South Korea of three high-tech materials crucial for the @ @ @ @ @ .
In August , Japan officially removed South Korea from its list of countries given @ @ @ @ @ .

SEOUL, Feb. 3 (Yonhap) -- Jin Air Co., the low-cost unit of Korean Air Lines Co., said on Monday that it shifted to a net loss in 2019 due to lower demand on Japanese and Hong Kong routes.
Jin Air swung to a net loss of 54.2 billion won last year from a net profit of 44.5 billion won a year earlier, the company said in a statement.
"Increased flights by low-cost carriers and worsening business environments involving Japan's export curbs and protests in Hong Kong against China (over a controversial extradition bill) resulted in the net result," the statement said.
In July last year, Japan tightened regulations on exports to South Korea of three high-tech materials crucial for the production of semiconductors and displays. In August, Japan officially removed South Korea from its list of countries given preferential treatment in trade procedures.
Japan took the moves in apparent retaliation against a Seoul court ruling that ordered Japanese companies to compensate South Korean workers forced into labor during World War II.
This year, Jin Air expects growing uncertainties surrounding the rapidly spreading coronavirus that first emerged in China late last year to further weigh on its bottom line.
The budget carrier also shifted to an operating loss of 49.1 billion won in 2019 from an operating profit of 63 billion won a year ago. Sales fell 9.9 percent to 910.2 billion won from 1.01 trillion won during the same period.
South Korea has two full-service carriers -- Korean Air and Asiana Airlines Inc. -- and seven low-cost carriers (LCCs) -- Jeju Air, Jin Air, Air Busan Co., Air Seoul Inc., Eastar Jet, T'way and Fly Gangwon.
Two more LCCs -- Air Premia Co. and Aero K Airlines Co. -- are expected to join the market this year, bringing the country's total number of LCCs to nine.
kyongae.choi@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-02-03--(LEAD) Hundreds of schools closed to stem spread of new coronavirus

The ministry decided over the weekend to allow schools in areas presumed to be vulnerable to the viral disease , @ @ @ @ @ is reported or a carrier is found to have traveled , to choose temporary closure @ @ @ @ @ educational authorities .

(ATTN: CHANGES headline; UPDATES numbers in paras 1-2)
SEOUL, Feb. 3 (Yonhap) -- A total of 336 schools in South Korea have temporarily shut down or postponed the start of the new semester due to fears of the spread of the new coronavirus, government data showed Monday.
According to the Ministry of Education, 245 kindergartens, 53 elementary schools, 21 middle schools, 16 high schools and one special education school nationwide have halted school operations or delayed reopening after winter vacation as of 9 a.m. as part of emergency measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
Elementary and secondary schools here usually restart in the last week of January or the first week of February after a month-long winter vacation.
Cho Hee-yeon (R), the superintendent of the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education, sprays sanitizer on a student's hands at Bongeun Elementary School in southern Seoul on Feb. 3, 2020. (Yonhap)
The ministry decided over the weekend to allow schools in areas presumed to be vulnerable to the viral disease, or where a confirmed case is reported or a carrier is found to have traveled, to choose temporary closure after prior consultations with regional educational authorities.
In Gyeonggi Province that surrounds Seoul, educational authorities in Suwon and Bucheon ordered all kindergartens and elementary and secondary schools in their jurisdiction to close for a week.
Authorities in Goyang, also in Gyeonggi Province, recommended closures for all its kindergartens for one week.
In Seoul, a total of nine schools, including three elementary schools, two middle schools and three high schools, remained closed as of Monday morning.
In Gunsan, a North Jeolla Province city where a confirmed case of the new coronavirus was reported, all kindergartens and elementary and secondary schools were ordered shut for two weeks.
Meanwhile, a total of 21 South Korean students and school officials who have visited China's Hubei Province, the epicenter of the new coronavirus, over the past two weeks were put under self-quarantine as of 3 p.m. Sunday, the education ministry said.
Separately, 43 Chinese students of local universities and colleges, who were found to have been to Hubei recently, were also put under self-quarantine as of last Tuesday, the ministry added.
ycm@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-02-03--Samsung Heavy Q4 net losses widen on one-off costs

Samsung Heavy posted an operating loss of 215 billion won in the fourth quarter , compared with an operating loss @ @ @ @ @ the same period the year before .

SEOUL, Feb. 3 (Yonhap) -- Samsung Heavy Industries Co., a major shipyard in South Korea, said Monday that its net losses widened in the fourth quarter from a year earlier due to one-off costs.
Net losses for the October-December period deepened to 124.2 billion won (US$104 million) from 105.7 billion won a year earlier, the company said.
The company said it set aside 67 billion won as loan-loss provision for the delay in payment from a client.
Samsung Heavy posted an operating loss of 215 billion won in the fourth quarter, compared with an operating loss of 133.7 billion won in the same period the year before.
Still, sales rose to 2.15 trillion won in the fourth quarter from 1.36 trillion won in the same period in 2018.
For the whole of 2019, Samsung Heavy's net losses widened to 1.11 trillion won, compared with 388.2 billion won in 2018.
Samsung Heavy said it is aiming to clinch $8.4 billion worth of new orders this year.
The figure marks an 18 percent hike from last year's total orders.
Shares in Samsung Heavy fell 1.05 percent to 6,580 won, underperforming the broader KOSPI's 0.01 percent decline.
This undated photo provided by Samsung Heavy Industries Co. shows an LNG carrier built by the company. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
entropy@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-02-03--Global memory chip production unaffected by coronavirus: report

`` In terms of DRAM suppliers , of the three major suppliers , only SK hynix 's production base in @ @ @ @ @ , but since it is far away from Wuhan , it has not been directly @ @ @ @ @ '' TrendForce said .
`` Also , during the Chinese New Year , the shifts @ @ @ @ @ already been scheduled , so the production line remains operational . ''

SEOUL, Feb. 3 (Yonhap) -- Global memory chip production appears to be unaffected by the outbreak of the novel coronavirus in China, a market researcher said Monday, as no chip manufacturing facilities in the virus-hit country have so far closed or suspended operations.
TrendForce said overall production of memory chips, such as DRAM and NAND flash, is likely to remain unaffected by the deadly virus in the short term as global chipmakers' plants, including those run by South Korea's Samsung Electronics Co. and SK hynix inc., are operating as usual.
The Chinese city of Wuhan, the capital of Hubei province, is believed to be the place where the outbreak started. So far, more than 360 people have been killed in China due to the novel coronavirus, with over 17,000 infected, according to Beijing's health authorities.
"In terms of DRAM suppliers, of the three major suppliers, only SK hynix's production base in Wuxi is located in China, but since it is far away from Wuhan, it has not been directly impacted by the outbreak," TrendForce said. "Also, during the Chinese New Year, the shifts of most fab employees have already been scheduled, so the production line remains operational."
SK hynix is the No. 2 maker of DRAM chips in the world, with a 28 percent market share in the third quarter.
Although the outbreak doesn't appear to have a big impact on DRAM production for the time being, however, TrendForce said that chipmakers still need to monitor closely whether the spread of the virus could affect logistics and transportation systems in China and cause supply shortages.
Regarding NAND flash supply, TrendForce said it also finds no big problems in chipmakers' fab operations, but noted that their expansion plans could be affected if the epidemic is prolonged.
Samsung, the world's largest memory chipmaker, runs a NAND flash plant in Xian, Shaanxi province, while U.S. tech giant Intel Corp. operates a NAND flash production facility in Dalian, Liaoning province.
"Samsung's Xian production base is the center of this year's expansion," it said. "Since the locations of both bases are relatively less affected by the epidemic, besides basic preventive measures, indirect labor will resume work on February 3 and the fabs will operate as usual."
With memory chip fabs running normally, TrendForce also expected a slight increase in memory chip contract prices in the first quarter.
kdon@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-02-03--Entry ban on foreigners traveling from Hubei takes force on Tuesday

SEOUL, Feb. 3 (Yonhap) -- Non-Korean travelers coming from or through China's Hubei province will be denied entry into South Korea starting on Tuesday, as the country is widening efforts to combat the continuing spread of the novel coronavirus.
The entry ban applies to all non-Korean travelers who over the past 14 days have stayed or traveled to the Chinese province, the home to Wuhan where the new coronavirus originated, according to a government announcement made Sunday.
It is part of South Korea's first border control measures taken to avert the further advance of the epidemic into the country.
In an add-on announcement Monday, the South Korean government said it will use a three-phased screening system to filter out foreign travelers from Hubei, first at the ticketing stage and then to at the entry and post-entry stages.
Foreigners who plan to travel to South Korea will be required to confirm whether they have been to Hubei over the past 14 days at the time of ticketing.
They will be then required to fill out and present a health check form to the quarantine office upon arrival in South Korea.
Through a further verification process following entry, any foreigners who are found to have presented false information on their health or travel history will be deported, according to the government announcement.
Also starting on Tuesday, Chinese travelers who try to enter South Korea with a passport issued by Hubei province will be selectively allowed into the country, while Korean visas approved by the South Korean Consulate General in Wuhan will be temporarily rendered ineffective, the government said.
Another major border control measure will also take effect Tuesday, putting the visa-free program for Chinese traveling to South Korea's Jeju Island on indefinite hold, according to the government.
The government also plans to build a separate arrival gate reserved for Chinese travelers in a bid to stiffen its health checks, it said.
"The entry ban is the strongest (preventive) measure South Korea has ever taken against an epidemic," Vice Health Minister Kim Gang-lip said, adding that the government may consider further border control measures.
So far, South Korea has reported 15 confirmed coronavirus cases since the first case was verified on Jan. 20.
pbr@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-02-03--(2nd LD) 61 people quarantined for coronavirus checks, total infections still at 15

(ATTN: UPDATES with more details on people released from close monitoring from para 6; CHANGES photo)
SEOUL, Feb. 3 (Yonhap) -- South Korea on Monday reported no additional cases of the novel coronavirus and was conducting tests on 61 people quarantined with potential symptoms of the disease amid concerns over person-to-person transmissions.
The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) said, with the total number of infections steady at 15, it had checked 490 people since Jan. 3, with 414 testing negative. It stated that 913 people who have been in contact with the confirmed coronavirus patients are being closely monitored.
The KCDC said of the confirmed cases, nine have returned from China in recent weeks with five others presumed to have contracted the virus through person-to-person transmission. The center said it is identifying where infected people have visited and whom they met.
People wearing masks wait in line to go through quanantine at Incheon International Airport on Jan. 28, 2020. (Yonhap)
The KCDC said that all confirmed coronavirus patients are in stable condition and one person is being considered for release.
Under existing rules, a person who passes polymerase chain reaction tests twice within 24 hours can be released if he or she shows no other symptoms, but Seoul needs to evaluate this guideline in light of the characteristics of the new virus.
The KCDC said that it has released 45 people quarantined because they had contact with the country's first confirmed sufferer of the new coronavirus.
According to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC), 75 others who came into contact with the second person here to have contracted the novel virus will also be released from observation on Friday if none show signs of being sick.
They have been under observation for potential symptoms of the disease and to prevent its spread.
The country reported its first case of the potentially fatal disease on Jan. 20.
The first confirmed case involves a 35-year-old Chinese woman who showed signs of being sick when she arrived in the country and was held at Incheon International Airport.
The second confirmed case was a 55-year-old man who returned from the Chinese city of Wuhan, the epicenter of the viral illness, on Jan. 22 and tested positive for the new strain of coronavirus two days later.
Since Jan. 3, the public health agency has tested 490 people for the coronavirus -- 15 are confirmed to have contracted it and 414 have been released from isolation. But 61 people are still being quarantined over possible infection.
yonngong@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-02-03--45 people contacted by 1st coronavirus patient released from monitoring

SEOUL, Feb. 3 (Yonhap) -- South Korea said Monday that it has released 45 people quarantined because they had contact with the country's first confirmed sufferer of the new coronavirus.
According to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC), 75 others who came into contact with the second person here to have contracted the novel virus will also be released from observation on Friday if none show signs of being sick.
They have been under observation for potential symptoms of the disease and to prevent its spread.
The country reported its first case of the potentially fatal disease on Jan. 20.
The first confirmed case involves a 35-year-old Chinese woman who showed signs of being sick when she arrived in the country and was held at Incheon International Airport.
The second confirmed case was a 55-year-old man who returned from the Chinese city of Wuhan, the epicenter of the viral illness, on Jan. 22 and tested positive for the new strain of coronavirus two days later.
Since Jan. 3, the public health agency has tested 490 people for the coronavirus -- 15 are confirmed to have contracted it and 414 have been released from isolation. But 61 people are still being quarantined over possible infection.
yonngong@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-02-03--N.K. officials fear failing to achieve growth by leader's 40s: ex-S. Korea defense chief

`` They were looking forward to reform and opening , thinking that North Korea could lag behind forever if it @ @ @ @ @ current crisis and achieve economic development in the next 15 or so years of Kim @ @ @ @ @ Kim 's 40s , '' Song said in the book .

SEOUL, Feb. 3 (Yonhap) -- Senior North Korean officials appear worried that the impoverished nation will fall permanently behind other countries unless its economy is rebuilt before leader Kim Jong-un ages out of his 40s, a former South Korean defense chief has said.
Song Young-moo, South Korea's defense minister from 2017 to 2018, made the remarks in his new book "Towards the Advanced Democratic Armed Forces," citing unidentified senior North Korean officials who he talked with when he accompanied President Moon Jae-in for an inter-Korean summit in Pyongyang in September 2018.
"They were looking forward to reform and opening, thinking that North Korea could lag behind forever if it fails to break through the current crisis and achieve economic development in the next 15 or so years of Kim's prime, or by Kim's 40s," Song said in the book.
Kim is currently in his mid 30s.
The former minister said North Korean leadership had a solid awareness of the need to open up their country, adding that Pyongyang was drawing up plans to attract investment from the United States and South Korea in case the sanctions issue is resolved.
"They said the U.S., which is an economic giant compared to the North, should make more concessions and provide economic support," he said. "As these ideas were exchanged multiple times at a private level, not at the formal meetings, I think they reflect the North Koreans' candid opinion."
North Korea has been stepping up efforts to bolster its economy, with leader Kim calling for self-reliance to achieve wealth and prosperity without outside help.
In a New Year's Day announcement, Kim said he has no expectation of the U.S. lifting sanctions anytime soon and ordered his people to make a "frontal breakthrough" to build a self-reliant economy.
The nuclear negotiations between the U.S. and North Korea have been stalled since Kim's second summit with President Donald Trump in Hanoi collapsed without a deal in February last year due to wide differences over the scope of Pyongyang's denuclearization measures and Washington's sanctions relief.
In this file photo, taken on Sept. 20, 2018, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (2nd from R) shakes hands with South Korean Defense Minister Song Young-moo and other officials who accompanied South Korean President Moon Jae-in (R) on his North Korea trip at Samjiyon Airport. Moon ended his three-day visit on the day after summit talks with Kim. (Pool photo) (Yonhap)
scaaet@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-02-03--(2nd LD) SNU's dorm to separate Chinese students deemed at risk of coronavirus

Under the decision announced by SNU 's Global Residence , all Chinese students who have visited China 's Hubei Province @ @ @ @ @ coronavirus , in the past month or who have been to other parts of China @ @ @ @ @ , will be sent to one dormitory building on the university 's Gwanak Campus in @ @ @ @ @ living in the dorm building can move into other buildings , if they want .

(ATTN: ADDS more details in last six paras)
SEOUL, Feb. 3 (Yonhap) -- South Korean universities are taking various measures to halt the spread of the new coronavirus, including the separation of Chinese students deemed at risk of the viral disease, officials said Monday.
A recent decision by Seoul National University (SNU) to assemble all Chinese students who have recently visited China in one dormitory building appears to be the most radical of them all.
Under the decision announced by SNU's Global Residence, all Chinese students who have visited China's Hubei Province, the epicenter of the coronavirus, in the past month or who have been to other parts of China in the last two weeks, will be sent to one dormitory building on the university's Gwanak Campus in southern Seoul. People currently living in the dorm building can move into other buildings, if they want.
This photo by photographer Park Seong-je shows a Seoul National University dormitory building designated only for Chinese students deemed at risk of the new coronavirus. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
"We have decided to temporarily separate the living space of some dormitory residents," a school official said, referring to Chinese students with recent records of home visits.
"Including those who plan to return (from China), about 150 students will be subject to the temporary separation."
As the students facing separation cannot be seen as virus carriers, however, they won't be barred from shared dormitory facilities, such as school restaurants and stores, the official noted.
As the school's decision was made known, some students expressed concern, saying anybody in need of separation should instead be sent to their own home or a hospital.
"There has been no public notice on whether all shared facilities of the dormitory, including the convenience store and the restaurant, are subject to the separation rule. Information should be fully disclosed to ensure all students won't be nervous," a Korean student living in the school dorm said.
Another student, who resides in the dorm building designated as Chinese-only, also expressed embarrassment after being told by school authorities to move out of the building immediately.
This photo provided by Chung-Ang University shows a thermal imaging camera installed at the school's dormitory. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
Chung-Ang University, also in southern Seoul, has banned all students with fever or respiratory symptoms from returning to the school's dormitory until such symptoms disappear.
All residents in Chung-Ang University's dorm will be checked for fever and asked to submit chest x-rays taken within two weeks, while any students who visited China's Hubei Province during the winter vacation are asked to self-quarantine for 14 days.
The university also installed two thermal imaging cameras at the entrance of its dorm to screen all residents.
"Any dorm residents who show fever and other symptoms related to the new coronavirus will be quarantined outside the campus," a school official said.
According to the ministry's data, 69,287 Chinese students were studying at South Korean universities and colleges as of April last year, accounting for 43.3 percent of the 160,165 foreign students here.
With a large number of Chinese students set to return to campus after winter vacation, many schools are on maximum alert.
For instance, Kangwon National University in Chuncheon, east of Seoul, has recently sent out emails and text messages to all of its 386 Chinese students asking them to delay their return from home visits as much as possible.
Kangwon National University will also consider quarantining Chinese students returning from China for 14 days.
Inje University in Busan said it plans to recommend that its 73 Chinese students postpone their return from China to the end of this month.
About 150 to 200 Chinese students attending Daejin University in Pocheon, north of Seoul, have been asked not to buy airplane tickets until the school makes a formal notice, while 600 Chinese students at Busan University of Foreign Studies have been asked not to return to campus until after the end of this month.
ycm@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-02-03--(LEAD) SNU's dorm to separate Chinese students deemed at risk of coronavirus

(ATTN: REVISES third para to add two weeks)
SEOUL, Feb. 3 (Yonhap) -- South Korean universities are taking various measures to halt the spread of the new coronavirus, including the separation of Chinese students deemed at risk of the viral disease, officials said Monday.
A recent decision by Seoul National University (SNU) to assemble all Chinese students who have recently visited China in one dormitory building appears to be the most radical of them all.
Under the decision announced by SNU's Global Residence, all Chinese students who have visited China's Hubei Province, the epicenter of the coronavirus, in the past month or who have been to other parts of China in the last two weeks, will be sent to one dormitory building on the university's Gwanak Campus in southern Seoul. People currently living in the dorm building can move into other buildings, if they want.
This photo by photographer Park Seong-je shows a Seoul National University dormitory building designated only for Chinese students deemed at risk of the new coronavirus. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
"We have decided to temporarily separate the living space of some dormitory residents," a school official said, referring to Chinese students with recent records of home visits.
"Including those who plan to return (from China), about 150 students will be subject to the temporary separation."
As the students facing separation cannot be seen as virus carriers, however, they won't be barred from shared dormitory facilities, such as school restaurants and stores, the official noted.
As the school's decision was made known, some students expressed concern, saying anybody in need of separation should instead be sent to their own home or a hospital.
"There has been no public notice on whether all shared facilities of the dormitory, including the convenience store and the restaurant, are subject to the separation rule. Information should be fully disclosed to ensure all students won't be nervous," a Korean student living in the school dorm said.
Another student, who resides in the dorm building designated as Chinese-only, also expressed embarrassment after being told by school authorities to move out of the building immediately.
This photo provided by Chung-Ang University shows a thermal imaging camera installed at the school's dormitory. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
Chung-Ang University, also in southern Seoul, has banned all students with fever or respiratory symptoms from returning to the school's dormitory until such symptoms disappear.
All residents in Chung-Ang University's dorm will be checked for fever and asked to submit chest x-rays taken within two weeks, while any students who visited China's Hubei Province during the winter vacation are asked to self-quarantine for 14 days.
The university also installed two thermal imaging cameras at the entrance of its dorm to screen all residents.
"Any dorm residents who show fever and other symptoms related to the new coronavirus will be quarantined outside the campus," a school official said.
ycm@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-02-03--(3rd LD) LG Chem swings to loss in Q4 on one-off costs

The net loss stood at 56.8 billion won ( US $ 47.5 million ) in the three months that ended @ @ @ @ @ profit of 126.5 billion won a year earlier , the company said in a regulatory @ @

(ATTN: UPDATES with closure of some of LG Chem's plants in Chia, share prices at bottom)
By Kim Kwang-tae
SEOUL, Feb. 3 (Yonhap) -- LG Chem Ltd., South Korea's leading chemicals firm, said Monday that it swung to a loss in the fourth quarter from a year earlier due to one-off costs related to energy storage systems (ESS).
The net loss stood at 56.8 billion won (US$47.5 million) in the three months that ended Dec. 31 from a net profit of 126.5 billion won a year earlier, the company said in a regulatory filing.
A company spokesman said one-off costs related to safety measures following a series of fires in ESS are to blame for the net loss in the fourth quarter.
ESS refers to energy saving procedures in large batteries for the efficient distribution of power.
LG Chem's factory in Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province (Yonhap)
The company posted an operating loss of 27.5 billion won in the fourth quarter, shifting from an operating profit of 289.5 billion won a year earlier.
Sales rose 1.6 percent on-year to 7.46 trillion won in the fourth quarter.
For the whole of 2019, LG Chem's net profit stood at 376 billion won, down 75.2 percent from 1.51 trillion won in the previous year.
LG Chem said it aims for a 23.4-percent rise in this year's sales to 35.3 trillion won, compared with 28.6 trillion won in 2019.
The company said it plans to spend 6 trillion in capital expenditure for this year, down 13 percent from 2019.
LG Chem said it has stopped the operation at some of its plants in China amid the spreading coronavirus outbreak.
Shares in LG Chem rose 3.7 percent to 350,000 won, outperforming the broader KOSPI's 0.01 percent decline.
entropy@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-02-04--Yonhap news advisory for Tuesday, Feb. 4

The following stories are scheduled to be covered by Yonhap News Agency .
Your queries are welcome .
Yonhap 's @ @ @ @ @ reached by telephone at 82-2-398-3451 ( general ) and 82-2-398-3460 ( economics ) , and @ @ @ @ @ yna.co.kr or sam @ yna.co.kr .

The following stories are scheduled to be covered by Yonhap News Agency. Your queries are welcome. Yonhap's English-language news desk can be reached by telephone at 82-2-398-3451 (general) and 82-2-398-3460 (economics), and by email at sshim@yna.co.kr or sam@yna.co.kr.
General
-- First day of S. Korea's entry ban on foreigners traveling from China's Hubei
-- New Chinese ambassador's press conference
Economy & Finance
-- Follow-up stories on new coronavirus
-- Consumer prices in January
-- Supply crunch looming at Korean automakers amid coronavirus
(END)


yna--2020-02-04--Seoul stocks start higher on China's stimulus plan amid virus woes

Since the virus broke out in the Chinese city of Wuhan late last year , the new coronavirus has killed @ @ @ @ @ over 20,000 people in China and reached 24 countries , as far away as the @ @

SEOUL, Feb. 4 (Yonhap) -- Seoul stocks opened higher Tuesday as investors weigh China's upcoming stimulus program to support its economy to reduce any fallout from the new coronavirus.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 14.35 points, or 0.68 percent, to 2,133.23 in the first 15 minutes of trading.
On Monday, the KOSPI inched up 0.01 percent to close at 2,118.88 after plunging 5.7 percent last week amid growing concerns about the rapidly spreading coronavirus.
China's stimulus plans to shore up its growth and upbeat data from the United States gave a boost to investor sentiment, analysts said.
Since the virus broke out in the Chinese city of Wuhan late last year, the new coronavirus has killed more than 400 and infected over 20,000 people in China and reached 24 countries, as far away as the U.S.
So far, South Korea has reported 15 confirmed coronavirus cases as of Tuesday.
Large-cap stocks advanced across the board.
Market bellwether Samsung Electronics Co. rose 0.4 percent, No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix Inc. climbed 0.6 percent, and leading steelmaker POSCO gained 1.4 percent.
Among decliners, top carmaker Hyundai Motor Co. fell 0.4 percent, dominant tobacco company KT&G Corp. declined 1 percent, and cosmetics firm AmorePacific Corp. was up 0.3 percent.
The local currency was trading at 1,190.15 won against the U.S. dollar, up 4.85 won from the previous session's close.
(END)


yna--2020-02-04--S. Korean figure skaters to test mettle against int'l stars on home ice

In his first senior season in 2018-2019 , Cha took bronze at the Grand Prix Final , one of five @ @ @ @ @ ISU event .
He was in second place after the short program at the 2019 @ @ @ @ @ sixth overall .

SEOUL, Feb. 4 (Yonhap) -- Budding South Korean figure skaters will go up against some of the sport's biggest stars at an international competition on home ice this week.
The Four Continents Figure Skating Championships, organized by the International Skating Union (ISU), will run from Thursday to Sunday at Mokdong Ice Rink in Seoul. Skaters from Asia, the Americas, Oceania and Africa -- four of the continents represented by the Olympic Rings -- will compete in four disciplines: men's singles, ladies' singles, pairs and ice dance.
South Korea last hosted this annual event in 2017.
In this Penta Press file photo from Jan. 13, 2020, South Korean figure skater You Young performs her free skating program during the ladies' singles competition at the 2020 Winter Youth Olympics at Lausanne Skating Arena in Lausanne, Switzerland. (Yonhap)
The Four Continents was first held in 1999, in response to the European championship. And South Korea has produced just one medalist, the 2009 ladies' singles champion, Kim Yu-na.
This year, a trio of South Korean women will try to end the drought in the singles, led by the 15-year-old You Young.
You, fresh off a Winter Youth Olympics gold medal last month, is the only South Korean female to perform triple axel. She also has a bronze medal from Skate Canada, one of six ISU Grand Prix stops, and recently won her third straight national title.
Former junior standouts Lim Eun-soo and Kim Ye-lim will also take the ice at Mokdong.
They'll have to contend with the defending champion from Japan, Rika Kihira. The 17-year-old is even more technically accomplished than You, and the Japanese is the first woman to land a triple axel-triple jump combination at an ISU competition.
Kihira's personal best score is 233.12 points from December 2018 at the ISU Grand Prix Final, and her season best is 231.84 from November 2019 at the NHK Trophy.
You, currently in her first senior season, has both the season and personal best of 217.49.
Also representing Japan in the ladies' singles will be Wakaba Higuchi, the 2018 world silver medalist, and Kaori Sakamoto, the 2018 Four Continents champion.
In this file photo from Dec. 15, 2019, Cha Jun-hwan of South Korea performs her free skating program during the first round of the national team trials at Gimhae Citizens Sports Center Ice Rink in Gimhae, 450 kilometers southeast of Seoul. (Yonhap)
In the men's singles, Cha Jun-hwan will look to bounce back from a season-long slump.
In his first senior season in 2018-2019, Cha took bronze at the Grand Prix Final, one of five medals he won at an ISU event. He was in second place after the short program at the 2019 Four Continents before ended up sixth overall.
The development of the 18-year-old has slowed this season, as he's struggled to land quadruple jumps with consistency. Cha has yet to win an international medal this season, his second straight South Korean national title being the only win of any note.
While Cha still represents the host country's best medal hope, any path to the podium will likely go through Yuzuru Hanyu, the two-time defending Olympic champion from Japan.
In addition to his two Olympic gold medals, Hanyu has claimed two world titles and four Grand Prix Final titles. He has yet to win a Four Continents gold, with three silvers in three appearances so far.
Jin Boyang of China, the 2018 Four Continents champion, and Jason Brown, the reigning U.S. national silver medalist, will try to keep Hanyu away from the top of the podium.
The competition will open at 11 a.m. with the rhythm dance portion of ice dance, followed by the pairs short program and the ladies' short program.
Friday will feature free dance in ice dance and the men's short program. The free programs for both the ladies' singles and the pairs will be Saturday. The men's singles champion will be crowned after Sunday's free skate.
jeeho@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-02-04--Kia teases all-new Sorento SUV ahead of launch next month

The company plans to launch the new Sorento SUV in the domestic market in March to gain a bigger share @ @ @ @ @ , it said .

SEOUL, Feb. 4 (Yonhap) -- Kia Motors Corp. on Tuesday released a teaser of its all-new Sorento sport utility vehicle ahead of the car's domestic launch next month.
Kia's fourth-generation Sorento comes with a gasoline turbo hybrid engine and a package of safety features including an advanced driver assistance system (ADAS), the company said in a statement.
The company plans to launch the new Sorento SUV in the domestic market in March to gain a bigger share of the midsize SUV market, it said.
Over 3 million Sorentos have been sold in global markets since the first model was launched in 2002, the statement said.
Details of the new Sorento will be released later, it added.
This image provided by Kia Motors shows its all-new Sorento SUV, to be launched in South Korea next month. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
(END)


yna--2020-02-04--Hyundai's 'Smaht Pahk' places 2nd in ranking of Super Bowl ads

`` I 'd tell him : Josh , it 's gon na be hard growing up homeless , '' Jacobs @ @ @ @ @ got ta believe in yourself .
Be tougher than the world around you , '' @ @ @ @ @ at a field and promising the boy that if he pushes himself to `` be @ @ @ @ @ will .

By Lee Haye-ah
WASHINGTON, Feb. 3 (Yonhap) -- Hyundai's new Sonata commercial featuring Chris Evans and other stars came in a close second in USA Today's ranking of Super Bowl ads, the outlet said Monday.
The 60-second commercial played during the first quarter of Sunday's Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football League. It garnered 6.98 points out of a total 10 on USA Today's Ad Meter, which ranks Super Bowl commercials by consumer rating. The winner was Jeep, which scored an average of 7.01 points.
In the Hyundai ad, movie stars Chris Evans, John Krasinski and Rachel Dratch, as well as former Boston Red Sox slugger David Ortiz, are blown away by the new Sonata's Remote Smart Parking Assist feature.
Speaking in an exaggerated Bostonian accent, the three actors watch and gape as Krasinski's Sonata parks itself in a narrow parking space and then pulls itself out -- all at the click of a car key.
"Game changer," exclaims Evans.
"This is a ghost car," adds Dratch.
Hyundai went through 344 original scripts before it chose the one it used, according to USA Today.
Kia, another South Korean automaker, ranked eighth with its ad focusing on the issue of youth homelessness in the United States. It earned 6.19 points.
The commercial, titled "Tough Never Quits," shows Las Vegas Raiders running back Josh Jacobs driving a Kia Seltos with a boy depicting his younger self in the passenger seat.
"I'd tell him: Josh, it's gonna be hard growing up homeless," Jacobs narrates. "But you gotta believe in yourself. Be tougher than the world around you," he adds, before pointing at a field and promising the boy that if he pushes himself to "be someone," someday he will.
Jacobs was at times homeless as a child, according to USA Today. The commercial was part of Kia's "Yards Against Homelessness" campaign that pledged $1,000 in donations to three charity partners for every yard gained in the Super Bowl, it said.
There were a total of 62 contenders in the Ad Meter contest.
hague@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-02-04--(LEAD) Korea's consumer price growth hits 13-month high in January

Concerns about the economic impact of the new coronavirus are likely to affect consumer prices in February , Ahn said @ @ @ @ @ early to predict how the virus will affect inflation in Asia 's fourth-largest economy .

(ATTN: ADDS details, remarks from para 6)
SEJONG, Feb. 4 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's consumer prices rose 1.5 percent on-year in January, marking the fastest gain in 13 months, the statistics agency said Tuesday.
The country's inflation also rose 0.6 percent on-month in January on the back of increased prices of agricultural and industrial products, according to Statistics Korea.
Core inflation, which excludes agricultural and petroleum products, increased 0.9 percent from a year earlier.
Utility prices were unchanged on-year in January, while prices of agricultural, livestock and fisheries products went up 0.6 percent, the data showed.
Last year, Korea's consumer prices climbed 0.4 percent on-year, marking the slowest growth since 1965.
"In January, a rise in consumer prices was driven by gains in oil prices and agricultural products," Ahn Hyung-joon, a Statistics Korea official, told reporters.
Vegetable prices jumped 10.2 percent from December, the statistics office said. Fruit prices dropped 7.6 percent, and livestock costs gained 2 percent.
Industrial goods prices increased 0.4 percent, and oil prices rose 1.2 percent, the statistics office said.
Concerns about the economic impact of the new coronavirus are likely to affect consumer prices in February, Ahn said, but it is too early to predict how the virus will affect inflation in Asia's fourth-largest economy.
The country's inflation has been extremely weak, staying far below the Bank of Korea's 2 percent target as companies and consumers tighten their spending.
kdh@yna.co.kr
(END)


KOSPI 2,121.22 UP 2.34 points (open)

(URGENT) N. Korea says Travis King decided to come over to N. Korea because he harbored ill feeling within the U.S. Army: KCNA


Tuesday's weather forecast

SEOUL , Feb. 4 ( Yonhap ) -- The following is the weather forecast for South Korea 's 12 major @ @ @ @ @ .


KOSDAQ 650.72 UP 3.87 points (open)


yna--2020-02-04--Dollar opens at 1,191.6 won DN from 1,195.0 won


yna--2020-02-04--S. Korea to swiftly take measures against virus-triggered volatility

So far , South Korea has 15 confirmed cases of the virus , believed to have originated in the Chinese @ @ @ @ @ The virus has killed more than 420 people in China 's Hubei province , where @ @ @ @ @ .

SEOUL, Feb. 4 (Yonhap) -- South Korea will swiftly take measures to stabilize its financial markets in case of increased volatility amid growing concerns about the economic impact of the rapidly spreading new coronavirus in China and other nations, a senior government official said Tuesday.
Vice Finance Minister Kim Yong-beom told a meeting with senior economic and financial officials that the virus is expected to have a negative impact on the Korean economy.
"If volatility rises in financial and currency markets, authorities will swiftly and firmly take stabilization measures," Kim told the meeting.
"In case of a rise in volatility, the government will cope with its contingency plan," Kim said.
Kim also warned against price-rigging of face masks, saying the government will punish those who engage in price-rigging as demand for face masks surges.
So far, South Korea has 15 confirmed cases of the virus, believed to have originated in the Chinese central city of Wuhan. The virus has killed more than 420 people in China's Hubei province, where Wuhan is the capital city.
Starting Tuesday, South Korea will temporarily ban foreigners who have visited Hubei within 14 days from entering the nation.
kdh@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-02-04--Korea's consumer price growth hits 13-month high in January

The country 's inflation also rose 0.6 percent on-month in January on the back of increased prices of agricultural and @ @ @ @ @ said in a statement .

SEJONG, Feb. 4 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's consumer prices rose 1.5 percent on-year in January, marking the fastest gain in 13 months, the statistics agency said Tuesday.
The country's inflation also rose 0.6 percent on-month in January on the back of increased prices of agricultural and industrial products, Statistics Korea said in a statement.
Core inflation, which excludes agricultural and petroleum products, increased 0.9 percent from a year earlier.
Utility prices were unchanged on-year in January, while prices of agricultural, livestock and fisheries products went up 0.6 percent, the data showed.
Last year, Korea's consumer prices climbed 0.4 percent on-year, marking the slowest growth since 1965.
kdh@yna.co.kr
(END)


yna--2020-02-04--(URGENT) Korea's consumer prices up 1.5 pct on-year in Jan.


yna--2020-02-04--(EDITORIAL from Korea JoongAng Daily on Feb. 4)

The mood in China has turned panicky .
Zhong Nanshan , a respiratory expert who became a national hero for @ @ @ @ @ outbreak , was called back to head an investigation of the new virus for the @ @ @ @ @ warned of an explosive spread of the new virus in its developmental stage .
He @ @ @ @ @ virus could peak over the next two weeks .
Controlling the spread amid a surge @ @ @ @ @ 8 to 10 — after the end of the Lunar New Year holiday — could @ @ @ @ @ at this point .

Not inspiring confidence
The death toll in China from the coronavirus outbreak surged to 362 as of Monday morning, exceeding the 349 deaths during the outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) in 2003. Authorities in Seoul must remain vigilant to prevent the spread of an epidemic in this nation.
The mood in China has turned panicky. Zhong Nanshan, a respiratory expert who became a national hero for his role in the SARS outbreak, was called back to head an investigation of the new virus for the National Health Commission. Zhong warned of an explosive spread of the new virus in its developmental stage. He predicted the spread of the virus could peak over the next two weeks. Controlling the spread amid a surge in rail traffic from Feb. 8 to 10 — after the end of the Lunar New Year holiday — could be the most important goal at this point.
Seoul announced that from midnight Tuesday, foreigners arriving from Hubei Province in China would be turned away from Korea. But more than 40 percent of cases of the new illness are now outside Hubei. Experts say such a limited ban won't be of much help. According to health authorities in China, five provinces — Zhejiang, Guangdong, Henan, Hunan and Anhui — out of 31 provinces and cities generated more than 300 patients. The Korean Medical Association recommends travel bans on people from five other locations — Hangzhou, Guangzhou, Jiangzhou, Changsha and Nanjin — which have the highest infection rates outside of Wuhan.
The government's measures have other problems. Passports only identify the country of a traveler and do not specify where he or she has been in the previous few days or weeks, pointed out Kim Do-kyun, head of the Korea Immigration Service Foundation.
Quarantine guidelines from the World Health Organization and Korea also raise questions about how countries work together to help stop the spread of such a dangerous disease.
In a secretariat meeting, President Moon Jae-in said the entry ban was necessary to protect public health, stressing that the well-being of the public must come before economic interests. But his government's measures still fall below expectations, according to experts.
The government initially announced it would restrict Koreans from making pleasure trips to China, but hours later said that option was only being studied. It apologized for causing confusion. It has come under attack for being overly solicitous of Beijing at the expense of public safety. It must act fast to bring home 70,000 students studying in China.
The government has been unreliable and sloppy from the beginning of the outbreak. Yet Lee Hae-chan, head of the ruling Democratic Party, congratulated the government for its "appropriate" actions. The government has aggravated public anxiety and inconvenience because of its wobbly and unreliable policies. Both the government and ruling party must prioritize the interests of their own people in drawing up measures against a pandemic.
(END)


yna--2020-02-04--(EDITORIAL from Korea Times on Feb. 4)

(EDITORIAL from Korea Times on Feb. 4)

No country will suffer more damage than South Korea because of its heavy reliance on the Chinese economy .
China @ @ @ @ @ trading partner ― 25 percent of Korea 's exports go to China .
That 's @ @ @ @ @ has promised to spare no efforts to minimize the economic fallout from the outbreak .
@ @ @ @ @ expected to weigh on the economy unless the epidemic is contained swiftly .

Economic fallout from virus
Korea Inc. faces growing downside risk
The rapid spread of the new coronavirus is not just posing a great threat to public health; it is also destabilizing financial markets and increasing economic uncertainly across the world, not to mention China. No one can rule out the possibility of a global economic crisis if the epidemic persists for a long period.
The mounting fears of the virus have sent the Chinese stock market into a tailspin. On Monday, the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index lost 7.7 percent, nose-diving to a one-year low. This market crash is a reminder of how serious the public health emergency is. It is raising worries that the outbreak may result in economic woes reminiscent of the 1997-98 Asian currency turbulence and the 2008 global financial crisis.
The global airline and tourism industry has already begun to take the brunt of the virus that originated in Wuhan, the capital of China's central Hubei Province. More worrisome is that the Chinese manufacturing sector is also undergoing production delays, which could undermine the global supply chain. Distribution and consumer goods production firms are feeling the pain of the outbreak.
No country will suffer more damage than South Korea because of its heavy reliance on the Chinese economy. China is the country's largest trading partner ― 25 percent of Korea's exports go to China. That's why Finance-Economy Minister Hong Nam-ki has promised to spare no efforts to minimize the economic fallout from the outbreak. He said the coronavirus is expected to weigh on the economy unless the epidemic is contained swiftly.
The outbreak has hit the domestic auto industry. Ssangyong Motor has decided to stop its assembly lines in its factory in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, for nine days from Tuesday due to a shortage of parts supplied by Chinese firms. Hyundai Motor plans to reduced its operations for similar reasons. Manufactures of television, refrigerators, smartphones and computers could suffer similar problems if Chinese parts suppliers stop production in the face of the novel virus.
The Moon Jae-in administration may find it difficult to achieve its economic growth target of 2.4 percent this year. The economy showed a sign of recovery from December, but the raging epidemic is pouring cold water over a potential rebound in both exports and domestic consumption. This explains why the government should take pro-active measures to minimize the potential damage arising from the Wuhan coronavirus.
We urge the government to mobilize all means to protect people from the virus as well as prevent the economy from plunging into an abyss. Possible measures could include an interest rate cut and a large-scale extra budget to boost consumption and encourage corporate investment. It is important to take pre-emptive action to better cope with the emergency situation. Market- and business-friendly policies are also key to avoiding the worst-case scenario.
(END)