North Korea has heightened military threats by conducting various naval missile launches and testing new artillery since the beginning of the year. On January 5th, North Korea fired around 200 coastal artillery shells near the Northern Limit Line (NLL) in the West Sea, engaging in violent provocatio
On February 6th, the government announced the plan to increase admissions for medical schools. From the academic year of 2025, the government decided to expand the medical school admission quota by 2,000 students over the next five years, resulting in the admission of 5,058 medical students annually
The Seoul Metropolitan Government (SMG) launched the Climate Card demonstration project on January 27th, with a complete initiation planned for July 2024. The Climate Card provides unlimited use of public transportation within Seoul City, including Ttareungi, the bike-sharing system, at ₩65,000 per
The government hosted an open debate on January 22nd at the Korea Creative Content Agency Education Services Center to announce plans to end the forced shutdowns of hypermarkets on two public holidays every month, which has been in place since 2012. The obligatory closure of hypermarkets was enforce
On October 30th, the State Council approved an amendment to the penal code that allows the sentencing of life imprisonment with no parole. The main point of the said amendment is setting a distinction between offenses eligible for parole and those that are not. Previously, offenders who were sentenc
Last October, controversy arose over the proposal to integrate Gimpo City as part of Seoul City. The discussion about integrating Gimpo into Seoul City was first raised in 1995 but was dispersed due to practical difficulties. However, in October, the debate reignited when Gimpo City Mayor Kim Byung-
The Korean Railway (KORAIL) labor union went on a strike from September 14th, 9 a.m., to 18th, 9 a.m., demanding Suseo Korea Train eXpress (KTX) and improvement in working conditions. This is in response to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport (MOLIT) reducing the Suseo-Gyeongbu line
Following the suicide of a young teacher from Seo2 Elementary School in Seoul on July 18th, three consecutive suicide incidents emerged in less than two months. The elementary school teachers’ self-destructing actions from Shinmok Elementary School in Gunsan on August 31st, and in Daejeon on Septemb
The simultaneous and random knife attacks called Mudjima that happened in July and August have instilled a sense of fear among some citizens. The Mudjima, which means “do not ask why” in Korean, is a particular type of crime towards unspecified individuals without a specific motive or target. On Jul
The 25th World Scout Jamboree was held from August 1st to 12th in Saemangeum, Korea. The Jamboree is a worldwide youth camp held every four years by the World Organization of the Scout Movement to share cultural exchanges and build international friendships. The 25th Jamboree was designed for the sc
In July, heavy downpours caused severe damage nationwide. According to the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters, 50 casualties occurred, mainly in Chungcheong and Gyeongbuk Provinces. In Osong-eup, Chungcheong Province, the collapsed bank of the Miho River caused by heavy rainfal
On July 19th, the 2024 minimum wage was set at ₩9,860. It increased by 2.5% compared with the 2023 minimum wage but did not surpass ₩10,000. The discussion regarding next year’s minimum wage began in June, when the business and labor representatives presented their primary suggestions during the Min
Until May, the won-dollar exchange rate has continuously been reaching new peaks. According to the April analysis of Herald Business, the Korean won is one of the four currencies among the Group of 20 (G20), which suffered depreciation after the Silicon Valley Bank Collapse. Experts have expressed c
On April 24th, Netflix announced a $2.5 billion investment in Korean media content for the next four years. Regarding the decision, Netflix’s co- CEO Ted Sarandos emphasized the uniqueness of K-content by saying, “We are deepening our partnership with the Korean creative industry, which has produced
On March 16th, the Planning and Finance Committee of the National Assembly passed a revised bill for the Act on Restriction of Special Taxation. Also known as the K-CHIPS Law, the act aims to provide additional tax benefits for domestic semiconductor facility investments by expanding the tax deducti
On March 22nd, the Special Committee on Political Reform (Reform Committee) of the National Assembly passed a bill to revise the election system, which will be submitted to the Whole House Committee. The Reform Committee agreed to discuss and process the three suasions proposed by the Advisory Commi
On February 20th, the government revealed plans to develop and routinize daily Artificial Intelligence (AI) services through the New Growth 4.0 Strategy during the Emergency Ministerial Meeting on Economic Affairs. The detailed plan of the Nationwide AI Routinization Project will be released this Ju
On February 21st, the Ministry of Economy and Finance(MOEF) held the Finance Executive Vice Ministers Conference to announce the expanded budget in the first half year to be ₩383 trillion, which is the largest amount in Korean history. The ministry stated that the budget had been mostly drawn up for
Since this February, Seoul City raised the minimum fare for a mid-sized taxi from ₩3,800 to ₩4,800 and reduced the base distance from 2km to 1.6km. Furthermore, last December, Seoul City extended the late-night surcharge time slot from 10 p.m. to 4 a.m. and the extra surcharge from 11 p.m. to 2 a.m.
On January 27th, the Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW) announced the result for the 5th public financial forecasting of the National Pension System (NPS). The financial forecasting of the NPS refers to an overall plan for managing the NPS, which includes insurance fee adjustments and fund operat