Yonhap News Summary

The following is the second summary of major stories moved by Yonhap News Agency on Wednesday.

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(LEAD) S. Korea releases first fully recovered coronavirus patient from hospital

SEOUL -- South Korea on Wednesday discharged a man from hospital who recovered after being infected with coronavirus amid concerns over further spread of the virus, a state-run medical center said.

The 55-year-old South Korean, who had been to the Chinese city of Wuhan, the epicenter of the novel coronavirus outbreak, returned home on Jan. 22 and tested positive for the illness two days later. He was the country's second confirmed case after the first one was reported on Jan. 20.

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(LEAD) Concerns grow over S. Korean exports amid coronavirus crisis

SEOUL -- Concerns are escalating over South Korea's export performance down the road amid the new coronavirus crisis, but officials say no serious fallout has been reported yet.

It is widely feared that the outbreak and spread of the novel coronavirus, which is believed to have originated in the Chinese city of Wuhan, will dampen China's economic growth in the first quarter.

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Trump skips N. Korea in State of the Union speech

WASHINGTON -- U.S. President Donald Trump made no mention of North Korea in his third State of the Union address Tuesday, amid the stalled denuclearization talks with the communist nation.

It was the first time Trump ignored North Korea in his annual speech. That suggests a realignment of priorities amid an ongoing impeachment trial and reelection campaign.

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Public facilities in capital area closed temporarily to stop spread of coronavirus

SEOUL -- An increasing number of public and welfare facilities in Seoul and the surrounding Gyeonggi Province have been halting operations amid growing fears over the spread of the new coronavirus, officials said Wednesday.

Songpa Ward in southeastern Seoul, for instance, has suspended all culture, sports and hobby programs offered by its 27 community centers for residents and temporarily closed all senior citizen centers in its district, they said.

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(LEAD) Gov't urges universities to postpone start of spring semester as coronavirus spreads

SEOUL -- The government on Wednesday advised universities to postpone the start of the spring semester in its latest efforts to curb the spread of the new coronavirus.

Following a ministerial meeting on support measures for international students, Education Minister Yoo Eun-hae recommended that schools delay classes by up to four weeks.

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U.S. flies two surveillance aircraft on apparent mission to monitor N. Korea

SEOUL -- Two U.S. surveillance aircraft flew over South Korea on Wednesday, an aviation tracker said, spurring speculation that the U.S. may be strengthening its watch over North Korea after detecting unusual activity.

The U.S. Navy's EP-3E was spotted in the skies over South Korea at 25,000 feet, Aircraft Spots tweeted.

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Samsung No. 2 tablet vendor in 2019: data

SEOUL -- Samsung Electronics Co. ranked behind Apple Inc. in the global tablet market last year in terms of shipments, industry data showed Wednesday, as the South Korean tech giant faces tough challenges from its U.S. and Chinese rivals.

Samsung had a 13.6-percent share of the global tablet market last year, with shipments of 21.8 million tablets worldwide, according to data from market researcher Strategy Analytics.

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Samsung tops U.S. home appliances market for 4th consecutive year: data

SEOUL -- Samsung Electronics Co. said Wednesday it topped the U.S. home appliances market for the fourth consecutive year in 2019 due to solid sales of its new and premium products.

Samsung Electronics said it accounted for a record 20.5 percent of the U.S. market for home appliances products last year, citing data compiled by industry tracker Traqline.
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