Yonhap News Summary

The following is the first summary of major stories moved by Yonhap News Agency on Tuesday.

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(Yonhap Interview) First lady Zelenska invites Yoon to Ukraine, urges against war fatigue

SEOUL -- Ukraine's first lady Olena Zelenska has expressed an intention to invite President Yoon Suk Yeol and first lady Kim Keon Hee to her war-torn country, calling South Korea a "model of resilience and development."

In an exclusive written interview with Yonhap News Agency, the second in less than a year, Zelenska also cautioned against any war fatigue and appealed for "more radical" support for her country's fight against Russia's aggression, which she said affects the "future of the whole world."

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Big firms' Q1 operating income nearly halves on tumbling chip exports

SEOUL -- Major companies in South Korea saw their total first-quarter operating income plunge almost 50 percent on-year due to sluggish chip exports, a corporate tracker said Tuesday.

The combined operating income of 309 out of South Korea's top 500 companies by sales came to 25.9 trillion won (US$19.4 billion) in the January-March period, down 49 percent from a year earlier, according to CEO Score.

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SK hynix's NAND subsidiary Solidigm appoints 2 new CEOs

SEOUL -- SK hynix Inc. said Tuesday its subsidiary Solidigm, a NAND flash memory solutions provider, appointed two new CEOs, as part of efforts to maximize synergies between the two firms amid a chip downturn.

SK hynix tapped Noh Jong-won, chief business officer of Solidigm and president at SK hynix, and David M. Dixon, senior vice president and general manager of Solidigm's data center storage group, as new co-chief executive officers of the California-based chip company.

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(LEAD) S. Korea's new COVID-19 cases climb to over 20,000 amid eased restrictions

SEOUL -- South Korea's new coronavirus cases rose to over 20,000 on Tuesday, as the country ended almost all antivirus restrictions to move on from the COVID-19 pandemic of the past three years.

The country reported 23,680 cases, including 34 imported cases, bringing the total caseload to 31,438,960, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said.

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Kia plans to build new EV plant in Mexico: Mexican governor

SEOUL -- Kia Corp. will build a new electric vehicle (EV) plant in northern Mexico, a Mexican governor said Tuesday.

"More good news! Nuevo Leon consolidates as the ELECTROMOBILITY HUB: KIA once again bets on Nuevo Leon with an investment to expand its plant and produce two KIA car models," Samuel Garcia, governor of the northeast state of Nuevo Leon, tweeted earlier in the day. He was in Seoul for an international forum seeking cooperation between South Korea and Latin America.

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(2nd LD) Yoon rejects nursing act in his second veto

SEOUL -- President Yoon Suk Yeol rejected the opposition-led nursing act Tuesday amid strong protests from doctors and nursing assistants against it, exercising his veto power for the second time since taking office.

The act, which was railroaded by the main opposition Democratic Party last month, is aimed at stipulating the roles and responsibilities of nurses, and improving their working conditions.

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Actor Yoo Ah-in attends police questioning over alleged drug use

SEOUL -- Actor Yoo Ah-in showed up before police Tuesday for his second round of questioning over allegations of illegal drug use, five days after he canceled his scheduled appearance, citing the presence of too many reporters.

The 37-year-old actor arrived at the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency at 9 a.m. to undergo interrogation, with the inquiry expected to focus on the types and quantities of drugs he allegedly consumed, the source of the narcotics and the possible involvement of accomplices.

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