Yonhap News Summary

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

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Hyundai Motor, LG Energy Solution to invest 5.7 tln won in U.S. battery plant

SEOUL -- South Korea's Hyundai Motor Group and LG Energy Solution said Friday they will invest 5.7 trillion won (US$4.3 billion) in a battery cell plant in the United States, with an aim to begin operations in 2025.

The two companies will set up a 50:50 joint venture within this year to build the plant with an annual capacity of 30 gigawatt-hours near Hyundai Motor Group's dedicated electric vehicle (EV) and battery plant under construction in Georgia, they said in separate statements.

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Annual K pop-concert comes to Busan, featuring BTOB, ITZY, Nmixx and more

SEOUL -- An annual K-pop concert co-hosted by an entertainment industry group and the Korea Tourism Organization (KTO) will be held Saturday, featuring popular idol groups, such as BTOB, ITZY and Nmixx.

Launched in 1995 by the Korea Entertainment Producer's Association, the Dream Concert has grown to be one of the largest annual K-pop concerts in South Korea.

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S. Korea coach rues missed opportunity in U-20 World Cup match

SEOUL -- For South Korea head coach Kim Eun-jung, his team's 2-2 draw against an undermanned Honduras at the FIFA U-20 World Cup in Argentina represented an opportunity missed.

South Korea fell 2-0 before rallying with two second-half goals against 10-man opponents in Group F action of the U-20 tournament in Mendoza, western Argentina, on Thursday (local time).

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DP to launch signing campaign against Fukushima water release

SEOUL -- The main opposition Democratic Party (DP) was to kick off a signature campaign Friday to oppose Japan's planned release of radioactive water from its crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant.

The party plans to hold a ceremony at Gwanghwamun Square in central Seoul to launch the campaign that is also seen as aimed at criticizing the government for its handling of relations with Japan. DP Chairman Lee Jae-myung and other party leaders are expected to attend the event.

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S. Korean medtech firm EOFlow acquired by U.S. health care company Medtronic

SEOUL -- EOFlow Co., a South Korea-based developer of an insulin patch pump, has been acquired by the U.S. health care company Medtronic PLC.

"Medtronic today announced it has entered into a set of definitive agreements to acquire EOFlow Co.," the U.S. company said in a statement posted on its website Thursday (U.S. time).

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U.S. reconnaissance drones arrive at air base in Japan

SEOUL -- The U.S. Air Force started positioning unmanned reconnaissance aircraft at an air base in Japan earlier this month as part of a rotational deployment, the armed service has said.

The RQ-4 Global Hawks began arriving at Yokota Air Base in Japan from Andersen Air Force Base in Guam last Monday, the U.S. Pacific Air Forces said in a release Thursday.

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S. Korea's new COVID-19 cases below 20,000 for 2nd day amid downtrend

SEOUL -- South Korea's new coronavirus cases stayed below 20,000 for the second straight day Friday as the country is regaining pre-pandemic normalcy amid a downward trend.

The country reported 17,933 new infection cases, including 28 imported cases, bringing the total caseload to 31,629,442, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said.

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BLACKPINK's 'Kill This Love' music video tops 1.8 bln YouTube views

SEOUL -- The music video for K-pop girl group BLACKPINK's "Kill This Love" has surpassed 1.8 billion views on YouTube.

The video hit the milestone at 2:28 a.m. Friday, about four years and one month after the song was released in April 2019, YG Entertainment said.

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S. Korea to seek tariff-rate quota on pork, mackerel

SEJONG -- South Korea plans to adopt tariff-rate quotas on imports of pork and mackerel in the near future in line with efforts to tame rising foodstuffs prices amid prolonged inflation, a senior official said Friday.

The tariff-rate quota is a system under which products are imported with favorable duty conditions within a designated volume. The amount imported beyond the limit is applied with higher tariffs.

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Seoul shares up late Fri. morning on chip rally

SEOUL -- South Korean stocks traded higher late Friday morning as top-cap chip shares rose sharply on hopes for a market turnaround.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index had added 8.9 points, or 0.35 percent, to 2,563.59 as of 11:20 a.m.
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