Korea 24 - 2021.11.18

Korea24 &ndash; 2021.11.18. (Thursday)<br /> <br /> News Briefing: Daily new COVID-19 cases in South Korea hit a record high of 3,292, on the day that high school seniors across the nation are holding their annual college entrance exams. Critically ill patients remained over 500 for the second consecutive day but dropped from the day before by 16 to 506, while the occupancy rate for ICU hospital beds in the Seoul metropolitan area is nearing 80%. (Koo Hee-jin)<br /> <br /> In-Depth News Analysis (Korean Politics Digest): The uncertainty over whether veteran politician Kim Chong-in will head the election campaign committee for the main opposition People Power Party&rsquo;s presidential candidate Yoon Seok-youl, despite a recent meeting between the two, is casting a shadow over Yoon&rsquo;s campaign. Meanwhile, the ruling Democratic Party&rsquo;s candidate Lee Jae-myung has dropped his push for an additional universal COVID-19 relief payout amid resistance from opposition parties and the Moon administration. Affiliate Professor Kim Byung-joo from the Hankuk University of Foreign Studies joins us on the line to provide his analysis on these developments, as well as discuss whether President Moon will stay in his party after his term is over.<br /> <br /> Korea Trending with Jung Ye-won:<br /> 1. Financial support for pregnant women and childbirth in South Korea is set to be expanded starting next year. (내년부터 임신&middot;출산 진료비 지원 대폭 는다&hellip;한자녀에 100만원)<br /> 2. South Korea&rsquo;s largest internet portal Naver has appointed Choi Su-yeon, a 40-year old woman, to be their next CEO. (네이버, 신임 CEO로 &#039;하버드 출신&#039; 81년생 최수연 파격 발탁)<br /> 3. The online video streaming service Netflix will be raising the rate of their subscription plans for South Korea for the first time since entering the country over 5 years ago. (넷플릭스, 5년 만에 가격 인상&hellip;프리미엄 1만4500원&rarr;1만7000원)<br /> <br /> Explore Korea: Earlier this month, the Korea Tourism Organization released two more episodes from their popular tourism video series