• Britain's defense push adds new variable to Canada submarine equation SEOUL, July 01 (AJP) - Britain's latest defense spending plan has added a new variable to Canada's multibillion-dollar submarine equation, strengthening South Korea's industrial partnership with London as Seoul and Germany compete for one of Ottawa's biggest military contracts.
• Stock mania makes gamblers out of Korean retail investors SEOUL, July 01 (AJP) — Tech-savvy and risk-taking South Koreans are learning fast on exotic bets, turning from sluggish cryptocurrency trading to highly leveraged equity investments.
• NPS chief denies "bombshell" selling at KOSPI for rebalancing SEOUL, July 01 (AJP) - The head of South Korea’s National Pension Service pushed back Wednesday against speculation that the fund could trigger a massive selloff in domestic shares, saying fears of a so-called 74 trillion won “selling bomb” were exaggerated.
• Google faces fresh Korean antitrust action over alleged app store exclusivity SEOUL, July 01 (AJP) - South Korea's antitrust regulator has launched formal proceedings against Google, accusing the U.S. tech giant of using financial incentives to induce major game developers to give preferential treatment to its Play Store.
• Visa fee waiver for group tourists extended until end of this year SEOUL, July 1 (AJP) - South Korea has extended its visa fee waiver program for group tourists from six countries including China, the Philippines, and Viet Nam until the end of this year, the Ministry of Justice said on Wednesday.
• Military academy alumni groups to stage first joint protest against merger plan SEOUL, July 01 (AJP) - Alumni associations representing South Korea’s Army, Navy and Air Force academies will stage their first joint action next week against the government’s plan to integrate the three military schools

AJP Briefing

• KOSDAQ celebrates 30 with little fanfare and KOSPI lower SEOUL, July 01 (AJP) - South Korean stocks closed the first trading day of the second half in sharply divided fashion Wednesday, with heavyweight chipmakers pulling the KOSPI lower while power-equipment, cable and policy-linked growth stocks rallied on expectations for the Lee Jae Myung administration's mega investment agenda. The session also marked the 30th anniversary of the KOSDAQ market. Financial Services Commission Chairman Lee Eok-won said at a KOSDAQ anniversary event that authorit
• President Lee to go live with cabinet H2 briefings SEOUL, July 01 (AJP) -South Korean President Lee Jae Myung will once again receive live televised briefings on the government's second-half policy agenda, pressing ahead with the format despite criticism that it has become more of a public spectacle than a working policy review. The presidential office said Wednesday that Lee will receive reports from government ministries and agencies from July 15 to July 21 in nine sessions, reviewing progress on tasks assigned during the administration&#
• SK hynix details upcoming U.S. listing, adds antitrust suit risk in SEC filing SEOUL, July 01 (AJP) - South Korean memory chipmaker SK hynix has amended its registration statement for a planned U.S. Nasdaq listing, detailing a fresh legal challenge while leaving its core offering terms blank, a U.S. regulatory filing showed. According to its amended Form F-1/A filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Wednesday, the company added a newly initiated antitrust class action to its "Risk Factors." The lawsuit, filed on June 25 in the U.S. Distr
• World Cup 26: France, Mexico cruise into last 16; Norway to face Brazil SEOUL, July 01 (AJP) - France and Mexico powered into the last 16 of the 2026 FIFA World Cup with commanding wins, while Erling Haaland struck late to send Norway past Ivory Coast and into a showdown with Brazil. Norway beat Ivory Coast 2-1 at Dallas Stadium in Arlington, Texas, on Tuesday, in a match that kicked off at noon local time. Norway restored several first-choice players, including Haaland, who had missed the final group-stage match against France, but Ivory Coast controlled much of

ASIA Insight

• Two weak currencies, two different stories: Indonesia and Korea SEOUL, June 30 (AJP) - Crisis-era exchange rates and relentless foreign stock selling have become familiar headaches for policymakers in both Indonesia and South Korea. At first glance, the two economies appear to face the same challenge. A closer look tells a different story. The Indonesian rupiah's slide to record-low territory has revived memories of past currency crises, putting renewed pressure on Jakarta as investors question whether the country's external buffers are strong enoug by Kim Yeon-jae
• Europe's sweltering heatwave signals climate extremes in Asia and elsewhere SEOUL, June 30 (AJP) - Europe is in the grip of another sweltering heatwave. Across the continent, from Denmark and Germany to Switzerland and France, temperatures have surged to record or near-record levels. At least 94 million people across Europe have been exposed to extreme heat of 35 degrees Celsius or higher, while more than 350 million people, roughly two-thirds of the continent's population, are living in areas where temperatures have exceeded 30 degrees Celsius, according to recent by Lee Hugh

AJP Watch

• Not everyone in Korea stock-crazy. Some chase Pokémon cards instead SEOUL, June 30 (AJP) - For many South Koreans in their 20s and 30s, priced out of homeownership and wary of the stock market, a rare Pokémon card has become both a comfort and a hard-won luxury. Dozens, then hundreds, of collectors lined up outside a shop in Yongsan, downtown Seoul, long before its 10:30 a.m. opening. Ten minutes after registration began, 63 groups were already queued on the kiosk tablet, tapping their feet impatiently for the doors to open. Security guards kept the l
• The trillion-dollar chip project revives Korea's old Jeolla-Yeongnam rivalry SEOUL, June 29 (AJP) - Pork-barrel projects are always political. The debate becomes even hotter when the prize is the world's most coveted commodity — AI memory chips — and nearly $1 trillion in investment. A government-backed plan to steer hundreds of trillions of won in new semiconductor investment toward South Korea's southwestern Honam region has erupted into one of the first major political battles of President Lee Jae Myung's administration. The conservative oppo

AJP Focus

• Mocking Gwangju is no child's play, baseball aspirants learn SEOUL, July 01 (AJP) - "A man is responsible for his ignorance," Milan Kundera once wrote. Young Koreans are now learning that lesson the hard way. Just last week, Starbucks Korea was forced to close stores early nationwide for employee history lessons, absorbing an estimated 2 billion won ($12.8 million) in losses after a promotional campaign on May 18 sparked outrage in Gwangju. Its "Tank Day" promotion of 5/18 tumbler sparked social outrage for its painful associations
• Samsung Elec Q2 to raise the bar on blockbuster earnings SEOUL, June 30 (AJP) - Samsung Electronics is widely expected to deliver another blockbuster quarter when it issues preliminary second-quarter earnings guidance next week, reflecting a 60 to 70 percent surge in mass-market memory prices and explosive demand for lucrative high-bandwidth memory (HBM) chips used in artificial intelligence. According to market consensus compiled by FnGuide, Samsung is projected to post second-quarter revenue of 166.76 trillion won ($120.3 billion) and operating pro