• Korea secures more Mexican crude, opens door to defense deals SEOUL, September 25 (AJP) -South Korea secured an additional 13 million barrels of Mexican crude oil and laid the groundwork for Korean defense companies to participate in Mexico’s military modernization program, said Seoul's top security aide.
• Korea, Mexico seal investment pact overhaul, open oil supply-chain channel SEOUL, September 25 (AJP) - South Korea and Mexico agreed to deepen economic and supply-chain ties spanning oil, critical resources and investment while expanding cooperation into artificial intelligence, aerospace and defense.
• Lee regrets Kyiv breaking confidentiality over N. Korean POW transfer SEOUL, September 25 (AJP) -South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, still on a state visit to Mexico, expressed regret over Ukraine’s public disclosure of the transfer of two North Korean prisoners of war to South Korea and pushed back against opposition claims that his government had improperly concealed the sensitive operation.
• Foreign visitors drive record crowds at Seoul palaces SEOUL, September 25 (AJP) -Royal palaces in Seoul drew record crowds last year, led by a surge in foreign visitors to Gyeongbok Palace as interest in Korean pop culture increasingly spilled over into traditional heritage sites.
• Kim Jong-un invited to Russia: Russian deputy foreign min SEOUL, September 25 (AJP) - Russia has invited North Korean leader Kim Jong-un to visit the country, with the timing to be arranged through diplomatic channels, as Moscow and Pyongyang deepen a relationship that has evolved from political alignment into a military alliance.
• Chip boom, job squeeze redraw Korea's Chuseok migration SEOUL, Sept. 24 (AJP) — South Korea is booming, with nominal gross domestic product growing at a pace unseen in decades, the stock market up nearly 70 percent and the Korean won about 6 percent stronger than at the end of 2025.

AJP Briefing>

• Samsung Electronics carries Seoul stocks into Chuseok break SEOUL, September 23 (AJP)-Chip heavyweights pushed South Korea's main stock index higher on Wednesday, the last session before a four-day Chuseok autumn harvest holiday. Foreign investors turned net sellers, and retail investors cashed out 1.44 trillion won ($1.06 billion) on the way into the break. The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 63.0 points, or 0.9 percent, to 7,080.9. Samsung Electronics led the gain, climbing 3.3 percent to 285,500 won ($210.14) and closing above 2
• AJP Factbox: When and where for fall foliage in S.Korea SEOUL, September 23 (AJP) - South Korea's autumn foliage will start turning in the northern Gangwon mountains in early October and reach its nationwide peak later that month, the Korea Forest Service said Wednesday. Peak dates, defined as half a forest changing color, are forecast for Oct. 20 at Seoraksan, Oct. 28 at Songnisan, Nov. 4 at Naejangsan and Nov. 6 at Hallasan, about 0.8 day later than the average of the past five years.

AJP ScaleUP

• Wiseplanet jumps nearly fourfold on KOSDAQ debut SEOUL, September 23 (AJP) - South Korean consumer brand company Wiseplanet Company surged more than 270 percent on its first day of trading on the KOSDAQ Wednesday, after strong demand from institutional and retail investors ahead of its listing. Shares traded at 45,150 won ($33.2) as of 4:55 p.m., up 276.25 percent from the initial public offering price of 12,000 won. The stock opened at 42,750 won and rose as high as 48,000 won during the session before paring some gains. Wiseplanet had earl
• Operator of self-photo booths seeks KOSDAQ listing SEOUL, September 21 (AJP) - South Korean self-photo booth operator Seobuk filed for a preliminary review to list on the KOSDAQ on Monday, starting the formal process toward an initial public offering (IPO) for its flagship Photoism brand. The company applied to list 12.63 million shares including 2.6 million shares planned for the public offering, according to Korea Exchange (KRX). Founded in 2020, Seobuk is a global entertainment platform that operates flagship brand Photoism, a self-photo bo

ASIA Insight

• What's in a face? In Korea, seemingly a lot SEOUL, September 23 (AJP) -A gifted physiognomist played by Song Kang-ho sits at the center of the 2013 Korean film The Face Reader, able to divine a person's character and destiny simply by looking at a face. His gift eventually draws him into a struggle over the Joseon throne. After studying the face of Prince Suyang, he sees the makings of a ruthless usurper. His judgment proves accurate. But knowing what is coming does not mean he can stop it. Despite his efforts to protect the young K by Kim Hee-su
• When AI becomes a confidant, how much should we tell it? SEOUL, September 22 (AJP) - Plug in your personal details, desires, weaknesses and troubles. Artificial intelligence suddenly becomes a confession box, healer, consultant, judge, friend and even accomplice. For Jang, an office worker in his 30s from Bundang, south of Seoul, the familiarity is unsettling. "When I talk to AI about my problems, sometimes it scares me to think that it will eventually know me better than I know myself," he said. The sense of privacy and closeness can be by Ryu Yuna

AJP Watch

• For Gen Z, adulthood comes in small treats SEOUL, September 22 (AJP) - Once a week, a 28-year-old nurse working at a small hospital in central Seoul walks into a gift shop in Jongno-gu and buys herself something small. It has become a ritual since she changed jobs two years ago. She does not drink or have particularly expensive hobbies. After rent, student loan payments, food, transportation and her phone bill, she says there is little left to save. The life she once imagined for 28 looked very different. “When I moved from Nort
• Giant hand to truck-boat, local projects raise questions on cultural spending SEOUL, September 21 (AJP) - Lee Ji-hye, a 33-year-old resident of Songdo in Incheon, took her young son to see a new sculpture that had appeared along the waterfront in their neighborhood. His immediate reaction was "Rock and roll," she said, copying the hand gesture. Her son also thought it looked like Spider-Man's hand. "There was a lot of discussion because we simply couldn't make it out," Lee told AJP. She could only laugh when she read the explanation at the b

AJP Focus

• AI giants go straight to memory makers SEOUL, September 23 (AJP) - The artificial intelligence boom is beginning to reshape not only how memory chips are used, but who buys them. OpenAI and Anthropic are expected to begin purchasing memory directly from manufacturers in 2027 as leading AI developers take greater control over the chips and data centers that power their models, according to an industry report. The shift could create a new class of direct customers for Samsung Electronics and SK hynix, which have traditionally supplie
• Korea looks beyond HBM. Can HBF prove as big? SEOUL, September 22 (AJP) - South Korean memory makers racing to sustain a comfortable lead on the next-generation chip front have their eyes on the next big thing; high-bandwidth flash, or HBF. Six months ago, one prominent chip researcher predicted it would define the AI path. "HBM defined the last decade, but HBF will likely determine the next," Joung-ho Kim, a professor at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), told AJP in March. The proposition is now a