• Overdraft borrowing surges 10% amid stock investment in Korea SEOUL, Sept. 14 (AJP) — Overdraft borrowing at South Korean banks has surged around 10 percent to nearly 70 trillion won ($52 billion) so far this year amid frenzied retail stock investment, government data showed.
• Korea stock trading extends to 8 p.m. from Monday SEOUL, September 14 (AJP) — The Seoul bourse will stay open until 8 p.m. from Monday under a new after-hours trading system that extends trading well beyond the regular session's 3:30 p.m. close.
• Corporate tax to top income tax '27 as chips reshape Korea's tax base SEOUL, September 14 (AJP) -South Korea’s corporate tax revenue is projected to more than double next year from this year’s supplementary-budget estimate and exceed income tax receipts for the first time in 15 years.
• Lee's approval rating hits dismal low as young voters turn against him SEOUL, September 14 (AJP) - President Lee Jae Myung's approval rating has fallen to a record low of 33.8 percent, according to a poll released on Monday.
• SK AX wins Korean govt award for in-house AI training program SEOUL, September 14 (AJP) - SK AX has gained a government validation for its in-house program training and certifying employees in generative artificial intelligence.
• Alatau City draws S. Korean partners ahead of Seoul summit SEOUL, September 14 (AJP) - Two South Korean technology firms agreed this month to build a digital model of Alatau City, a Kazakh new town that remains largely empty land, in the latest of a series of Korean commitments to the project ahead of Wednesday's first summit between South Korea and five Central Asian countries.

AJP Briefing

• KOSPI leads Asia lower as AI slowdown debate hits memory stocks SEOUL, September 14 (AJP) -Asian stocks opened the week lower Monday, with South Korea's KOSPI falling more than 3 percent as a widening debate over slowing AI development hit its memory-chip heavyweights. The KOSPI opened 3.1 percent lower and traded as low as 6,669.3. The benchmark was down 210.7 points at 6,699.2 in morning trading. SK hynix, the world's second-largest memory chipmaker, fell 5.0 percent to 1,721,000 won ($1,279). Samsung Electronics dropped 3.0 percent to 251,750 wo
• KOSPI closes below 7,000 as foreign selloff outweighs chip exports SEOUL, September 11 (AJP) - South Korean stocks fell nearly 2 percent on Friday as concerns over oil prices and interest rates led to heavy foreign selling, outweighing strong semiconductor exports. The benchmark KOSPI closed at 6,909.91, down 1.76 percent from the previous session. The index opened 3.29 percent lower at 6,802.50 before recovering part of its losses in afternoon trading. Foreign investors sold a net 2.29 trillion won (US$1.70 billion) of KOSPI shares, while institutions unload

AJP ScaleUP

• KOSDAQ delisting clock starts ticking as menswear brand exits SEOUL, September 10 (AJP) - South Korea's tougher new rules have led to the first KOSDAQ delisting, with men's apparel company Wonpung Mulsan set to leave the market after 29 years and several other micro-cap companies facing a similar fate. Wonpung Mulsan, one of the KOSDAQ's earliest-listed companies and once the South Korean licensee of French fashion brand Nina Ricci, failed to recover the minimum market capitalization of 20 billion won (US$14.5 million). Its shares plunged mor
• XIIlab rises after winning NVIDIA-backed AI vision challenge SEOUL, September 9 (AJP) - South Korean artificial intelligence startup XIIlab rose nearly 5 percent Wednesday after winning a computer vision competition that tested whether models trained on synthetic images could perform effectively in real-world conditions. Shares traded at 11,760 won ($8.46) as of 2:09 p.m. on the KOSDAQ, up 4.91 percent from the previous close of 11,210 won. The stock opened at 11,800 won and climbed as high as 12,690 won during the session before giving back part of its

ASIA Insight

• Korean Gen Z takes to streets to protest U.S. call for Hormuz support SEOUL, September 12 (AJP) - On most Saturdays, Gwanghwamun Square belongs to tourists, families, street performers and the assortment of political groups that regularly claim a patch of downtown Seoul for their causes. This Saturday brought another one: opposition to President Donald Trump’s repeated demands that South Korea help secure the Strait of Hormuz as the United States confronts Iran. Many in the crowd were not the veteran anti-American or progressive activists familiar from dem by Lee Jung-woo
• In Korea's delivery republic, gratitude comes without the tip SEOUL, September 11 (AJP) - Any homebody knows the small thrill — the doorbell, footsteps outside and finally the arrival of dinner, groceries or the sneakers you have been waiting weeks for. In South Korea's delivery republic, that moment is woven deeply into everyday life. Increasingly, some customers are finding small ways to acknowledge the people who make it possible, whether through an iced drink, a snack, an extra meal or simply a note saying thank you and ride safely. The ges by Ryu Yuna

AJP Watch

• Korean shamanism finds new life in pop culture SEOUL, September 11 (AJP) - Drums pound, bells shake and chants rise as a mudang, or Korean shaman, appears to slip between worlds, communicating with spirits through an electrifying ritual of music, dance and trance. For millions of moviegoers, the spectacle became familiar through a famous gut scene in director Jang Jae-hyun's 2024 occult blockbuster "Exhuma." Gut, an ancient Korean shamanic ritual performed to communicate with spirits, comfort the dead, seek blessings or ward
• Korean games swap console blockbusters for phone anime in Tokyo SEOUL, September 10 (AJP) - South Korea's biggest game publishers arrive at Tokyo Game Show next week with a lineup that fits in a pocket, trading the console blockbusters they hauled to Gamescom three weeks ago for free-to-play anime games built mostly for phones. Nexon, Netmarble, NC and Smilegate are all bringing what the industry calls subculture titles — character-driven games drawn in Japanese animation style and largely monetized through randomized character draws. Nearly all

AJP Focus

• AI comes at a price: $3,000 for a phone SEOUL, September 11 (AJP) - Apple is ready for a strong comeback after losing loyal Korean consumers to Samsung's foldables, with the iPhone's first foldable form rolling out across Korea on Oct. 23. The appeal to lure back long-term iPhone users is apparent, if form had been the sole put-off. The sole damper is the starting price tag of 3.29 million won for the entry-level 256-gigabyte model and 5.09 million won for the top-end 2-terabyte iPhone Duo. Apple has again set the bar by pus
• Chip boom: boon or curse for Korea's household debt? SEOUL, September 10 (AJP) - The chip bonanza is not just lifting South Korea's nominal growth to levels unseen in decades. It is also pushing the household debt ratio toward an 11-year low as gross domestic product expands much faster than borrowing. The household debt-to-GDP ratio could fall toward 80 percent this year - or the lowest level since 79.2 percent in 2015 - if double-digit nominal growth of 15 to 20 percent is sustained in the second half. The ratio had already fallen to 85.3