• World Bank unveils first digital strategy at Seoul summit SEOUL, October 20 (AJP) - The World Bank Group aims to expand digital opportunities to 1 billion people worldwide by 2030 through its first digital strategy, harnessing artificial intelligence to create jobs and accelerate economic growth.
• Korea pulls diplomats from Kyiv as POW dispute deepens SEOUL, October 20 (AJP) - The South Korean government will withdraw part of its embassy staff from Ukraine, the foreign ministry said Tuesday. The move deepens a monthlong dispute with Kyiv over Ukraine's public disclosure that two captured North Korean soldiers had been sent to South Korea.
• Seoul vows stern response if Pyongyang switches on loudspeakers SEOUL, October 20 (AJP) - South Korea will respond sternly to any North Korean provocation along the inter-Korean border, which would violate the armistice agreement, military authorities here said on Tuesday.
• South Korea's Navy plans nuclear-powered submarines, drone carrier SEOUL, October 20 (AJP) - South Korea's Navy plans to develop nuclear-powered submarines and a drone carrier to strengthen its defenses against North Korea's nuclear and missile threats, the Navy said Tuesday.
• Samsung Bioepis wins 10-year rare disease drug deal in Brazil SEOUL, October 20 (AJP) - Samsung Bioepis will be the sole supplier of a rare blood disease treatment to Brazil's government-run market for 10 years starting next year, the South Korean biosimilar maker said Tuesday.
• Ceragem founder turns CEO into family SEOUL, October 20 (AJP) - In a country where corporate empires are often passed from one generation to the next, South Korean healthcare company Ceragem is taking an unusual approach: its founder has made a longtime professional manager his legal son to hand over the business.

AJP Briefing>

• Seoul to mandate cybersecurity disclosures SEOUL, October 20 (AJP)— South Korea will require all companies listed on the KOSPI and KOSDAQ to publicly disclose their cybersecurity spending, staffing and related activities from 2027, regardless of their revenue. The Ministry of Science and ICT (MSIT) said Tuesday that the Cabinet approved revisions to the Enforcement Decree of the Act on the Promotion of Information Security Industry, expanding mandatory information security disclosures to companies and public institutions previousl
• Equity falls, but won hits two-year high and bonds stronger SEOUL, October 20 (AJP) — South Korea's won closed at its strongest level in more than two years Tuesday as exporter dollar selling outweighed equity outflows, while government bond yields fell on foreign futures buying and a sharp stock selloff. The won closed up 2.2 won at 1,328.1 per dollar, its strongest closing level since Oct. 2, 2024, when it finished at 1,319.3 won. It was also the first close in the 1,320-won range since Sept. 26, 2024, when the currency ended at 1,327.2 won

AJP ScaleUP

• LS ELECTRIC shares fall despite major deal for US data center project SEOUL, October 19 (AJP) - Shares of South Korean power equipment maker LS ELECTRIC fell more than 4 percent in early trading on Monday amid broader concerns over a potential artificial intelligence (AI)-related investment bust, despite securing a 168.9 billion won (US$125.2 million) contract to supply electrical equipment for a U.S. data center project in 2027. The stock fell as low as 150,000 won before recovering to 158,800 won as of around 9:50 a.m. LS ELECTRIC will supply switchgear to its
• Four firms win preliminary approval for KOSDAQ listings SEOUL, October 16 (AJP) — Four South Korean companies have cleared preliminary reviews for listings on the KOSDAQ, moving closer to initial public offerings (IPOs) on the country's junior stock market. The Korea Exchange (KRX) approved listing applications on Thursday from four companies across financial technology, pharmaceuticals, battery materials and manufacturing artificial intelligence (AI). They include E9pay, an international money transfer company, and Innovo Therapeutics, a

ASIA Insight

• In Mongolia, school can mean leaving home at six: UNICEF representative SEOUL, October 20 (AJP) - Few children like going to school, but for a six-year-old girl in rural Mongolia the reason can be more straightforward as going to one costs her time with her family for much of the year. For rural herders, sending children to school often means sending them away. More than 36,000 children in Mongolia live apart from their families for up to nine months of the school year, according to UNICEF. "The price they are paying for good education is a very high pric by Lee Jung-woo
• Indonesia's rout revives Asia's crisis ghosts, but risks diverge SEOUL, October 19 (AJP) — Indonesia’s stock market rout has reawakened the spectre of Asia’s 1997 financial crisis, but the diverging fortunes of neighboring markets suggest the turmoil has yet to become contagious. Indonesia is confronting a crisis of market credibility. South Korea is reckoning with the price of its AI boom. Both face the pull of higher U.S. bond yields, but economists caution against mistaking simultaneous market stress for a repeat of the financial contagi by Ryu Yuna

AJP Watch

• Loose fit, firm grip: Hands on Samsung's first clip-on Galaxy earbuds SEOUL, October 20 (AJP) - Samsung Electronics’ latest Galaxy earbuds perched comfortably around the ears instead of plugging into them. A few jumps and jogging motions later, they were still there, intact with lighter feel. That was the main takeaway from trying the Galaxy Buds On at Samsung’s media briefing in central Seoul on Tuesday. They felt loose enough to raise doubts about their grip, but soon became so unobtrusive that it was easy to forget you had them on. For people who
• Ctrl+C goes pro SEOUL, October 19 (AJP) - Adobe has spent 36 years perfecting Photoshop. A lone developer armed with artificial intelligence needed about a week to produce a free lookalike. The imitation is far from the finished article. But when a familiar set of tools can be recreated in days, the companies that spent decades building them face an uncomfortable question: What will customers still pay for? U.S. developer Brandon Thomas released ArtCraft in early October, a collection of seven free apps model

AJP Focus

• Lee Soo-man puts a new label on a familiar K-pop playbook SEOUL, October 20 (AJP) - Lee Soo-man, the septuagenarian pioneer of K-pop, did not retire from the idol business when he sold his stake in SM Entertainment in 2023. Three years after leaving the company he founded, he is back with two new groups, a familiar production formula and a fresh pitch for taking it global. The market has given him an early hearing. A2O LITE, a nine-member girl group introduced alongside the 15-member boy group A2O SOUL, topped Melon’s Top 100 chart with its de
• Korea's own children, still waiting to belong SEOUL, October 19 (AJP) - High school senior Kim Min-jeong is like many other university applicants in South Korea — hopeful about what comes next and anxious about getting there. For relief, she turns to her favorite K-pop group, ATEEZ. Her face lights up as she talks about the band and shows off its dance moves to their latest hit "BAD." Her family history is something she has been taught to share less freely. “My mother always tells me, ‘Never tell other people