• AI boom spreads beyond Korean chipmakers to components and cooling SEOUL, October 06 (AJP) -The AI boom is spilling beyond South Korea’s chipmakers, driving orders and investment in the components that stabilize power, connect processors and keep data centers from overheating.
• Samsung, SK hynix lost 27 engineers to CXMT — most left within 3 years SEOUL, October 06 (AJP) - At least 27 veteran engineers from Samsung Electronics and SK hynix moved to Chinese memory chipmaker CXMT, but 26 have since left after staying an average of just 2.9 years, according to an analysis by a South Korean lawmaker.
• Seoul wired first $2.4 bn to back Texas energy project SEOUL, October 06 (AJP) -South Korea has wired an initial $2.4 billion under its $200 billion investment commitment to the United States to help fund a $22.3 billion natural-gas power complex in Encinal, Texas, designed largely to supply electricity to an adjacent artificial intelligence data-center campus.
• FSS identifies 19 IPs linked to financial cyberattacks SEOUL, Oct. 6 (AJP) —Seoul has identified 12 countries and territories hosting 19 internet protocol (IP) addresses linked to a barrage of cyberattacks on the country’s financial sector, spanning major commercial banks, regional and online lenders, and brokerage houses.
• Korea's FX reserves fall $1.72 billion as U.S. investment commitments loom SEOUL, October 06 (AJP) -South Korea’s foreign exchange reserves fell by $1.72 billion in September — the third-largest decline this year — as the country prepares to bankroll its pledged energy investments in the United States, highlighting potential pressure on its reserve holdings and the won.
• Seoul demands inter-Korean military talks to resolve MDL dispute SEOUL, October 06 (AJP) -South Korea renewed its call Tuesday for military talks with North Korea to reconcile differing interpretations of the Military Demarcation Line, after a military investigation concluded that North Korean mines planted south of the line had injured South Korean troops.

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• Foreigners sink KOSPI below 7,000; Nikkei tops 70,000 SEOUL, October 6 (AJP) - Foreign investors dumped South Korea's memory chip giants again on Tuesday and pushed the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) back below 7,000. The slide came even as the Nasdaq hit an all-time high and Tokyo's Nikkei 225 closed above 70,000 for the first time in about three months. SK hynix fell 3.7 percent and Samsung Electronics 1.4 percent as foreigners sold a net 1.75 trillion won ($1.30 billion) of main-board shares. Brokers tied the selling to U.S.
• IMF revision lowers Korea's current-account benchmark *The issue note reflects the author’s views and not necessarily the official position of the BOK SEOUL, October 6 (AJP) — An IMF demographic-model revision lowered South Korea’s estimated current-account norm by 1.10 percentage points, the largest decline among 26 economies, according to a Tuesday issue note from The Bank of Korea (BOK). Kim Min, an economist at the BOK’s International Department who authored the note, isolated the effect by comparing the revised model

AJP ScaleUP

• KOSDAQ cybersecurity stocks surge as bank hacks raise AI attack concerns SEOUL, October 6 (AJP)— South Korean cybersecurity stocks surged Tuesday as a series of attacks on financial institutions and concerns over the possible use of artificial intelligence (AI) in hacking fueled expectations for stronger security spending. AhnLab, one of the country’s largest cybersecurity companies, which provides software and services to protect computers, networks and cloud systems, jumped 15.58 percent to close at 89,000 won ($65.50) on the junior KOSDAQ. Genians, an
• Humanoid maker Aei Robot moves to mass production SEOUL, September 30 (AJP) - Aei Robot will spend 40 billion won ($29.5 million) on its first plant for mass-producing humanoid robots, the Ansan city government said. The company signs the agreement Wednesday at Hanyang University's ERICA campus in Ansan, south of Seoul, with the Gyeonggi Free Economic Zone Authority, the university and the city government. Construction of the three-story building, which will span about 10,000 square meters, begins in November and is due to finish in Octob

ASIA Insight

• Once the buyer, now the suitor: AMD's Lisa Su due back in Korea SEOUL, October 06 (AJP) - For decades, the semiconductor industry’s pecking order was relatively straightforward: chip designers and system companies called the shots, while memory makers competed to supply them. The artificial intelligence boom is starting to turn that relationship on its head. AMD Chair and CEO Lisa Su is due in South Korea this week, seven months after her previous visit in March, as the U.S. chipmaker seeks the advanced memory and manufacturing partnerships needed to by Candice Kim
• South Korea seeks military sovereignty, but still needs Uncle Sam SEOUL, October 02 (AJP) - South Korean President Lee Jae Myung was unequivocal on Armed Forces Day - Seoul should reclaim wartime operational control of its military, a goal he wants to achieve before his five-year term ends in 2030. “There is no country in the world that relies on another person or another country for its military command authority,” Lee said at a luncheon following the ceremony marking the 78th Armed Forces Day, in a country that maintains roughly 450,000 active-d by Lee Jung-woo

AJP Watch

• Energy-poor, tech-rich Korea must link renewables with storage: IRENA chief SEOUL, October 02 (AJP) - South Korea, an energy-poor but high-tech powerhouse, must pair renewables and hydrogen with storage technology to power its advanced manufacturing economy, a senior international energy expert said. “Korea has strong technological and industrial capabilities to advance its energy transition,” Francesco La Camera, director-general of the International Renewable Energy Agency, said in an email interview with AJP. “The priority is to mobilize those capa
• G-Star goes global by chance as Korean publishers lose home ground SEOUL, September 30 (AJP) - South Korean game publishers are losing the battle for attention at home as short-form videos and streaming lure players away from marathon gaming sessions. Their retreat has a floor plan. Foreign publishers are filling the gaps at G-Star, the country's flagship game show in Busan this November, while Korean heavyweights chase audiences abroad. A floor plan released Tuesday for the Nov. 19–22 show in Busan lists Krafton and mid-sized Webzen as the only maj

AJP Focus

• Are Korea's financial defenses ready for an AI hacker army? SEOUL, October 06 (AJP) - The chain of security breaches has become a pratfall for South Korea's vaunted IT industry and digital banking sector, raising questions over whether their firewalls and other defenses are ready for hackers armed with autonomous AI agents. The attackers probed the sector's side doors — loan-broker lookup pages, staff support systems and other services outside the main customer-facing platforms. They kept testing until several gave way. At least six banks
• Korean investors turn to Japan on weak yen and AI boom SEOUL, October 2 (AJP) — South Korean retail investors are increasingly looking across the Korea Strait as a stalling market at home and volatile U.S. bond prices turn their attention to Japan’s weak yen and expanding opportunities in the AI supply chain. South Korean investors bought $4.65 billion worth of Japanese stocks in the first nine months of 2026, up 94 percent from $2.40 billion a year earlier, according to the Korea Securities Depository (KSD). Purchases of U.S. shares r