• Korea, US agree on $142B energy plans, Alaska under review SEOUL, October 01 (AJP) -South Korea is taking the first step in fulfilling its $200 billion strategic investment pledge to the United States with a $22.3 billion Texas power project, alongside a $120 billion nuclear cooperation framework and a conditional review of Alaska LNG to bolster U.S. energy supplies for its AI data center buildout.
• Micron signals longer AI bonanza for Samsung, SK hynix EOUL, October 01 (AJP) - Micron Technology’s record earnings and unusually bullish outlook reinforced expectations that an AI chip windfall will extend the record earnings streak for the three memory majors, including Samsung Electronics and SK hynix, through 2027 and into 2028.
• Korea's Sept exports hit fresh monthly high, annual top $800B SEOUL, October 1 (AJP) — South Korea's September exports surged 83.5 percent to a fresh monthly record $120.9 billion as semiconductor shipments more than tripled, customs data showed Thursday.
• Economist Ha Joon-kyung named policy chief in Lee's staff reshuffle SEOUL, October 01 (AJP) - President Lee Jae Myung appointed economist Ha Joon-kyung as his new policy chief on Thursday, filling a key presidential post that had been vacant for a month.
• Korea's Aug FX deposits hit record $140.6 bln on stronger won SEOUL, October 1 (AJP) — South Korea's resident foreign-currency deposits surged to a record $140.62 billion in August as corporate inflows and a stronger won encouraged advance purchases of dollars, central bank data showed Thursday.
• Shinhan Bank offers payouts after loan data leak on 25,000 SEOUL, October 01 (AJP) — Shinhan Bank, one of South Korea’s largest commercial banks, pledged to fully compensate customers for losses arising from a data breach that exposed personal and credit information linked to about 25,000 customers’ loan applications.

AJP Briefing>

• Seoul bourse mostly flat despite US deal and Micron earnings SEOUL, October 01 (AJP) - Korean investors turned to U.S.-linked energy and semiconductor themes Thursday morning after Seoul and Washington laid out $142 billion energy project plans including eight nuclear reactors under South Korea's U.S. investment package. The benchmark KOSPI stood at 6,821.60 as of 10:40 a.m., down 0.2 percent from the previous session after moving between a high of 6,854.21 and a low of 6,765.06. Retail investors bought 322.9 billion won ($237 million) worth of KOSP
• Korea breaks ground on Boston-style biotech hub SEOUL, September 30 (AJP) - Construction of a state-backed lab complex for South Korean biotech startups began Wednesday in Incheon, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups said, with 60 companies due to move in on completion in November 2028. The K-Bio Lab Hub, modeled on Boston's LabCentral incubator, carries a total cost of 217.3 billion won ($160.4 million). Yonsei University is supplying the site on its Songdo campus, and Incheon city is funding construction. Fifty units for early-stage fi

AJP ScaleUP

• 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
• NEX-I files for KOSDAQ IPO to raise up to 65 billion won SEOUL, September 28 (AJP) - South Korean cancer drug developer NEX-I has submitted a regulatory filing for a KOSDAQ listing, seeking to raise up to 65 billion won ($47.8 million) through an initial public offering (IPO). The company plans to offer 5 million shares at a proposed price range of 10,500 won to 13,000 won apiece, putting the total offering at between 52.5 billion won and 65 billion won. Korea Investment & Securities is the lead underwriter. Founded in 2021, NEX-I develops antib

ASIA Insight

• Won slips out of comfort zone as Korea moves on U.S. investment deal SEOUL, October 01 (AJP) - Just when the won appeared to be stabilizing around 1,350 against the U.S. dollar, its year-end outlook has grown less certain as South Korea prepares to pay up to $10 billion toward U.S. nuclear reactor projects before December ends. The dollar-won exchange rate rose to 1,362.6 on Thursday as Seoul and Washington unveiled energy projects under their strategic investment framework. The commitments fall under Korea’s $200 billion investment pledge outside shipbui by Kim Yeon-jae
• Big on scale, Asian Games competes for divided attention SEOUL, September 30 (AJP) - Takuya Enomoto knows the Asian Games are taking place in his country. He checks the results every day. Watching them is another matter. “I don't really have the time,” said Enomoto, a 33-year-old pharmacist in Japan. “It's not like the Olympics, where there's a lot of hype.” Busy with work, he rarely goes out of his way to watch an event live. Instead, he opens Yahoo once a day to check the scores. “That doesn't take th by Joonha Yoo

AJP Watch

• 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
• When ads stop looking like ads SEOUL, September 29 (AJP) - The digital wave has torn down the fence between advertising and entertainment in South Korea. Banks produce web dramas and variety shows. Retailers try short-form comedy. Brands commission songs and music videos, and even create their own idols. Construction companies are joining in, seeking an audience that can swipe past a conventional ad in seconds. As viewing shifts toward streaming services and algorithm-driven feeds, brands are no longer simply buying space

AJP Focus

• KOSPI enters fourth quarter fighting to reclaim 7,000 SEOUL, October 01 (AJP) — Much of the KOSPI’s early-year exuberance has fizzled out as 2026 enters its final quarter, with thinning trade, volatile bond markets and monetary tightening cooling the leveraged bets that helped propel its rally. After taking nearly five years to climb from 3,000 to 4,000, the benchmark swept past successive milestones to breach 9,000 in June. Now, 7,000 has become a resistance level, raising the question of how long the next breakthrough will take. The
• For young Koreans, subscriptions make more sense than ownership SEOUL, September 30 (AJP) - A recent Samsung Electronics sales pitch for newlyweds in Cheongdam, a high-end shopping district in southern Seoul, was unusual: the familiar lineup of refrigerators, washing machines and TVs was missing. Instead, the household appliance giant was selling a subscription package: kitchen and living room appliances bundled with care services and tailored to the size of a couple’s first home. The pitch reflected a changing calculation among younger South Koreans