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Russia has revived its demand that NATO withdraw forces from Eastern Europe to positions held before the alliance's eastward expansion in 1997, widening the scope of U.S.-brokered Ukraine peace talks to Europe's security architecture, The New York Times reported Friday. A Russian document circulated during closed-door negotiations with U.S. envoys this week repeated demands Moscow made shortly before its February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, including a military p
Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei pledged to “underpromise and overdeliver” ahead of the AI company's stock market debut next Thursday, signaling a cautious approach to valuation as volatility rattles investor confidence in the AI boom. “We’re not super fussed on when exactly, what month, what market conditions we go public into,” Amodei told JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon during a fireside chat Friday at the bank's Manhattan headquarte
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ordered a nationwide halt to flight departures Friday afternoon after a communications failure disrupted air traffic control centers across the United States, citing extraordinary circumstances and safety concerns. The shutdown was the first nationwide ground stop since January 2023, when a malfunction in the FAA's pilot notification system temporarily halted domestic departures. Before that, the last nationwide grounding
U.S. authorities have obtained court authorization to seize or restrain more than $1.2 billion in cryptocurrency stolen from Binance in a record heist attributed to North Korean hackers, the Justice Department said Thursday. The amount forms part of more than $2.7 billion already frozen through joint efforts by U.S. authorities and private companies following the October theft. Efforts to recover the remaining assets are continuing, the department said in its Nov. 12
North Korea has changed the official proportions of its national flag for the first time since the country was founded in 1948, according to the country's propaganda website Naenara. The revised constitution, released by the website earlier this week, also stipulates a change in the flag's ratio from 1:2 to 1:1.65, making it narrower. The flag's design and official symbolism, however, remain unchanged. Experts speculate that the move is part of Pyongyang
Pakistani security forces have killed 74 militants in raids on hideouts in the country’s northwest and southwest near the Afghan border over the past 10 days, the Associated Press reported citing the military Friday. Operations in Mir Ali and Orakzai in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province accounted for 43 of those killed, the military said in a statement. Troops also seized weapons, ammunition and explosive devices.
South Korea's Second Vice Foreign Minister Kim Jin-a will visit the U.S. next week to discuss bilateral economic cooperation, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Friday. During her visit from Sunday to Wednesday, Kim is scheduled to meet with U.S. Undersecretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy and the Environment Jacob Helberg next Monday to explore ways to strengthen supply chains and expand mutually beneficial economic ties. Kim will also attend an ec
South Korean car-sharing operator Socar reported record third-quarter revenue Friday as stronger vehicle utilization and improved operating efficiency lifted profits. Revenue rose 21 percent from a year earlier to 135.2 billion won ($101.2 million), while operating profit jumped 43 percent to 9.8 billion won. Net profit also surged 743 percent to 13.4 billion won. Revenue from the company’s core car-sharing business rose 16.8 percent year on year to a record 10
South Korea reclaimed its position as China's largest source of imports for the first time in seven years, riding a semiconductor export boom that also lifted its ranking in the U.S. import market, according to K-stat data from the Korea International Trade Association (KITA). China's imports from South Korea surged 75.1 percent from a year earlier to $236.2 billion in the January-September period, giving Korea the largest share of the Chinese import market at
North Korea has changed the official proportions of its national flag for the first time since the country was founded in 1948, according to the country's propaganda website Naenara. The revised constitution, released by the website earlier this week, also stipulates a change in the flag's ratio from 1:2 to 1:1.65, making it narrower. The flag's design and official symbolism, however, remain unchanged. Experts speculate that the move is part of Pyongyang
South Korea's Second Vice Foreign Minister Kim Jin-a will visit the U.S. next week to discuss bilateral economic cooperation, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Friday. During her visit from Sunday to Wednesday, Kim is scheduled to meet with U.S. Undersecretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy and the Environment Jacob Helberg next Monday to explore ways to strengthen supply chains and expand mutually beneficial economic ties. Kim will also attend an ec
President Lee Jae Myung will hold a series of bilateral talks with Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul and Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. next week on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit in Manila, presidential spokesperson Kang Yu-jeong said in a written press briefing Friday. The meetings slated for next Monday are expected to focus on improving bilateral ties, expanding practical cooperation, and discussing re
Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) has signed a series of memorandums of understanding (MOUs) with Indonesia's aerospace company PT Dirgantara Indonesia (PTDI) to expand cooperation, the state-run defense contractor said on Friday. The latest agreements cover local production of KF-21 structural components, joint simulator development and technical exchanges, as well as potential business opportunities in the civil aviation market including the development of a mi
Five habitual prank callers have been reported to police for making a combined 8,710 nonemergency calls to the 119 emergency hotline over the past year, disrupting emergency response operations, the Seoul Metropolitan Government said on Friday. One caller alone made 2,661 phone calls and sent 2,886 text messages between September 2025 and August 2026. The city government said it repeatedly warned the callers to stop but filed criminal complaints after they continued
South Korea's rice production fell 0.9 percent to 3.51 million tons this year, marking a fifth consecutive annual decline and the lowest level since 2020, according to data released by the Ministry of Data and Statistics on Friday. Output dropped 31,000 tons from 3.54 million tons a year earlier, as the rice-planted area shrank 1.1 percent to 670,470 hectares amid government efforts to curb overproduction and encourage farmers to switch to alternative crops. The
President Lee Jae Myung's job approval rating fell 2 percentage points to 39 percent, while disapproval remained unchanged at 50 percent, a Gallup Korea poll showed on Friday. Real estate policy was the most frequently cited reason for disapproval, accounting for 17 percent, followed by the economy and livelihoods at 15 percent and ethical issues and his avoidance of his own trial at 12 percent. Among supporters, the economy and livelihoods were the leading reas
Russia has revived its demand that NATO withdraw forces from Eastern Europe to positions held before the alliance's eastward expansion in 1997, widening the scope of U.S.-brokered Ukraine peace talks to Europe's security architecture, The New York Times reported Friday. A Russian document circulated during closed-door negotiations with U.S. envoys this week repeated demands Moscow made shortly before its February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, including a military p
Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei pledged to “underpromise and overdeliver” ahead of the AI company's stock market debut next Thursday, signaling a cautious approach to valuation as volatility rattles investor confidence in the AI boom. “We’re not super fussed on when exactly, what month, what market conditions we go public into,” Amodei told JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon during a fireside chat Friday at the bank's Manhattan headquarte
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ordered a nationwide halt to flight departures Friday afternoon after a communications failure disrupted air traffic control centers across the United States, citing extraordinary circumstances and safety concerns. The shutdown was the first nationwide ground stop since January 2023, when a malfunction in the FAA's pilot notification system temporarily halted domestic departures. Before that, the last nationwide grounding
U.S. authorities have obtained court authorization to seize or restrain more than $1.2 billion in cryptocurrency stolen from Binance in a record heist attributed to North Korean hackers, the Justice Department said Thursday. The amount forms part of more than $2.7 billion already frozen through joint efforts by U.S. authorities and private companies following the October theft. Efforts to recover the remaining assets are continuing, the department said in its Nov. 12
Pakistani security forces have killed 74 militants in raids on hideouts in the country’s northwest and southwest near the Afghan border over the past 10 days, the Associated Press reported citing the military Friday. Operations in Mir Ali and Orakzai in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province accounted for 43 of those killed, the military said in a statement. Troops also seized weapons, ammunition and explosive devices.
The New York Times has identified seven potential successors to Jensen Huang at Nvidia, highlighting the challenge of replacing a founder whose technical expertise and industry relationships helped shape the AI boom. Internal possibilities include Colette Kress, Nvidia’s chief financial officer and interim CEO, and Ian Buck, a vice president credited with developing the CUDA software foundation behind its AI computing business. Kress brings operational knowledg
U.S. President Donald Trump urged Jensen Huang to fight to keep his job in a phone call Tuesday, two days before the Nvidia chief resigned amid an unfolding espionage scandal, The New York Times reported, citing two people briefed on the conversation. The call underscored Trump’s continued support for Huang, who had become a prominent ally and influential adviser on artificial intelligence. According to the newspaper, Trump maintained that backing even after U.S.
North Korea is unlikely to send another large contingent of troops to support Russia’s war against Ukraine this winter, a former senior Ukrainian official said, despite President Volodymyr Zelensky’s recent warnings of a planned deployment, according to U.S.-based outlet NK News. Andrii Kovalenko, former head of the Center for Countering Disinformation under Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, wrote on social media this week that the thre
South Korean car-sharing operator Socar reported record third-quarter revenue Friday as stronger vehicle utilization and improved operating efficiency lifted profits. Revenue rose 21 percent from a year earlier to 135.2 billion won ($101.2 million), while operating profit jumped 43 percent to 9.8 billion won. Net profit also surged 743 percent to 13.4 billion won. Revenue from the company’s core car-sharing business rose 16.8 percent year on year to a record 10
SK Biopharmaceuticals has launched its epilepsy drug cenobamate in Japan under the brand name "Xcopri," following its launches in China and South Korea, the pharmaceutical company said on Friday. Its Japanese partner, Ono Pharmaceutical, is now selling the drug in four doses for adults with partial-onset seizures. The launch follows regulatory approval in Japan in September. Approved in about 50 countries and regions, cenobamate is marketed directly by SK
Labor disputes are deepening at Samsung Biologics as its unionized workers continue their strike, which began last week, entering the second week of their partial walkout. The biopharmaceutical company said on Friday that about 500 workers are participating in the strike, which began on Nov. 6 and is scheduled to run through Nov. 27, but no production disruptions or business losses have been reported so far. Wage-related talks are scheduled to resume next Tuesday a
South Korea's KOSDAQ rose 0.45 percent to 699.66 on Friday after reaching an intraday high of 725.81, giving up most of its earlier gains. Institutions bought 126.2 billion won ($94.6 million) worth of shares, while foreign investors sold 75.5 billion won and retail investors followed by selling 56.3 billion won worth of shares. Among the most actively traded stocks by volume, KBI Metal surged 26.58 percent to 4,620 won, Yellow Balloon climbed 15.09 percent to 3,585 won and Ecocap gained
South Korea's KOSPI fell 0.98 percent to 5,290.53 on Friday after touching an intraday high of 5,504.44, while Korea Electric Power Corp. plunged nearly 10 percent following disappointing third-quarter earnings. Foreign investors sold 550.5 billion won ($412.6 million), while retail investors bought 17.4 billion won and institutions followed with purchase of 2.1 billion won. Among the most actively traded stocks by volume, Samsung Electronics slipped 0.48 percent to 207,000 won, while Kum
Hanwha Aerospace has been selected as the preferred bidder for a 177.3 billion won (US$123 million) project to develop a homegrown 10,000-pound-class turbofan engine for a low-observable reconnaissance drone, the company said on Friday. Led by the Agency for Defense Development (ADD) and backed by the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA), the project will run through October 2031 and aims to secure key technologies for advanced aircraft engines. Hanwha
HiteJinro’s third-quarter operating profit rose 6.2 percent from a year earlier to 57.7 billion won ($43.3 million), even as sales of both its soju and beer fell, the South Korean liquor maker said Friday. Revenue dropped 5.5 percent to 632.4 billion won. Soju, its largest business, saw sales fall 3.5 percent to 367.5 billion won, but operating profit in the segment climbed 7 percent to 45 billion won. Beer sales slid 9.7 percent to 204.4 billion won, while b
South Korean stocks surrendered an early rally of more than 2 percent Friday afternoon, as foreign selling dragged the KOSPI into negative territory and weighed on chip stocks. The KOSPI fell 0.67 percent to 5,306.74 as of 1:43 p.m., while the junior KOSDAQ held onto a 1.48 percent gain at 706.81. Foreign investors sold a net 354.6 billion won ($265 million) of KOSPI shares, reversing their morning purchases. SK hynix dropped 3.19 percent to 1,214,000 won, while Sam
ASIA Insight
AI bust? Bet goes on, albeit in moderation
Nvidia is a darling of South Koreans invested in U.S. stocks and a customer helping memory chipmakers SK hynix and Samsung Electronics mint profits. Jensen Huang, its departing founder, enjoyed a celebrity status here.
Contrary to earlier fears, a year marked by war has been kind to South Korea's refiners. But as winter approaches, recovering crude supplies and falling oil prices threaten to erode their bumper profits.
In the final installment of AJP’s four-part series on the durability of the AI boom, Harvard Business School professor Willy Shih and World Bank Chief Economist for Asia Franziska Ohnsorge examine the risks facing Asia’s technology suppliers and the challenge of turning an investment windfall into lasting economic gains.
*Editor’s note: South Korea has basked in the glow of Nvidia’s epic rise and now stands exposed to the fallout from the sudden departure of Jensen Huang, a central architect and driver of the AI boom. His exit comes as scrutiny of soaring AI spending and resistance to data center construction test the durability of a boom that has powered Korea’s semiconductor earnings and export surge.
President Lee Jae Myung and Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong turned the first shovels of earth on Thursday at a groundbreaking ceremony to scale up the company’s decades-old chip assembly and testing complex in Onyang into a cutting-edge high-bandwidth memory (HBM) packaging hub.
For all the attention paid to chips, an AI data center is mostly a machine for moving electricity in and heat out.
Iran's foreign ministry has reached for a Korean proverb to warn South Korea against expanding its naval footprint toward the Strait of Hormuz, cautioning that a sparrow trying to fly after a stork will end up with broken legs.
Op-Ed: The AI emperor's dangerous affair
The author, Abe Kwak, is the Chairperson of the Asia-Pacific Media Association based in Seoul. Jensen Huang’s Sudden Exit, Nvidia’s Uncertain Future, and the Struggle for Technological Supremacy Between America and China The man who helped build the infrastructure of the artificial intelligence revolution has been brought down not by a rival's superior technology, a Chinese breakthrough in semiconductor manufacturing, or a political campaign against his compan
OPINION: KOSDAQ at 30 needs to grow up
Life begins at 30, so they say. Investors in KOSDAQ are still waiting for the junior stock market to grow into the promise of its birth as Korea’s answer to Nasdaq. The market turned 30 in July. By Thursday, its index stood more than 30 percent below its starting level on today’s scale. In an otherwise rewarding year for many stock markets, including its bigger sibling KOSPI, the KOSDAQ has lost about 22 percent. For two sessions this week, it seemed ready to shake
AJP Video
HYBE wins Asian award for global cash overhaul
HYBE has won an Asian corporate treasury award for a system that manages cash across its overseas operations, the K-pop company said Friday. HYBE received the Overall Winner prize in the Judges' Choice category at the 2026 Adam Smith Awards Asia. Winners were announced in September and honored at a ceremony in Singapore on Nov. 10. The competition, organized by Treasury Today Group, drew 345 entries from 21 countries. HYBE was the only recipient i
aespa joins Eartha Kitt for new 'Santa Baby'
NCT 127, NCT Dream to share Coachella stage
