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China imposes immediate ban on helium exports amid supply concerns
SEOUL, July 11 (AJP) - China has temporarily banned helium exports with immediate effect, tightening control over a key material used in semiconductor, display and other advanced manufacturing industries. The Ministry of Commerce and the General Administration of Customs announced the measure on Friday, saying it was imposed under provisions of China’s Foreign Trade Law. The two agencies did not disclose
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North Korea says denuclearization should apply to U.S., allies before Pyongyang
SEOUL, July 11 (AJP) - North Korea on Saturday rejected renewed calls for the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, arguing that the concept should instead be applied first to the United States, its Asian allies and NATO members. In a statement carried by the state-run Korean Central News Agency, a spokesperson for North Korea's Foreign Ministry said calls by South Korea, the United States and Japan for Py
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SK hynix ADRs jump 13% in Nasdaq debut as CEO vows AI leadership
SEOUL, July 11 (AJP) - SK hynix made a strong debut on the Nasdaq on Thursday, with its American depositary receipts closing more than 13 percent above their offering price on the first day of trading. The South Korean chipmaker’s ADRs opened at $170 on the Nasdaq, after being priced at $149. They rose as high as $177 during intraday trading before giving back some gains to close at $168.49, up about 13
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SK hynix ADR: An epic Korea Inc. drama from penny stock to blockbuster
SEOUL, July 10 (AJP) - Few Korean stocks have rewarded investors—or punished them—as dramatically as SK hynix. The memory chipmaker, whose Nasdaq American depositary receipts became the largest U.S. equity offering ever by a foreign issuer this week, once traded at just 135 won.
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Korean LCCs face uneven summer recovery despite easing fuel costs
SEOUL, July 10 (AJP) - Falling jet-fuel prices are beginning to ease travel costs for South Koreans, but the country's low-cost carriers are unlikely to enjoy an equally smooth recovery as a weak won, elevated operating costs and cautious capacity expansion continue to weigh on profitability during the peak summer vacation season.
Türkiye's NATO moment arrives, but the price of trust remains unpaid
SEOUL, July 09 (AJP) - For years, Türkiye occupied an uncomfortable place inside NATO: too important to expel, too difficult to embrace. It was the ally that bought a Russian air defense system over Washington’s objections. The country that refused to join Western sanctions against Moscow after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The state that could sell drones to Kyiv while keeping open channels to the Kremlin. The government whose president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, jaile
by Lee Jung-woo
The missing ingredient in Korea's AI cake: a foundation model
SEOUL, July 08 (AJP) - "Seize this opportunity," Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang exclaimed during his visit to South Korea last month, calling the country one of the few capable of owning the entire AI stack — from energy and memory to data-center infrastructure, AI models and applications. Huang may have overrated Korea. By almost every measure, South Korea is among the world's most enthusiastic adopters of artificial intelligence. Yet one crucial ingredient remains missing: a hom
Korea's rate hike to 2.75% in July seen unanimous in AJP poll
SEOUL, July 10 (AJP) - The Bank of Korea is expected to resume monetary tightening next week with its first interest-rate increase in three and a half years, according to an AJP survey of economists, with an overwhelming majority also expecting another rate hike before the end of the year. All 10 economists surveyed by AJP forecast the Monetary Policy Board will raise the benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points to 2.75 percent from 2.50 percent at its July 16 meeting, marking the central ban
The mystery behind the near-flat Korea-U.S. sovereign yield gap
SEOUL, July 09 (AJP) - Foreign appetite for South Korean sovereign bonds has stayed firm this year even as investors dumped Korean equities, but that has not stopped bond prices from falling. The spread between Korean and U.S. 10-year government debt has narrowed to less than 30 basis points, even though the policy-rate gap between the Bank of Korea and the Federal Reserve remains wider than 100 basis points. As of midday Thursday, Korea’s 10-year government bond yielded 4.282 percent, w