KB Kookmin Bank, SSG.com Launch ‘Ssg KB Bank’ Financial Services in Shopping App KB Kookmin Bank and SSG.com are expanding cooperation by rolling out a “bank in platform” service that lets users access banking within the shopping app. KB Kookmin Bank said on the 30th it launched “Ssg KB Bank,” a comprehensive financial service designed for everyday use. In April last year, the Financial Services Commission designated SSG.com as an innovative financial service, allowing the nonfinancial platform to advertise and broker financial products. With the launch, customers April 30, 2026

South Korea Foreign Ministry Replaces Senior Embassy Posts in Washington The Foreign Ministry on the 29th announced personnel changes affecting its North America line, including the head of its North American Affairs Bureau. In the reshuffle of some mission chiefs and director-general-level posts, the ministry appointed Lee Won-woo, currently a senior official in the North American Affairs Bureau, as the new director-general. Officials said the embassy in Washington is also expected to replace its minister-level economic and public diplomacy posts in the nea April 30, 2026

Survey: More South Korean men say men are socially disadvantaged than say women are A new survey shows South Koreans sharply divided over how gender affects social standing. According to the “2026 Gender Perception Survey” released on the 29th by Korea Research, based on 1,000 adults nationwide ages 18 and older, 23% of men said women are socially disadvantaged — less than one in four. By contrast, 33% of men said men are socially disadvantaged. That was about three times the share of women who agreed with the same statement (11%). Views on whether society favors one g April 30, 2026

Big Tech Stocks Diverge as AI Spending Lifts Alphabet, Amazon and Weighs on Meta Global Big Tech companies broadly posted higher results, but investors reacted differently. Alphabet and Amazon gained on signs of continued cloud and advertising momentum, while Meta’s heavier investment plans drew more attention. According to company announcements on April 29 (local time), Google parent Alphabet reported first-quarter revenue of $109.9 billion, up 22% from a year earlier. Google Cloud revenue rose 63% to $20.0 billion. Shares climbed more than 6% in after-hours trading April 30, 2026

South Korea’s Content Industry Revenue Hits 161 Trillion Won in 2025, Up 2.6% South Korea’s content industry posted 161 trillion won in revenue last year, with growth led by music, knowledge information, comics and animation. According to the “2025 Q4 and Annual Content Industry Trends Analysis Report” published on the 30th by the Korea Creative Content Agency, 2025 annual revenue for the domestic content industry rose 2.6% from a year earlier to 161.4839 trillion won. By genre, music grew 15.8%, knowledge information 7.8%, comics 7.4% and animation 6.8%, the repo April 30, 2026

Leeum Museum Recreates Jeong Kang-ja’s Censored 1970 Immersive Work "You are now inside my work." Jeong Kang-ja’s “Non-Body Exhibition” has no solid form, yet it creates a claustrophobic tension that pushes viewers backward. White smoke seeps from the corners of a square room. A red siren blares. A flat voice repeats, “You are now inside my work,” evoking the sense of being confined in South Korea’s closed society of the 1970s. The smoke, intangible but insistent, keeps rising to knee level no matter how far one retreats. Leeum Museum of Art h April 30, 2026

Doosan Robotics shares jump 14% on expectations of Nvidia collaboration Doosan Robotics surged more than 14% in early trading on Thursday as investors bet on potential cooperation with Nvidia. According to the Korea Exchange, shares of Doosan Robotics were trading at 116,600 won as of 9:15 a.m., up 14,400 won, or 14.09%, from the previous session. The rally appeared to be driven by news that Madison Huang, senior director of product marketing for Omniverse · Robotics and the eldest daughter of Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, visited Doosan Robotics April 30, 2026

Bank of Korea Warns of Rising Uncertainty in Fed Policy Path, Vows Timely Response The Bank of Korea said uncertainty over the U.S. Federal Reserve’s monetary policy path has increased, prompting closer monitoring of financial markets. The central bank held a “market situation review meeting” on Thursday morning chaired by Senior Deputy Gov. Yoo Sang-dae to assess the latest Federal Open Market Committee outcome and developments tied to the Middle East war. “After last night’s FOMC meeting, views within the Fed were sharply divided, and inflation driven by higher oil p April 30, 2026

Actor Kim Jeong-tae Says He Had Liver Cancer Surgery, With 30% of Liver Removed Actor Kim Jeong-tae has disclosed that he underwent surgery for liver cancer. On a TV Chosun episode of "Dad and Me" that aired on the 29th, Kim was shown visiting a university hospital. "Liver problems run in my family, so I had liver cancer surgery," Kim said. He said the illness developed around October 2018 and that he had surgery in November. He said he was filming a drama at the time but felt something was wrong and took a blood test. "Normal liver numbers are between 30 and 40, bu April 30, 2026

South Korea’s Kospi Extends Gains, Briefly Tops 6,750 Ahead of Holiday South Korea’s Kospi extended its advance on April 30, briefly topping the 6,750 level ahead of a holiday. As of 9:05 a.m., the Kospi was up 51.16 points, or 0.76%, at 6,742.06, according to the Korea Exchange. It opened up 48.49 points, or 0.72%, at 6,739.39 and climbed as high as 6,750 during early trading. Overnight, U.S. stocks finished mixed. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.57% and the S&P 500 slipped 0.04%, while the Nasdaq composite rose 0.04%. Oil prices jumped. ICE April 30, 2026