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  Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Association Holds Emergency Meeting on Drug Price Cuts The Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Association said it will focus on limiting the impact on the industry from the government’s drug pricing system overhaul.  The association said it held an emergency meeting of its board on April 2 to discuss a response plan to the overhaul, which was recently approved by the Health Insurance Policy Deliberation Committee. The government last month announced the plan, including cutting prices for generic drugs to 45% of the original drug price, down April 2, 2026
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  Violinist Pinchas Zukerman Returns to Korea for Beethoven Concert With KG Philharmonic World-renowned violinist Pinchas Zukerman will return to the Korean stage for the first time in about eight years. KG Philharmonic Orchestra said it will present “KG Philharmonic Orchestra with Pinchas Zukerman — Masterpiece Series: Beethoven” on May 31 at the Seoul Arts Center Concert Hall. Ticket sales begin April 2 with a presale for paid Seoul Arts Center members, followed by general sales on April 3. The one-day performance pairs Zukerman with the KG Philharmonic (KG Philharmoni April 2, 2026
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  Jeju Bank Launches DJ Bank Brand, Expands ERP-Based Corporate Finance Jeju Bank has launched DJ Bank, a digital brand focused on corporate finance, and is moving ahead with enterprise resource planning, or ERP-based, business banking. Jeju Bank said it unveiled DJ Bank’s first set of solutions on April 2 at Douzone Eulji Tower in central Seoul. Attendees included Shinhan Financial Group Chairman Jin Ok-dong, Jeju Bank CEO Lee Hee-soo and Korea Federation of Banks Chairman Cho Yong-byeong, the bank said. DJ Bank is a digital corporate-finance brand develope April 2, 2026
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  Who Is Park Seo-hwi? Former Girl Group Member and Announcer Shares Shamanism Story Park Seo-hwi has drawn attention for an unconventional resume that spans a girl group, broadcast work and, most recently, shamanism. On April 1, MBN’s official channel posted a teaser titled, “Announcer Park Seo-hwi, formerly of a girl group, on why she underwent a spirit-receiving ritual for her family.” In the video, Park said she repeatedly dreamed that members of her family were dying. She said that when she went to get a fortune reading, the first words she heard were, “You’re fu April 2, 2026
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  Korea’s National Growth Fund faces criticism over bank sales channel selection The Financial Services Commission’s retail-focused National Growth Fund is drawing criticism over how its sales channels were chosen. Although the policy fund is designed to combine public money with household investment to foster advanced strategic industries, some banks were left out as distributors, raising questions about fairness. At the same time, because policy funds typically depend on fast fundraising and efficient sales early on, asset managers may have prioritized channels wit April 2, 2026
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  IBK Bank Eyes Potential 400% Return as 'King and the Man Who Lives With Him' Tops 15 Million Viewers As the film 'King and the Man Who Lives With Him' ("Wangsanim") passed 15 million moviegoers, attention has turned to the investment results of IBK Industrial Bank of Korea, one of its main backers. Industry watchers are cautiously raising the possibility that its return could surpass the current No. 1, 'Extreme Job.' According to the Korean Film Council’s integrated box office system, Wangsanim had drawn a cumulative 15.78 million viewers as of April 1. At the current pace, it is expecte April 2, 2026
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  Hanmi Pharmaceutical CEO Hwang Sang-yeon makes first official visits to plants, R&D center Hanmi Pharmaceutical said Thursday that its new CEO, Hwang Sang-yeon, carried out his first official schedule by visiting the company’s production plants in Paltan and Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, and its research and development center in Dongtan. Hwang on Tuesday visited the Paltan Smart Plant, the Pyeongtaek Bio Plant and the Dongtan R&D Center in sequence, inspecting production lines and listening to employees at research sites. He arrived at the Paltan site at about 7:30 a.m., April 2, 2026
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  Korean Banks Shift From Household Loans to Corporate Lending as Rules Tighten Banks are rapidly reshaping lending strategies toward corporate credit and away from household loans as tighter financial rules make it harder to expand consumer lending. With regulators planning to further rein in this year’s overall growth in household lending, the shift into business finance is expected to accelerate. As of the end of last month, outstanding corporate loans at the five major banks — KB Kookmin, Shinhan, Hana, Woori and NH NongHyup — totaled 859.7737 trillion won, up 5. April 2, 2026
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  Han Kang’s ‘I Do Not Bid Farewell’ Draws New Attention After U.S. Critics Award Han Kang’s novel I Do Not Bid Farewell is drawing renewed attention after news it won the National Book Critics Circle Award. Kyobo Book Centre said Thursday that the title ranked No. 12 on its overall bestseller list for the fourth week of March. An analysis of buyers from March 27 to April 1, after the award news broke, showed the largest shares came from readers in their 40s (27.3%) and 50s (24.7%). Purchases by men in their 50s (10.7%) and 60s (10.4%) stood out. A Kyobo official said April 2, 2026
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  Nam June Paik Retrospectives Spotlight Major Works in Seoul for 20th Anniversary of His Death Major works by Nam June Paik will be shown across Seoul this year to mark the 20th anniversary of his death. Gagosian said Wednesday it will present “Nam June Paik: Rewind / Repeat” from April 1 to May 16 at the APMA Cabinet on the first floor of Amorepacific’s headquarters in Seoul’s Yongsan district. Organized in collaboration with the Nam June Paik Estate, the exhibition will feature 11 works spanning Paik’s early experimental pieces through signature works from his later years. A hi April 2, 2026