Kakao expands AI assistant's place recommendation, booking features SEOUL, July 08 (AJP) - Kakao announced that it has upgraded the place recommendation and booking functions of its AI assistant, Kanana in KakaoTalk, broadening the service well beyond its original restaurant focus. The update revealed Tuesday extends Kanana's reach into tourism and lodging, exhibitions, performances and cinemas, as well as everyday conveniences such as gas stations, convenience stores and auto repair shops, the company said. Users can now chat with Kanana about weekend pla July 8, 2026

Korea's record C/A surplus overshadowed by $31 bn foreign stock sell SEOUL, July 08 (AJP) - South Korea posted another record current account surplus in May, but the windfall was overshadowed by the largest foreign exodus from the country's stock market on record, exposing a widening disconnect between the economy's external strength and global investors' appetite for Korean assets — a divergence that has helped keep the won stubbornly weak. The Bank of Korea said Wednesday the current account surplus widened to a record $38.61 billion in May, July 8, 2026

KOSPI dives nearly 5% despite Samsung's record quarterly profit SEOUL, July 7 (AJP) - South Korea's benchmark KOSPI plunged 4.91 percent on Tuesday, even after Samsung Electronics posted its largest-ever quarterly operating profit. Investors saw the record earnings as a sign that the memory chip boom may have already peaked, sending the index down 395.02 points to close at 7,656.31. Samsung posted a preliminary second-quarter operating profit of 8.94 trillion won, a roughly 19-fold increase from a year earlier that exceeded the market consensus of 8.44 July 7, 2026

Hyundai Motor Group maintains No. 7 in global EV sales SEOUL, July 7 (AJP) - Hyundai Motor Group ranked seventh globally in electric vehicle sales for the first five months of this year, according to data released by market researcher SNE Research on Tuesday. Hyundai Motor and its affiliate Kia sold a combined 303,000 electric vehicles including plug-in hybrids from January through May, up 24.3 percent from a year earlier to retain seventh place, narrowing the gap with sixth-ranked Chinese automaker Changan to 27,000 vehicles from 78,000 a year ear July 7, 2026

Won extends gains on second day of 24-hr FX trading SEOUL, July 07 (AJP) - The Korean won strengthened further Tuesday, the second day of round-the-clock trading in the domestic foreign exchange market, even as foreign investors sold local stocks. As of 12:30 p.m. (0300 GMT), the won was hovering around 1,521 per dollar, up more than nine won from the previous daytime closing level. South Korea shifted its dollar-won spot market to a 24-hour trading system on Monday, allowing continuous trading from 6 a.m. Monday to 6 a.m. Saturday. The won' July 7, 2026

Korean households' stock and fund buying nears $40 bn in Q1, nearly matching foreign sales SEOUL, July 07 (AJP) - South Korean households’ purchases of equity securities and investment fund shares nearly doubled to 61.4 trillion won ($40 billion) from 34 trillion won in the first quarter, the latest data underscoring the stock craze that gripped the country as investors watched the benchmark KOSPI surge in the first half. Foreign investors sold nearly the same amount, offloading a net 62.1 trillion won worth of Korean equities and investment funds, more than seven times the 8.5 July 7, 2026

Investors take profit instead of celebrating Samsung Elec record Q2 SEOUL, July 7 (AJP) — South Korea's main bourse sank Tuesday along with chip giants as investors took Samsung Electronics' second-quarter earnings as a cue to take profits rather than celebrate the record performance. As of 11:00 a.m., the benchmark KOSPI had plunged 4.29 percent to 7,697.18. The junior KOSDAQ edged down 0.41 percent to 843.60. Samsung Electronics estimated second-quarter operating profit at 89.4 trillion won, a figure that could approach 10 trillion won excludin July 7, 2026

Korea-India Future Society to host economic cooperation forum on July 21 SEOUL, July 07 (AJP) -The action plans and business opportunities emerging from the upgraded Korea-India economic partnership following President Lee Jae Myung's state visit to India will be outlined at a special forum hosted by the Korea-India Future Society on July 21. The forum will feature Ambassador Lee Seong-ho, South Korea's ambassador to India, and Cho Choong-jae, head of the Delhi Office of the Korea Institute for International Economic Policy (KIEP), according to the society July 7, 2026

Samsung Elec Q2 profit nears 90 trillion won even after bonus package SEOUL, July 07 (AJP) - Samsung Electronics on Tuesday estimated second-quarter operating profit at 89.4 trillion won ($58.4 billion) beating consensus of around 84.60 trillion won, as hot chip selling prices more than offset the cost of record performance bonuses for semiconductor employees. The preliminary figure compares with operating profit of 57.2 trillion won in the previous quarter and 4.7 trillion won a year earlier and fueled a red-hot earning streak for the third quarter. It also sug July 7, 2026

Even government bonds can bite, South Korea's regulator warns SEOUL, July 06 (AJP) — South Korea's financial regulator on Monday warned that even government bonds, long regarded by many retail investors as one of the safest investments, can generate significant losses if interest rates rise. The Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) issued the warning as part of its latest investor education campaign on common investment disputes after complaints increased from investors who suffered unexpected losses after buying low-risk bonds, including Korean July 6, 2026