When the crowd becomes the court SEOUL, August 31 (AJP) - The Korean social media audience can be punishing and unforgiving toward celebrities and public figures. Its frenzied, vindictive pile-ons persist despite tragic casualties such as actor Lee Sun-kyun. The latest target is South Korean YouTuber Park Wi. The controversy began after Park, a wheelchair user who runs the popular YouTube channel Weracle, fell while getting off a KTX train on Aug. 14. A week later, he uploaded CCTV footage showing his wheelchair overturning August 31, 2026

G-Star 2026 launches promotional push with first pop-up store SEOUL, August 31 (AJP) - South Korea's largest gaming exhibition, G-Star 2026, has begun a pre-opening marketing campaign, unveiling a new "Special Pass" bundle and its first-ever pop-up store, as the country's game industry seeks to broaden its appeal beyond core players. The committee announced Monday that it will open the pop-up store from Sept. 1 to 6 at the Hyundai Department Store's Pangyo branch, south of Seoul, marking the first time the annual show has staged such August 31, 2026

Korean games chase first Gamescom win since 2022 SEOUL, August 25 (AJP) - South Korea heads into Gamescom 2026 with two award contenders and its biggest industry push in years, seeking to end a four-year trophy drought since Neowiz's "Lies of P" swept the show in 2022. Pearl Abyss's open-world action title "Crimson Desert" is nominated for Most Epic and Best PC Game, while "Age Twisters," a two-player adventure developed by Krafton subsidiary Piccolo Studio, is competing for Most Wholesome. The nominatio August 25, 2026

Blizzard rules out Korea-only balance patches for Overwatch BUSAN, August 23 (AJP) - Blizzard Entertainment will keep balancing Overwatch as a single global game rather than tailoring patches to Korea even under its new Nexon partnership, its game director said, even as Korean players keep pulling the shooter's meta in their own direction. "We typically don't try to balance the game differently per region," Aaron Keller said at a press conference at BEXCO, on the second and final day of Overwatch Day, the fan festival staged by Nexon. August 23, 2026

In Busan, Overwatch stops visiting and moves in BUSAN, August 22 (AJP) - A row of Overwatch's heroes had stepped off the screen onto a strip of astroturf — D.Va flashing her decorated pistol, Reaper looming under his hood, while Genji meditated on an orange beanbag, eyes shut tight in ease. All around the packed halls of BEXCO, thousands of fans of Blizzard's tactical shooter Overwatch buzzed with hype, clutching tote bags branded with the iconic circular pattern and the stamp-rally cards that would soon be creased from a full August 22, 2026

Won strengthens further as US Treasury selloff lifts domestic bond yields SEOUL, August 21 (AJP) - The South Korean won extended its rally against the dollar on Friday, while government bond yields rose as a renewed selloff in U.S. Treasuries outweighed softer domestic price pressures. The won strengthened 6.8 won from the previous session to close daytime trading at 1,385.8 per dollar, compared with Thursday's 1,392.6. Exporter dollar selling and broader weakness in the U.S. currency continued to support the won after it broke below 1,400 earlier this week. Th August 21, 2026

Won extends gains, bonds end mixed SEOUL, August 20 (AJP) - The South Korean won extended its gains against the U.S. dollar on Thursday, while government bond yields ended mixed as longer maturities drew support from a decline in U.S. Treasury yields. The won strengthened 5.1 won from the previous session to close daytime trading at 1,392.6 per dollar, compared with Wednesday's close of 1,397.7. It marked the second straight daytime close below 1,400 and the lowest closing level since Sept. 23, 2025, with the currency brief August 20, 2026

South Korea's net foreign assets shrink as stock rally boosts foreign-held shares SEOUL, August 20 (AJP) - South Korea's net foreign assets fell sharply to US$64 billion in the second quarter, as a stock market rally boosted the value of South Korean shares held by foreign investors, even as the country's net debt balance improved. The country's net international investment position or net IIP fell by $689.5 billion from $753.6 billion at the end of March, according to preliminary data released by the Bank of Korea on Thursday. "What matters, ultimately, is August 20, 2026

Won rises to strongest level in nearly 11 months SEOUL, August 19 (AJP) - The South Korean won strengthened to below 1,400 per dollar on Wednesday for the first time in nearly 11 months, amid fading expectations of a September Fed rate cut and steady exporter dollar selling. The dollar-won exchange rate stood at 1,399 around noon, breaking below the 1,400 mark for the first time since Oct. 2, 2025, when it was at 1,399.5. As of 2:50 p.m., it stood at 1,398.3, compared with the previous day's daytime close of 1,411.8. The strengthening wo August 19, 2026

South Korean retail investors flock to leveraged ETFs on Wall Street SEOUL, August 19 (AJP) - South Korean retail investors sharply increased their bets on U.S. stocks in July, pouring billions of dollars into leveraged funds and the American depositary receipts (ADRs) of chipmaker SK hynix amid a retreat in the domestic market, according to an analysis of Korea Securities Depository (KSD) data compiled by AJP on Wednesday. South Korean investors made US$3.79 billion in net purchases of the Direxion Daily Semiconductor Bull 3X Shares (SOXL) in July, making the t August 19, 2026