Won stays firm as Korean bond yields jump SEOUL, August 18 (AJP) - The South Korean won edged higher against the dollar on Tuesday as foreign equity purchases and exporter dollar sales outweighed renewed Middle East concerns, while government bond yields rose sharply after a surge in U.S. long-term rates and a domestic 10-year debt auction. The won closed daytime trading at 1,411.8 per dollar, strengthening by 1.2 won from the previous session's close of 1,413. The currency opened at 1,417.0 and briefly strengthened toward the 1,4 August 18, 2026

Colonial ghosts haunt Korea's celebrity descendants SEOUL, August 14 (AJP) — Actress Hayoung thought she was telling a family story. Speaking on television about coming from four generations of doctors, she proudly recalled a great-grandfather who had studied Western medicine in Japan, opened one of Seoul's early Western-style clinics and, she said, treated Emperor Gojong. Soon, internet users were digging through colonial-era records. They identified the relative as Ahn Sang-ho, whose name appeared in organizations associated with co August 14, 2026

Korea still looks cheap on paper. Why doesn't it feel that way? SEOUL, August 13 (AJP) - South Korea can still look remarkably cheap to someone arriving from New York or Berlin. For Koreans earning and spending in won, it increasingly does not feel that way. Years of rising prices have made more spending discretionary as household incomes struggle to keep pace, squeezing what remains after necessities. Yet for visitors earning dollars or euros, a restaurant bill or cab fare in Seoul can still look like a bargain. A three-course meal for two at a mid-range August 13, 2026

Chinese snacks spread across Korean shelves, drawing curiosity and scrutiny SEOUL, August 12 (AJP) - Step into an unmanned snack shop in Seoul and the shelves resemble a miniature world market — with China taking an outsized share, from mala konjac and latiao to spicy seafood and candy. The novelty is drawing shoppers, but also closer scrutiny as Korean regulators flag bacterial contamination, high sodium and labeling problems in some imported products. The Chinese packaged fish snack, bought from an unmanned store in downtown Seoul, looked as forceful as its sm August 12, 2026

Even Buddhism gets muddled over election in South Korea SEOUL, August 11 (AJP) - Elections can get dirty, and even one of South Korea's oldest religious traditions is not immune to the rough edges of politics. Inside Jogyesa Temple in downtown Seoul on Tuesday, 53 members of the Jogye Order's Central Assembly bowed before the Buddha and recited a declaration supporting incumbent chief administrator Ven. Jinwoo for another four-year term. They praised his first term for making Buddhism more "friendly and warm" and said he was best August 11, 2026

Dog days of summer end, so does Korea's dog meat tradition SEOUL, August 11 (AJP) - There are "dog days of summer" for English-speaking societies. Korea likewise has its own pun from ancient calendar for the season’s punishing heat — and this Friday, its final dog day will carry an unusually literal sense of ending. Aug. 14 is Malbok, the last of the three traditional hottest days collectively known as Sambok, or Boknal. It will also be South Korea’s last Malbok before breeding, slaughtering and selling dogs for food becomes August 11, 2026

OTT killed the cinema. Korea's hottest summer revives it SEOUL, August 10 (AJP) - South Korea’s longest summer heat wave has breathed new life into a pastime and industry nearly killed by streaming — moviegoing and theaters. For couples like Kim Soo-hyun, 29, the once-standard weekend date outdoors has become almost impossible. “It’s been really hard to go on dates on weekends because it’s so hot,” said Kim, an office worker living in southern Seoul’s Seocho district. “The car is cool and comfortable, August 10, 2026

A tale of two Koreas: one learns war, the other stumbles at the border SEOUL, August 07 (AJP) - North Korea is gaining first-hand experience in drones, artillery and ballistic missiles on the battlefields of Ukraine while South Korea's front-line forces are confronting failures in something more basic: loaded weapons, reporting and command. The contrast is sharpening as Pyongyang expands military cooperation with Russia and continues developing its nuclear and missile arsenal, while Seoul investigates why some troops guarding the world's most heavily forti August 7, 2026

Korean ants suffer twice as losses become fake spectacle SEOUL, August 07 (AJP) - Forty years of savings. Gone. A leveraged bet on SK hynix. A 78.7 percent loss. Some 2.2 billion won ($1.5 million) wiped out. A brokerage screenshot appeared to prove every painful detail. The post, uploaded to local community platform Danggeun on July 30, claimed an investor had gone bankrupt after pouring four decades of savings into a leveraged exchange-traded fund tied to SK hynix. It was devastating…except that it was also fake. The image was doctored. August 7, 2026

Won rides U.S.-Japan intervention as Seoul stays muted, Beijing cries foul SEOUL, August 06 (AJP) - South Korea has kept a studied silence over the first openly acknowledged U.S.-Japan currency intervention in decades, even as the won emerged as one of its biggest beneficiaries, while China condemned the operation as a self-serving bargain that is unlikely to alter the yen's long-term decline. The contrasting reactions underscore how Washington and Tokyo's joint defense of the yen has rippled differently across Asia. Seoul has avoided publicly commenting on th August 6, 2026