GM Korea to sell local facilities, reigniting withdrawal concerns

SEOUL, May 29 (AJP) - General Motors plans to sell a number of its service centers and underused production facilities in South Korea in a bid to streamline operations, a move that has reignited concerns about the automaker’s long-term commitment to its Korean unit. This came just hours after GM’s U.S. headquarters unveiled a sweeping $888 million investment in its Tonawanda engine plant in Buffalo, N.Y., marking a renewed focus on internal combustion engine production i

May 29, 2025

Korean biotech firms eye share of expanding gene therapy market

SEOUL, May 29 (AJP) - South Korean biotechnology companies are stepping up efforts to stake a claim in the burgeoning global gene therapy market, which is projected to swell to approximately $366 billion by 2032, according to a new industry report. The Korea Biotechnology Industry Organization has released an analysis citing data from the market research firm MarketsandMarkets, projecting the sector will grow at a compound annual rate of 19.4 percent — rising from $72 billion

May 29, 2025

Bank of Korea slashes interest rates as growth outlook dims sharply

SEOUL, May 29 (AJP) - South Korea’s central bank lowered its benchmark interest rate by a quarter percentage point on Thursday, the latest in a series of moves aimed at propping up a flagging economy that is on track for its weakest performance in years. The Bank of Korea reduced the policy rate to 2.50 percent, its fourth cut in just seven months. The move comes amid mounting evidence of a slowdown, including a 0.2 percent contraction in gross domestic product during the firs

May 29, 2025

CJ's billion-dollar bet on culture, cuisine pays off

Editor's Note: This article is the 20th installment in our series on Asia's top 100 companies, exploring the strategies, challenges, and innovations driving the region's most influential corporations. SEOUL, May 28 (AJP) - Long before it became a champion of Korean cinema and cuisine, CJ Group began life amid the rubble of war as a modest sugar producer. Today, the company stands as a cultural and economic heavyweight, with its fingerprints on everything from Oscar-wi

May 29, 2025

Korea weighs US trade demands with economic impact study

SEOUL, May 28 (AJP) - South Korea has begun an economic feasibility study as part of ongoing trade consultations with the United States, signaling preparations for potential agreements that could carry broad implications for the country’s economy, according to government officials, Wednesday. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy has commissioned the Korea Institute for International Economic Policy to assess the economic ramifications of current discussions with Washingt

May 28, 2025

Trump tariff relief lifts Korea's business sentiment temporarily

SEOUL, May 28 (AJP) - Business sentiment in South Korea posted its sharpest monthly increase in two years in May, bolstered by a temporary reprieve from U.S. trade tariffs, according to data released Wednesday by the Bank of Korea. Yet despite the surge, overall confidence remains mired below levels typically associated with economic optimism. The central bank’s composite business sentiment index (CBSI) climbed 2.8 points to 90.7 in May, marking its third consecutive monthl

May 28, 2025

Stablecoin push by candidates raises alarm among regulators, experts

SEOUL, May 28 (AJP) - South Korea’s leading presidential candidates have pledged to support the development of won-pegged stablecoins even as financial authorities urge caution. With an estimated 10 million South Koreans actively trading crypto, both front-runners have made digital asset policy central to their campaigns. Lee Jae-myung’s camp has formed a digital assets committee tasked with drafting comprehensive legislation, while Kim Moon-soo has proposed incorpora

May 28, 2025

HYBE sells SM Entertainment stake to China's Tencent Music

SEOUL, May 28 (AJP) - HYBE, South Korea’s largest entertainment company behind BTS, has sold its entire stake in rival agency SM Entertainment to China's Tencent Music Entertainment. In a regulatory filing, Tuesday, HYBE said it would offload its 9.38 percent stake — totaling about 2.2 million shares — to Tencent Music, a subsidiary of China’s internet giant Tencent. The shares were sold at 110,000 won apiece, bringing the total transaction to approx

May 28, 2025

Lee Jae-myung's labor agenda could face resistance from chaebol, foreign firms

Editor's Note: This is the second and last in a two-part series examining the economic campaign promises of Democratic Party presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung. SEOUL, May 27 (AJP) - South Korea's leading presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung of the Democratic Party has vowed to overhaul the country’s labor system and market practices in a bold attempt to forge what he calls a “basic society." Speaking days after a fatal industrial accident at an SPC bak

May 28, 2025

Leferi's K-beauty pop-up blends influencer power with retail strategy

SEOUL, May 27 (AJP) - As beauty creator LeoJ looked out over the sleek new pop-up store in Seoul’s fashionable Seongsu neighborhood, he explained his approach to choosing products that balance accessibility with impact. “I tend to choose popular picks that are easy for beginners to use but show dramatic and immediate effects,” said LeoJ, who has 1.41 million subscribers on YouTube and served as one of the co-curators for the store. “We’re targeting pe

May 27, 2025