Aju Press - Asia News Hub

Journalist

Joonha Yoo유준하

ReporterCOEX Sejong Center for the Performing Arts & Music, Culture, Entertainment, Automotive

Joonha Yoo is a bilingual journalist at AJU Press (AJP), covering music, culture, entertainment and Korea’s automotive industry.
Raised in Fort Collins, Colorado, he often writes from the scene, bringing firsthand detail to stories ranging
from BTS comeback concerts to unique cultural events that catch the world's eye. "I write from the scene, not from the sidelines."

Latest by Joonha Yoo

Korea's July auto exports hit record as eco-friendly cars drive gains SEOUL, August 13 (AJP) - South Korea's auto exports reached a record high for July, led by stronger shipments of eco-friendly vehicles to North America and Europe even as domestic sales barely grew, government data showed Thursday. Auto exports rose 7.0 percent from a year earlier to $6.24 billion in July, the highest figure ever recorded for the month, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources (MOTIR). The previous July highs were $5.90 billion in 2023 and $5.83 billion in 2025. The headline number masked a split in the market. Domestic sales rose just 0.5 percent to 139,256 vehicles, while production climbed 11.3 percent to 352,070 units. Export volume rose faster than export value, increasing 15.3 percent to 244,181 vehicles. Eco-friendly vehicles drove much of the export gain. Exports of eco-friendly cars rose 25.5 percent from a year earlier to $2.59 billion in July. Electric and hydrogen vehicle exports jumped 31.9 percent to $940 million, while hybrid exports increased 22.2 percent to $1.65 billion. Internal-combustion vehicle exports, by contrast, fell 3.1 percent to $3.65 billion. By region, North America remained the largest export market, with shipments rising 18.0 percent to $3.25 billion. Exports to the United States alone rose 17.9 percent to $2.75 billion. Exports to the European Union climbed 23.5 percent to $881 million, while shipments to the Middle East rose 12.7 percent to $433 million, marking the region's first increase in eight months. The ministry attributed the stronger export and production figures to increased working days after major automakers shifted their summer holiday period from July last year to August this year. It also cited steady global demand for eco-friendly vehicles and SUVs. At home, growth was far more modest. Local sales of eco-friendly vehicles reached 84,105 units in July, up 14.6 percent from a year earlier and accounting for about 60 percent of total domestic sales. Electric vehicle sales rose 47.5 percent to 35,936 units. Still, overall domestic sales were held to a marginal gain as sales of domestically produced vehicles fell 3.1 percent, offset by a 14.8 percent rise in imports. The divergence extended down to individual automakers. Kia sold 54,735 vehicles in Korea in July, up 21.3 percent from a year earlier, while Hyundai Motor's domestic sales fell 14.4 percent to 48,113 units. Tesla sold 10,237 vehicles, up 39.1 percent, while BYD sold 2,846 vehicles, compared with 292 a year earlier. On the export side, Kia shipped 105,112 vehicles, up 26.0 percent from a year earlier. Hyundai exported 90,310 units, up 1.4 percent, while GM Korea exported 41,312 vehicles, up 33.4 percent. The data was released as the ministry held an auto industry meeting with Hyundai Motor, GM Korea, KG Mobility and Renault Korea, along with industry associations and research institutes. Automakers told the government that maintaining a stable domestic production base of more than 4 million vehicles a year is critical as competition in the global electric vehicle market intensifies, particularly with the rapid growth of Chinese manufacturers. Participants also discussed the need to shift the auto parts supply chain toward future vehicles and build a cooperative structure in which automakers and parts suppliers can grow together. Park Dong-il, director general for industrial policy at the ministry, said the government, automakers and parts suppliers should work as "one team" as the global auto industry is reshaped by the transition to future vehicles. AJP Takeaway · South Korea's auto exports reached a record July high of $6.24 billion in 2026, up 7.0 percent from a year earlier. · Eco-friendly vehicles drove the increase, with exports rising 25.5 percent to $2.59 billion, while internal-combustion vehicle exports fell 3.1 percent to $3.65 billion. · Domestic sales rose only 0.5 percent to 139,256 vehicles, while export volume climbed 15.3 percent to 244,181 units. 2026-08-13 14:53:31
Sejong Center to stage Korean premiere of Chong Wishing's 'Sumire Hair Salon' SEOUL, August 13 (AJP) - Sejong Center for the Performing Arts will stage the Korean premiere of "Sumire Hair Salon," the final work in playwright and director Chong Wishing's trilogy on Zainichi Koreans, from Sept. 12 to Oct. 3 at Sejong M Theater in central Seoul. The play closes a trilogy Chong developed over roughly two decades, following "Like a Flower Blooming in a Field" and "Yakiniku Dragon" the 2008 family drama that won him the Asahi Performing Arts Award Grand Prix, the Yomiuri Theater Award Grand Prix and the Kinokuniya Theater Award the following year. Set in 1965 in a coal-mining village in Kyushu called "Arirang Pass," the play follows Sumi, a Zainichi Korean woman who runs a small barbershop and dreams of opening a hair salon under her own name. Around her are family members who have each made different choices to survive: a husband who took Japanese nationality, a brother-in-law left unable to work in the mines after an injury, a younger sister just starting married life and a father who refuses to give up his Korean nationality. An explosion at the mine upends their fragile daily life, forcing each of them to confront loss and separation in their own way. The story draws on a documented history. There were 79,702 Korean laborers working at mines across Kyushu and Yamaguchi as of March 1945, accounting for about 27 percent of all miners there, according to Sejong Center. More than 80,000 Zainichi Koreans later boarded ships to North Korea between 1959 and 1984 under a repatriation campaign that promised them a "paradise on earth." The play uses that history to ask how divisions by nationality and origin continue to echo today. Ahead of the run, Sejong Center will host a lecture on Sept. 2 by Hosaka Yuji, a scholar of modern Korea-Japan relations, on the forced mobilization of Korean laborers and the history of Japan's mining villages. Chong, a second-generation Zainichi Korean, was born in 1957 in Himeji, Hyogo Prefecture. He began his career with the theater troupe Kuro Tento before becoming a founding member of Shinjuku Ryozanpaku in 1987. He won the Kishida Kunio Drama Award, Japan's top playwriting prize, in 1993 for "The Terayama," and has since worked across theater, film and television. His screenwriting credits include "All Under the Moon" and "Blood and Bones." His work has previously reached Korean audiences through "Yakiniku Dragon" and other stage collaborations, including a 2015 National Changgeuk Company production that reworked a Brecht play into traditional Korean music theater. The Korean premiere brings together a 12-member cast spanning generations. Veteran actor Jeon Moo-song, who has worked on stage and screen since his 1964 debut, plays Hong-gil, an older man who refuses to give up his Korean nationality despite the pressures around him. Choi Ji-yeon plays Sumi, the barbershop owner at the center of the story, while Jeon Kuk-hyang plays her older sister Hatsumi. Jeon's character's partner, labor union chief Omura, is played by Shin Hyun-jong, who is her real-life spouse as well. The rest of the ensemble includes Song Young-joo, Seo Dong-gab, Kim Dong-won, Hong Won-ki, Lee Seung-woo, Kim Moon-sik, Song Seok-geun and Kim Ji-hoon. The production is written and directed by Chong, with stage design by veteran designer Lee Tae-sub. "Sumire Hair Salon" runs about 180 minutes, including a 20-minute intermission. Performances are at 7:30 p.m. (1030 GMT) Tuesday through Friday and 3 p.m. on weekends, with no Monday shows. The Sept. 24 performance moves to 3 p.m., and there is no show on Sept. 25. Tickets, priced from 40,000 to 80,000 won, are available through Sejong Center's website, NOL Ticket, Yes24 and Melon Ticket. AJP Takeaway · Sejong Center for the Performing Arts will stage the Korean premiere of “Sumire Beauty Salon” from Sept. 12 to Oct. 3 at Sejong M Theater in central Seoul. · The play is the final work in playwright-director Chong Wishing’s Zainichi Korean trilogy, following “Like a Flower Blooming in a Field” and “Yakiniku Dragon.” · Set in a Kyushu mining village in 1965, the story follows a Zainichi Korean family facing nationality, survival, loss and separation after a coal mine explosion. 2026-08-13 14:52:54
KOSPI surges 4.1% , outperforms in Asia amid chip-led rally SEOUL, August 13 (AJP) - South Korean stocks surged Thursday morning, with the benchmark KOSPI jumping more than 4 percent above the 6,800 mark as foreign investors piled into semiconductor heavyweights, extending a rapid rebound from last month's market rout. The KOSPI stood at 6,847.66 as of 10:30 a.m., up 4.1 percent from the previous session. The index climbed as high as 6,895.63 after touching a low of 6,773.92, leaving an intraday trading range of 121.71 points. Foreign investors were firmly on the buying side, purchasing a net 1.37 trillion won ($969 million) of KOSPI shares, while institutions added a net 345.2 billion won. Individuals moved sharply in the opposite direction, unloading a net 1.69 trillion won, or about $1.19 billion. That divergence underscored the character of Thursday's rally: overseas and institutional money was returning aggressively to the large-cap technology names that drove the market's earlier boom, while retail investors continued to use the rebound to reduce exposure after weeks of extreme volatility. The latest level puts the KOSPI roughly 30 percent above its July 29 intraday low of 5,262.77, comfortably clearing the 20-percent gain from a recent low commonly used to define a technical bull market. The rebound follows a brutal July selloff that marked the KOSPI's largest monthly decline since the 2008 global financial crisis. Semiconductors subdued throughout this month returned to the spotlight. SK hynix jumped 7.3 percent to 1,613,000 won, while Samsung Electronics gained 5.1 percent to 268,750 won. Samsung Electro-Mechanics surged 13 percent to 1,508,000 won, extending the rally beyond memory producers into the broader electronics supply chain. The move followed a strong session for U.S. artificial-intelligence infrastructure stocks overnight. AI cloud provider CoreWeave and server maker Super Micro Computer each climbed about 19 percent, while memory chipmaker Micron Technology gained about 5 percent, reinforcing expectations that spending on AI computing infrastructure remains intact. The Nasdaq Composite rose 0.5 percent. Other KOSPI stocks joined the advance. Samwha Capacitor soared 21.7 percent to 107,100 won, while semiconductor equipment maker Mirae Industry climbed 16.7 percent to 9,990 won. Naver rose 5.1 percent to 226,500 won, Kolmar Korea gained 3.2 percent to 136,700 won, and Kumho Engineering & Construction advanced 2.4 percent to 15,290 won. Daewon Cable bucked the broader rally, falling 3.1 percent to 15,530 won. Electronic equipment and device stocks were the strongest industry group, rising 10.2 percent, while the semiconductor and semiconductor equipment category advanced 5.9 percent, showing that buying was spreading from the two dominant memory names into smaller suppliers and component makers. The rally comes as concerns over the durability of global AI investment have begun to ease. Those concerns were a major force behind the sharp decline in Korean technology shares in July, when leveraged positions were rapidly unwound and Samsung Electronics and SK hynix accounted for much of the KOSPI's lost market capitalization. Retail participation, however, has yet to show the same recovery. Investor deposits at domestic securities firms stood at 97.93 trillion won as of Aug. 11, slipping below 100 trillion won after investors withdrew cash during the market downturn. The broader migration toward overseas assets had already accelerated in July, when Korean retail investors bought a net $4.6 billion of U.S. equities, according to Korea Securities Depository data. KOSDAQ rises 1.2%, but foreign investors remain sellers The smaller-cap KOSDAQ was up 1.2 percent at 867.99 at 10:30 a.m., lagging the KOSPI's semiconductor-heavy rally. The index reached an intraday high of 870.96 after falling as low as 853.09, a range of 17.87 points. Unlike on the main board, retail investors supplied the buying power. Individuals purchased a net 165.7 billion won ($117 million) of KOSDAQ shares, while foreign investors sold a net 88.3 billion won and institutions shed 71.1 billion won. The contrast with the KOSPI was notable: foreign money was concentrating in Korea's largest semiconductor and technology companies rather than moving uniformly into riskier smaller-cap shares. Still, pockets of the KOSDAQ posted steep gains. Jeju Semiconductor rose 4 percent to 90,500 won, while semiconductor back-end processing company Winpac surged 23.9 percent to 2,300 won and semiconductor test-interface maker TFE jumped 14.6 percent to 39,600 won. Electronic component names were also among the strongest performers. EV Advanced Material climbed 21.5 percent to 875 won, while LK Samyang surged 19.9 percent to 1,298 won. Venture-capital shares emerged as another major theme, with the sector gaining 7.9 percent. Aju IB Investment hit a 29.9 percent gain at 4,585 won, SV Investment jumped 16.3 percent to 2,495 won, and Mirae Asset Venture Investment advanced 13.2 percent to 18,355 won. The strength in venture-capital, semiconductor equipment and electronic component shares indicated that the morning rally was beginning to broaden beyond the headline memory-chip names, although the weaker foreign flow on the KOSDAQ showed that the expansion remained uneven. Won strengthens as oil retreats The Korean won strengthened 0.3 percent to 1,415.1 won per dollar, adding to the risk-on tone in Seoul. Oil prices, meanwhile, pulled back after six consecutive sessions of gains. West Texas Intermediate crude fell 1.4 percent to $82.10 a barrel, while Brent crude declined 1.3 percent to $87.81. Oil was pressured by a massive increase in U.S. inventories. Commercial crude stocks rose by 17.4 million barrels in the week ended Aug. 7, the largest weekly increase since January 2023, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Middle East risks nevertheless remained elevated. U.S.-Iran negotiations remained stalled, while U.S. President Donald Trump said Washington had "total control" of the Strait of Hormuz. The International Energy Agency has also warned that disruptions linked to the conflict continue to constrain global supply. Korea leads broader Asian advance The rally extended across much of Asia, though Korea clearly outperformed. Japan's Nikkei 225 rose 1.6 percent to 68,613.56, while China's Shanghai Composite gained 0.5 percent to 3,965.44. Hong Kong moved in the opposite direction, with the Hang Seng Index down 0.1 percent at 25,407.8. Regional equities were supported by overnight U.S. inflation data that eased fears of another Federal Reserve rate increase in September, alongside renewed strength in AI-related technology shares. Reuters reported that the broader MSCI Asia-Pacific index excluding Japan was also higher Thursday morning. AJP Takeaway: ·South Korea's KOSPI surged 4.1 percent to 6,847.66 at 10:30 a.m. on Aug. 13, led by 1.37 trillion won of net foreign buying and sharp gains in semiconductor shares. ·SK hynix rose 7.3 percent and Samsung Electronics gained 5.1 percent, helping lift the KOSPI roughly 22 percent from its July 30 close and into technical bull-market territory. ·Retail investors sold a net 1.69 trillion won of KOSPI shares, showing that the rebound remains foreign- and institution-led despite the index's rapid recovery. 2026-08-13 11:44:27
NCT to mark 10th anniversary with Seoul Fashion Week showcase SEOUL, August 13 (AJP) - K-pop boy group NCT will mark the 10th anniversary of its 2016 brand launch with a Seoul Fashion Week collaboration built around stage costumes, a runway show and a charity flea market, SM said Thursday. The project turns a decade of NCT's music and stage concepts into a fashion-focused program at Lotte World Tower during the 2027 spring/summer edition of Seoul Fashion Week. The collaboration will unfold in three parts: a costume exhibition, a runway show and the "NCT FLEA MARKET." Running from Sept. 4 to 6, the exhibition will bring together representative stage outfits worn by NCT teams including NCT 127, NCT DREAM, WayV and NCT WISH. The display traces how the group's style and visual identity have shifted over the past decade, presenting NCT's history through fashion as well as music. On Sept. 6, the same archive will move to the runway. Models will wear outfits previously used in NCT promotions and walk to NCT songs, turning the group's stage history into a fashion presentation. That same day, SM will hold the "NCT FLEA MARKET" on the lawn square outside Lotte World Tower, featuring items tied to NCT's stage costumes and personal collections. All proceeds will be donated to causes related to women, youth and culture, according to SM. The Seoul Fashion Week collaboration is part of the broader "NCT 10TH ANNIVERSARY " project marking 10 years since NCT's brand launch. Further details will be released in stages through the project's official promotional site. AJP Takeaway: · NCT will mark the 10th anniversary of its 2016 brand launch with a Seoul Fashion Week collaboration, SM said Thursday. · The program will take place at Lotte World Tower during the 2027 spring/summer edition of Seoul Fashion Week. · The collaboration includes a stage costume exhibition from Sept. 4 to 6, a runway show on Sept. 6 and the "NCT FLEA MARKET." 2026-08-13 10:44:34
Seoul shuts down Africa-based sites for piracy on K-webtoons SEOUL, August 13 (AJP) - Korean authorities have taken down three North Africa-based piracy sites accused of illegally distributing tens of thousands of Korean webtoons and web novels, following a cross-border investigation involving Interpol and Naver Webtoon. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the National Police Agency said Thursday that one site operator was arrested locally and all three platforms were shut down as part of the joint operation. The case marks a shift in Korea's approach to piracy overseas — moving beyond blocking orders and takedown requests toward criminal investigations that target operators themselves, rather than only removing access to the sites they run. It follows a similar international cooperation case in Vietnam earlier this year, part of what officials describe as an expanding push to pursue K-content piracy networks through public-private cooperation. The three sites included one dedicated to webtoons, one dedicated to web novels and a third platform that shared pirated material sourced from the other two. Operating since July 2024, the network had copied and distributed 83,688 pieces of copyrighted content without authorization, according to the ministry. The total included 30,926 items tied to Korean webtoons and 5,202 tied to web novels, among them recent popular titles such as “The Trauma Code.” Korean content made up roughly 57 percent of everything on the sites, and industry estimates put the resulting annual damage at around 20 billion won ($14.5 million). What made the sites especially damaging, authorities said, is that they functioned as first-stage distributors: pirating paid content from official platforms, translating it into English and posting it online at the first stage of illegal distribution. From there, the material can be copied and re-uploaded across a wider network of mirror and repost sites, meaning the true scale of damage could extend beyond what these three platforms alone accounted for. The investigation began in March, after Naver Webtoon flagged the network through its own in-house piracy monitoring. The culture ministry then opened an international cooperation channel through Interpol's I-SOP project, coordinating with the National Police Agency's international cooperation bureau, an I-SOP liaison officer based in Singapore and a Korean police attaché stationed in North Africa. Working with local law enforcement, the joint team shut down all three sites in mid-July and arrested the suspected operator, identified by authorities only by an alias, on the ground. The takedown is the first international case announced by the ministry's Copyright Special Judicial Police Division, a unit launched on June 30. The ministry said it will keep coordinating with local authorities as legal proceedings against the operator move forward and plans to expand similar cooperation against copyright infringement elsewhere in the region. For Korea's webtoon and web novel industry, the case underscores a growing enforcement challenge: as K-content draws bigger audiences overseas, the networks that illegally translate and redistribute it are also becoming faster, more organized and harder to contain within any one country's borders. AJP Takeaway: South Korea shut down three North Africa-based piracy sites accused of illegally distributing Korean webtoons, web novels and other copyrighted content. The sites copied and distributed 83,688 pieces of content since July 2024, including 30,926 Korean webtoon items and 5,202 web novel items. Korean content made up about 57 percent of the material on the sites, with industry-estimated annual damage of around 20 billion won. 2026-08-13 10:37:23
BTS' V, Jungkook disclose health concerns amid tour SEOUL, August 12 (AJP) - BTS members V and Jungkook opened up about health issues during the group's North American tour, giving fans a rare look at the physical strain they are managing on the road. The two spoke during a Weverse livestream Tuesday after BTS wrapped a concert in Baltimore, sitting down for a casual meal together while talking to fans. V said he had not previously told ARMY, the group's fandom, that he has been dealing with hearing problems for roughly two and a half years. "If my left ear hears at about 100, my right only hears about 30," he said, adding that he has been managing the condition with medication and regular hospital visits. Jungkook's issue is more recent, which is shin pain that worsened over the course of the tour. He described the condition as bordering on a stress fracture — not quite there yet, he said, but with significant inflammation and possible minor bone damage. The pain affected his performance in Baltimore, where he wanted to move more freely on stage but had to hold back at times. "I'll pace myself where I can, and push through when I really need to," he said, adding that managing his condition carefully would be necessary to complete the rest of the tour. The comments came as BTS continues the North American leg of its "ARIRANG" world tour. The group is scheduled to perform at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, on Aug. 15 and 16, followed by shows at Rogers Stadium in Toronto on Aug. 22 and 23. AJP Takeaway: · BTS members V and Jungkook discussed health concerns during a Weverse livestream after the group's Baltimore concert. · V said he has been dealing with hearing problems for about two and a half years and is receiving treatment with medication and regular hospital visits. · Jungkook said he is managing shin pain, significant inflammation and possible minor bone damage, though he said it has not yet become a stress fracture. 2026-08-12 22:11:44
NCT 127 previews 'Piñata' with noir-style track video before KCON LA stage SEOUL, August 12 (AJP) - K-pop boy group NCT 127 gave fans an early listen to its upcoming seventh full-length album Tuesday, releasing a track video for "Piñata" ahead of the record's full release later this month, SM Entertainment said Wednesday. The video went up on NCT 127's official YouTube channel at 6 p.m. Tuesday. Rather than a straightforward performance clip, it casts the group as "fixers" in Seoul, following the members through a youth-noir story of misunderstanding, conflict and eventual reconciliation. The storyline extends the Seoul-rooted identity NCT 127 has leaned on for years, this time through a rougher narrative about friendship tested and rebuilt. Musically, "Piñata" moves between rock and hip-hop, anchored by electric guitar, funky bass and breakbeat drums that build toward a burst of guitar soloing and rap chants, matching the video's tense, high-energy mood. The title doubles as a statement of intent: like cracking open a piñata, the song treats the stage as something meant to burst into celebration. SM said the choreography leans old-school, built around individual moments for each member and a chant-heavy chorus designed for audience response. NCT 127 will debut "Piñata" live on Aug. 14 local time at KCON LA 2026 at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. The group has performed at KCON LA in both 2024 and 2025, and this year's stage will serve as an early preview of its next album cycle. "BLINGY," the album carrying "Piñata," will be released on major streaming platforms at 6 p.m. (0900 GMT) on Aug. 24. The album includes nine tracks, led by the title song "Blingy." AJP Takeaway: NCT 127 released a track video for “Piñata,” a song from its seventh full-length album “BLINGY,” on Aug. 11. The video presents the members as Seoul “fixers” in a youth-noir story about conflict, friendship and solidarity. “Piñata” blends rock and hip-hop with electric guitar, funky bass, breakbeat drums, guitar solos and rap chants. 2026-08-12 18:04:51
Seoul Performing Arts Festival to open with Han Kang adaptation, Avignon-linked works SEOUL, August 12 (AJP) - The Seoul Performing Arts Festival returns in October with a lineup led by a stage adaptation of Han Kang's "We Do Not Part," starring Isabelle Huppert and Lee Hye-young. Now in its 26th edition, SPAF runs Oct. 8-25 at venues across Seoul under the theme "Multiverse of Art." The festival is organized by the Korea Arts Management Service, with support from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Arts Council Korea. This year's program includes 19 works: seven international productions, five premieres from SPAF's partner artists, five Korean works in the newly launched PAMS×SPAF Choice program and two staged readings from the festival's Asian playwriting lab — a lineup that reflects SPAF's shift from simply hosting visiting shows to following productions through development, presentation and eventual touring. The centerpiece is "The Bird," a staged reading of Han Kang's novel "We Do Not Part" directed by Julie Deliquet of Paris's La Colline National Theatre and starring Huppert and Lee. The work premiered at the Avignon Festival in July before making its way to Seoul. Avignon's imprint on the lineup goes beyond that one production. "Distance Between Us," a play by Avignon artistic director Tiago Rodrigues, follows a daughter who leaves for Mars and the father she leaves behind, while "Reminiscencia," a documentary theater piece by Malicho Vaca Valenzuela, draws on personal and urban memory. Rounding out the international slate are French choreographer Mathilde Monnier's "Soapéra, Installation" and "Blur: When the Boundary Blurs," an XR work pairing live performance with virtual reality that was invited to the Venice International Film Festival's immersive competition in 2025. Among the Korean premieres, the opera "The Third War" — written and directed by Park Bon — stands out as one of the festival's major co-productions. The work began in 2024 with the Asia Culture Center, was shown as a work-in-progress at SPAF last year, and premiered in Gwangju in May ahead of its Seoul run, featuring soprano Yeree Suh, actor Kang Ae-sim and Anupam Tripathi of "Squid Game." SPAF is also introducing PAMS×SPAF Choice this year, a new program run with the Performing Arts Market in Seoul that presents five full-length Korean works to both general audiences and industry professionals. On the writing side, the festival's creative lab will stage readings of two contemporary Asian plays: Hong Kong writer Pat To Yan's "Neometropolis" and Japanese writer Yudai Kamisato's "Descending the Long Slope of Valparaíso." Early-bird tickets go on sale Aug. 14 at 2 p.m. and run through Aug. 21, with a 40 percent discount on select performances and a four-ticket limit per person. National Theater of Korea shows are excluded from the discount, and tickets for "The Bird" and several premieres will be sold separately starting in early September. AJP Takeaway: The 26th Seoul Performing Arts Festival will run from Oct. 8 to 25 in Seoul under the theme “Multiverse of Art.” The lineup includes 19 works, ranging from seven international invited productions to Korean premieres, PAMS×SPAF Choice selections and Asian playwriting lab readings. The headline international work is “The Bird,” a staged reading based on Han Kang’s “We Do Not Part,” directed by Julie Deliquet and starring Isabelle Huppert and Lee Hye-young. 2026-08-12 18:03:25
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 smell. Small anchovies were tangled under a thick, dark-red coating of seasoning and oil that streaked the plate as they were lifted from the bag. The first bite delivered salt, chili and seafood all at once. The fish were unusually firm and chewy, followed by a bitter finish that remained after the heat faded. The experience was sensory, not scientific. Nothing about the smell, appearance or taste showed that the product was unsafe. But the bag sits inside a much broader shift in Korean retail — and a growing food-safety question. Chinese snacks that were rarely seen in Korea a few years ago are now increasingly common in unmanned stores, where mala-soaked konjac strips, latiao, spicy dried seafood, tofu snacks and brightly colored jellies sit beside Korean chips and candy, often with no employee present to explain what they contain or check the shelves. Recent government testing has found that most products examined met key safety standards, but some showed problems ranging from bacterial growth and inaccurate nutrition labels to excessive sodium, sugar and potentially damaging hardness. The findings do not establish that Chinese-made snacks as a category are unsafe. They instead highlight the challenge of policing a fast-growing imported-food market as unfamiliar products spread through a retail format built around minimal staffing. On June 9, the Korea Consumer Agency released results from tests of 20 imported snacks sold around elementary schools. Before selecting the products, the agency surveyed 36 unmanned ice cream and stationery stores in the Chungcheong region between December 2025 and January 2026. It tested 10 mala-flavored snacks and 10 candies or drinks. One product produced a clear safety failure. A mala-flavored konjac snack called Hyangrawei Seol Gonyak showed bacterial growth despite being classified as a retort food, a category that must test negative for bacterial development under Korean food standards. The Consumer Agency recommended that importer Yoonjin Trading halt sales and provide refunds. The importer told the agency in April that no inventory from the affected batch remained in circulation and that buyers would be eligible for refunds. The broader results were less alarming. All 20 products met Korean standards for heavy metals and food additives. The agency nevertheless found problems with nutrition, labeling and the physical characteristics of some snacks. The 10 mala products contained between 120 and 674 milligrams of sodium per package. Two — Geumdaeju spicy enoki mushrooms at 674 mg and glutinous-rice latiao at 659 mg — contained enough that two packages would reach the recommended adequate daily sodium intake of 1,300 mg for children aged 9 to 11. Fat content ranged from 1 percent to 13 percent of total product weight, averaging about 6 percent, reflecting the use of soybean oil and flavored oils in many mala products. The Consumer Agency said that raised the need for closer monitoring of oxidation and rancidity during manufacturing and storage. Another product posed a more physical risk. An imported freeze-dried jelly sold as ASMR Crunchy Earth-Shaped Freeze-Dried Jelly reached a maximum hardness of 118 newtons in testing, compared with an average chewing force of 47.6 newtons for children aged 6 to 11 cited by the agency. The agency warned that biting products that hard could damage teeth or strain the jaw. The importer subsequently agreed to stop importing and selling the product. Sugar and calorie levels were another concern. A 180-gram package of blueberry-flavored chewy jelly contained 642 calories and 55 grams of sugar. The sugar alone exceeded the agency's 45-gram daily added-sugar guideline for children aged 9 to 11. Five of the 20 products also had measured nutrient levels outside permitted labeling tolerances, with some differing substantially from what was stated on the packaging. The Consumer Agency called for tighter quality control by importers and stronger monitoring by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety for newer categories of imported snacks. "Consumers should be cautious of excessive sodium and sugar intake when eating imported snacks, and take care with hard freeze-dried jellies because of the risk of dental damage," a Consumer Agency official said. For consumers, however, the questions begin well before laboratory testing. A walk through unmanned snack stores in Seoul now reveals entire shelves of products whose names, ingredients and textures may be unfamiliar to many Korean shoppers. For some, that novelty is the attraction. "There are way too many options for me to choose from," said Saige Greenley, 31, an American tourist on her fourth trip to Korea who has been staying in the Euljiro neighborhood and exploring the city by subway. Greenley said she had noticed more international snack stores on this trip. Chinese snacks, however, were a harder sell. "My friend tried one a couple of days ago and she had a hard time dealing with the spice and the smell," Greenley said. She said the texture was unlike a conventional bag of chips and that she still preferred Korean snacks, which she described as "like American chips but in different, unique flavors." Some Korean consumers are more cautious. Kim Sun-young, a 28-year-old office worker in Seoul's Gangseo district, said she regularly eats mala hot pot but avoids packaged Chinese snacks. "The packaging alone makes me reluctant to pick it up," Kim said. "I also read a news article about Chinese snacks a while back, and that's made it even harder for me to eat them." Kim said tanghulu, the candied-fruit skewer, was about the only Chinese snack she still eats. She has never tried the packaged konjac products commonly displayed in unmanned stores. Several of her friends, however, like the snacks precisely because they are cheap and strongly flavored, she said. The consumer unease comes against a much larger flow of imported food. South Korea received more than 874,000 import declarations for food and food-related products in 2025, up 3.3 percent from a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. Their total value reached $36.6 billion. Of those inspected, 1,420 cases were ruled noncompliant, equivalent to 0.16 percent. Confectionery was among the categories most frequently involved, alongside fruit and vegetable products and certain food-contact materials. Violations included failures to meet ingredient or manufacturing standards, excessive pesticide residues and microbiological problems. The low overall failure rate matters. Regulators do find imported foods that fail Korean standards, but those cases are not evidence that imported food — or Chinese food in particular — is broadly unsafe. The more immediate concern may be what happens after the products clear the border. Data provided by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety to lawmaker Lee Ju-young showed 45 cases in which unmanned food stores were caught selling products past their consumption dates between 2022 and September 2025. Thirty-nine resulted in fines and six in business suspensions. The violations were not confined to Chinese imports. They instead exposed a broader weakness of unmanned retail: there is no clerk continuously checking consumption dates, refrigeration equipment or damaged packaging. That leaves more responsibility with consumers standing in front of shelves filled with products they may never have seen before. The Jinzai anchovies bought by AJP were not laboratory-tested and cannot be judged unsafe from taste, smell or appearance. But the bag helps explain why the category is drawing attention. Chinese snacks are becoming cheaper, more visible and easier to buy across Korea. As their presence grows, so does the need to distinguish between unfamiliarity and actual risk — and to make sure the system catching the latter keeps pace. 2026-08-12 18:03:15
Rookie girl band Hearts2Hearts make Japanese debut with 1st single SEOUL, August 12 (AJP) - K-pop rookie girl group Hearts2Hearts made their Japanese debut on Wednesday with their first Japanese single, according to their agency, SM Entertainment. "ICONIC HEART," as SM Entertainment moves the rookie girl group further into one of K-pop's most closely watched overseas markets. The single, which was released in Japan the previous day, includes three songs: the title track "ICONIC HEART" and Japanese-language versions of the group's earlier releases "Lemon Tang" and "RUDE!" The single, released in Japan the previous day, contains three tracks including the title track "ICONIC HEART" and Japanese-language versions of the group's earlier releases "Lemon Tang" and "RUDE!" "ICONIC HEART" centers on the excitement of moving toward a bigger world together. The music video was also released at midnight Wednesday on SMTOWN's YouTube channel. Early chart results gave the debut a strong start. The single ranked No. 2 on Oricon's daily singles chart for MOnday. The rollout extends beyond the single itself. Hearts2Hearts held a live-and-talk event in Tokyo on Wednesday to mark the release and is scheduled to appear at Fuji TV's Mezamashi TV WANGAN Festival, Inazuma Rock Festival and Tokyo Girls Collection 2026 events in Matsuyama and Yokohama. The group will also perform at Tokyo Dome during a Nippon Professional Baseball game between the Saitama Seibu Lions and the Orix Buffaloes, giving the rookie act a high-visibility stage early in their promotional activities. The Japanese debut follows several earlier appearances here. Hearts2Hearts had already appeared on TV Asahi's "Music Station," the Niigata leg of Tokyo Girls Collection 2026 and YouTube music channel "The First Take" before the official single release. Less than two years since debuting, the girls are now testing whether the bright, high-energy pop that built their early footing at home can carry into Japan. Hearts2Hearts will also attend the 2026 TIMA or TMElive International Music Awards, in Hong Kong on Aug. 22. AJP Takeaways: - Hearts2Hearts officially debuted in Japan on Aug. 12 with their first Japanese single, “ICONIC HEART,” after releasing the tracks digitally on Aug. 10. - The single includes three songs: "ICONIC HEART," a Japanese version of "Lemon Tang" and a Japanese version of "RUDE!" - "ICONIC HEART" ranked No. 2 on Oricon's daily singles chart dated Aug. 10, giving the rookie SM Entertainment group early chart traction in Japan. 2026-08-12 17:59:16