Journalist
Ryu Yuna류윤아
Julia37@ajupress.com
ReporterFinancial Supervisory Service (FSS) & finance, capital markets, Southeast Asian affairs
Yuna Ryu covers finance, capital markets and Southeast Asian affairs.
She is drawn to the questions that numbers raise and the stories that data alone cannot answer.
Prior to journalism, she worked at Hyundai Motor Company and the Singapore Chamber of Commerce, focusing on business strategy and international affairs. She has also hosted diplomatic receptions and international conferences as an MC.
Ryu holds a master's degree in Media and Communication from Korea University, where her research focused on neuroscience-based studies of media effects. "Beyond every statistic is a human story waiting to be heard."
She is drawn to the questions that numbers raise and the stories that data alone cannot answer.
Prior to journalism, she worked at Hyundai Motor Company and the Singapore Chamber of Commerce, focusing on business strategy and international affairs. She has also hosted diplomatic receptions and international conferences as an MC.
Ryu holds a master's degree in Media and Communication from Korea University, where her research focused on neuroscience-based studies of media effects. "Beyond every statistic is a human story waiting to be heard."
Latest by Ryu Yuna
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KOSPI runs toward new threshold of 9,000, Nikkei hits fresh high SEOUL, June 18 (AJP) - South Korea's monthly renewal of four-digit KOSPI headlines continued Thursday, with the benchmark index running toward the 9,000-point threshold as investors shrugged off an unexpectedly hawkish U.S. Federal Reserve meeting overnight and doubled down on semiconductor and artificial intelligence plays. As of 10:30 a.m., the KOSPI stood at 8,920.98, up 0.64 percent, after climbing as high as 8,975.52 earlier in the session, a fresh intraday record and within striking distance of the 9,000 mark. The junior KOSDAQ, meanwhile, fell 2.12 percent to 1,010.05. If achieved, 9,000 would become yet another four-digit milestone reached in less than a month. The KOSPI stood at 7,384.56 on May 6 before closing above the 8,000-point mark for the first time on May 26. Should the index break above 9,000 on Thursday, it would have gained more than 1,600 points in just six weeks, marking one of the fastest advances in the market's history. The rally came despite a more hawkish-than-expected Federal Reserve meeting overnight. The Fed kept interest rates unchanged at 3.50 percent to 3.75 percent, but signaled borrowing costs could rise again later this year after policymakers raised their outlook for future rates. Asian investors appeared more focused on the U.S.-Iran deal. The United States and Iran signed a memorandum of understanding aimed at ending months of hostilities, sending crude prices sharply lower. Brent crude briefly fell below $80 a barrel for the first time in three months, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude traded in the mid-$70 range, easing concerns over inflation and energy costs. The Korean won weakened against the dollar following the FOMC decision, with the greenback trading at 1,524.20 won, compared with the previous session's close of 1,513.40 won. Retail investors emerged as the dominant buyers, purchasing more than 1 trillion won worth of shares during early trading and offsetting selling by foreign and institutional investors. Market participants said investors remained focused on Korea's improving earnings outlook, particularly in semiconductors and AI-related sectors, rather than short-term monetary tightening risks. Semiconductor shares once again led the market higher. SK hynix rose 3.13 percent to 2.60 million won after announcing it had begun supplying samples of its next-generation 12-layer HBM4E, a high-bandwidth memory chip designed for artificial intelligence applications. The move came just weeks after Samsung Electronics unveiled its own HBM4E samples, adding momentum to the AI memory race between the country's two major chipmakers. Samsung Electronics also gained 1.01 percent to 350,000 won. Gains spread to several Samsung affiliates and financial shares. Samsung Electro-Mechanics jumped 7.38 percent to 2.18 million won, Samsung Biologics climbed 5.04 percent to 1.44 million won, SK Square rose 3.38 percent to 1.65 million won and Samsung Life Insurance advanced 2.91 percent to 460,000 won. Not all blue chips joined the rally. LG Energy Solution fell 3.31 percent to 402,250 won, Kia declined 3.07 percent to 161,200 won, Samsung C&T slipped 2.55 percent to 477,500 won and Hyundai Motor dropped 1.94 percent to 606,000 won. HD Hyundai Heavy Industries lost 1.56 percent to 696,000 won, while Hanwha Aerospace edged down 1.14 percent to 1.21 million won and Doosan Enerbility eased 1.07 percent to 102,100 won. While large-cap semiconductor and AI stocks advanced, the KOSDAQ retreated as investors took profits in biotech and secondary battery names after recent gains. Among biotech shares, HLB rose 2.76 percent to 52,200 won and Alteogen gained 0.67 percent to 375,500 won. Battery makers remained under pressure, with EcoPro BM falling 4.67 percent to 171,600 won and EcoPro sliding 4.23 percent to 117,600 won. Technology shares also traded lower, with Jusung Engineering losing 3.41 percent to 212,500 won, Samchundang Pharm declining 3.07 percent to 268,000 won, Reno Industrial falling 3.06 percent to 91,800 won and Rainbow Robotics slipping 1.92 percent to 613,000 won. Wonik IPS bucked the trend, rising 1.61 percent to 164,300 won. Foreign and institutional investors remained net sellers on the junior exchange, adding pressure to growth-oriented shares. Foreign investors are also increasing their exposure to Korea. CSOP, a Hong Kong-based asset manager, launched the region's first ETF tracking the KOSPI 200 outside South Korea on Thursday. The ETF is heavily concentrated in Korea's AI winners, with Samsung Electronics accounting for 35.3 percent of assets and SK hynix 26.4 percent. According to CSOP, global exchange-traded products with exposure to Korean equities attracted $31.9 billion in inflows last year. This year alone, they have already drawn $30.5 billion, nearly matching last year's total. With the KOSPI already trading at record highs and only a few dozen points shy of the 9,000 milestone, investors are increasingly betting that Korea's AI-led earnings cycle can continue to overpower external headwinds. Japan continued to outperform, with the benchmark Nikkei 225 climbing 1.79 percent to a fresh high of 71,154.22. Chinese and Hong Kong equities moved in the opposite direction. The Shanghai Composite slipped 0.32 percent to 4,094.90, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index fell 0.99 percent to 24,071.26 as investors took profits after recent gains. 2026-06-18 10:48:15 -
FSS warns against leveraged bets as Samsung, SK hynix ETFs amplify market swings SEOUL, June 17 (AJP) — Leveraged ETFs tied to Samsung Electronics and SK hynix now account for nearly a third of trading in the two stocks, amplifying swings in South Korea's benchmark index and prompting an emergency warning from financial regulators. The Financial Supervisory Service on Wednesday convened investment banks, securities firms, asset managers and market researchers to warn against concentrated bets on a handful of stocks and excessive use of leverage, saying such strategies could aggravate market shocks and expose retail investors to forced liquidations during sharp downturns. FSS Senior Deputy Governor Hwang Seon-oh urged investors to avoid excessive reliance on high-risk products or debt-financed investments, emphasizing the importance of long-term and diversified investing. He also called on securities firms to strengthen risk disclosures and ensure investors fully understand the products they purchase. A leveraged ETF is an exchange-traded fund designed to deliver two or three times the daily return of an underlying index or stock rather than simply track its performance. The FSS said speculative retail trading has intensified market volatility since the launch of single-stock leveraged and inverse ETFs. Margin-call liquidations have reached over 700 billion won so far this month. According to the Korea Exchange, 16 single-stock leveraged and inverse ETFs held a combined 11.3 trillion won ($8.3 billion) in assets as of Tuesday. Since their launch in late May, the products have averaged 8.3 trillion won in daily trading, accounting for nearly a quarter of South Korea's total ETF turnover. The concentration has become particularly pronounced in Samsung Electronics and SK hynix. Between May 27 and June 15, Samsung Electronics' single-stock leveraged ETF averaged 3.43 trillion won in daily trading, equivalent to 31.3 percent of turnover in the underlying shares. The figure for SK hynix was even higher at 4.91 trillion won, accounting for 37.7 percent of cash-market trading. Single-stock leveraged ETFs are designed to deliver twice the daily return of an underlying stock, forcing funds to buy more shares as prices rise and sell as they fall. The mechanism amplifies gains during rallies but can accelerate losses during selloffs. The effect became particularly evident this month. Since the launch of the products on May 27, open interest in Samsung Electronics futures has surged nearly 18 percent, rising from 5.7 million contracts to 6.7 million by June 4. The market then abruptly reversed after U.S. chipmaker Broadcom issued a disappointing earnings outlook on June 5, triggering a semiconductor selloff. As leveraged ETFs lost value while their futures positions remained largely unchanged, the funds became more leveraged than intended. To restore their target exposure, fund managers were forced to sell both shares and futures contracts, adding further downward pressure on prices. By the close, Samsung Electronics and SK hynix had fallen as much as 6.4 percent. The following sessions saw equally violent reversals, with Samsung Electronics dropping another 10.2 percent on June 8 before rebounding 9 percent the next day. Futures trading surged alongside the volatility. Samsung Electronics futures trading volume jumped from 4.36 million contracts on June 4 to 11.83 million by June 9, while turnover more than doubled to 36.8 trillion won. Authorities also pointed to the growing frequency of marketwide trading halts as a sign of mounting instability. Sidecar curbs, which suspend program trading for five minutes when the benchmark index rises or falls by more than 5 percent, have been triggered 26 times this year, the highest number since the 2008 global financial crisis. Six of those halts occurred this month alone as markets repeatedly swung between rallies and selloffs. Market participants say the trading pattern increasingly resembles a short-gamma dynamic, in which ETF rebalancing flows amplify price swings instead of absorbing them, reinforcing momentum in both directions and exacerbating volatility. 2026-06-17 17:30:49 -
Lee's approval falls below 50%, down 16 points in a month SEOUL, June 17 (AJP) - South Korean President Lee Jae Myung's approval rating fell below 50 percent for the first time since taking office last June, extending a five-week slide that has erased more than 16 percentage points of support in just over a month, a new poll showed Wednesday. According to a survey conducted by polling firm Cho Won C&I on behalf of Straight News from June 13 to 15 among 2,001 adults nationwide aged 18 and older, Lee's approval rating stood at 47.7 percent, down 2.9 percentage points from the previous survey. The poll, conducted from June 13 to 15 among 2,001 adults nationwide, found that 49.0 percent of respondents disapproved of Lee's performance, marking the first time that negative assessments have outpaced positive ones since he assumed office. Another 3.3 percent said they have no opinion. Lee's approval rating has rapidly deteriorated since early May, falling from 63.9 percent in the first week of the month to 60.2 percent in the second week, 58.4 percent in the third, 57.0 percent in the fourth and 50.6 percent in the first week of June, timed with June 3 local elections that ended in a painful loss over Seoul mayorship despite overall sweeping win. A separate poll measuring support for political parties showed the conservative opposition People Power Party and Lee's liberal ruling Democratic Party of Korea locked in a tight race within the margin of error, with support at 41.6 percent and 40.0 percent, respectively. Support for the Rebuilding Korea Party stood at 3.2 percent, followed by the New Reform Party at 2.1 percent and the Progressive Party at 1.2 percent. The survey of 2,001 adults was conducted using an automated mobile phone survey with a margin of error of 2.2 percentage points at a 95 percent confidence level. The response rate was 3.8 percent. Additional details are available from South Korea's National Election Survey Deliberation Commission. 2026-06-17 13:57:10 -
Musk mania survives IPO miss as Koreans pour $800 million on SpaceX debut SEOUL, June 17 (AJP) - An Elon Musk-linked stock has once again become a favorite among South Korean retail investors. Despite missing out on SpaceX’s initial public offering, Korean individual investors poured more than $800 million into the company on its Nasdaq debut, making the space company one of the most aggressively bought foreign stocks in Korean market history. According to data compiled from 11 brokerages, including Mirae Asset Securities, Korea Investment & Securities and Toss Securities, Korean retail investors made net purchases of 1.23 trillion won ($810 million) in SpaceX shares on June 12, the day the company began trading on Nasdaq. The buying spree was among the largest single-day overseas stock purchases ever recorded by Korean retail investors. The amount was more than 30 times the day’s second-largest overseas net purchase, ProShares UltraPro QQQ, a triple-leveraged ETF tracking the Nasdaq-100, which drew $24.9 million. Korean retail investors bought about $834.6 million worth of SpaceX shares while selling $38.7 million, according to the Korea Securities Depository’s Seibro portal. SpaceX priced its IPO at $135 per share. The stock opened at $150, rose as high as $176 intraday and closed its first session at $161.11, up 19.3 percent from the offering price. Based on the closing price, Korean retail investors bought roughly 5 million shares in a single day, placing SpaceX as the top 30 most-held U.S. stocks among Korean retailers. Their bet proved right so far as SpaceX's epic rise has rewritten the leaderboard in a matter of days, catapulting the company to the world's fifth-most valuable listed company by Tuesday, with shares ending at $192.68. The frenzy followed an earlier wave of pivot to the space sector. Before SpaceX’s listing, Korean investors had poured more than $316 million over the previous month into the Tema Space Innovators ETF, a U.S.-listed space technology fund widely seen as a proxy play on SpaceX before its debut. For many Korean investors, SpaceX is no longer just a space company. It is increasingly viewed as a long-term bet on artificial intelligence, satellite infrastructure and the future of technology. Missing out on the IPO appears to have done little to cool that enthusiasm. SpaceX is the latest chapter in South Koreans' long-running Musk trade. Tesla remains their top overseas holding at $24.17 billion as of June 11. 2026-06-17 11:28:10 -
Impending peace deal with Iran lifts KOSPI as Nikkei briefly tops 70,000 SEOUL, June 16 (AJP) - South Korean stocks extended their rally on Tuesday as hopes for an impending peace deal between the U.S. and Iran later this week, along with SpaceX’s blockbuster Nasdaq debut, boosted investors’ appetite. Despite missing out on the record-breaking initial public offering (IPO), South Korean investors continued betting on artificial intelligence (AI), aerospace, and other growth sectors. Japan’s main index, meanwhile, briefly crossed the 70,000 mark for the first time. In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 edged up 0.13 percent to 69,404.50 after briefly topping the 70,000 mark and setting an all-time high. The move came after the Bank of Japan voted 7-1 to raise its benchmark policy rate to 1 percent, the highest level since 1995. In Seoul, the benchmark KOSPI closed up 2.11 percent at 8,726.60 points, building on the previous session's gains as easing geopolitical tensions lowered oil prices and improved sentiment toward risk assets across Asia. The junior KOSDAQ, however, moved in the opposite direction, falling 1.48 percent to 1,018.68 as investors continued rotating away from smaller growth stocks into large-cap market leaders. In the currency market, the South Korean won weakened slightly against the U.S. dollar, closing at 1,511.6 won. SpaceX's blockbuster Nasdaq debut remained in focus. The stock closed at US$192.50 on Monday, up 42.6 percent from its IPO price of $135, lifting its market capitalization to about $2.5 trillion and making it the world's sixth-most valuable company. The company’s rapid rise has boosted investor interest in its long-term growth prospects. Global retail demand exceeded $100 billion, with Japan receiving about $2.2 billion worth of share allocations. South Korean investors, however, were left empty-handed after shares initially earmarked for Mirae Asset Securities were withdrawn in the final allocation process. Samsung Electronics rose 1.78 percent to 343,000 won, while SK hynix climbed 4.11 percent to 2,382,000 won, SK Square surged 6.23 percent to 1,501,000 won, making it one of the strongest performers among large-cap stocks. The buying extended beyond technology into aerospace and defense. Hanwha Aerospace delivered one of the strongest gains of the day, jumping 9.13 percent to 1,183,000 won as investors continued betting on long-term growth in the global aerospace and defense industries. Banking-related shares also attracted investors after data showed lending grew sharply last month, raising hopes for stronger earnings. According to the Bank of Korea, household loans at commercial banks including mortgages, increased by 6.9 trillion won in May to 1,181.8 trillion won, marking the biggest monthly increase since August 2024. KB Financial Group rose 1.42 percent to 172,000 won after earlier touching a record high of 182,700 won during intraday trading. Other major lenders followed suit, with Shinhan Financial Group up 1.04 percent to 106,700 won, and Hana Financial Group climbing 2.09 percent to close at 132,000 won. The gains in Korea and Japan mirrored a strong overnight rally on Wall Street, where investors welcomed signs of easing tensions between the United States and Iran. Lower oil prices and fading geopolitical risks boosted appetite for technology and growth stocks globally. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.92 percent, the S&P 500 gained 1.65 percent, while the Nasdaq Composite surged 3.07 percent. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index jumped 5.45 percent, reinforcing optimism toward chipmakers and artificial intelligence-related shares across Asia. However, not all Asian markets responded the same way. China's Shanghai Composite was little changed, slipping 0.11 percent to 4,091.89. Yet beneath the flat headline index, investors continued pouring money into strategic industries. Xiamen Tungsten hit the daily limit of 10 percent as investors bet on rising demand for strategic metals essential to semiconductors and high-tech industries, while optical technology company Focuslight Technologies gained nearly 4 percent. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index underperformed regional peers, falling 1.68 percent to 24,424.27. 2026-06-16 17:25:37 -
Thailand bets on medical field and startups to deepen Korea ties SEOUL, June 16 (AJP) - Thailand is placing the medical field, startups and cultural exchange at the center of its partnership with South Korea, unveiling a series of initiatives aimed at expanding bilateral cooperation into healthcare, innovation and other future growth industries. The plans were outlined Tuesday during a media briefing hosted by Tanee Sangrat, Thailand's ambassador to South Korea, at the Royal Thai Embassy in Seoul's Yongsan district. The embassy announced five flagship events over the coming weeks, including a new startup and innovation hub, Thailand's flagship cultural festival in Seoul, the largest-ever Thai art exhibition in Korea, a high-level diplomatic visit and a healthcare-focused business forum. The first event will be the launch of the Seoul-Thailand Startup & Innovation Space (STSiS) on Wednesday at the Thai Ambassador's residence in Seoul. The initiative is designed to connect Thai and Korean entrepreneurs, innovators and investors while promoting cooperation in technology, innovation and the digital economy. The launch ceremony will bring together startup founders, business representatives and policymakers, followed by a networking luncheon aimed at fostering new partnerships. "If you are in the startup ecosystem, if you are an innovator, you will be interested in STSiS," the envoy said, describing the initiative as a platform for entrepreneurs and innovators seeking opportunities in both countries. The embassy will also host the Sawasdee Seoul Thai Festival 2026 on June 20 and 21 at Cheonggye Plaza in central Seoul and along the Cheonggyecheon stream under the theme "Creative Life, Creative Heartbeat." The two-day festival will feature Thai cuisine, T-Pop and traditional cultural performances, arts and crafts exhibitions, tourism promotions, traditional costume experiences and complimentary Thai massage sessions. Asked which of the upcoming events he would most recommend to Korean visitors, Tanee pointed to the festival as the most accessible introduction to Thai culture. "For the general public, the festival would be the most enjoyable," the ambassador said. Another major cultural event will be "Amazing Thailand: Masterpieces of Thai Art," described by the embassy as the first major Thai cultural exhibition at the National Museum of Korea. The exhibition will open on June 22, with the public exhibition running from June 23 through Sept. 6. It will feature more than 200 artifacts spanning from prehistoric periods to the mid-20th century, marking the first large-scale showcase dedicated to Thai culture ever held in Korea. Highlights include Buddhist art, royal treasures and traditional crafts curated as a premium cultural exchange program. After its Seoul run through Sept. 6, the exhibition will travel to Tongdosa Temple, one of Korea's most renowned Buddhist temples located in South Gyeongsang Province. Sangrat paid particular attention to the exhibition's collection of Chut Thai, Thailand's traditional attire, which will be displayed with explanations at the museum. "People interested in Thai culture will find the exhibition very interesting," he said, adding: "Our traditional dresses, Chut Thai, are much more elaborate and much more beautiful." The embassy is also preparing for the July 3 working visit to South Korea by Thailand's Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sihasak Phuangketkeow, which will coincide with the 68th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries. The visit is expected to focus on expanding bilateral cooperation, including a meeting with South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun to discuss diplomatic, economic and strategic issues of mutual interest. Looking further ahead, Thailand will host the Korea-Thailand Business Forum on July 22 at Lotte Hotel Seoul, focusing on four high-growth sectors: biohealth, medical technology, wellness and future food. The one-day forum will bring together senior business leaders, government officials and industry experts from both countries to explore new investment opportunities and industrial partnerships. "Hopefully, we can facilitate business," The ambassador said. "This is the first time we have decided to focus on the medical field." He added that the decision to focus on healthcare marks a new direction for bilateral business cooperation. The forum aims to catalyze new partnerships, investment pledges and business-to-business matchmaking sessions, supporting Thailand's 'Thailand 4.0' strategy and Korea's bio-medical innovation agenda. "If you are in the medical field, wellness, or even the food segment, the business forum in July will be of interest to you," Sangrat said. The initiatives reflect Thailand's broader strategy of deepening engagement with South Korea through innovation, culture and emerging industries, reinforcing a bilateral partnership that has grown steadily in recent years. 2026-06-16 13:43:14 -
Eight out of 10 Korean workers fear of falling behind in AI race SEOUL, June 16 (AJP) - Reflecting the rapid transformation trend that is sweeping across various kinds of workplaces globally, eight out of ten workers in South Korea fear being left behind in the era of artificial intelligence, a report by the global software and technology company Microsoft showed on Monday, The report, Microsoft's 2026 Work Trend Index, based on a survey of 20,000 workers from 10 countries, highlights what Microsoft describes as a "transformation paradox." Workers are ready for AI-driven change, but corporate structures, management practices and incentive systems remain largely unchanged. According to the report, 78 percent of Korean workers said that they worry about being left behind if they do not adapt to using AI, significantly higher than the global average of 65 percent. Among the countries surveyed, only Brazil recorded a higher figure at 79 percent. Yet confidence in corporate leadership was far weaker. Only 16 percent of Korean respondents said management provides a clear vision for how AI should be used within the organization, compared with a global average of 26 percent. 7 percent said employees are rewarded for using AI to improve their work, roughly half the global average and the lowest among major economies surveyed. The figure trailed Japan at 8 percent, Germany and the Netherlands at 10 percent, and the United States at 15 percent. The disconnect suggests many employees feel pressure to adopt new technologies while continuing to be evaluated under traditional performance frameworks. Other findings pointed to a similar reluctance to embrace change. About 43 percent of Korean respondents said maintaining existing goals and work processes feels safer than experimenting with new approaches, indicating that employees may see little incentive to take risks despite growing expectations to innovate with AI. Microsoft said organizational factors such as workplace culture, management support and talent development policies account for 67 percent of successful AI adoption outcomes, more than double the impact of individual motivation and skills, which represented 32 percent. The report argues that companies achieving the greatest gains from AI are not simply deploying new tools but systematically embedding employee experiences and best practices into broader organizational workflows. Among Korean workers, the top 12 percent of employees who use AI most extensively were found to treat AI less as a productivity tool and more as a collaborative partner, redesigning workflows and decision-making processes around the technology. However, the figure remains below the global average of 16 percent. Looking ahead, the company expects AI agents to handle more routine and repetitive work, leaving human workers to focus on judgment, verification and setting priorities. The survey was based on responses from 20,000 knowledge workers across 10 countries, including the United States, Britain, Germany, France, Italy, Japan, India, Australia, Brazil and the Netherlands, supplemented by additional research conducted in South Korea. 2026-06-16 09:49:48 -
SK's Chey, ex-wife Roh fail to reach settlement in billion-dollar divorce battle SEOUL, June 15 (AJP) - SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won and his estranged wife Roh Soh-yeong failed to reach a settlement Monday in their closely watched billion-dollar divorce dispute, facing each other in court for the first time in more than two years. The Seoul High Court's family division held a second court-led mediation session at 2 p.m. as part of the remand trial ordered by the Supreme Court. Despite expectations that both sides would begin substantive discussions on the division of assets, the mediation ended without an agreement. Their appearance marked the first time the two had faced each other in court since the final appellate hearing in April 2024, more than two years ago. At the first mediation session held in May, Roh appeared in person while Chey was represented by his legal team. Before entering the courthouse, Chey expressed hope the long-running dispute would soon come to an end. "I hope the mediation can be successfully concluded and the case can be wrapped up quickly," he said. Roh arrived several minutes earlier but declined to answer questions from reporters regarding the possibility of a settlement or whether either side was prepared to compromise. After the mediation session concluded, Chey left the court without commenting on the result. He boarded a waiting vehicle without responding to reporters' questions about the negotiations. The mediation centered on whether Chey's holdings in SK Inc., the holding company of SK Group, should be included in the marital estate and how those shares should be valued. Chey's legal team argues that the shares are separate property acquired through inheritance and gifts, while Roh maintains that her contributions to child-rearing and family life helped support the growth of SK Group and should entitle her to a share of the assets. Following the failed talks, the court resumed formal proceedings and scheduled the next hearing for June 26. The case returned to the Seoul High Court after the Supreme Court last year partially overturned an appellate ruling awarding Roh 1.38 trillion won ($1 billion) in property division, one of the largest divorce settlements in South Korean history. While upholding the couple's divorce and a separate 2 billion won ($1.4 million) alimony award, the Supreme Court ordered the lower court to reconsider the property division, ruling that funds linked to former President Roh Tae-woo could not be counted as Roh's contribution to the accumulation of SK Group's wealth. 2026-06-15 17:09:36 -
Mirae Asset faces investor fury and probe after SpaceX IPO allocation failure SEOUL, June 15 (AJP) — South Korea's second-largest brokerage house Mirae Asset Securities is under fire after failing to secure any shares in the blockbuster initial public offering of SpaceX, leaving Korean investors empty-handed in one of the world's most coveted listings. "Pathetic," one investor wrote on Mirae Asset's online forum. "Run before you get burned," another wrote Monday, referring to Mirae Asset Securities' own share price, which fell about 2 percent despite a 5.5 percent rally in the benchmark KOSPI. The backlash has quickly widened into a regulatory issue. The Financial Supervisory Service has launched an inspection into why Mirae Asset failed to receive shares that had been expected for Korean investors and whether the brokerage properly warned clients that final allocations could be reduced or canceled. According to investment banking sources, SpaceX had initially been expected to allocate 2,314,815 Class A common shares to Mirae Asset out of 555,555,555 shares sold in the offering. But Goldman Sachs, the lead underwriter, reportedly excluded Mirae Asset and some other syndicate members from the final distribution. The failure stunned Korean investors, who have become among the world's most aggressive retail buyers of U.S. stocks and had viewed SpaceX as a rare chance to enter a global AI, defense and space infrastructure play at the IPO stage. As of June 11, South Koreans owned $190.2 billion in U.S. equities, of which Tesla shares make up $24.1 billion worth. Mirae Asset has refunded subscription deposits in full, but investors may still have suffered losses from currency conversion, overseas remittance and refund procedures. Some deposits were converted into dollars when the won-dollar rate was around 1,530, while refunds were returned when the rate had moved closer to 1,510, raising the possibility of foreign-exchange losses. The FSS is also examining whether Mirae Asset sufficiently disclosed allocation risks, whether there was exaggerated marketing, and whether the brokerage had understood in advance that it might fail to receive any shares. A key issue is regulatory approval. Industry officials said Mirae Asset's failure to obtain clearance from Korean financial authorities may have made global underwriters reluctant to allocate shares to the brokerage. Korea requires securities registration documents to be submitted at least 15 business days before a public offering to general investors, but SpaceX followed U.S. IPO rules and filed roughly a week before listing. Mirae Asset later shifted the subscription from a public offering for general investors to a private placement for professional investors, but industry officials said the change may not have been fully coordinated with global advisers. In contrast, Mizuho Securities, which secured approval from Japanese regulators, reportedly received about $2.2 billion worth of SpaceX shares, or roughly 3 percent of the offering. The controversy has also spread to exchange-traded funds. Some asset managers had promoted plans to include SpaceX IPO shares secured through Mirae Asset in their ETFs. When the allocation failed, at least one fund reportedly bought SpaceX shares in the market on listing day, potentially at prices well above the $135 IPO price. Regulators are expected to examine whether ETF investors were disadvantaged as a result. The FSS is also expected to review possible conflict-of-interest issues after reports that Mirae Asset Group affiliates participated separately with proprietary capital and received SpaceX shares through a U.S.-based institutional channel. Those shares were separate from the failed client subscription, but the situation has raised questions over whether group interests and client interests were properly managed. Mirae Asset apologized to clients for failing to meet expectations. "We apologize for the inconvenience and for failing to meet the expectations of customers who waited a long time for the subscription results," the company said in a notice. The case is drawing heightened attention because it comes before a possible wave of U.S. mega-listings involving artificial intelligence companies such as Anthropic and OpenAI. Financial authorities see the SpaceX failure as a test case for how Korean brokerages should handle overseas IPO access for local investors. An FSS official said the regulator needs to thoroughly examine what happened because investor protection will become increasingly important as more Korean capital seeks access to global IPOs. 2026-06-15 14:49:58 -
After Hormuz relief, KOSPI's next target is developed-market status SEOUL, June 15 (AJP)-With the Gulf crisis moving toward resolution, South Korea's stock market faces next test: whether a chip-led rally can carry the KOSPI from one of the world's best-performing markets to a developed-market benchmark. Semiconductors can lift the index. They cannot, by themselves, make Korea a developed market. The KOSPI has surged 92.8 percent since end-2025, far outpacing Taiwan's 52.5 percent gain, Japan's 31.1 percent rise and the Dow's 6.5 percent advance. Yet the same data reveal why Korea's case remains complicated: the market has delivered developed-world scale and technology leadership with emerging-market volatility and unstable foreign flows. The war-risk discount is now easing. A planned U.S.-Iran memorandum of understanding on Friday could reopen commercial traffic through the Strait of Hormuz and reduce the oil premium that has weighed on Korea, which imports roughly 70 percent of its crude from the Middle East. Oil prices and the won have already moved in response, allowing investors to refocus on earnings. Yuanta Securities on Monday said the removal of war risk has confirmed the return of foreign investors. Overseas buyers returned to Korean shares for two consecutive sessions after weeks of selling, concentrating on large-cap semiconductor names. As of 1:40 p.m., the KOSPI was up 5.3 percent at 8,554.98, with foreign investors turning net buyers of 638 billion won and extending Friday's purchases of 2.7 trillion won. The buying marks a sharp reversal from a near-uninterrupted selling spree that ran from May through Thursday, during which foreigners offloaded 51.5 trillion won worth in KOSPI in May and a further 27.2 trillion won in June. Yuanta attributed the shift to easing geopolitical tensions, reduced won-dollar volatility and the end of SpaceX-related liquidity migration. The shift in foreign flows comes with one week to spare before MSCI delivers its annual market-classification verdict on June 23, but industry watchers say MSCI's developed-market watch-list decision on won't be settled by Samsung Electronics and SK hynix alone. Korea has long sought developed-market status. MSCI removed the country from its developed-market watch list in 2014, citing restrictions on currency trading and other market-access issues. Last year, the index provider again pointed to shortcomings in foreign-exchange reforms and compliance burdens on overseas investors. Since then, Korea has resumed short selling and is preparing to launch extended won trading hours in July, two reforms long demanded by global investors. Compared with Japan, Korea has the earnings momentum but not yet the market structure. Japan's rerating was powered not only by technology and exporters but by years of exchange-led reform, broader shareholder returns and a deeper base of long-term global capital. Korea's value-up campaign is moving in the same direction — but it is younger and less tested. Korean stocks still trade well below Japanese, Taiwanese and American peers, even as chips, shipbuilding, banks, autos and power equipment deliver stronger earnings. Developed-market status, however, requires more than cheap valuations and high returns. The real checklist is market access, currency convertibility, short-selling normalization, settlement reliability, foreign-investor convenience, governance and shareholder protection. Korea has made progress, but MSCI will want evidence that reforms are durable, not cyclical. Korea's strongest argument is that it is no longer simply an emerging-market proxy. It is a core AI supply-chain market with global-scale companies, record earnings and a growing shareholder-return culture. Its weakest point is that the rally remains too concentrated and too volatile. Just last week, the KOSPI has swayed 4 to 8 percent daily from 7,484.41 to 8,123.62. After Hormuz, the KOSPI may have enough fuel to test 9,000. To reach developed-market status, Korea must prove it can look less like a spectacular trade and more like a stable market. 2026-06-15 14:08:09