Journalist
Lee Hugh
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Netanyahu Says He Was ‘Shocked’ by Reported Attempt on Trump at Washington Dinner Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he was “shocked” after U.S. President Donald Trump was evacuated following gunfire at a dinner event. Speaking at a news conference in Jerusalem on April 26 (local time), Netanyahu said he was deeply shaken by reports of an assassination attempt targeting Trump. He said he was relieved to learn that Trump and the first lady were safe and in good condition, adding that he saluted the U.S. Secret Service for responding with “swift and decisive action.” Trump was attending a dinner at the Washington Hilton hotel in Washington, D.C., on Friday evening when shots were heard and he was rushed to safety. No attendees were reported wounded, and a suspect was arrested at the scene. The Los Angeles Times and other local media identified the suspect as Cole Thomas Allen, 31, of Torrance, California. Authorities said Allen had a shotgun, a handgun and several bladed weapons at the time. He was charged with two counts related to firearm use and one count of assaulting a federal official with a dangerous weapon.* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-04-26 19:18:17 -
Samsung Shareholder Group Plans Rally Outside Lee Jae-yong’s Home Ahead of Union Strike Event A Samsung Electronics labor union is preparing a general-strike rally next month outside the home of Chairman Lee Jae-yong, and a shareholder group has announced a counterprotest. Yonhap News Agency reported on the 26th that the Korea Shareholder Movement Headquarters, which has opposed the union’s activities, notified police it will hold a rally from 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. on May 21 outside Lee’s residence in Hannam-dong, Seoul’s Yongsan district. The gathering is widely seen as a response to the general-strike plan by Samsung Electronics’ companywide union. The union plans to hold its own rally at 1 p.m. the same day outside Lee’s home to announce its general-strike plans. The reported number of participants for the shareholder group’s rally is about 30. * This article has been translated by AI. 2026-04-26 19:12:15 -
South Korea Forecast: Mostly Cloudy Nationwide; Rain Possible in Capital Area at Night Monday the 27th is expected to be mostly cloudy nationwide, with rain starting overnight in parts of the Seoul metropolitan area, Gangwon and Chungcheong, the Korea Meteorological Administration said Sunday. Central regions will be mostly cloudy, while southern areas will see intermittent clouds before turning cloudier at night. Jeju Island will be mostly clear during the day, then gradually cloud over at night. Rain is possible overnight in the capital area, Gangwon inland and mountainous areas, and the northern west coast of South Chungcheong Province. Expected rainfall: 5-10 millimeters in Seoul, Incheon and Gyeonggi Province; about 5 mm on the five West Sea islands; 5-20 mm in Gangwon inland and mountainous areas; and less than 5 mm in Daejeon, Sejong and South Chungcheong Province. Skies will be mostly cloudy across the country, with occasional sprinkles in the afternoon mainly in the capital area, Gangwon and the northern west coast of South Chungcheong. Temperatures are forecast to range from 6-14 degrees Celsius (43-57 Fahrenheit) in the morning and 14-27 C (57-81 F) in the afternoon. Daytime highs are expected to reach 22 C in Seoul and Wonju, 16 C in Gangneung, 23 C in Cheongju, 24 C in Daejeon, 25 C in Jeonju, 24 C in Gwangju, 23 C in Yeosu, 27 C in Daegu, 23 C in Busan and 20 C on Jeju. Fine dust levels are expected to range from “good” to “moderate” nationwide. On Tuesday the 28th, the country is expected to remain mostly cloudy, with rain in the capital area, Chungcheong and Gangwon. * This article has been translated by AI. 2026-04-26 18:06:40 -
South Korean Steelmakers Post Improved Q1 Results, but Second-Half Risks Loom South Korea’s steelmakers posted improved first-quarter results despite headwinds including a construction downturn and a wave of low-priced Chinese steel, helped by anti-dumping measures and stronger exports. Analysts said profitability has begun to recover, but warned that higher raw material and shipping costs tied to Middle East geopolitical risks and tighter European Union carbon rules could weigh on results in the second half. As of the 23rd, industry officials said the country’s three major steelmakers — POSCO Holdings, Hyundai Steel and Dongkuk Steel — held up relatively well in the first quarter despite weak demand and external pressures. Hyundai Steel reported 15.7 billion won ($11.3 million) in operating profit on a consolidated basis, swinging to a profit from a 19.0 billion won loss a year earlier. The turnaround was attributed to stronger domestic pricing power after anti-dumping steps against low-priced Chinese steel, along with a sharp rise in rebar exports, mainly to the U.S. market. Dongkuk Steel also benefited from exports. On a separate basis, it posted 21.4 billion won in operating profit, up 403.9% from a year earlier. While the domestic long-steel market remained weak, overseas sales expanded for products including heavy plate and color-coated steel sheet. POSCO Holdings, which has yet to report, is expected to post 594.9 billion won in first-quarter operating profit, up 4.7% from a year earlier, according to market estimates. The results have fueled views that pressures from the construction slump and China-driven oversupply that persisted through last year are easing somewhat. Analysts also pointed to the government’s anti-dumping probes and stronger trade responses as creating a more favorable environment for domestic producers. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy is imposing anti-dumping duties of 27.91% to 38.02% on Chinese heavy plate. For hot-rolled steel sheet from Japan and China, duties range from 31.58% to 33.43% for Japanese products and 28.16% to 33.10% for Chinese products. Prices for key steel products such as hot-rolled sheet, rebar and heavy plate have reportedly risen by more than 100,000 won per ton in recent weeks. A continued decline in China’s crude steel output has also been supportive. China’s National Bureau of Statistics said first-quarter crude steel production totaled 247.55 million tons, down 4.6% from a year earlier, the lowest first-quarter level since 2022. Risks remain. If Middle East tensions persist, a weaker won and higher ocean freight rates could lift costs. A renewed rise in iron ore and coking coal prices could also squeeze margins. In addition, tougher environmental rules such as the EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, or CBAM, are seen as a burden for South Korean steelmakers with high export exposure. Steelmakers say they plan to keep improving results in the second half by expanding exports and cutting costs. POSCO plans to expand investment in overseas steel plants to build local production that reduces costs and tariff burdens. POSCO Holdings has agreed to set up a joint venture with Indian steelmaker JSW Steel and build an integrated steel mill in Odisha state by 2031, aiming to secure annual crude steel capacity of 6 million tons. Hyundai Steel said it plans, in cooperation with Hyundai Motor Group and POSCO Holdings, to build an integrated electric-arc-furnace steel mill in Louisiana by 2029 with annual capacity of 2.7 million tons. Hyundai Steel also plans to target steel demand tied to power infrastructure and data centers at home and abroad, citing expanding downstream industries such as data centers, energy storage systems and transmission networks as artificial intelligence demand grows. Dongkuk Steel said it will continue raising the share of export sales, aiming to increase it to 15% this year from about 11% last year by strengthening capabilities including integrated sales, trade and logistics operations. * This article has been translated by AI. 2026-04-26 18:05:51 -
Korean Unions Escalate Bonus Demands, Raising Concerns Over Competitiveness Major South Korean conglomerate unions are escalating demands for performance bonuses, prompting growing concern inside and outside industry. After SK Hynix reached a deal tying bonuses to operating profit, unions at Samsung Electronics and Hyundai Motor have followed with tougher demands. Industry officials describe it as a competitive one-upmanship in bonus negotiations. According to industry officials on April 26, Samsung’s union is demanding that 15% of operating profit be set aside for performance bonuses and that the company abolish caps on payouts. The union has also raised the possibility of a general strike. SK Hynix previously agreed to scrap a cap of 1,000% of base pay and to pay bonuses equal to 10% of operating profit. Based on projected operating profit this year, some analysts say that could allow bonuses of about 700 million won per employee. Hyundai Motor’s union also included in this year’s wage talks a demand for performance bonuses worth about 30% of last year’s net profit. Critics say bonus demands are increasingly driven less by productivity or individual performance than by comparisons with payouts at other companies. Some in the business community say SK Hynix’s unusually generous agreement spurred Samsung’s union, and that Samsung’s case is now pushing Hyundai Motor’s demands higher. In the semiconductor sector, many executives and analysts argue that much of the recent earnings strength reflects improved market conditions rather than gains in individual productivity. “Recent improvements in memory-chip results were driven decisively by rising server demand from expanded AI investment and higher prices for commodity DRAM,” one industry expert said. “Many assessments say the DRAM price increase stems from global supply-demand conditions and market shifts, making it hard to link directly to individual employees’ efforts.” Some analysts also say competitiveness in high-bandwidth memory, or HBM, reflects the combined impact of a small group of key researchers, long-term investment decisions and management judgment. Industry sources say there is discomfort with a 분위기 in which even junior employees with limited tenure demand bonuses worth hundreds of millions of won as a matter of course during an upcycle. “One semiconductor industry official said the current mood looks less like profit-sharing than a scramble for bonuses riding a market boom,” adding that “a pattern could repeat in which workers take as much as possible when times are good and then blame underinvestment when conditions turn.” Lee Gyu-bok, a former president of the Semiconductor Engineering Society, said the AI chip era will require far more capital and warned that missing development windows could cost customers to rivals. If too much money is diverted away from investment, he said, research and development schedules could slip. Some analysts say prolonged internal conflict at Samsung is being watched by Taiwanese competitors as an opportunity. Taiwanese media and industry have suggested that if production disruptions at Samsung materialize, local companies such as TSMC could gain market share and strengthen pricing leverage. Concerns are sharper in autos. Despite weaker first-quarter results as uncertainty grows from U.S. tariff burdens and a slowdown in the global electric-vehicle market, Hyundai Motor’s union is seeking what the industry describes as record-high bonuses. Some warn the stance could spread across corporate Korea alongside debate over the so-called Yellow Envelope Act. “A performance bonus itself isn’t the problem,” an industry official said. “The problem is a structure where demands surge competitively whenever the business cycle improves. If this trend hardens, weaker investment capacity and supply-chain instability could ultimately shake overall industrial competitiveness.”* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-04-26 18:04:57 -
Hyundai Mobis Expands In-House Auto Chips, Robotics Parts in SDV Push 현대모비스가 차량용 반도체와 로보틱스 핵심부품을 앞세워 미래 모빌리티 전환 대응에 나선다. 전동화 시대에 맞춰 기술 주도형 사업 구조로 전환하겠다는 전략이다. 26일 업계에 따르면 현대모비스는 글로벌 시장 확대와 미래 기술 경쟁력 확보에 속도를 내고 있다. 이규석 현대모비스 사장은 올해 신년사에서 "완성차가 제시하는 방향을 관성적으로 따라가기보다는 우리가 주도적으로, 비전과 기술과 지향점을 바탕으로 시장과 고객을 이끌어야 한다"고 밝혔다. 현대모비스는 차량 개발 초기 단계부터 핵심 기술을 먼저 제안할 수 있을 만큼의 기술 경쟁력이 필요하다는 입장이다. 사업 구조 전환의 핵심 분야로는 차량용 반도체와 로보틱스 핵심부품을 제시했다. 기존 주력 사업과 연계된 영역에서 양산 역량을 활용해 시장을 선도하겠다는 전략이다. 차량용 반도체 분야에서는 설계 역량 내재화에 속도를 낸다. 현대모비스는 소프트웨어중심차량(SDV)의 핵심인 차량 내 제어기를 직접 개발하는 수요자이자 공급자로서, 완성차 업체와 반도체 기업을 연결하는 역할을 맡고 있다. 현대모비스는 시스템 반도체와 전력 반도체를 중심으로 단계적 내재화를 추진해 국내 차량용 반도체 생태계 구축을 주도한다는 구상이다. 지난해 9월에는 오토 세미콘 코리아(ASK)를 열어 국내 주요 반도체 기업과 연구기관 간 협력 체계를 구축했다. 유럽과 북미 의존도가 높았던 공급망 구조를 바꾸려는 시도라고 회사는 설명했다. 로보틱스 사업도 확대한다. 현대모비스는 로봇 원가의 약 60%를 차지하는 액추에이터를 핵심으로 보고, 구동·제어 기술과 양산 노하우를 바탕으로 기술 고도화와 조기 양산에 집중한다. 현대모비스는 CES 2026에서 보스턴다이내믹스와 협력 체계를 구축하고 액추에이터를 독점 공급하기로 했다고 밝혔다. 현대모비스는 차량용 부품 설계 역량과 양산 경험을 바탕으로 향후 센서, 제어기, 배터리 등 로봇 관련 부품 사업으로도 영역을 넓혀갈 계획이다. 이 사장은 "단순히 새로운 기술을 확보하는 것보다 중요한 건 얼마나 빠르게, 또 적시에 시장에 내놓을 수 있느냐"라며 "현대모비스의 강점인 양산성과 제조 노하우를 극대화해야 한다"고 강조했다.* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-04-26 18:04:09 -
SK hynix wins IEEE Corporate Innovation Award, bolstering HBM leadership SK hynix has won the Corporate Innovation Award from the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, or IEEE, an honor often likened to a Nobel Prize in the electrical and electronics field. It is the first time a South Korean company has received the award for technology in the pure memory segment, the company said Sunday. SK hynix said it received the award at the “2026 IEEE Awards” ceremony held in the United States. IEEE is a leading academic society with more than 400,000 engineering and science professionals in 160 countries. The Corporate Innovation Award is decided through a strict review of technical achievement and the technology’s impact on industry and society. IEEE recognized SK hynix for its work on high-bandwidth memory, or HBM, including stable mass production across generations since it began full-scale development in 2009 and its contribution to building the global artificial intelligence ecosystem, the company said. The company said it was the first South Korean firm in the semiconductor field to receive an IEEE award. It was credited with addressing data bottlenecks that had long challenged AI computing and pushing past technical limits, earning high marks from academia and industry. Samsung Electronics won the same IEEE Corporate Innovation Award in 2010 for its WiMAX (WiBro) technology, the article said. SK hynix’s HBM first appeared in December 2013 through joint research with AMD. Early on, it was viewed as a niche technology with low profitability because of demanding processes and technical constraints. SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won backed long-term investment, providing continued research and development support worth tens of trillions of won, the article said. SK hynix later developed proprietary process innovations including through-silicon vias, or TSV, and MR-MUF, and became a key partner to global big tech companies including Nvidia. In February, Chey said at the U.S. Trans-Pacific Dialogue event, “This monster chip (HBM) is making our company a lot of money, and our current margin is over 60%,” adding, “We need to make more monster chips.” The article said the company’s focus has translated into results. SK hynix posted first-quarter revenue of 52.5763 trillion won and operating profit of 37.6103 trillion won, setting record highs for a fourth straight quarter. According to securities-industry consensus forecasts cited in the article, SK hynix’s annual revenue this year is projected at 358.0370 trillion won, with operating profit expected to reach as high as 277.7000 trillion won. If those estimates are realized, the company would rank around fourth globally, ahead of Microsoft (245 trillion won) and Alphabet (240 trillion won), the article said.* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-04-26 18:03:19 -
Justice Minister Jeong Seong-ho urges prosecutors to confront past abuses, avoid 'delayed justice' Justice Minister Jeong Seong-ho sharply criticized investigations carried out when Yoon Suk Yeol led the prosecution, urging prosecutors to reflect and change and warning against repeating “delayed justice.” In a Facebook post on the 26th, Jeong noted that the National Assembly recently selected members of the third Truth and Reconciliation Commission, saying preparations for its launch were complete and calling on the Justice Ministry and prosecutors to take a hard look at themselves. Jeong wrote that under the “Framework Act on Clearing Up Past Incidents for Truth and Reconciliation,” promulgated and put into force Feb. 5, the Assembly last Thursday elected 10 commissioners recommended by the legislature, completing the steps needed to start the third commission. He said the Justice Ministry and prosecutors “should not hesitate to reflect and change” in line with public demands to address “the errors and pain of the times.” He said that since taking office, the Justice Ministry and prosecutors have actively acknowledged state responsibility in cases brought by victims and bereaved families of past state violence, including by giving up appeals in damages suits or supporting retrials. Correcting past prosecutorial wrongdoing, he said, is also part of a prosecutor’s role. Still, Jeong said the legal maxim often attributed to English jurist Edward Coke — “justice delayed is justice denied” — weighs heavily. He offered an apology on behalf of the state to judicial victims and their families who, he said, suffered for a long time under the stigma of being labeled criminals. Jeong said prosecutors face public criticism that Yoon, described as a former head of the prosecution, ignored political neutrality, moved directly into political power and, throughout his time in office, actively helped remove his political opponents. Jeong cited investigative practices revealed during a parliamentary probe into political cases, including “hundreds” of search-and-seizure operations, “more than 100” summonses of defendants, and permits allowing witnesses to enter to assist those summoned. As someone with more than 30 years in the legal field, Jeong said, such conduct is “hard to excuse.” He said a prosecutor’s duty is to realize justice by pursuing the truth, and that observing due process is both a tool to prevent bias from distorting the truth and a constitutional requirement to protect citizens’ basic rights. If there is strong suspicion that prosecutors failed to follow due process, he said, prosecutors should investigate, uncover the truth and correct it to achieve justice. Jeong said he sympathizes with the sense of loss and defeat felt by prosecutors who, he said, have faced a situation akin to organizational dismantlement because of the wrongdoing of some “political prosecutors.” But, he added, “we cannot stay here,” and prosecutors must also empathize with the public anger and the suffering of those affected under the previous administration because they are “prosecutors for the people,” the sovereign. Jeong concluded that the Justice Ministry and prosecutors must not repeat “delayed justice,” and should confront and correct not only the mistakes of authoritarian governments decades ago but also wrongdoing that occurred more recently. If there were past wrongs, he said, they must be fully revealed and cut off. However painful, he added, pursuing truth and realizing justice are the foundation of prosecutors’ duty and existence, and the prosecution must be reborn as a guardian of justice.* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-04-26 17:39:08 -
Choo Kyung-ho Picked as People Power Party’s Daegu Mayor Candidate, to Face Kim Boo-kyum Rep. Choo Kyung-ho has been selected as the People Power Party’s candidate for Daegu mayor in the June 3 local elections, setting up a matchup with Democratic Party candidate Kim Boo-kyum, a former prime minister. The party’s central nomination committee announced April 26 that Choo won the primary held April 24-25. Speaking at a news conference at the party’s Daegu office in Suseong District, Choo said, “The competition is over. From this moment, we’re one team,” adding that he would “set aside small differences” to pursue “a major conservative unity and a major Daegu unity.” Introducing himself as “Choo Kyung-ho, a professional economy mayor who can be deployed from day one,” he said, “I will answer with the economy,” and vowed to “stay sharp and focused.” Addressing Kim, Choo said key tasks such as Daegu-North Gyeongsang integration should move forward “without wavering” regardless of who wins. He proposed forming a joint consultative body for Daegu’s economic development with participation from both the People Power Party and the Democratic Party to build a framework for “sustainable Daegu development” beyond administrations and parties. Observers said the race could reach a turning point as conservatives rally behind a single candidate. Rep. Joo Ho-young and former Korea Communications Commission Chair Lee Jin-sook, who had signaled independent bids after being cut from the nomination process, announced they would not run on April 23 and April 25, respectively. Lee, in tears, said she would support the People Power Party’s Daegu mayoral candidate, a move seen as helping consolidate conservative support. A poll commissioned by KBS Daegu and conducted by Hankook Research on April 20-22 among 800 Daegu residents age 18 and older, using wireless phone interviews, showed Kim at 43% and Choo at 26% in a head-to-head matchup. Details are available on the website of the National Election Survey Deliberation Commission. Analysts said Choo appeared to trail at the time, but noted the poll preceded the withdrawals and Choo’s nomination. As conservatives unified in Daegu, Democratic Party leaders also traveled to the city to back Kim. Party leader Jung Cheong-rae and policy chief Han Jeong-ae attended the opening of Kim’s campaign office. Kim presented a vision for Daegu in the era of artificial intelligence and robotics, saying the city has “top-level traditional manufacturing” but has struggled as times changed. He said combining that capacity with AI and robots would make Daegu a “digital industrialization hub.” Separately, the People Power Party’s nomination committee on April 26 approved a single-candidate recommendation of former lawmaker Yoo Eui-dong for the June 3 parliamentary by-election in Pyeongtaek-eul, Gyeonggi Province. Yoo is set to face Cho Kuk, leader of the Rebuilding Korea Party, who has declared his candidacy.* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-04-26 17:36:17 -
Suspect in WHCA dinner shooting identified as 31-year-old Caltech graduate Cole Thomas Allen Authorities identified the man arrested in the shooting at the White House Correspondents' Association annual dinner attended by President Donald Trump as a Southern California teacher and video game developer. The Los Angeles Times and other local media reported that the suspect was Cole Thomas Allen, 31, who lives in Torrance, California. The shooting occurred during the annual dinner in Washington. Allen rushed toward the dining area and opened fire, throwing the room into chaos. Trump was immediately evacuated from the stage by security personnel. Allen was arrested at the scene shortly after the attack. Authorities said he had a shotgun, a handgun and several bladed weapons. Prosecutors charged him with two counts involving the use of a firearm and one count of assaulting a federal official with a dangerous weapon. Washington federal prosecutor Jeanine Pirro said the suspect "tried to cause as much harm and destruction as possible." Allen was described as a high-achieving student in engineering and science. He graduated from the California Institute of Technology in 2017 with a mechanical engineering degree and earned a master's degree in computer engineering in 2025 from California State University, Dominguez Hills. On LinkedIn, he describes himself as a game developer, engineer, scientist and teacher. He worked as a teacher at C2 Education, a test-prep and tutoring company, and was named "Teacher of the Month" in December 2024. He also worked as an indie game developer. His game "Bohrdom," trademarked in 2019, was released on the Steam platform and has been described as a nonviolent game inspired by chemical models. People who knew him said they were stunned. Dylan Wakayama, chairman of the Torrance-based nonprofit Asian American Civic Trust, said students viewed Allen as very smart and strong in biology, math and science, and described him as gentle and quiet. Neighbors said they saw him often, exchanged greetings and considered him quiet and not disruptive. His political leanings appeared unclear. Federal Election Commission records show he donated $25 in 2024 to a Democratic fundraising group, but voter registration records list him as unaffiliated. The FBI and other investigators were searching a Torrance home believed to be Allen's residence as they looked into the background of the case and his motive. 2026-04-26 17:25:04