LG Display eyes turnaround as demand for OLED TVs surges in China SEOUL, April 22 (AJP) - Sales of televisions equipped with Korean-made OLED (organic light-emitting diode) panels are rapidly gaining ground in China’s premium TV market, reflecting a notable shift in consumer preferences and industry momentum. According to market research firm Omdia, OLED panels are projected to account for 78.3 percent of premium televisions priced above $2,500 in China this year. That figure marks a sharp increase from 47.2 percent in 2024, suggesting a growing appetite for high-end display technology despite the segment’s relatively modest size. Over the same period, the market share of LCD TVs in the premium bracket is expected to fall from 52.8 percent to 21.7 percent. China’s high-end television market remains relatively small, with annual sales estimated at between 200 billion and 300 billion won ($145 million to $220 million). Most Chinese consumers continue to favor more affordable options, with products under 10,000 yuan (roughly 2 million won, or $1,380) eligible for government subsidies that can cover up to 20 percent of the retail price, capped at 2,000 yuan. Still, analysts say OLED’s rising dominance in the premium category points to a broader trend: OLED is increasingly seen as the display of choice, even in China. The shift could provide a critical boost for South Korea’s LG Display, which supplies more than 80 percent of the world’s large OLED TV panels. The company is expected to return to profitability in the first half of this year, reversing two consecutive years of losses that each exceeded 2 trillion won. LG Display’s panels are used not only by its affiliate LG Electronics but also by competitors such as Samsung Electronics and Sony. Jung Cheol-dong, who was appointed chief executive in December 2023, has led a strategic overhaul aimed at streamlining the company’s large OLED operations and expanding its capabilities in small- and medium-sized displays. Analysts forecast that LG Display could post operating profits of around 500 billion won this year, marking its first profitable year since 2021. 2025-04-22 16:23:05

Procurement dispute emerges over Korea's first privately-led geostationary satellite SEOUL, April 22 (AJP) - A procurement dispute has erupted over South Korea’s first privately-led geostationary satellite development project, underscoring growing competition in the country’s burgeoning space sector. Industry sources said Tuesday that the committee overseeing the Chollian Satellite 5 project selected LIG Nex1 as the preferred negotiation partner for developing the satellite bus. The decision prompted a formal objection from rival bidder Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) on April 10. The disputed program — officially titled the Geostationary Meteorological and Space Weather Satellite System and Bus Development — is a national R&D initiative backed by 323.8 billion won ($236 million) and scheduled to run through 2031. The selection process prioritized technical capability and project readiness, explicitly excluding cost considerations. Final decisions were reached on April 1 following documentation review and presentations. KAI has challenged the decision, claiming LIG Nex1 lacks core experience in leading satellite systems or bus development and does not possess facilities for satellite assembly and testing. The company also raised concerns about the integrity of the evaluation process, pointing to potential conflicts of interest involving former Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI) employees serving on the review panel — some of whom, KAI alleges, may financially benefit from the project through technology transfer fees. The Korea Meteorological Industry and Technology Institute, which oversees the project, confirmed it is currently reviewing the objection. “We need to respond within 30 days of receiving the objection, and we are in the process of review and preparation,” a spokesperson said. “It is difficult to comment further at this time.” Analysts see the dispute as indicative of intensifying competition in South Korea’s space sector. “When selection is determined solely through qualitative evaluation, the potential for disputes grows — especially as the number of large-scale projects increases,” said one industry insider. “As the space industry matures, it’s essential to establish a fair and transparent evaluation framework.” The Chollian Satellite 5 project represents a milestone in South Korea’s space development strategy, with private firms taking on roles traditionally led by government research institutions. 2025-04-22 13:54:26

Bank of Korea seeks stronger role in shaping stablecoin regulations SEOUL, April 21 (AJP) - The Bank of Korea plans to take an active role in upcoming legislative deliberations on virtual assets, stressing the need for a distinct regulatory framework for stablecoins due to their potential impact on monetary policy and financial stability. In its report released Monday, the central bank warned that stablecoins — cryptocurrencies typically pegged to a national currency — carry characteristics that differ significantly from other digital assets and could pose systemic risks if left unregulated. “Stablecoins possess inherent payment instrument properties,” the report stated. “If they become widely used as substitutes for legal tender, they could undermine the effectiveness of central bank policies, disrupt financial stability, and pose risks to payment systems. A separate regulatory framework is essential.” As of December 2024, South Korea's five major virtual asset exchanges reported 18.25 million investors holding assets valued at 104.1 trillion won (approximately $76 billion), with an average daily trading volume of 17.2 trillion won. The Bank of Korea attributed the market’s growth to the approval of spot cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the United States and Hong Kong, as well as the European Union’s implementation of the Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) Regulation. The central bank also cited a surge in trading activity and investor inflows following the election of U.S. President Donald Trump, who has expressed support for the virtual asset sector. At a press briefing, Lee Byung-mok, director of the BOK’s Financial Settlement Bureau, cautioned that the stability of stablecoins could be threatened by external shocks. “If a stablecoin loses its one-to-one peg with legal tender, investors will rush to redeem, prompting issuers to withdraw substantial reserves,” he said. “Such scenarios could lead to liquidity stress and broader financial disruptions.” Deputy Governor Lee Jong-ryeol also addressed the central bank’s ongoing digital currency initiative, known as Project Hangang, and reassured the public that physical cash would remain in circulation. “Digital payment systems are vulnerable to power outages and communication failures,” Lee said. “Physical currency remains essential, particularly for the elderly and those unfamiliar with digital technologies. To maintain public trust, we will continue to issue physical currency and ensure its interchangeability with digital forms.” 2025-04-21 17:37:43

Japan imports Korean rice for first time in decades amid soaring prices SEOUL, April 21 (AJP) - For the first time since official export records began in 1990, Japan has imported South Korean rice for commercial sale, as a deepening domestic rice shortage pushes prices to record highs. According to South Korean agricultural officials, two metric tons of rice from Haenam County in South Jeolla Province cleared Japanese customs on April 8 and began selling in Korean supermarkets across Tokyo on April 10. The rice, marketed under the brand “Ttangkkeut Haetsal” and produced by the Okcheon Agricultural Cooperative, was harvested in 2024 and milled in March of this year. A 10-kilogram bag is priced at 9,000 yen, including tax and shipping — roughly 10 percent cheaper than Japanese rice, despite Japan’s 341 yen-per-kilogram import tariff. The Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation said that while South Korean rice was previously shipped to Japan as part of disaster relief efforts following the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake, this marks the first time it has been imported for retail sale. The initial two-ton shipment sold out within 10 days, prompting Korean suppliers to schedule an additional 10-ton shipment for May. Japan’s rice crisis has been driven by a combination of poor harvests, stockpiling triggered by recent earthquakes, and increased consumption from a rebound in foreign tourism. In response, the Ishiba administration released 210,000 tons from national reserves last month and plans to release another 100,000 tons by the end of April. But prices have continued to climb. Japanese media have also pointed to monopolistic behavior among major distributors as a contributing factor to the crisis. “The high domestic prices have made Korean rice competitive, even with import duties,” said a South Korean government official. Officials at the Okcheon cooperative said Japanese retailers are expressing growing interest in expanding Korean imports if price pressures persist. 2025-04-21 15:09:36

E-mart challenges Daiso in budget beauty market SEOUL, April 21 (AJP) - E-Mart has stepped into the ultra-budget cosmetics market with the launch of a new skincare line developed in collaboration with LG Household & Health Care, marking a strategic push to capture cost-conscious beauty consumers. The retail firm announced Monday that it has debuted “Glowvby Beyond,” a new line under LG H&H’s beauty brand Beyond. The collection includes eight skincare products, each priced at 4,950 won (approximately $3.60), and is designed to promote skin elasticity and radiance while keeping costs low through streamlined packaging and AI-driven marketing. Glowvby Beyond’s product lineup features toner, serum, cream, wrinkle patches, eye ampoule, night mask cream, a pack-to-foam cleanser, and a multi-balm. Key ingredients include collagen, bakuchiol, and glutathione — commonly touted for their firming and brightening effects. E-Mart said the collaboration was born out of rising consumer demand for affordable skincare options. The move positions the retailer to directly challenge Daiso, which has long dominated the space with cosmetics priced between 1,000 and 5,000 won. By comparison, many mid-range Korean beauty brands sell similar products for 20,000 to 30,000 won. Daiso has seen remarkable growth in this category, with cosmetics sales rising 144 percent year-on-year in 2024. Much of that surge has been driven by viral products, such as a multicolor hand and body balm that has drawn comparisons to Chanel’s offerings, and VT’s Riddle Shot ampoule. The budget beauty battleground is growing increasingly crowded. Convenience store chains like GS25 and CU are also vying for market share. GS25 is currently piloting sales of Wicci’s color cosmetics through the fashion platform Musinsa, while CU introduced a compact skincare line in partnership with Angel Rooka last September. GS25 has posted consistent growth in beauty sales: up 22.4 percent in 2022, 37.9 percent in 2023, and 45.6 percent in 2024. 2025-04-21 10:55:20

Leferi's beauty retail strategy draws crowds online and off SEOUL, April 18 (AJP) - Leferi, a global beauty retail company, is deepening its commitment to creator-led commerce with the success of its latest omnichannel initiative, the "Minsco Select Store," the company said Friday. The campaign, launched in partnership with Hyundai Department Store, blends online and offline retail in what Leferi describes as its next step in redefining beauty retail. The initiative builds on the company’s earlier pop-up concepts and integrates live commerce with physical retail space, a strategy that has drawn more than 320,000 cumulative views across its livestream broadcasts. The most recent live shopping event, "Minsco Beauty Room," aired on March 19 and featured beauty influencer Minsco alongside the vegan cosmetics brand "athe." The livestream showcased the exclusive online debut of athe’s new Lip Glow Balm in shade No. 6, “Bird.” Simultaneously broadcast at the physical storefront inside The Hyundai Seoul, the event aimed to bridge digital and in-person shopping through an immersive, synchronized experience. Operating from March 14 to 26, the Minsco Select Store featured 54 products from 29 beauty brands, each personally curated by Minsco. The space was designed to foster direct engagement between creator and customer — an experience Minsco facilitated by offering personalized product recommendations and in-store consultations. The approach reflects a growing shift in the beauty industry toward interactive, creator-driven retail. Leferi, which has cultivated more than 1,500 content creators and maintains a network of roughly 800 influencers worldwide, said it plans to scale the select store model globally by year’s end. The company has positioned itself at the forefront of “shoppertainment,” a hybrid of shopping and entertainment that merges content creation, manufacturing, marketing, and distribution into a vertically integrated retail model centered on creator intellectual property. 2025-04-18 13:51:25

South Korean steel exports to US drop sharply, affected by tariffs SEOUL, April 18 (AJP) - South Korean steel exports to the United States plunged in March, affected by the implementation of the Trump administration’s first wave of global tariffs, newly released trade data show. According to figures published Friday by the Korea International Trade Association, steel exports to the United States totaled $340 million in March, marking an 18.9 percent decline compared with the same month last year. In terms of volume, shipments fell 14.9 percent to 250,000 tons. The sharp drop came as the Trump administration imposed sweeping tariffs on metal imports, enacting a 25 percent duty on steel and a 10 percent duty on aluminum beginning March 12. The new measures eliminated quota-based tariff exemptions for key allies, including South Korea, effectively voiding Seoul’s annual duty-free quota of 2.63 million tons — a concession that had been in place since 2018. Analysts said the tariffs may have contributed to the March downturn. Steel exports are typically arranged months in advance, and shipment volumes can be influenced by a variety of factors, including fluctuations in U.S. demand. The data showed that exports of steel plates, a key material in automobile manufacturing, saw a steep decline of 32.9 percent. In contrast, exports of steel pipe products edged up 3.9 percent. In response to the shifting trade landscape, South Korean steelmakers are ramping up efforts to localize production in the United States. Hyundai Steel recently unveiled plans to build an electric arc furnace mill in Louisiana, a project expected to cost approximately 30 trillion won (about $22 billion) and begin commercial operations by 2029. POSCO, another major Korean steelmaker, is reportedly considering a co-investment in the facility to share production capacity. 2025-04-18 13:38:02

Beyond tourist shelf — Korea's true makeup bestsellers Editor's Note: This is the second article in our series exploring the evolving landscape of the Korean beauty industry and the products that captivate international visitors. This series is designed to offer insights into the products, brands, and cultural shifts defining Korea’s beauty scene today. SEOUL, April 17 (AJP) - For many foreign visitors to South Korea, a trip to Olive Young — the ubiquitous health and beauty chain — is as essential as stopping by a Daiso or savoring street food in Myeong-dong. Yet what tourists see on social media often differs from the products Korean consumers actually put in their shopping baskets. In a country where beauty trends shift with lightning speed — influenced heavily by K-pop idols and viral TV moments — Olive Young’s shelves reflect a fast-paced, ever-changing cosmetic culture. A single visit to one of its flagship locations in Seoul might yield a completely different product lineup just days later. “I noticed how specific everything is here,” said Kara, a male shopper from the United States, while browsing an Olive Young in Gangnam. “In the U.S., products are very generalist. But in Korea, there are top products for very specific concerns — like acne scars or redness. There’s even a ranking for each category.” That specificity is part of what drives local consumer habits — and what makes the actual bestsellers in Korea different from what often trends abroad. Take Dasique’s “Milk Latte” eyeshadow palette, a muted collection of beiges and soft browns designed to achieve the signature “soft, pillowy” eye look popularized by Korean celebrities. Favored by makeup artists in Seoul’s upscale Cheongdam-dong neighborhood, the palette is a go-to for idol groups like Le Sserafim — valued for its versatility across skin tones and subtlety for daily wear. Another favorite emerged during the summer of 2024, when the "highlighter boom" hit South Korea in the wake of aespa’s glowing visuals in their Supernova music video. While their makeup artist reportedly used products from American brand Ofra, it was Clio’s Prism Highlighter — particularly in the soft pink shade #02 “Fairy Pink” — that soared in popularity after its appearance on the Netflix dating show Single’s Inferno. The shade, along with the classic gold version, has since dominated Olive Young’s annual beauty rankings. DINTO’s Blur Glow Lip Tint in shade 205 “Justitia” has also become a quiet phenomenon. Loved especially by those with “summer cool light” undertones — a skin tone classification popular in Korean beauty — the tint provides a fresh, non-sticky finish. It’s a staple in professional kits for performances, broadcasts, and weddings. Among blush options, few have the cult status of Fwee’s Mellow Blushers in “Highkey Happiness,” a vivid hot pink that transforms into a natural flush with just a light touch. With a marshmallow-like texture reminiscent of Maybelline’s bouncy blushers, the product has been discontinued as a single item but is still available in the brand’s Dual Blusher sets. Also from Fwee, the Lip & Cheek Blurry Pudding Pot — offered in an impressive 30-shade range — continues to be praised for its skin-friendly, creamy texture and dual-purpose function, catering to users across ethnicities and undertones. “Whenever there’s a new trend, I go to Olive Young to test it out,” said Kim, a woman in her twenties, shopping at the store’s flagship in Myeong-dong. “It’s a convenient way to try new things — and see what everyone else is using.” What sets these products apart isn’t just their occasional online fame, but the fact that they’re the daily picks of Korean makeup artists, celebrities, and ordinary shoppers alike. For those seeking an authentic K-beauty experience, the distinction between “what foreigners are told to buy” and “what Koreans actually use” can make all the difference. 2025-04-18 09:57:44

Musinsa sees Japanese transaction volume double in first quarter SEOUL, April 17 (AJP) - Musinsa Global, the international sales wing of South Korean retailer Musinsa, reported a sharp increase in transaction volume and membership numbers in Japan during the first quarter of 2025, demonstrating the potential success of K-fashion in the Japanese market, the company announced on Thursday. According to Musinsa's analysis, transaction volume in Japan through its Global Store increased by 114 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2025. During the same period, both cumulative members and purchasing customers in Japan more than doubled compared to the previous year. As of March, monthly active users (MAU) of Musinsa's Global Store in Japan grew by 82 percent year-on-year. Since establishing Musinsa Japan as its first overseas subsidiary in Tokyo in 2021, the company has focused on penetrating the local fashion market. Brands gaining recognition through Musinsa Global are increasingly noticed as rising brands in Japan. In the first quarter of this year, about 30 brands including Blue Elephant, LCDCT.M, and Urago saw their transaction volumes in Japan increase more than threefold compared to the previous year, while brands such as Matin Kim, YESEYESEE, and ILLIGO have recorded monthly transactions in the hundreds of millions of won. "We are receiving positive responses as a result of our attempts at localized marketing, content, and branding strategies to showcase Korean fashion brands attractively to Japanese customers," a Musinsa representative said. "We will continue to actively support more fashion brands to strengthen their competitiveness in the Japanese market and enhance our position as a global fashion platform driving K-fashion's overseas expansion." 2025-04-17 17:30:16

U.S. targets Chinese AI firm DeepSeek over security concerns SEOUL, April 17 (AJP) - The Trump administration, together with Congress, is ramping up pressure on Chinese artificial intelligence firm DeepSeek, tightening sanctions amid growing worries over national security threats. On Thursday, the House Select Committee on Strategic Competition between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party released a report describing DeepSeek as a “profound threat” to American interests. While the company presents itself as a standard AI chatbot provider, the report alleges that its platform is built on technology that poses serious risks. “DeepSeek’s app appears to be a typical AI chatbot, but in reality, it relies on a model that allows data to leak to China, creates security vulnerabilities for users, and secretly censors and manipulates information in accordance with Chinese law,” the committee wrote. It further claimed that the model was likely developed using stolen U.S. technology, including semiconductor chips that are barred from export to China. The committee also highlighted the company’s deep ties to the Chinese government. Founder Liang Wenfeng is reportedly linked to hardware distributors and state-affiliated research institutions. Citing cybersecurity firm Feroot Security, the report accused DeepSeek of collecting large volumes of user data and transmitting it through infrastructure connected to China Mobile, a government-owned telecom provider. “While the extent of data transmission has not yet been confirmed, DeepSeek’s integration with China Mobile infrastructure raises serious concerns about potential access to personal information of Americans,” the report said. It also pointed to previous allegations from OpenAI, the developer of ChatGPT, suggesting DeepSeek may have illegally copied its underlying technology. In light of these concerns, the committee is urging the U.S. government to tighten export controls on AI chips and to closely monitor shipments to countries seen as high-risk for re-export to China, including Singapore. The New York Times reported that the Trump administration is weighing punitive actions to block DeepSeek from accessing U.S. technology altogether. Meanwhile, lawmakers have launched a separate investigation into Nvidia’s chip sales in Asia. The committee is examining whether the U.S. chipmaker knowingly supplied AI technology to DeepSeek in violation of existing regulations. According to a committee official quoted by the New York Times, Nvidia has been ordered to hand over detailed records of all customers in 11 Asian countries within two weeks. The committee has subpoena authority if needed, the official added. 2025-04-17 17:01:30