AJP Election Watch: Heavyweight match in Daegu, Kim Boo-kyum vs Choo Kyung-ho SEOUL, May 20 (AJP) -Daegu, a traditional conservative stronghold, remains one of the rare constituencies on South Korea’s electoral map still firmly painted red — the color of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP). In the 2022 presidential election, former President Yoon Suk Yeol captured 75.14 percent of the vote in the southeastern city. A decade earlier, former conservative President Park Geun-hye had also dominated the region. The city did not abandon conservatives even after Yoon’s impeachment following his December 2024 martial law debacle. In last year’s snap presidential election, PPP candidate Kim Moon-soo defeated President Lee Jae Myung by 67.6 percent to 23.2 percent in Daegu. Whether Lee’s approval rating hovering around 60 percent, combined with a divided conservative front, can crack that decades-old political tradition in the June 3 local elections is now one of the country’s most closely watched political questions. The matchup itself is heavyweight politics. Representing the ruling Democratic Party (DP) is former Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum, a four-term lawmaker under the administration of former liberal President Moon Jae-in. Facing him is PPP Rep. Choo Kyung-ho, a three-term lawmaker who last served as deputy prime minister for economy and finance minister under Yoon. Daegu has never elected a liberal mayor since local elections were institutionalized in 1995. Kim nevertheless has entered the race emboldened by his breakthrough victory in Daegu’s Suseong A district in 2016, when he became the only Democratic Party lawmaker elected from the city. This time, his chances may not be as slim. A Metavoice-Research Lab survey commissioned by JTBC and conducted May 5–6 showed Choo at 41 percent and Kim at 40 percent — a one-point gap within the margin of error. Daegu has effectively become a political testbed for both parties. For the DP, a victory would mark a historic breach into the conservatives’ last fortress. For conservatives, holding the city would reinforce a regional base crucial for any future political revival. At the center of the race is the economy. According to latest government data on Korea’s regional GDP, Daegu posted a 3.9 percent contraction — the steepest decline among all metropolitan cities and provinces nationwide in the first quarter of 2025. Both candidates are framing themselves as crisis managers with the bureaucratic credentials to revive the city’s stagnant economy. Kim is pitching a vision to transform Daegu into “the Pangyo of the South,” referencing the technology hub often dubbed Korea’s Silicon Valley. “To revive Daegu’s economy, we have to change the industrial structure itself,” Kim told AJP in written interview. He argued that Daegu should combine its traditional industrial base — machinery, metals, auto parts and textiles — with artificial intelligence technologies to modernize “design, manufacturing processes, quality control and logistics.” Kim’s blueprint centers on linking Suseong Alpha City, Technopolis, DGIST, local universities, research institutes and private companies into a unified regional innovation ecosystem. “We will create a structure in which young people can learn, find jobs and grow in Daegu,” Kim said. He also pledged to establish an “Asian global youth startup and culture convergence special zone” along with a 100 billion won ($66.3 million) youth startup fund aimed at helping young entrepreneurs commercialize ideas and expand globally. Choo is also pitching economic restructuring — but from the perspective of a veteran economic technocrat. “The biggest reason Daegu’s economy is struggling is that it has not sufficiently responded to changes in the industrial structure,” Choo told AJP separately in his election office in Daegu. “Daegu once led Korea’s industrialization with textiles and manufacturing, but it failed to secure enough growth engines as the industrial paradigm shifted toward AI, semiconductors and digital industries.” Choo proposes fostering five future industries — AI, robotics, future mobility, bio and semiconductors — while simultaneously upgrading traditional sectors such as machinery and textiles. He is also emphasizing service industries favored by younger workers, including medical services, culture, tourism, gaming and digital content. A defining feature of Choo’s campaign is his focus on execution. Rather than offering “mere slogans,” he says he is proposing “actual implementation structures,” including emergency economic task force meetings, a supplementary livelihood budget, a foreign investment attraction team, an AI transformation committee, a startup growth fund and “Daegu-style” university-industry contract departments. The political logic behind Kim’s campaign is straightforward: leverage the power of the ruling party. The next four-year mayoral term will overlap almost entirely with the remaining four years of Lee’s presidency and the DP-controlled National Assembly. “At this time, the success or failure of key issues such as the TK new airport depends on who can better draw support and cooperation from the central government and the ruling party, which holds a majority in the National Assembly,” Kim said. “My strength is the political power and execution ability to turn Daegu’s demands into reality.” Kim also directly challenged Choo’s claim to economic expertise. He pointed out that Daegu’s national budget allocations increased by 10.94 percent in 2021 and 15.47 percent in 2022 during his premiership, while increases slowed sharply to just 0.59 percent in 2023 and 0.94 percent in 2024 when Choo served as finance minister. “‘Finance minister’ is a title, not performance itself,” Kim said. “What Daegu needs now is not a mayor who talks, but a mayor who produces results.” Choo rejects the notion that a PPP mayor would be disadvantaged under a Democratic administration. “The Daegu mayor is an administrator responsible for citizens’ lives,” Choo said. “I have no intention of becoming a mayor who clashes with the central government just because our parties are different.” He argued that his 35 years as an economic bureaucrat, along with his experience as deputy prime minister and finance minister, provide practical leverage. “I know very well how budgets are made,” Choo said. “I have networks across all areas of government ministries. I can communicate directly with working-level officials who design policies and managers who make decisions.” On youth policy, both candidates agree the city’s core problem is not simply population decline, but the lack of quality jobs and competitive wages. Kim said many young residents have told him: “Starting salaries in Daegu’s IT industry are about 70 percent of those in Pangyo,” and “I don’t want to leave my family, but I have no choice.” “This problem cannot be solved with short-term support alone,” Kim said. “Through industrial transformation, major company attraction and future industry development, we will create a structure in which good jobs and better wages are possible within the region.” He is also proposing a “Youth Dandi Chaeum” savings program that would help young workers accumulate up to 30 million won in assets over five years. Choo’s youth strategy focuses on attracting young people back through industrial growth, startup support and stronger university-industry ties. He has proposed “youth reshoring,” Daegu-style contract departments and a 1 trillion won startup fund to cultivate unicorn companies. “We will make Daegu a city where young people return,” Choo said, arguing that future industries and high-value service sectors can reverse the city’s demographic decline. The next mayor will also inherit several major regional development projects, most notably the relocation of Daegu’s military airport and construction of the new TK airport. The project is viewed not merely as an aviation issue, but as a broader test of Daegu’s ability to integrate economically with North Gyeongsang Province, expand logistics networks and attract new industries. Kim frames the airport initiative as an issue requiring political leverage at the national level. Choo frames it as an administrative and fiscal challenge demanding deep experience within the central government bureaucracy. “Cooperation is not achieved through vague requests or begging,” Choo said. “I have learned over decades how work actually gets done.” He added that projects such as the TK new airport and Daegu–North Gyeongsang administrative integration “must be pursued beyond party lines.” Kim, meanwhile, insists Daegu needs a mayor capable of extracting concrete support from the current national power structure. “The new mayor will work on the same timetable as the remaining four years of the president’s term,” Kim said. “Who can better bring in support from the central government and the ruling party will decide the fate of key pending issues.” For decades, Daegu mayoral elections were viewed as predictable contests in conservative territory. This year, however, the race has evolved into a direct showdown between two nationally recognized political heavyweights who agree Daegu must reinvent itself, but disagree sharply on who is best equipped to deliver that transformation. Kim is asking voters to break with Daegu’s political history and use the ruling party’s national power to bring investment, budgets and jobs into the city. Choo is asking voters to trust a veteran conservative economic bureaucrat who says he can rebuild Daegu’s economy “from day one.” “This election is ultimately about who can revive Daegu’s economy,” Choo said. “Choo Kyung-ho will become a professional economic mayor who works skillfully from the first day.” Kim’s closing message is equally blunt. “Daegu now needs a mayor who can produce results, not just words,” he said. 2026-05-20 15:52:57

Korea, India to sign MOU on honoring Korean War veterans SEOUL, May 20 (AJP) - South Korea and India will work together on international veterans affairs projects to honor Indian veterans who served in the 1950-53 Korean War as part of a medical support unit, Seoul’s Veterans Affairs Ministry said Wednesday. Minister of Patriots and Veterans Affairs Kwon Oh-eul and visiting Indian Defense Minister Rajnath Singh will sign a memorandum of understanding on bilateral cooperation in international veterans affairs at the Indian Korean War Memorial in Imjingak, Paju, Gyeonggi Province, on Thursday. Under the MOU, the two countries will cooperate in collecting historical records related to India’s participation in the war, honoring veterans, promoting exchanges for veterans’ descendants and future generations, and carrying out academic, educational and cultural projects to shed light on the significance of India’s contribution. After signing the agreement, the two ministers will also attend an unveiling ceremony for the first memorial in South Korea dedicated to Indian Korean War veterans, built by India’s Defense Ministry. The memorial includes busts of Lt. Col. A.G. Rangaraj, who commanded a field hospital during the Korean War, and Gen. K.S. Thimayya, who served as chairman of the Neutral Nations Repatriation Commission after the armistice agreement. Rangaraj was selected by Seoul’s Veterans Affairs Ministry as the Korean War Hero of the Month in March. During the unveiling ceremony, Kwon will present a plaque recognizing the honor to Rangaraj’s descendant, Kalpana Prasad. When the Korean War broke out, India, then a neutral country, dispatched the largest medical contingent among countries that sent medical support, in line with a U.N. resolution on civilian relief. India’s 60th Parachute Field Ambulance arrived in Busan in 1950 and treated many soldiers and patients near the front lines while moving alongside combat units. 2026-05-20 15:45:58

JYP Entertainment donates 100 mln won for children's rehabilitation treatment SEOUL, May 20 (AJP) - JYP Entertainment has signed a social contribution agreement with Seoul Rehabilitation Hospital and donated 100 million won to support rehabilitation treatment for children and young people with disabilities, the company said Monday. JYP Entertainment and Seoul Rehabilitation Hospital signed the agreement Monday at JYP Center in Seongnae-dong, Gangdong District, Seoul. Seoul Rehabilitation Hospital is a public children's rehabilitation hospital in the Seoul metropolitan area. The donation will be used to help patients aged 24 or younger cover rehabilitation treatment costs and purchase assistive devices. Byun Sang-bong, chief financial officer (CFO) and vice president of JYP Entertainment, said the company decided to partner with the hospital to extend its support beyond surgeries and medical treatment to rehabilitation care. "We hope this will help further develop the pediatric and adolescent rehabilitation system that Seoul Rehabilitation Hospital has built and allow its impact to reach broader communities," Byun said. Lee Ji-sun, director of Seoul Rehabilitation Hospital, said the funds will be used to provide practical support for patients and families in need of rehabilitation treatment and assistive devices. The donation is part of JYP's corporate social responsibility program EDM, short for "Every Dream Matters." Launched in 2020, the EDM medical expense support project has helped children in need of surgery and treatment. From 2020 to 2025, JYP donated a total of 7.92 billion won ($5.25 million) through the program, supporting medical expenses for 4,101 children across 10 countries, including South Korea. JYP Entertainment said it will continue EDM-related social contribution projects in 2026, including medical expense support, volunteer programs and its Love Earth environmental initiative. 2026-05-20 15:31:42

Stray Kids notch 20th music video with 100 million YouTube views SEOUL, May 20 (AJP) - K-pop boy group Stray Kids’ music video for “Walkin On Water” has surpassed 100 million views on YouTube, becoming the group’s 20th music video to reach the milestone, JYP Entertainment said Wednesday. The music video crossed the 100 million mark Tuesday afternoon. “Walkin On Water” is the title track of “合 (HOP),” a SKZHOP HIPTAPE project released by Stray Kids on Dec. 13, 2024. The video features large-scale choreography and visuals set against traditional and modern backdrops. Stray Kids now has 20 music videos with more than 100 million views on YouTube, the most among fourth-generation K-pop boy groups, according to JYP Entertainment. Previous titles to reach the mark include “God’s Menu,” “Back Door,” “MIROH,” “Hellevator,” “MANIAC,” “S-Class,” “LALALALA,” “Chk Chk Boom” and “MEGAVERSE,” among others. “合 (HOP)” became Stray Kids’ sixth consecutive album to top the Billboard 200, the main U.S. albums chart. “Walkin On Water” uses the image of walking on water and navigating rough waves as a metaphor for the group’s confidence on stage. Stray Kids is set to headline The Governors Ball Music Festival in New York on June 6 and Rock in Rio in Brazil on Sept. 11. 2026-05-20 15:31:26

Timeline: Samsung Electronics labor dispute SEOUL, May 20 (AJP) - Samsung Electronics and its labor union failed to reach an agreement in government-mediated wage talks on Wednesday, one day before a planned strike, as disputes over bonus caps and compensation structures remained unresolved. The union said it would proceed with its planned general strike starting Thursday following the collapse of negotiations. Above is the timeline leading to the general strike, beginning with the March 18 vote in which 93.1 percent of participating union members approved strike action. At the heart of the dispute is the cap on bonus payouts, an issue that intensified after rival chipmaker SK hynix removed its bonus ceiling and distributed up to U.S. $477,000 per employee following its record 2025 performance — equivalent to 10 percent of the company’s annual operating profit. Samsung’s main labor union, which is largely led by semiconductor workers, is demanding that the company allocate 15 percent of annual operating profit to employee bonuses and remove the current payout cap altogether. 2026-05-20 15:31:06

ASIA DEEP INSIGHT: The center of global power is moving eastward SEOUL, May 20 (AJP) - The world is passing through one of the great transitional eras of modern history. The global contest over artificial intelligence between the United States and China, the prolonged devastation of the war in Ukraine, and the widening instability caused by the conflict involving Iran and the Strait of Hormuz have together accelerated the restructuring of the international order. Political uncertainty, energy insecurity, technological rivalry, and financial fragmentation are no longer isolated phenomena. They are converging into a single historical transformation. The world emerging before us is neither the unipolar order that followed the Cold War nor a fully stabilized multipolar system. The United States remains the dominant military and financial power, sustained by the dollar-centered global system and unmatched strategic reach. China, however, is rapidly advancing through manufacturing capacity, demographic scale, digital infrastructure, and artificial intelligence. Meanwhile, Europe, which once stood at the center of global civilization, is increasingly burdened by aging populations, energy vulnerability, industrial fatigue, and strategic hesitation. Russia, weakened by the enormous costs of war and isolation, is gradually losing both economic momentum and geopolitical flexibility. And amid this shifting landscape, a new historical center of gravity is emerging: Northeast Asia. For more than two centuries, the axis of global power moved from the western edge of Eurasia — Britain, France, and Germany — across the Atlantic to the United States. The Industrial Revolution, maritime supremacy, financial capitalism, and military innovation established Western civilization as the dominant force of the modern era. But the geography of power is changing once again. Manufacturing, semiconductors, batteries, artificial intelligence, shipbuilding, digital infrastructure, and advanced supply chains are increasingly concentrated in East Asia. Capital, technology, and industrial energy are flowing toward the Pacific basin. The twenty-first century may ultimately be remembered as the era in which the center of world civilization shifted from the Atlantic to the Indo-Pacific. Within that transformation, few developments are more strategically significant than the gradual reconciliation and convergence of South Korea and Japan. The summit held in Andong between South Korean President Lee Jae Myung and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi was not merely another diplomatic meeting. It reflected something larger and more consequential: the recognition that the future security and prosperity of Northeast Asia may depend increasingly on the ability of Seoul and Tokyo to move beyond the paralysis of history and toward strategic cooperation. The two leaders discussed joint responses to energy insecurity, expanded LNG and oil cooperation, supply-chain resilience, and the possibility of oil and petroleum product swap arrangements. These are not symbolic gestures. They are the building blocks of an emerging economic and strategic framework. More importantly, shuttle diplomacy between the two nations has entered a new phase of normalization and emotional trust. Diplomatic engagement is no longer confined to Seoul and Tokyo. It now extends to regional cities such as Busan, Nara, Gyeongju, and Andong — places rich with historical memory and cultural identity. That evolution matters. Genuine diplomacy does not endure through official communiqués alone. It survives through human familiarity, regional exchange, shared experience, and mutual recognition. Only a few years ago, relations between South Korea and Japan were dominated by bitter disputes over wartime history, forced labor, export restrictions, and unresolved emotional wounds. Yet geopolitical reality has slowly pushed both countries toward a more sober understanding of their shared circumstances. China's rise, North Korea's nuclear ambitions, instability in global energy markets, and shifts in American strategic priorities have all forced Seoul and Tokyo to confront a difficult truth: neither country can fully secure its future alone. Economically, the logic of cooperation is becoming increasingly compelling. Japan possesses extraordinary strengths in precision manufacturing, industrial materials, and foundational technologies. South Korea has emerged as a global leader in semiconductors, batteries, shipbuilding, digital infrastructure, and applied industrial innovation. Japanese industrial depth combined with Korean speed and adaptability could create one of the most formidable technological ecosystems in the world. The age of artificial intelligence makes such collaboration even more essential. Modern supply chains are no longer linear or national. Semiconductor production alone requires integrated systems involving design, materials, equipment, manufacturing, packaging, energy, cooling technologies, and massive data infrastructure. No single nation can dominate such systems entirely by itself. In that sense, South Korea and Japan are gradually becoming not merely neighbors, but strategic partners bound by technological interdependence. This is why the concept of a Korea–Japan economic community, previously discussed by SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, deserves far greater international attention than it has received. Such a community would not mean economic integration alone. It could evolve into a broader framework encompassing finance, tourism, sports, youth exchanges, cultural industries, energy security, AI cooperation, advanced manufacturing, and maritime logistics. Economics creates systems. Culture creates emotional trust. Tourism and sports create familiarity between peoples. A genuine regional community requires all three. The international community naturally views this emerging Korea–Japan alignment with a mixture of hope, caution, and strategic anxiety. The United States strongly supports closer cooperation between Seoul and Tokyo because such cooperation strengthens the broader democratic alliance structure in Asia. Yet Washington may also quietly recognize that a deeply integrated South Korea–Japan technological bloc could eventually operate with greater strategic autonomy. China, meanwhile, supports regional economic integration in principle but remains wary of a closer alignment between two liberal democracies closely tied to the American alliance system. Russia, increasingly constrained by war and economic exhaustion, finds itself less capable than ever of shaping developments in Northeast Asia. Europe, too, watches carefully. For decades, Europe represented the intellectual and industrial center of modern civilization. Today, however, East Asia increasingly defines the pace of manufacturing innovation, digital commerce, consumer technology, and cultural influence. South Korean popular culture and Japanese creative industries together already possess immense global reach. Korean film, music, television, and digital culture, combined with Japanese animation, literature, gaming, and design, could form one of the most influential cultural spheres of the century. And culture matters. In the modern world, cultural influence is no longer secondary to economic power. It shapes tourism, consumer behavior, national identity, and geopolitical soft power itself. Sports may prove equally important. Youth football exchanges, baseball cooperation, e-sports leagues, academic partnerships, and regional tourism networks can often accomplish what formal diplomacy cannot. Political treaties may open doors, but human relationships sustain civilizations. None of this erases history. The wounds between Korea and Japan remain real. Forced labor, wartime memory, territorial disputes, and unresolved historical grievances continue to carry emotional and political weight in both societies. Those wounds should neither be denied nor trivialized. But there is a profound difference between remembering history and becoming imprisoned by it. The challenge for both nations is not to forget the past, but to prevent the past from destroying the future. That requires strategic maturity, historical empathy, and what classical East Asian philosophy once described as seeking common ground while respecting differences. The future of South Korea–Japan relations cannot remain limited to summit meetings alone. Businesses must connect supply chains and innovation networks. Universities must connect young people and knowledge systems. Local governments must expand tourism and cultural cooperation. Media institutions must move beyond perpetual conflict narratives and help societies imagine the possibilities of coexistence. Ultimately, governments may open the door, but ordinary citizens must walk through it. Politics can create frameworks. Economics can build roads. Culture can connect hearts. Younger generations can transform historical rivalry into shared destiny. The center of global power is slowly moving eastward. The Atlantic age that dominated the world since the eighteenth century is gradually giving way to a Pacific and Indo-Pacific era. Within that transition, the partnership between South Korea and Japan may become one of the defining forces shaping the future of East Asia. The summit in Andong was not simply a diplomatic event. It may one day be remembered as a quiet but decisive signal of historical realignment. History is not shaped only by wars and empires. Sometimes it is reshaped by nations choosing cooperation over resentment, strategy over emotion, and the future over the burdens of the past. And if South Korea and Japan can truly move forward together, they may yet become standard-bearers for global peace and prosperity in the twenty-first century. 2026-05-20 15:22:46

Homeplus stores fade as Korea's offline retail hunts for a lifeline SEOUL, May 20 (AJP) - Finding a grocery item for an impromptu home dinner has become something of a luxury, said Michelle, an expatriate homemaker in her 40s living in Seorae Village, a quiet enclave in southern Seoul that is home to much of Korea’s French community due to its proximity to the country’s only French international school. Apart from a handful of convenience stores, butcher shops and fruit vendors, the neighborhood’s only meaningful grocery option is a Homeplus supermarket whose shelves are increasingly dominated by tissues, detergents and whatever inventory remains. "I walked around the neighborhood for more than half an hour to buy a carton of eggs," she said. "I gave up on finding spaghetti sauce." The affluent Seocho district neighborhood has seen more than three grocery stores shut down in recent years, leaving Homeplus as the area’s last sizable brick-and-mortar supermarket. Weekend checkout lines regularly stretch across the store, while delivery orders can take hours. But even there, signs of retreat are becoming difficult to ignore. Cashiers have been reduced to a single counter, and delivery staff have all but disappeared. At the retailer's branch in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province, the basement floor once occupied by cosmetics chains Olive Young and Nature Republic now sits vacant after both tenants pulled out. The pork counter labeled "Handon" — domestic pork — displays wooden cutting boards instead of meat. Ceramic bowls sweat with condensation beside packs of marinated bulgogi, while kitchen scissors rest awkwardly among refrigerated chicken trays. Frying pans are stacked in the eggs-and-tofu aisle. In the liquor section, beer has vanished entirely. Only zero-alcohol versions of Hite and Terra beer remain alongside slow-moving whisky and traditional liquors. Soju is nowhere to be found. The scene tells a sharper story than any balance sheet. Homeplus, South Korea's second-largest hypermarket operator, is bleeding cash under court-led rehabilitation proceedings even after agreeing to sell its supermarket arm, Homeplus Express, to NS Shopping, an affiliate of Harim Group, for around 120 billion won ($79 million). The proceeds from the sale are not expected to arrive until late June, and the company said earlier this week that 37 of its 104 hypermarkets have suspended operations since May 10. Only 67 stores remain open. Local reports say April salaries went unpaid, while payroll due Thursday for May is also unlikely to be met. Homeplus has requested a short-term bridge loan from its largest creditor, Meritz Financial Group, using the proceeds from the Express sale as collateral. But negotiations have reportedly stalled as Meritz demands joint guarantees from owner MBK Partners and company management, citing potential breach-of-trust risks should the rehabilitation collapse. "Without resolving wage arrears and unpaid supplier bills, it is extremely difficult to sustain the rehabilitation process," Homeplus said in a statement. "If the remaining 67 stores are also forced to close, continuing rehabilitation proceedings will no longer be feasible." The picture beyond Homeplus is hardly any brighter. Data from South Korea's Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy show sales at large discount chains plunged 15.2 percent in March from a year earlier, marking the sector’s eighth consecutive quarter of decline since the second quarter of 2024. Smaller-format supermarket chains, known locally as SSMs, saw sales fall 8.6 percent. Online retail, by contrast, expanded 8.1 percent and now accounts for 60.6 percent of all major retail sales. The hypermarket sector's share has shrunk to just 8.1 percent, down sharply from 15.1 percent in 2021. The collapse in consumer trust toward Coupang following last year's data breach briefly dented e-commerce momentum, but analysts say the damage inflicted on offline retail after years of online migration has become structural rather than cyclical. Single- and two-person households — once the core customer base for chains like Homeplus — increasingly prefer smaller, faster and app-based purchases over large weekly shopping trips. Rivals that recognized the shift early are beginning to pull away. Emart, South Korea's largest discount chain, posted a first-quarter operating profit of 178.3 billion won, its strongest first-quarter performance in 14 years after converting major stores into experience-focused "Starfield Market" complexes. Lotte Mart, benefiting in part from Homeplus’ troubles, lifted domestic operating profit by 30.9 percent through tighter promotions and a heavier grocery focus. Convenience-store chains are pushing in the opposite direction — outward. GS25 and CU launched 24-hour delivery services through Coupang Eats this week, filling the final overnight gap in their nationwide quick-commerce networks. Meanwhile, Daiso expanded same-day delivery coverage to all 25 districts of Seoul on May 14, effectively transforming its 1,600 stores into urban micro-fulfillment hubs. Even Lotte Mart is accelerating investment in logistics infrastructure through its Zetta grocery app and an automated fulfillment center in Busan developed with Britain's Ocado, scheduled to begin operations later this year. The common thread is increasingly clear: offline space alone no longer pays the rent. The survivors are reinventing stores as experience venues, logistics hubs or rapid-delivery nodes — anything that offers a function a smartphone screen cannot. Homeplus, by contrast, is running out of time to decide what it wants to become. Supplier arrears alone are estimated at around 200 billion won, exceeding the cash expected from the sale of Homeplus Express. Even if Meritz ultimately agrees to extend emergency funding, industry observers say the money would buy only weeks, not a turnaround. For now, the empty shelves in Hwaseong stand as a reminder of what happens when a retail giant stops being a destination and becomes, briefly, a showroom for whatever stock remains. 2026-05-20 15:11:06

Kakao union wins strike mandate as Korean tech labor unrest spreads SEOUL, May 20 (AJP) - Unionized workers at Kakao and four of its affiliates voted overwhelmingly in favor of industrial action, clearing the way for what would be the first joint strike in the South Korean tech giant's history and adding to a swelling wave of labor unrest sweeping the country's chip and platform industries. The Kakao branch of the Koren Federation of Chemical and Textile, and Food Workers Unions announced Wednesday all five affiliates — Kakao, Kakao Pay, Kakao Enterprise, DKTechin and XLGames — backed the strike in ballots that closed by 11 a.m. The announcement came at a rally in front of Pangyo Station, just south of Seoul, where the company is headquartered. "All five entities passed the vote in favor, and now that we have secured the legal right to industrial action, we will share our plans for the fight ahead," a union spokesperson announced. The dispute reached the strike stage after mediation talks at the Gyeonggi Regional Labor Relations Commission collapsed last week for four affiliates, while a separate session for the headquarters was postponed. At the heart of the standoff is Kakao's performance bonus framework. The company paid out bonuses ranging from 3 to 9 percent of annual salary in February after posting record earnings last year, but the union is pushing for a structured payout tied to a fixed share of operating profit, alongside stock options for long-tenured staff. The union's grievances have been compounded by Kakao's sale of AXZ, the operator of legacy portal Daum, to AI startup Upstage — a deal the union has condemned as a reversal of earlier promises on employment security. The Kakao vote lands amid a broader reckoning over pay across South Korea's technology backbone. A strike involving some 50,000 Samsung Electronics workers is set to begin Thursday after wage talks broke down, with the union demanding performance bonuses equivalent to 15 percent of operating profit and the removal of payout caps. The pressure traces back to SK Hynix, which scrapped its bonus ceiling in September 2025 and tied payouts to 10 percent of operating profit — a benchmark that has since triggered escalating demands from Samsung Biologics, Hyundai Motor and LG Uplus unions, some seeking as much as 30 percent. Industry watchers warn that if such fixed bonus practices spread from semiconductors into the wider IT sector, companies may lose the flexibility to weather shifting business cycles — a prospect that puts Kakao's coming days at the center of a far larger debate. 2026-05-20 14:46:48

South Korea's 'beloved music coach' to bring spirit of cultural diplomacy to Paris SEOUL, May 20 (AJP) - There are moments when music accomplishes what politics, diplomacy, and economics often cannot. It dissolves distance. It softens history. It reminds people, however briefly, that civilization is ultimately sustained not only by power and institutions, but by the human heart. This spring, Lee Gi-yeon, widely known in South Korea as the "Music Coach for the Nation" will travel to Paris with a group of South Korean amateur vocalists and professional musicians to commemorate the 140th anniversary of diplomatic relations between South Korea and France. Organized by the Lee Gi-yeon Opera Institute, the performances will take place on May 24 and May 28 in Paris and are being viewed not merely as concerts, but as a form of cultural diplomacy carried out by ordinary citizens through the universal language of music. Following last year's warmly received musical busking journey across Italy, Lee's Paris project represents a broader artistic mission: to bring together people of different nations, professions, and backgrounds through classical music and shared emotion. The principal event, a commemorative concert titled Hymne à l'amour ("Hymn to Love"), will be held on May 24 at 5 p.m. local time at the historic Église protestante unie du Saint-Esprit in central Paris. The venue itself carries a quiet but profound symbolism. The church, among the oldest Protestant churches in France, was once attended by members of the Hermès family and remains deeply woven into the cultural and spiritual memory of Paris. Against that backdrop, Korean amateur vocalists — many of them doctors, professors, business executives, and financial professionals — will step onto the stage alongside accomplished musicians based in France. Together they will perform not as celebrities or officials, but as citizens connected by a love of music. Participants include Kim Moon-ja, Kim Hyun-mi, Noh Hee-jin, Park Byung-joo, Park Young-mi, Seo Mi-ra, Ahn Dong-hyun, and Jeon Hyo-jin. Joining them as special guests will be soprano Seo Su-min of the Paris National Opera, tenor Seo Hyung-seok, baritone Kim Young-woo, and violinist Choi Seul-gi, a professor at the Arpajon Conservatory. The result promises to be something increasingly rare in modern cultural life: a performance where professionalism and sincerity coexist without hierarchy. Four days later on May 28 at 2:30 p.m., the atmosphere will shift from the grandeur of a historic sanctuary to the quieter emotional world of healing and consolation. At Hôpital Vaugirard Gabriel-Pallez AP-HP, Lee and her fellow musicians will present Bienvenue au concert de printemps! ("Welcome to the Spring Concert!"), a special healing concert organized in cooperation with the hospital’s Protestant chaplaincy. The performance is intended for patients, caregivers, and medical staff — individuals carrying the physical and emotional burdens of illness, exhaustion, and recovery. Lee, serving as artistic director and opera coach, will again be joined by violinist Choi Seul-gi and tenor Seo Hyung-seok in delivering music designed not for spectacle, but for comfort. In many respects, the hospital concert reveals the deeper philosophy behind Lee's artistic life. For her, music is not merely performance. It is companionship, consolation and restoration. Speaking ahead of the Paris events, Lee reflected on the emotional meaning of the project. "To sing together in Paris with Korean amateur vocalists who possess a pure passion for music, alongside musicians living and working in France, during this meaningful year marking the 140th anniversary of Korea–France relations, is profoundly moving," she said. "I hope that South Korean residents in Paris, as well as French citizens, will gather together through music and experience moments of happiness, harmony, and shared humanity." Both performances will be offered free of charge to local residents and members of the Korean community, with open admission for anyone who loves classical music and opera. At a time when the world feels increasingly fractured by geopolitical conflict, ideological division, and digital isolation, these concerts offer something fundamentally human: people gathering in one physical space to listen together, breathe together, and feel together. In that sense, the performances transcend the boundaries of ordinary cultural events. They represent a form of civilian diplomacy — one in which artists, educators, and ordinary citizens become ambassadors of goodwill without official titles or political authority. Music, after all, remains one of the few languages that does not require translation. Who Is Lee Gi-yeon? Lee is one of South Korea's most recognizable public music educators and opera coaches, widely admired for her efforts to bring classical music closer to everyday audiences. She currently serves as director of the Lee Gi-yeon Opera Institute and as an adjunct professor in the Department of Korean Music at Seoul Institute of the Arts. She is also a successful YouTube creator with approximately 170,000 subscribers, where she introduces opera, vocal technique, and classical music appreciation to the broader public in an accessible and engaging way. Lee studied piano and completed the advanced opera coaching program at the prestigious Santa Cecilia Conservatory in Rome, one of Europe's oldest and most respected musical institutions. Over the years, she has pursued a career that combines artistic excellence with public education and cultural outreach. In 2018, she received a commendation from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport in recognition of her contributions in public lectures and cultural engagement. From 2020 through 2025, she also served as a program review committee member for the Korea Forest Service. Lee previously taught in the Future Culture Executive Program at Sookmyung Women's University and has delivered invited lectures and performances for major Korean institutions and corporations, including Samsung Life Insurance, Hyundai Mobis, LG Uplus, the Ministry of National Defense, and Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power. Her performances and musical projects have been staged at some of Korea's most prestigious cultural venues, including Sejong Center for the Performing Arts, Seoul Arts Center, and Lotte Concert Hall. As an opera coach, she has participated in productions including L'elisir d'amore, Samson et Dalila, and Le nozze di Figaro. Yet perhaps her most meaningful contribution has been her effort to restore humanity to classical music itself. For Lee, opera is not an elite ornament reserved for concert halls and specialists. It is a living art capable of comforting ordinary people, healing emotional wounds, and reconnecting individuals to beauty in an increasingly anxious world. That may ultimately be the lasting meaning of these Paris concerts. They are not simply performances commemorating 140 years of diplomatic relations between two nations. They are reminders that culture, at its best, allows human beings to recognize one another beyond language, nationality, profession, or ideology. And in an unsettled age, such recognition may itself be a form of hope. 2026-05-20 14:42:49

Rain drenches Seoul and cools off unseasonable heat wave SEOUL, May 20 (AJP) - Rain drenched Seoul and surrounding areas on Wednesday, offering some relief from the unseasonable heat wave in May. According to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA), the rain that began overnight in central and southern regions is forecast to spread across most parts of the country, with up to 80 millimeters of rainfall expected in Seoul, Incheon and other areas of Gyeonggi Province. The much-needed rain to end a late-spring drought sharply lowered temperatures, with morning lows ranging from 15 to 19 degrees Celsius and daytime highs between 18 and 23 degrees Celsius, easing recent unseasonably hot weather. Strong winds are also forecast across many regions later in the day, with the KMA urging caution over facility safety and outdoor activities. 2026-05-20 14:37:36