South Korea on alert over safety of about 70 nationals as Iran protests turn deadly SEOUL, January 15 (AJP) - As Iran's ongoing internal protests have reportedly killed thousands, with fears of possible U.S. intervention heightening global concerns, the South Korean government has remained on alert, convening an emergency meeting earlier this week to assess the safety of its citizens there. Chaired by Vice Foreign Minister Kim Jin-a, the meeting was held on Tuesday via Zoom with embassy officials in Tehran to set up contingency plans for South Korean nationals residing there. Stressing the importance of ensuring the safety of South Koreans, Kim urged, "We should thoroughly prepare for possible evacuation and other contingencies if the situation worsens." According to South Korean Ambassador to Tehran Kim Jun-pyo, around 70 South Koreans are in Iran, excluding embassy staff and other officials. He said the embassy has been "closely monitoring developments and taking necessary steps to protect them," adding that it has been checking on their safety daily by phone, while advising them to stay indoors, particularly at night, as protests turn violent." As of Tuesday, there have been no reports of casualties or damage affecting South Koreans. The government maintains its current alert level, the second-highest on its four-tier scale, urging all travelers to avoid Iran. However, the highest alert, which would ban travel entirely, has not yet been issued. But other countries have taken more drastic measures amid escalating unrest in Iran and fears of a possible U.S. strike. The U.K. has temporarily closed its embassy in Tehran, while France has withdrawn non-essential diplomatic staff. Italy and Spain have urged all their citizens to leave Iran immediately. These developments come as Iranian authorities continue a harsh crackdown on anti-government protests, with death toll estimates varying widely. Norway-based non-profit organization Iran Human Rights said at least 3,428 protesters have been killed as of Wednesday, while U.S. media estimated the death toll could be as high as 12,000 to 20,000. Meanwhile, U.S. President Donald Trump took to social media to call on Tehran to halt the killings, saying he had canceled all meetings with Iranian officials "until the killing stops," and added, "Help is on its way," though he did not specify what form that help would take. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told Fox News that there were "no plans for executions" and that the situation was now "under control." Airspace over Iran has been closed to most flights and several European carriers including Germany's Lufthansa and its affiliated flights said they would avoid Iranian and Iraqi airspace "until further notice." Foreign ministers of G7 countries said they are prepared to impose additional sanctions on Tehran over its violent response to protests and arbitrary detentions. Officials in Seoul have been closely monitoring further developments including not only Iran's domestic unrest but also whether Washington intervenes, a move that could alter the security landscape across the already volatile Middle East. 2026-01-15 15:32:08

LG, SK, Upstage shortlisted for Korea's sovereign AI model SEOUL, January 15 (AJP) - LG AI Research, SK Telecom and Upstage have passed the first evaluation round of South Korea’s competition-style national project to select two homogeneous artificial intelligence foundation models by the end of the year. According to results announced Thursday by the Ministry of Science and ICT, three of the five contenders — Naver Cloud, NC AI, Upstage, SK Telecom and LG AI Research — advanced directly based on aggregate scores, while one additional bidder will be reinstated through a secondary evaluation. The rematch will be held between Naver Cloud and NC AI. The ministry disclosed the results at a briefing at the Government Complex Seoul, chaired by Second Vice Minister Ryu Je-myung. The government-led project was launched under the banner of “leaping into the world’s top three AI powers,” positioning it as a flagship pillar of South Korea’s sovereign AI strategy. The program provides state support for GPU resources, data access and engineering costs, with the goal of developing domestically controlled foundation models capable of achieving at least 95 percent of leading global AI benchmark performance. Under the project guidelines, eligible models are defined as those designed and pre-trained domestically, excluding derivative systems fine-tuned from foreign base models. The ministry explained that the first-round evaluation combined AI benchmark tests — quantitative measures of technical performance — with expert and user assessments to comprehensively evaluate model performance, real-world applicability, cost efficiency relative to model size, and potential spillover effects on the domestic and global AI ecosystem. In the benchmark evaluation, LG AI Research recorded the highest score with 33.6 out of 40 points. The company also topped the expert review with 31.6 out of 35 points and achieved a perfect score of 25 out of 25 in the user evaluation. Based on the combined results, LG AI Research, Naver Cloud, SK Telecom and Upstage initially ranked within the top four teams. Naver Cloud ranked within the top four in combined scoring, it was judged not to meet the requirements for designation as an independent AI foundation model. The ministry said the first-round evaluation combined AI benchmark testing, expert assessment and user evaluation, examining model performance, real-world applicability, cost efficiency relative to model size, and spillover effects on the domestic and global AI ecosystem. 2026-01-15 15:25:54

Seoul holds emergency meeting after Trump's tariff move on chips and critical minerals SEOUL, January 15 (AJP)-The South Korean government moved into emergency response mode Thursday after the White House issued sweeping proclamations under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act, targeting semiconductors and critical minerals on U.S. national security grounds. Minister of Trade, Industry, and Energy Kim Jung-kwan convened an emergency meeting Thursday to review the details of President Donald Trump’s proclamations and map out Seoul’s next steps as Washington signaled a harder line on advanced chips and strategic materials. Trump on Wednesday (local time) signed a proclamation imposing a 25 percent tariff on certain advanced semiconductors imported into the United States and then re-exported, including Nvidia’s flagship artificial-intelligence processor, the H200. The measure takes effect at 12:01 a.m. EST on Jan. 15. The action followed a Commerce Department report submitted in late December under Section 232, which concluded that semiconductor imports — including manufacturing equipment and derivative products — pose a threat to U.S. national security by deepening reliance on foreign supply chains. Under the proclamation, the tariff applies narrowly to advanced computing chips that do not contribute to the build-out of U.S. technology supply chains, while exempting chips used in U.S. data centers, research and development, public-sector applications and other domestic uses. The White House warned, however, that broader tariffs could follow after negotiations with trading partners conclude. “The President could soon impose more expansive tariffs on semiconductors and their derivative products to encourage manufacturing in the United States,” the White House said in a fact sheet, adding that a tariff-offset program may be introduced for companies investing in U.S. production. Chairing Thursday’s meeting, Kim reviewed South Korea’s actions since Washington launched its Section 232 investigations, including the submission of written comments to U.S. authorities. He instructed officials to maintain close contact with industry, monitor developments in real time and analyze potential impacts to minimize damage to Korean companies. Separately, the ministry holds separate industry meetings later Thursday — one on semiconductors and another on critical minerals — to assess exposure and coordinate response strategies with manufacturers. Kim said the government would maintain “constant readiness” not only for the newly announced Section 232 measures, but also for a pending U.S. Supreme Court ruling on reciprocal tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, signaling broader trade uncertainty ahead. The proclamation has drawn particular attention in Seoul because it explicitly includes Nvidia’s H200 and AMD’s MI325X among the covered products. Although Nvidia is a U.S. company, its advanced AI chips are manufactured almost entirely by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), meaning they are imported into the United States before being re-exported, placing them squarely within the scope of the tariff. Trump had previously indicated in December that H200 exports to China would be allowed, while suggesting that 25 percent of the sales value would be paid to the U.S. government — a remark that did not appear in the formal proclamation. The Commerce Department on Tuesday finalized revisions to export rules allowing limited H200 shipments to China, subject to strict conditions, including a cap tying China-bound volumes to no more than 50 percent of Nvidia’s U.S. domestic sales. The dual track — easing export controls while imposing Section 232 tariffs — underscores Washington’s attempt to balance national security concerns with preserving the global competitiveness of U.S. chipmakers. Trump also signed a separate proclamation directing the start of negotiations with trading partners to ensure critical-mineral imports align with U.S. security interests. Depending on the outcome, the Commerce Department and the U.S. Trade Representative could consider measures such as minimum import prices for certain minerals. Trade minister Yeo Han-koo has put off his return to Seoul to assess potential impact on Korean companies in Washington, the ministry added. 2026-01-15 14:14:31

South Koreans rush to hoard dollars amid weakening won SEOUL, January 15 (AJP) - South Koreans have been hoarding U.S. dollars as the greenback continues its strong run. According to financial data released on Thursday, individual customers of South Korea's five major banks -Hana, KB Kookmin, NH Nonghyup, Shinhan, and Woori - exchanged South Korean currency for U.S. dollars worth about US$480.81 million over the past three weeks. The amount breaks down to $22.90 million per day on average, more than double the daily average of $10.43 million from January through November last year. The main trigger was a strong verbal intervention by financial authorities on Christmas Eve, which briefly strengthened the won against the dollar and prompted individual investors to aggressively buy U.S. dollars. The exchange rate fell 33.8 won that day and continued declining for three consecutive sessions, trading from the 1,480-won range to the 1,420-won range. Many seemed to consider it a buying opportunity, anticipating the won would soon weaken again. The buying frenzy drove currency exchanges to about $63.04 million that day alone, nearly equivalent to an entire week's transactions. Demand was so high that several bank branches ran out of Benjamins. Demand for dollars remained strong even as the won weakened again, with individuals exchanging US$17.44 million on Tuesday, reflecting a persistent hoarding spree. In contrast, only $90.31 million was exchanged from dollars into won between Dec. 24 and last Tuesday, averaging $4.30 million per day. Market analysts see that heavy dollar buying may reflect expectations of further gains in the exchange rate. The won has weakened for 10 consecutive trading sessions since the start of the new year, trading at 1,477.5 won per dollar on Wednesday. Park Sang-hyun, an analyst at iM Securities, said, "The government's currency measures announced late last year have yet to show clear effects, failing to dispel concerns over the weakening won," adding that demand for foreign exchange has been driven mainly by individual investors buying foreign stocks. 2026-01-15 14:07:30

One South Korean killed in a deadly train crash in Thailand - foreign ministry SEOUL, January 15 (AJP) -One South Korean national was among those killed in a deadly train derailment in Thailand on Wednesday, according to the foreign ministry in Seoul. The ministry said Thursday it had confirmed the death of one South Korean and was providing necessary consular assistance to the bereaved family. The accident occurred at around 9 a.m. Wednesday when a construction crane for a high-speed rail bridge collapsed onto a moving passenger train traveling between the Nong Nam Khun and Sikhiu stations in Nakhon Ratchasima province, northeastern Thailand. At least 32 people were killed and more than 64 others were injured after the crane crashed onto two cars of the three-carriage train, which was carrying 195 passengers at the time of the accident. * This article, published by Aju Business Daily, was edited by AJP. 2026-01-15 13:11:23

Asian markets mixed; Nikkei retreats after record rally, KOSPI holds ground SEOUL, January 15 (AJP) — Asian equity markets were mixed on Wednesday, with Japanese stocks pulling back after a powerful start to the year, while Seoul shares held firm despite a more hawkish tilt from the Bank of Korea. Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 0.77 percent to 53,923.94 as of 10:23 a.m. local time, as investors locked in profits following an uninterrupted January rally. The recent surge had been fueled by expectations of a snap election that could reinforce Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s stimulus-driven policy agenda. In Seoul, the benchmark KOSPI rose 0.67 percent to 4,754.66, while the tech-heavy KOSDAQ edged down 0.03 percent to 941.90 in early trade. Markets were largely unfazed by the Bank of Korea’s first rate-setting meeting of the year, which kept the base rate unchanged at 2.5 percent for an eighth consecutive month. However, policymakers struck a firmer tone by removing references to “the possibility of a rate cut” in their post-meeting statement, signaling a pause in the easing cycle. Among large-cap stocks, Samsung Electronics rose 0.07 percent to 140,400 won ($96), while SK hynix slipped 0.81 percent to 736,000 won. Samsung Biologics climbed 2.39 percent to 1,973,000 won, while LG Energy Solution fell 0.39 percent to 388,000 won. Automakers outperformed, with Hyundai Motor gaining 2.55 percent to 422,000 won and Kia advancing 3.04 percent to 147,350 won. Shipbuilders and heavy industry shares extended recent gains, led by Hanwha Ocean, which surged 3.80 percent to 147,400 won. HD Hyundai Heavy Industries rose 2.44 percent to 630,000 won. The U.S. dollar strengthened 3.1 won to 1,469.60, despite rare interventionist rhetoric from the U.S. Treasury Department echoing Seoul’s concerns over excessive volatility while losing slightly against the Japanese yen. Elsewhere in Asia, China’s Shanghai Composite slipped 0.11 percent to around 4,121.5 in early trading. 2026-01-15 11:31:25

Buses back running in Seoul after strike ends SEOUL, January 15 (AJP) -After two days of disruption, Seoul commuters were relieved to find buses back in service Thursday morning following an overnight wage deal. The Seoul City Bus Labor Union and the Seoul City Bus Transport Operators Association accepted a mediation proposal at around 11:50 p.m. during a second post-adjustment meeting hosted by the Seoul Labor Relations Commission. Under the agreement, wages for 2025 will rise by 2.9 percent, while the retirement age will be extended from 63 to 64 starting in July, and further raised to 65 in July 2027. Reform of the wage system to reflect ordinary wages was excluded from the deal. Following the agreement, the union called off the strike, and the Seoul Metropolitan Government lifted emergency transportation measures, restoring bus operations across the capital. 2026-01-15 11:04:21

Actor Lee Byung-hun appears on US late-night talk show SEOUL, January 15 (AJP) - Actor Lee Byung-hun appeared on NBC's late-night talk show "Late Night with Seth Meyers" earlier this week, sharing behind-the-scenes stories from his latest films. After walking on stage to loud cheers at a studio in New York on Tuesday, Lee recounted a few episodes from the set of award-winning director Park Chan-wook's film "No Other Choice," drawing laughter with witty answers that garnered repeated applause from the audience. "I'm the type of person who asks a lot of questions. To portray my characters well, I often end up bugging directors about every tiny detail," Lee said. Recalling that most directors usually accepted only a few of his ideas, he said, "While working on No Other Choice, used almost nine out of ten," which made him "feel good but also more responsible." Lee's appearance on the primetime show comes amid his rising global recognition, having recently been named to The New York Times Magazine's list of "Great Performers," which honors outstanding actors. 2026-01-15 10:43:26

Hyundai Motor's Palisade named North America's top utility vehicle of the year SEOUL, January 15 (AJP) - Hyundai Motor said on Thursday that its Palisade sport utility vehicle has been named this year's North American Utility Vehicle of the Year, citing the model’s upgraded hybrid system and strong appeal in the U.S. market. Finalists in the 2026 utility category included the Hyundai Palisade, Lucid Gravity and Nissan Leaf. Hyundai said the Palisade emerged as the winner following close competition. Judges cited the Palisade’s next-generation hybrid system, which improves both performance and fuel efficiency, as well as its spacious interior designed to meet North American consumer preferences, the company said. The Palisade’s new hybrid system features a transmission with two integrated motors and can be paired with multiple engine configurations, allowing performance and fuel economy to be optimized by vehicle type, Hyundai said. Electrification-focused technologies also enhance driving performance, ride comfort and the in-vehicle experience. Jeff Gilbert, chairman of the award jury, said the Palisade “sets the standard for a 21st-century family vehicle,” pointing to its interior space, driving dynamics and range of technologies. The North American Car of the Year awards, established in 1994, are among the auto industry’s most closely watched honors. 2026-01-15 10:37:57

South Korea trade chief tells US officials, lawmakers Coupang probe is not 'trade issue' SEOUL, January 15 (AJP) - South Korea’s trade minister Yeo Han-koo has told U.S. officials and lawmakers that a domestic probe into e-commerce firm Coupang should not be interpreted as a diplomatic or trade issue, officials here said on Thursday. Yeo made the remarks during a visit to Washington from Jan. 11 to 14, where he held outreach meetings with U.S. lawmakers, government officials and industry representatives, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. In a series of meetings and roundtables with U.S. senators and representatives, trade associations, think tanks and business officials, Yeo focused on addressing U.S. concerns over South Korea’s digital legislation, which has recently drawn attention in Washington. He warned against portraying the Coupang issue as a “crackdown on a U.S. company,” saying it would be inappropriate to broadly interpret the matter as a diplomatic or trade dispute, the ministry said. South Korean authorities are investigating e-commerce giant Coupang over the handling of a large-scale personal data breach and related business practices, a case that has drawn public attention and scrutiny from U.S. policymakers. South Korean authorities are examining how the breach occurred and whether Coupang, listed in the U.S., complied with reporting and protection obligations under the Korean law. Seoul has stressed that the probe is a domestic regulatory matter aimed at protecting consumers and should not be viewed as a trade or diplomatic dispute. Yeo also met with U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer to discuss the status of implementing bilateral non-tariff commitments outlined in a joint fact sheet released after a South Korea-U.S. summit in November. With a ruling pending on whether reciprocal tariffs imposed by the U.S. administration are unlawful, Yeo told U.S. officials that South Korea — which reached a tariff agreement with Washington — should not be treated unfavorably compared with other countries, the ministry said. Yeo also met Russell Vought, director of the White House Office of Management and Budget, to review follow-up steps after tariff negotiations and agreed to strengthen investment cooperation in key industries, including shipbuilding. “Since the tariff negotiation agreement, expectations in the United States for bilateral trade and investment cooperation have generally been high, but risk factors such as digital trade issues and the U.S. Supreme Court ruling needs to be carefully managed,” a ministry official said. The official added it is important to clearly explain South Korea’s policy intentions and background to the U.S. administration, Congress and industry. 2026-01-15 10:18:44