Busan, South Gyeongsang governors deny plan for separate election in southeast Busan Mayor Park Heong-joon rejected reports that incumbent governors from the ruling People Power Party in the southeastern region of Busan, Ulsan and South Gyeongsang planned to pursue a separate election effort, calling the claim untrue. He also dismissed reports that they were pushing the party not to field a candidate in the Busan Buk-gu A by-election after Han Dong-hoon declared he would run as an independent. In a statement issued Tuesday, Park said local leaders in the region had no plan to release any declaration about holding an independent election. He added that the governors had not discussed any request for the party to forgo nominating a candidate in the Busan Buk-gu A by-election. South Gyeongsang Gov. Park Wan-su also denied the report Tuesday, saying he had not held any discussions with the mayors of Busan and Ulsan about a statement related to an independent election. The People Power Party has nominated the incumbent mayors and governor in the region as its candidates for the nationwide local elections set for June 3. Earlier Tuesday, a media outlet reported that incumbent People Power Party leaders in the region were moving to issue a statement on running the June 3 local elections in an independent manner, and that it could include a call for the party not to nominate a candidate in the Busan Buk-gu A by-election. 2026-04-22 15:34:20

Korean Builders Expand AI Use, but Adoption Still Centered on Drones and Video Safety South Korean builders are expanding the use of artificial intelligence technologies such as drones, video analytics and robots to improve job-site safety and quality, but their applications largely remain focused on video-based safety management, industry officials said. Overseas competitors, by contrast, are extending AI across the full construction process, widening the gap. As of April 22, the industry said domestic firms are gradually broadening AI-based tools, but remain at an early stage in building an ecosystem that includes data sharing and collaboration with subcontractors. GS Engineering & Construction is applying a real-time translation app for foreign workers, a four-legged walking robot and video analytics systems at sites. It has introduced the AI translation program “Xi Voice,” “Xi Book,” which updates standard specifications in real time, and an AI system for reviewing design drawings to strengthen safety and quality control. A GS E&C official said, “A translation application for communication with foreign workers and drone video analysis technology are already being used at sites, and the four-legged walking robot is being applied at some pilot sites.” Samsung C&T is using floor construction robots for automated finishing, anchor robots for automatic bolt installation and video analytics systems as it pushes job-site automation. It has also introduced autonomous forklifts and material-transport robots, along with cleaning robots, water-spraying drones and wearable robots. A Samsung C&T official said the company is currently placing more emphasis on development and verification to advance the technology than on broad deployment at active sites. Hyundai Engineering & Construction is using drones for infrastructure safety inspections, four-legged walking robots and video analytics systems. It also plans to apply an AI-based smart around-view monitor, or SAVM, and an overload warning device, or OWD, to equipment such as excavators to strengthen worker-approach detection and overload-risk alerts. Daewoo Engineering & Construction and Hyundai Engineering are using video analytics and robotics, while DL E&C and POSCO E&C are applying AI in design and crack management. Lotte Engineering & Construction, SK ecoplant and HDC Hyundai Development Co. are also expanding AI use, mainly for safety management and quality analysis. Even so, the industry’s AI use is still largely limited to adopting individual technologies. Analysts say gaps between large and smaller firms, and a structure centered on site-by-site use, have kept it from spreading into broader digital transformation and AI transformation across the sector. Overseas, construction companies are expanding AI across all stages — from design and construction to operations — based on a common data environment, or CDE. In the United States, firms are focusing on process optimization using generative AI and data analytics; Bechtel is using neural-network-based process planning, and Turner is boosting productivity through equipment-operation analytics systems. In Japan, Obayashi Corp. is advancing AI-driven design automation and Shimizu Corp. is actively building robot-based “smart sites.” In Europe, data-driven applications stand out, including Hochtief’s analysis of construction errors and Strabag’s risk prediction. Jeon Young-jun, a research center director at the Korea Research Institute for Construction Policy, said AI use at domestic construction sites has started first with video analysis based on safety CCTV. “Drones have spread relatively widely, and four-legged walking robots have also been introduced in some cases, but overall it is still at an early stage,” he said. Jeon said the faster shift in the United States and Japan toward “intelligent AI,” such as process optimization, reflects not so much a technology gap as whether an integrated ecosystem has been built to include subcontractors. “A structure in which prime contractors and subcontractors share and use data together, based on a common data platform, is important,” he said, adding that South Korea remains focused on technology development led by individual companies and lacks an integrated system that includes partner firms. 2026-04-22 15:33:21

Korea Fire Agency Warns of Extinguisher Sales Scams Using Fake Fine Threats The National Fire Agency warned that scams are spreading in which criminals impersonate firefighters or fire agencies to pressure businesses into buying fire extinguishers or to induce proxy purchases of equipment. The agency said Tuesday that 1,309 attempted fire-agency impersonation scams were identified nationwide over the past year. Of those, 161 businesses suffered financial losses totaling about 2.95 billion won, nearing 3 billion won. The tactics have grown more sophisticated. What once centered on simple requests to buy items on someone else’s behalf has evolved into coercive sales pitches that exploit owners’ fears of administrative penalties. In one scheme, scammers pose as senior fire station officials and call gas stations or factories, warning that a scheduled inspection will result in heavy fines if lithium-ion fire extinguishers are not on site. They then send fake guidance messages steering targets to buy from specific vendors, taking tens of millions of won. A separate “no-show” scam also persists: criminals send forged official documents using a fire station’s name to hardware stores, request proxy purchases of items such as first-aid kits or ladders, take the money and disappear. The agency stressed that fire authorities do not recommend or broker purchases of firefighting equipment by phone or text under any circumstances. It also said it never instructs private businesses to buy items on its behalf or asks for transfers to personal bank accounts. “Any case that mentions fire inspections or fines while forcing a purchase or requesting a proxy purchase is 100% a scam,” the agency said, urging people to end suspicious calls immediately and report them to 119 or 112.* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-04-22 15:29:44

Five Deer Escape From Farm in Gwangmyeong, South Korea At about 12:32 p.m. on the 22nd, five deer escaped from a deer farm in Okgil-dong, Gwangmyeong, south of Seoul, authorities said. Fire officials responded after the farm owner reported that 10 deer had gotten out, but nearby closed-circuit television footage showed the actual number was five, they said. Of the five, three were adults and two were fawns, officials said. Gwangmyeong city sent an emergency text alert at 2:33 p.m., urging residents to use caution and to report any sightings to 119 or city hall. The farm is believed to be raising about 30 deer, including those that escaped, officials said. A city official said personnel had been dispatched to the area to search for the animals. The incident has heightened safety concerns among residents after a recent controversy over a prolonged search for a wolf named "Neukgu" that escaped from Daejeon O-World before it was captured.* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-04-22 15:29:03

Jipyeong Holds Seminar on Legal, Data Risks in Public-Sector AI Transition Law firm Jipyeong said it held a seminar on April 21 in Seoul on strategies for the public sector’s AI transition, focusing on legal frameworks and practical cases. The event, held at the Grand Central complex in Jung-gu, was designed to broadly review policy direction, legal issues, data governance and responses to infringement incidents tied to public-sector AI transition, also referred to as AX. Moderated by Heo Jong, a Jipyeong partner attorney and head of the firm’s IP and IT group, the seminar opened with remarks by Jipyeong Managing Partner Kim Ji-hong and featured four presentations followed by a Q&A session. Gong Jin-ho, director of the AI Policy Planning Division at the Ministry of Science and ICT, presented first on the government’s AX policy direction. “The government is building a pan-government AX common foundation based on core infrastructure such as AI training data and GPUs, and is pushing a wide-ranging AI transition linked to ministry-specific projects,” Gong said. Song Do-young, a Jipyeong partner attorney, spoke on how to achieve a successful public-sector AI transition from a legal and institutional perspective. “To succeed, it is important to secure legal grounds and a liability structure proactively from the pre-adoption stage,” Song said. He added that beyond the Framework Act on Artificial Intelligence and guidelines, organizations should analyze the many laws being revised or enacted and the national basic cybersecurity guidelines, and manage legal risks systematically across AI development, procurement, contracting and operations. Shin Yong-woo, also a Jipyeong partner attorney, addressed the issue from a data-governance perspective. “Public-sector AI transition is not just about adopting technology; establishing a data-governance system that covers personal information, copyright and standards for data use is essential,” Shin said. He said proactive legal-risk management must accompany governance to produce sustainable AX results. Park Yu-hyeon, a partner at PwC Consulting, presented on practical cases and challenges. Park said AI adoption must move beyond a technology-centered approach and be backed by clear business goals and redesigned work processes that can collaborate with AI, as part of an organization-wide AX strategy. In the Q&A session, moderated by Choi Jeong-gyu, a Jipyeong partner attorney and head of the firm’s IP and IT group, participants including Jeon Su-nam, a team leader at the National IT Industry Promotion Agency, discussed the status of policy efforts, legal issues and practical ways to apply AI in the public sector. Choi said the seminar provided an opportunity to comprehensively review the policy and legal environment and data-governance issues surrounding public-sector AI transition, and to discuss practical challenges facing public institutions and companies. “As the adoption of AI technology accelerates, proactive review of legal and institutional risks is becoming more important,” he said, adding that Jipyeong will offer practical solutions across the full AX process in both the public and private sectors.* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-04-22 15:27:58

Fujifilm Malaysia Partners With Telekom Malaysia Unit on Cloud Medical Imaging Fujifilm Malaysia said on April 20 it signed a partnership with Credence, a cloud and digital services company and a subsidiary of Malaysian telecommunications firm Telekom Malaysia (TM), to roll out a cloud-based medical imaging information system in the country. Under the memorandum of understanding, the companies plan to combine TM’s cloud infrastructure, nationwide telecommunications network and cybersecurity capabilities with Fujifilm’s medical imaging and diagnostic technology. The aim is to standardize and enable sharing of imaging information across Malaysian health care institutions, improving access to imaging records for medical staff and supporting faster diagnoses and more consistent patient care. The plan calls for operating Fujifilm’s vendor-neutral archive system, Synapse VNA, on TM’s Cloud Alpha Edge platform to centrally manage medical images and data stored across imaging management systems from different manufacturers and across hospital department systems.* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-04-22 15:27:14

Lee Jae-myung Pledges Expanded Strategic Cooperation With Vietnam on Nuclear, Infrastructure Lee Jae-myung said April 22 (local time) that South Korea will expand cooperation with Vietnam in strategic areas including nuclear power, infrastructure and science and technology innovation, while stepping up coordination on global challenges such as supply chain stability, sustainable growth and climate change. Speaking at a luncheon meeting with Koreans in Vietnam at a hotel in Hanoi, Lee, who is on a state visit, said he aims to use the trip to develop what he called the two countries’ already top-level cooperation into a more future-oriented and strategic partnership. Lee noted that since establishing diplomatic relations in 1992, the two countries have become each other’s top three trading partners within a generation. He said Vietnam is South Korea’s largest destination for investment, with about 10,000 South Korean companies operating there. The two countries upgraded ties to a comprehensive strategic partnership in 2022, marking the 30th anniversary of diplomatic relations. Lee said South Korea and Vietnam have much in common, citing shared historical, cultural and economic bonds. He pointed to long periods of foreign domination, efforts to overcome hardship through their own strength, and the pain of division and war, adding that both societies share emotional ties rooted in the Confucian cultural sphere. Lee also encouraged athletes, singling out Kim Sang-sik, head coach of Vietnam’s national soccer team, who attended the luncheon. Noting that soccer is called the “king sport” in Vietnam, Lee joked that Kim would then be the “king of kings,” calling it “something to be truly proud of.” Lee, who said he once served as owner of Seongnam FC while he was mayor of Seongnam, added, “I also was once a soccer club owner, and while trying to make it succeed, I ended up being accused of a strange crime and am now on trial.” Turning to the Korean community in Vietnam, Lee said it has grown to about 200,000 people, making it the largest among ASEAN countries and the world’s fifth-largest Korean community. He expressed support for the community and said about 100,000 South Korea-Vietnam multicultural families are a valuable foundation linking the two countries by blood but face various difficulties. He pledged that the “people’s sovereignty government” would closely examine those challenges and do its best to resolve them quickly to build an inclusive South Korea. Lee began his state-visit schedule with the meeting and was set to hold a summit later that afternoon with To Lam, the Communist Party general secretary and state president. It will be Lee’s first meeting with Lam since August last year, eight months ago. Lam also assumed the post of Vietnam’s state president in April this year. An official welcoming ceremony was to be held beforehand in the main garden of the Presidential Palace in Hanoi. The schedule was to include a small-group summit, expanded talks, an exchange of memorandums of understanding, and a joint press statement. A state banquet was planned after the summit.* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-04-22 15:24:02

Villa Sales Jump in Seoul School Districts as Apartment Lease Listings Dry Up As apartment jeonse (lump-sum deposit leases) listings tighten in Seoul’s top school districts, more families are turning to villas — low-rise multi-family and row-house homes — in areas such as Mok-dong and Daechi-dong. Data from the Transport Ministry’s real estate transaction disclosure system showed that villa purchases and new lease contracts rose ahead of the new school term in key education hubs including Mok-dong, Daechi-dong and Junggye-dong in Nowon District. In Mok-dong, a major private academy area, villa sales totaled 400 as of the reporting date, with 347 deals concentrated from January through March. That was up 82.6% from 190 in the same period a year earlier. New jeonse and monthly-rent contracts also increased. The total reached 534 as of the reporting date, with 453 signed from January through March. That was an 11.0% rise from 408 a year earlier, suggesting school-term demand lifted both sales and rentals. Daechi-dong in Gangnam District and Junggye-dong showed similar patterns. In Daechi-dong, jeonse and monthly-rent transactions rose 7.8% to 250 in January-March from 232 a year earlier; the cumulative total was 277 as of the reporting date. Villa sales in January-March came to 23, up 35.3% from 17 a year earlier, with 28 sales recorded in total. In Junggye-dong, January-March sales jumped to 16 from seven a year earlier, a 128.6% increase; the cumulative total was 17. New lease contracts totaled 33 as of the reporting date, with no transactions recorded in April. That was more than triple the 10 contracts in the same period last year. The villa market in school districts began to warm after March last year, when the Gangnam three districts and Yongsan District were designated land transaction permit zones, adding owner-occupancy requirements. In Daechi-dong, row-house and multi-family sales rose from 17 in 2023 to 29 in 2024 and 90 in 2025. The trend continued through tighter lending rules and an expansion of regulated areas last year, and analysts said worsening lockups in jeonse supply further boosted villa demand. In Daechi-dong, row-house and multi-family sales in the second half of last year (58) were nearly double the first half (32). Rising apartment prices in school districts also pushed demand toward villas. Apartment sale prices in the Gangnam three districts rose about 6%, or 2.6 times Seoul’s overall average increase of 2.29%. The apartment rental market has tightened as multi-home owners put properties up for sale, reducing lease supply, while more tenants renew existing contracts, creating a chain reaction of shortages. According to the real estate platform Asil, Mok-dong jeonse and monthly-rent listings have been declining, and the market says the supply crunch is being felt. Jin Chang-ha, a professor in Hanyang University’s economics department and president of the Korea Housing Association, said the shift reflects structural change as investment-driven ownership declines and owner-occupancy rises amid tighter rules. “With moves to regulate loan maturities on top of restrictions on non-resident single-home owners and new jeonse loan guarantee rules, the market structure is being reshaped, leading to a structural transition,” he said. 2026-04-22 15:22:50

Samsung Electro-Mechanics shares rise nearly 5% on outlook for record results Samsung Electro-Mechanics surged on April 22, as upbeat brokerage forecasts appeared to lift investor sentiment. According to the Korea Exchange, shares were trading at 810,000 won as of 2:48 p.m., up 38,000 won, or 4.92%, from the previous session. Earlier in the day, Daishin Securities raised its target price by 67.3% to 920,000 won in a premarket report, saying improved profitability would help the company expand market share. Seo Ji-won, an analyst at Daishin Securities, said Samsung Electro-Mechanics is expected to post its best-ever results for a second straight year. He cited grounds for a higher valuation including record performance in 2026 and 2027, additional investment in flip-chip ball grid array (FC-BGA) to move into the No. 1 market-share position, and expectations of price increases for FC-BGA and multilayer ceramic capacitors (MLCC). Seo said FC-BGA prices are rising, driven by artificial intelligence, and that a structural supply shortage for AI server and data-center FC-BGA is persisting. He added that large-scale additional investment could help the company become the global No. 1 in AI-related FC-BGA. He also said demand for MLCC is growing in industrial uses, particularly in AI semiconductors and data centers, and that rising market share could deepen supply shortages, creating conditions that would allow price increases.* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-04-22 15:22:06

HYBE Latin America to Launch Low Clika Drama Series Ahead of New Album HYBE Latin America is rolling out a new project that pairs artists’ music with a storyline, applying what it calls a K-pop-style approach to expanding fan experiences in the Latin market. The company said on the 21st that band Low Clika will return with a new album in the second half of this year. The group drew attention through the band audition program “Pase a la Fama” and debuted in November 2025, promoting a sound that blends traditional Mexican folk music with trap, urban and pop elements. Ahead of the comeback, a short drama series titled “Low Clika: La Serie” will be released. Starting on the 23rd, one episode will be posted each week on the global superfans platform Weverse, as well as YouTube and TikTok. The drama follows the members as they face a crisis amid betrayal and intrigue, then overcome it and grow. It is structured around four main episodes, and a related new song will be released each time an episode concludes over about a month. Myrna Perez, general manager of SIENTO Records, a HYBE Latin America label, said building a connected universe in which music-centered content and narrative are organically linked is “one of HYBE and Chairman Bang Si-hyuk’s core philosophies.” She added, “Through this project, fans will experience the artists’ story, not just listen to the music.” 2026-04-22 15:21:17