E-cigarette users show higher nicotine addiction than traditional smokers, study finds SEOUL, September 08 (AJP) - Users of electronic cigarettes and heated tobacco products may be more dependent on nicotine than conventional cigarette smokers, according to a government-commissioned study released Monday, challenging industry claims that the alternatives are less addictive or less harmful. The research, conducted by the Korea Association on Smoking or Health at the request of the Ministry of Health and Welfare, surveyed 800 smokers between the ages of 20 and 69 nation September 8, 2025

Labor strife deepens at GM Korea amid speculation over company's future SEOUL, September 08 (AJP) - General Motors Korea resumed formal wage negotiations with its labor union on Monday, the first such talks in nearly two months, as disputes over restructuring and persistent speculation about the automaker’s long-term presence in South Korea add to rising tensions. Talks began at 2 p.m., marking the 14th round of bargaining this year and the first since July 15. In the interim, the two sides had engaged in lower-level discussions without reaching September 8, 2025

Korean firms experiment with four-day workweek amid fierce debate SEOUL, September 08 (AJP) - Some of South Korea’s biggest corporations are experimenting with shorter workweeks and flexible schedules, as the nation debates sweeping labor reforms that include cutting the workweek to four days and extending retirement ages. President Lee Jae Myung has pledged to phase in a 4.5-day workweek as a first step toward a four-day schedule without a reduction in pay. Labor unions have embraced the idea: both the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions a September 8, 2025

Matcha finds new home in Korea's old tea culture SEOUL, September 08 (AJP) - On a damp but sunlit Friday evening in Seoul’s Bukchon Hanok Village, a narrow stairway leads to a sleek three-story building tucked among winding alleys. As the door swings open, a cool breeze and a faint herbal scent rush out to meet the line of visitors. Inside, the walls are washed in green. Foreign tourists crowd the hall, perched on moss-colored couches and sipping lattes so vibrantly green they look almost painted. At the center of the roo September 8, 2025

Immigration crackdown leads Korean firms to cancel business trips to US SEOUL, September 07 (AJP) - Hyundai Motor Company has canceled all scheduled business trips to the United States after hundreds of South Korean workers were arrested in Georgia on charges of illegal stay and employment. Industry sources confirmed Sunday that the automaker had notified employees that all travel to the U.S. was suspended. The decision comes after a raid on a joint battery plant operated by LG Energy Solution and Hyundai Motor Group on Sept. 4 led to the detention of September 7, 2025

Samsung plans to embed AI across 90 percent of its business by 2030 SEOUL, September 07 (AJP) - Samsung Electronics plans to integrate artificial intelligence into nearly all of its operations within the next five years, a sweeping transformation that the company says will redefine how it makes and markets everything from smartphones to home appliances. Roh Tae-moon, the acting head of Samsung’s DX Division, which oversees consumer electronics and mobile devices, said at a news conference at the IFA 2025 trade show in Berlin that the company September 7, 2025

Charter flight to bring home Korean workers held in US SEOUL, September 07 (AJP) - The South Korean government said on Sunday that it had successfully negotiated the release of over 300 of its citizens who were detained by American immigration authorities at a construction site in Georgia. The workers were building a joint battery plant for Hyundai Motor Group and LG Energy Solution. Lee Hun-sik, the chief of staff to President Lee Jae Myung, announced that “negotiations for the release of the detained workers have been compl September 7, 2025

Rare lung disease drug fails to secure health insurance coverage in Korea SEOUL, September 06 (AJP) - A breakthrough medication for a rare lung disease has been denied health insurance coverage in South Korea, leaving desperate patients to bear the full cost of treatment. According to the Health Insurance Review & Assessment Service on Saturday, the Tyvaso inhalation solution was rejected on Thursday during its ninth pharmaceutical benefit evaluation committee meeting of 2025. The drug, developed by U.S. based United Therapeutics Corporation and do September 6, 2025

South Korea-US trade complaints double as Trump tariffs undermine FTA benefits SEOUL, September 06 (AJP) - South Korean exporters are grappling with mounting trade barriers as complaints about US market access surged to twice last year's levels, undermining benefits from the bilateral free trade agreement amid Washington's protectionist pivot. Trade grievances filed with South Korea's FTA support center jumped to 1,526 cases in the first seven months of this year, already surpassing the full-year 2024 total of 1,380 cases, according to data from th September 6, 2025

US immigration raid at Hyundai Motor, LG Energy Solution battery plant comes amid ongoing economic cooperation SEOUL, September 06 (AJP) - U.S. immigration authorities arrested 475 people including about 300 South Korean nationals at a Hyundai Motor Group battery plant construction site in Georgia, creating diplomatic tensions just weeks after Seoul pledged billions in American investments. The sweeping raid Friday (local time) at the 3000-acre Hyundai Motor Group-LG Energy Solution joint venture facility came as the two countries were conducting follow-up negotiations on tariffs and investm September 6, 2025