LG Electronics opens second Brazil plant to press Global South push SEOUL, August 16 (AJP) - LG Electronics has begun production at a new home-appliance plant in Brazil, deepening its drive into the Global South as the South Korean group leans on emerging markets to offset softening demand in the developed world. The factory in Parana state started operations on Thursday, the company said Sunday, becoming its second production base in Brazil after the Manaus plant established in the Amazonas state in 1996. The site can turn out about 600,000 refrige August 16, 2026

Gartner sees one in five firms pulling back on AI by 2028 as costs mount SEOUL, August 16 (AJP) - South Korean companies racing to embed artificial intelligence across their operations face a mounting threat that has little to do with the technology itself: the bill. By 2028, about one in five organizations worldwide will scale back or abandon AI in parts of their operations and return to conventional software development, unable to rein in runaway costs, according to research from Gartner. The retreat is expected to concentrate in areas where the ret August 16, 2026

Korea widens nuclear export push from rules to SMRs SEOUL, August 15 (AJP) - South Korea is widening its nuclear export strategy beyond building reactors, seeking to package regulatory know-how with its manufacturing and construction muscle as it targets newcomer markets in Southeast Asia and a rapidly forming global supply chain for small modular reactors. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and the Nuclear Safety and Security Commission agreed to integrate nuclear safety and regulatory cooperation into overseas reactor bids, August 15, 2026

MASGA gets liftoff with drones with Washington's push  SEOUL, August 14 (AJP) - Washington's push to rebuild strategic industries at home while reducing dependence on China is creating new openings for South Korean companies in two seemingly different sectors: shipbuilding and drones. The latest U.S. moves point to a broader strategy of tapping production capacity from trusted allies where American industry cannot immediately meet demand, while using tariffs, investment and procurement rules to steer strategic supply chains away fro August 14, 2026

China cracks memory club, but harder test looms SEOUL, August 14 (AJP) - China's heavily government-backed chipmakers are breaking into the once-exclusive global memory club, with Yangtze Memory Technologies Co. (YMTC) vaulting into the world's top three NAND flash suppliers for the first time. But just as China closes the gap in manufacturing scale, artificial intelligence is moving the industry's profit pool toward a harder target. YMTC captured 14 percent of global NAND bit shipments in the second quarter, ove August 14, 2026

S. Korea delivers first upgraded PKMR Batch II patrol craft to Navy SEOUL, August 14 (AJP) - South Korea delivered the first Geomdoksuri-B Batch II fast patrol craft to the Navy on Friday, strengthening its frontline maritime capabilities near the Northern Limit Line, the de facto inter-Korean sea border. The Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) held a delivery ceremony at HJ Shipbuilding & Construction’s Yeongdo shipyard in Busan on Friday. The Geomdoksuri-B program is designed to replace the Navy’s aging Chamsuri-cl August 14, 2026

Ottogi second-quarter net profit falls 2.7% as margins tighten SEOUL, August 14 (AJP) - Ottogi, one of South Korea's largest food manufacturers, announced that its second-quarter net profit fell 2.7 percent from a year earlier, as rising costs squeezed margins even though sales climbed on the back of instant noodles and stronger overseas demand. According to regulatory filings released Friday, net profit for the April to June period came to 33.2 billion won ($23.4 million). Revenue rose 4.6 percent to 943.8 billion won and operating prof August 14, 2026

Hanwha Systems to equip ROK Navy support ships with EO/IR systems SEOUL, August 14 (AJP) - Hanwha Systems will install new electro-optical and infrared observation systems on four Republic of Korea Navy support and rescue ships, expanding technology originally developed for military helicopters into naval applications. The company said Friday that it signed a contract with the Defense Agency for Technology and Quality in July and has begun development. The project covers one logistics support ship, two surface rescue ships and one submarine rescue August 14, 2026

Korea's game groups press for production and e-sports tax breaks SEOUL, August 14 (AJP) - South Korea's game industry associations urged the government to extend tax relief to game production costs and e-sports tournaments, arguing that the country's most lucrative cultural export remains shut out of incentives its rivals take for granted. Five bodies, including the Korea Game Developers Association, the Korea Association of Game Industry and the Korea e-Sports Association, said in a joint statement on Friday that games account for about August 14, 2026

Samsung brings AI brains as chip rivalry with SK hynix heats up SEOUL, August 14 (AJP) - Samsung Electronics has recruited two artificial intelligence specialists to accelerate the use of AI in semiconductor research and manufacturing, as its intensifying rivalry with SK hynix expands beyond advanced memory chips into how those chips are designed and produced. Samsung has hired Seoul National University professor Bohyung Han, a specialist in deep learning and computer vision, as a Fellow to lead the development of AI models tailored to semicon August 14, 2026