Seoul named global youth's favorite city for fifth straight year SEOUL, August 02 (AJP) - Seoul has been named the world's favorite city among younger travelers for a fifth consecutive year, the city government said, extending a run that has burnished the South Korean capital's standing as a global tourism draw. The Seoul Metropolitan Government and the Seoul Tourism Organization said Sunday that the city topped the "Favorite Worldwide City" category in the 2026 The Trazees awards, run by U.S.-based travel media outlet Trazee Tr August 2, 2026

Samsung slips into the red as LG's appliances hold the 1 trillion won line SEOUL, August 02 (AJP) -South Korea's two largest electronics makers saw their consumer appliance businesses move sharply apart in the first half of 2026, as LG Electronics posted a second straight quarter of profit above 1 trillion won ($693 million) while Samsung Electronics slipped into the red. The operating profit gap between the two firms' comparable home appliance, television and air-conditioning operations came to about 990 billion won in the first quarter and 1.15 t August 2, 2026

AI coding tools thin out junior developer ranks, Gartner warns SEOUL, August 02 (AJP) - Hiring of entry-level software developers has fallen sharply as companies lean on artificial-intelligence coding tools to handle routine work, a shift that research firm Gartner warned that could drain the industry's future talent pool. Employment of software developers aged 22 to 25 has dropped by about 20 percent from its late-2022 peak, according to a Stanford University Digital Economy Lab study of payroll records, coinciding with the arrival of Chat August 2, 2026

Korea's July exports hit record near $99 billion as chips soar SEOUL, August 01 (AJP) - South Korea’s exports reached a record high in July, driven by a sharp increase in semiconductor shipments and broad gains across most major export items, the industry ministry said Saturday. Outbound shipments jumped 62.8 percent from a year earlier to $98.89 billion in July, while imports rose 26.5 percent to $68.56 billion, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The country posted a trade surplus of $30.32 billion, remaining above August 1, 2026

SK Siltron joins Doosan in $1.65 billion buyout SEOUL, July 31 (AJP) -South Korea's Doosan Group will acquire a controlling stake in SK Siltron, the world's third-largest silicon wafer manufacturer, in a deal that reshapes the country's semiconductor supply chain while providing SK Group with fresh capital to accelerate its artificial intelligence (AI) push. SK Inc. approved the sale at a board meeting on Friday, agreeing to sell its combined 70.6 percent stake in unlisted SK Siltron for about 2.3 trillion won ($1.6 July 31, 2026

Hanwha eyes third Poland K9 deal after $1 bn quarterly profit milestone SEOUL, July 31 (AJP) - South Korea's Hanwha Aerospace remained bullish on the second half after nearly reaching the $1 billion milestone in quarterly operating profit, supported by a record order backlog, mass production under Poland's second K9 execution contract, deliveries to Egypt and Australia, and negotiations for a third K9 deal with Warsaw. The company reported second-quarter operating profit of 1.37 trillion won ($951 million), up 59 percent from a year earlier, on July 31, 2026

Unionized workers at Kakao Bank stage first-ever strike amid wage dispute SEOUL, July 31 (AJP) - Unionized workers at KakaoBank launched a strike on Friday, marking the bank's first walkout since its establishment in 2017 as the country's first internet-only bank. More than 700 of KakaoBank's roughly 1,000 unionized workers took part in the strike by taking paid leave and staying off the job. No separate rally was held. The bank's labor union said it is discussing its next steps internally. The strike came after the union had been ne July 31, 2026

Coupang ordered to compensate consumers for data leak SEOUL, July 31 (AJP) - South Korea's consumer watchdog on Friday ordered e-commerce giant Coupang to compensate victims of last year's massive data breach, marking the first decision to recognize the company's liability for damages resulting from the leak. The Consumer Dispute Settlement Commission under the Korea Consumer Agency said Coupang should pay 100,000 won (US$70) in compensation to each of the 50 consumers who filed a collective action in December last year July 31, 2026

Hanwha Aerospace posts record Q2 operating profit near $1 billion SEOUL, July 31 (AJP) - Hanwha Aerospace said Friday its second-quarter operating profit reached a record 1.37 trillion won ($951 million), nearing the $1 billion mark, driven by steady defense deliveries at home and abroad and strong earnings from Hanwha Ocean and Hanwha Systems. The company posted 9.29 trillion won ($6.5 billion) in consolidated sales for the April-June period, up 47 percent from a year earlier. Operating profit rose 59 percent on-year to 1.37 trillion won. By b July 31, 2026

AI chip boom begins to warm South Korea's broader domestic front SEOUL, July 31 (AJP) - Red-hot chip demand, which earned South Korea's two chipmakers 150 trillion won ($108 billion) in combined second-quarter operating profit — equivalent to about 6 percent of the country's entire 2025 nominal GDP — is beginning to warm the broader domestic front, with the AI boom spilling from exports into factories, construction sites and household spending. The latest government data suggest the country's semiconductor-driven expans July 31, 2026