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  Overseas stock buying drives record FX trading in South Korea in 2025 SEOUL, January 23 (AJP) - South Korean banks recorded a sharp rise in foreign exchange trading last year, with average daily volumes hitting a record high as overseas securities investment by residents surged and foreign investors stepped up purchases of South Korean assets. According to a Bank of Korea report released on Friday, average daily foreign exchange trading at domestic banks — including spot and derivatives transactions — totaled $80.71 billion in 2025, up January 23, 2026
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  Lotte Card raises $300 million overseas via asset-backed securities SEOUL, January 23 (AJP) - South Korea’s Lotte Card said on Friday it has secured about 4.42 trillion won ($300 million) in overseas funding through the issuance of asset-backed securities. The credit card company, part of the Lotte Group conglomerate, said the funding was raised by issuing asset-backed securities (ABS) backed by credit card sales receivables. Societe Generale participated as an investor, and the securities have an average maturity of three years. Lotte Ca January 23, 2026
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  Homeplus confirms closures of additional stores amid liquidity strain SEOUL, January 23 (AJP) - South Korea’s retail chain Homeplus has confirmed the closure of additional stores as the company undergoes court-led rehabilitation, raising fresh concerns about its financial condition. Industry sources said on Friday that Homeplus informed staff in an internal notice the previous day of plans to shut its Jamsil store in Seoul and its Sungui store in Incheon. A Homeplus official said the timing of the closures has yet to be set, adding tha January 23, 2026
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  Doosan Bobcat walks away from bid to acquire Germany's Wacker Neuson SEOUL, January 23 (AJP) -Doosan Bobcat is walking away from around $3 billion acquisition talks with German construction equipment maker Wacker Neuson SE, formally ending negotiations that would have marked one of the South Korean company’s largest overseas deals. In a regulatory filing on Friday, the KOSPI-trading Doosan Bobcat said it had reviewed the potential acquisition but decided not to proceed, without disclosing further details. Shares were up 1.3 percent at 60,800 January 23, 2026
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  Dispute deepens as US investors seek probe into 'discriminatory' actions against Coupang SEOUL, January 23 (AJP) - The dispute between Coupang and South Korean regulators appears to have turned into a potential diplomatic issue after the e-commerce giant's U.S. investors urged the Trump administration to investigate Seoul over alleged unfair trade practices. Greenoaks Capital and Altimeter Capital, the two largest shareholders of the New York-listed company, filed a petition on Thursday, requesting the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) launch an investi January 23, 2026
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  Canadian delegates tour Hanwha Ocean's shipyard ahead of submarine bidding SEOUL, January 23 (AJP) - South Korea’s Hanwha Ocean said Friday that an Ontario cabinet minister visited its Geoje shipyard this week, as the company steps up efforts to win Canada’s submarine project. Victor Fedeli, Ontario’s minister responsible for economic development, job creation and trade and a provincial lawmaker representing Nipissing, toured the shipbuilder’s Geoje facility, the company said. The visit comes ahead of bidding for Canada’s January 23, 2026
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  How Seongsu turned industrial grit into Seoul's coolest address Editor’s Note: This is the first installment in AJP’s Seongsu series, which examines how Seoul’s former factory district transformed into a global hub for pop-ups, brand experiences and new forms of urban consumption. SEOUL, January 23 (AJP) - On a Saturday in Seongsu-dong, a former factory district in eastern Seoul, the first thing you notice is not the clothes. It is the choreography. Pedestrians move in coordinated waves down Yeonmujang-gil, inching past ca January 23, 2026
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  Korean Air, Asiana Airlines ban use of power banks on board SEOUL, January 23 (AJP) - Korean Air and four other airlines affiliated with Hanjin Group will ban the use of portable power banks on board their aircraft from Jan. 26, the group said on Friday, citing safety concerns. Under the revised policy, passengers on domestic and international flights operated by Korean Air, Asiana Airlines, Jin Air, Air Busan and Air Seoul will be prohibited from using power banks to charge electronic devices such as mobile phones, tablets, laptops and January 23, 2026
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  Roaring stock market lifts Korean consumer confidence despite weak real economy SEOUL, January 23 (AJP)-South Koreans grew more optimistic about the economy and their spending plans in January, buoyed by a surging stock market despite continued weakness in real economic conditions from a weak won and strong prices. According to the Bank of Korea on Friday, the Consumer Sentiment Index rose 1.0 point from the previous month to 110.8 in January, supported by the strongest spending bias in five months. A reading above 100 indicates sentiment more opt January 23, 2026
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  U.S. investors asks Washington to probe Seoul's treatment of Coupang SEOUL, January 22 (AJP) -Two major U.S. investors in Coupang Inc. have asked the U.S. government to investigate its Korean counterpart over what they describe as discriminatory treatment of the U.S.-based e-commerce platform commanding dominant market in Korea, raising the prospect that a corporate dispute could spill into a bilateral trade issue. Technology investment firms Greenoaks and Altimeter said Thursday that they have petitioned the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) to e January 22, 2026