news highlight

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  AI voice technology firm set to debut on KOSDAQ next week SEOUL, September 16 (AJP) - Neosapience, a generative artificial intelligence (AI) and AI voice technology company will be listed on the KOSDAQ next week, according to its report filed with the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) on Wednesday. Some 23.21 percent of its shares will be available for trading starting from next Monday, down from an earlier estimate of 28.66 percent. The smaller number of shares available for trading comes after institutional investors agreed to lock September 16, 2026
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  Kakao Entertainment, Disney Korea plan K-pop IP projects SEOUL, September 16 (AJP) -Kakao Entertainment and Walt Disney Company Korea have formed a strategic partnership to develop projects combining K-pop intellectual property with Disney stories and characters, Kakao Entertainment said Wednesday. The companies plan about 10 projects over the mid to long term, spanning music, content, commerce and live entertainment. Kakao Entertainment and Disney Korea will also explore other forms of cooperation, including the possible creation of September 16, 2026
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  KOSPI recovers from four-session slide as chip stocks rally SEOUL, September 16 (AJP) - South Korean stocks rebounded on Wednesday, as gains in major semiconductor stocks offset continued foreign selling ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve's key interest rate decision. The benchmark KOSPI rose 1.37 percent or 90.71 points to close at 6,717.97, snapping a four-session losing streak. The index opened 0.24 percent lower at 6,611.24 and fell as low as 6,598.87 before reversing course, eventually closing at its intraday high. Overseas in September 16, 2026
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  Coupang rejects proposal to compensate data breach victims SEOUL, September 16 (AJP) - South Korea's e-commerce giant Coupang has rejected a proposal by the country's consumer watchdog to compensate customers affected by a massive data breach last year. According to industry sources on Wednesday, Coupang notified the Consumer Dispute Settlement Commission under the Korea Consumer Agency last Friday that it would not accept the proposal. In a reccomdation which is not leggoiung bining, the commission in late July urged that Coup September 16, 2026
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  SK hynix plays down speculation of Intel fab tie-up SEOUL, September 16 (AJP) -Shares of SK hynix shot up nearly 4 percent Wednesday on a report that the South Korea-based memory giant was considering producing memory chips in the United States at an Intel facility, a scenario the chipmaker later played down. "We are intent on adding an overseas fab, and reviewing multiple countries and sites," a company spokesman said, declining to name the countries under consideration or confirm whether Intel was among the potential par September 16, 2026
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  Homeplus struggles to regain footing after court rescue SEOUL, September 16 (AJP) - Homeplus is generating only about 40 percent of its targeted sales two weeks after securing court approval for its rehabilitation plan, forcing it to split overdue wages into two payments, according to industry sources on Wednesday. The hypermarket chain reportedly told its two labor unions that revenue was falling short of what it needs to meet repayments under the plan. Unpaid July wages will be paid in two installments on Sept. 23 and 30, with payme September 16, 2026
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  South Korean thriller wins top prize at genre film festival in Paris SEOUL, September 16 (AJP) - Director Park Hoon-jung's action thriller "Sad Tropics," also known as "Tristes Tropiques," has won the top award at the annual L'Etrange Festival in Paris, the film's distributor said on Wednesday. The 107-minute film won the top honor, the Nouveau Genre Grand Prize, after competing in the festival's international competition, which wrapped up its two-week run last Saturday. Now in its 32nd year, the festival, September 16, 2026
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  Chip binge intoxicates Korean Inc. stakeholders, waves of strikes spread SEOUL, September 16 (AJP) - Two years on, the still-strong chip bonanza of the AI-driven economic age has bestowed on South Korea a double-digit growth in national wealth in nominal terms unseen in more than three decades, thrusting stakeholders — employees and shareholders — into brawls for a bigger share of the newfound riches. Strikes and strike threats have become a recurring scene this year, spreading from chipmakers and shipbuilders to digital platforms such as Kak September 16, 2026
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  Defense nominee apologizes over martial law SEOUL, September 16 (AJP) - Defense Minister nominee Kang Shin-chul apologized Tuesday for the military’s role during the Dec. 3, 2024 martial law declaration, while signaling support for the government’s push to overhaul South Korea’s military academies. Speaking at his confirmation hearing at the National Assembly, Kang said he felt a “deep sense of responsibility” as one of the military’s highest-ranking officers at the time and apologized to t September 16, 2026