South Korea is aging fast. The jobs can't keep up – or live up SEOUL, September 17 (AJP) - South Korea is a super-aged society, with people 65 and older making up more than 22 percent of the population and the country aging among the fastest in the world. That may partly explain the surprise appeal of a movie about a man in his 70s landing an entry-level office job rather than the cleaning or security work more commonly available to Koreans his age. The Korean remake of the 2015 Hollywood movie of the same title opened Wednesday and immedi September 17, 2026

Fed weakens won, flattens curve before BOJ decision SEOUL, Sept. 17 (AJP) — A Federal Reserve rate hike sent the won sharply lower and flattened South Korea's bond curve Thursday, leaving Friday's widely expected Bank of Japan rate increase — and its guidance on further tightening — as the next test for Korean markets. The won closed down 13.6 won at 1,382.2 per dollar from Wednesday's 1,368.6 after the Fed raised its benchmark rate by 25 basis points to 3.75-4.00 percent and signaled scope for another i September 17, 2026

Lee discusses ways to tackle energy crisis with IEA chief in Seoul SEOUL, September 17 (AJP) - South Korean President Lee Jae Myung met with International Energy Agency (IEA)'s executive director Fatih Birol at Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul to discuss the global energy crisis and the country's transition toward renewable energy. Lee said the global energy crisis is becoming more serious amid the prolonged conflict in the Middle East, which has also created a major challenge for South Korea's efforts to shift toward renewable energy. He September 17, 2026

Samsung's people-first creed under test as chip bonanza deepens divisions Editors Note: This is the first of a two-part AJP series examining the side effects of the chip bonanza, starting with the widening fault lines inside Samsung Electronics. SEOUL, September 17 (AJP) - A few decades ago, every Samsung office had corporate slogans from founder Lee Byung-chull hanging on the wall. One read: "Men make business." Lee prided himself on having devoted 80 percent of his life to finding and cultivating talent. The creed ran through the spine September 17, 2026

This year's biggest full moon to peak two days after Chuseok SEOUL, September 17 (AJP) - As South Koreans are getting ready to celebrate Chuseok, one of the country's biggest holidays next week, they will have to wait for a couple of days to see the harvest moon at its fullest. With this year's Chuseok falling next Friday, the moon will rise at about 5:34 p.m. in Seoul that day, but it will be at its fullest and brightest at 1:49 a.m. on Sept. 27, the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute said on Thursday. South Koreans tra September 17, 2026

Promoting palace etiquette with FIFTY FIFTY Heo Min, head of the Korea Heritage Service, and Athena and Yewon of FIFTY FIFTY, promotional ambassadors for the agency, hand out promotional fans to visitors during a joint campaign to promote proper etiquette at royal palaces and tombs at Gyeongbokgung Palace in Jongno District, Seoul, on the morning of Sept. 17, 2026. September 17, 2026

Korea and IEA forge RISE ASIA partnership to enhance energy security Kim Sung-hwan, minister of climate, energy and environment, and Fatih Birol, executive director of the International Energy Agency (IEA), pose for a photo after signing a memorandum of understanding on the Korea-IEA Resilient and Integrated Security of Energy in Asia (RISE ASIA) Partnership during a joint press conference at the Four Seasons Hotel Seoul in Jongno District, Seoul, on the afternoon of Sept. 17, 2026. September 17, 2026

Fed hike stalls KOSPI as shipbuilders outrun chipmakers SEOUL, Sept. 17 (AJP) — Investors in Seoul rotated out of chipmakers and into shipbuilders on Thursday after the U.S. Federal Reserve raised interest rates for the first time since 2023, leaving the KOSPI flat as foreigners sold for a seventh straight session. Foreign investors dumped a net 2.3 trillion won ($1.6 billion) of shares, lifting their seven-session total above 13 trillion won, as SK hynix and Samsung Electronics slipped and HD Hyundai Heavy Industries jumped 6.6 September 17, 2026

Scores of users' information exposed in cyberattack, Kakao Games reveals SEOUL, September 17 (AJP) - Kakao Games belatedly said Thursday that some 140 users of two of its services had their personal information exposed in a cyberattack last week. The game publisher said it detected unusual activity on its systems at 10:44 p.m. last Saturday, prompting it to block the unauthorized access and launch an internal probe, which found that an outside attacker had breached the system. After immediately blocking the access and checking the affected systems, September 17, 2026

The world of K-beauty, pulled into one Seoul office SEOUL, September 17 (AJP) — K-beauty spent years carrying Seoul to bathroom shelves, beauty counters and social-media feeds around the world. Inside one skincare office in southern Seoul, that current is running the other way: the world has come to work. At Mary&May, a Korean skincare brand sold in more than 60 countries, employees from 15 nationalities sit inside the machinery of K-beauty's global expansion — choosing products, creators, words and images for mar September 17, 2026