South Korean public sector union vows mass summer rally over pension, labor rights SEOUL, May 28 (AJP) - South Korea’s largest public officials’ union said Thursday it will launch a nationwide campaign and hold a large-scale rally in July demanding improvements to the civil servant pension system, higher wages, and broader political rights for government employees. The Korean Government Employees’ Union, known as KGEU, held a resolution rally near the presidential Blue House in central Seoul, where union leaders accused the government of overwo May 28, 2026

Samsung's largest union adopts two-track DS-DX bargaining as membership slides SEOUL, May 28 (AJP) - Samsung Electronics’ largest labor union is rapidly losing members in the aftermath of a contentious wage agreement that exposed deepening rifts between the company’s semiconductor and device businesses, prompting the union to adopt a separate “two-track” bargaining structure for its divisions. Samsung Group Labor Union’s Samsung Electronics branch, the company’s largest and majority union, said Thursday its membership fell May 28, 2026

Weak Iranian missiles — not ship armor — explain limited damage to HMM Namu: experts SEOUL, May 28 (AJP) - South Korea's conclusion that the cargo ship HMM Namu—damaged near the Strait of Hormuz on May 4—was likely hit by Iranian missiles has raised a simple question: how did a commercial vessel survive two direct strikes with only minor damage? Defense experts say the answer lies not in the ship's structural strength, but in the missiles' limited performance. The question arose after Seoul announced Wednesday that the two unidentified pr May 28, 2026

South Korea denies report of alliance rift over wartime control transfer SEOUL, May 28 (AJP) - South Korea's Defense Ministry on Thursday dismissed as "groundless" a local media report claiming that President Lee Jae Myung's push for an early transfer of wartime operational control (OPCON) could lead to the dismantling of the current South Korea-U.S. Combined Forces Command (CFC) structure. The ministry said U.S. Forces Korea had raised no objection to plans for a future combined command led by a South Korean four-star general following May 28, 2026

K-pop quartet's new album draws attention after their hit song 'Supernova' SEOUL, May 28 (AJP) - K-pop girl group aespa returned on Thursday with a new full-length album "LEMONADE," unveiling what the quartet described as a more mature musical identity and a new phase in the expanding universe that has defined their rise as one of K-pop's leading global acts. The 10-track album was released at 1 p.m. through major music-streaming platforms, marking aespa's first studio album since "Armageddon" in May 2024. The release arrives May 28, 2026

KOSPI slips after record rally while BOK holds rate but signals hikes ahead SEOUL, May 28 (AJP) - The Bank of Korea held its benchmark interest rate steady on Thursday but delivered its clearest signal yet that a tightening cycle is coming, pulling the KOSPI back from this week's record highs as traders repriced for higher borrowing costs ahead. The central bank kept its policy rate at 2.5 percent, a decision nearly every economist had expected, at the first meeting chaired by new BOK governor Shin Hyun-song. The news lay in the dissent: five of the sev May 28, 2026

Two-day early voting for local elections set to begin this week SEOUL, May 28 (AJP) - Early voting for the upcoming June 3 local elections is set to begin this week. According to the National Election Commission (NEC), voters may cast their ballots at any polling station nationwide, regardless of their registered address, from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. over two days from Friday to Saturday. Voters must bring a photo ID showing their date of birth such as a resident registration card, passport or driver's license. Mobile IDs are accepted only if th May 28, 2026

Kookmin University student racing team KORA unveils EV ahead of international competition SEOUL, May 28 (AJP) - Kookmin University student racing team Kookmin Racing (KORA) unveiled its new electric formula vehicle, F-26, during a launch ceremony on campus in Seoul, South Korea, ahead of an international engineering competition, Kookmin University said Thursday. KORA will participate in the 2026 Formula SAE Electric, an international student vehicle design competition hosted by SAE International (SAE). The event will take place from June 16 to June 20, 2026, at the Mic May 28, 2026

FuriosaAI taps Broadcom to build third-generation AI inference chip SEOUL, May 28 (AJP) - South Korean artificial intelligence chip designer FuriosaAI said it had forged a strategic partnership with U.S. semiconductor giant Broadcom to co-develop a next-generation AI inference platform, deepening a homegrown bid to challenge the dominance of established players in the booming market for AI silicon. According to the neural processing unit maker on Thursday, the two companies will evolve FuriosaAI's proprietary tensor contraction processor archite May 28, 2026

Foreign ministers of South Korea and Singapore agree to deepen cooperation SEOUL, May 28 (AJP) - Foreign Minister Cho Hyun met with his Singaporean counterpart in Seoul on Thursday to discuss bilateral cooperation, regional security issues, and broader international affairs, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Their meeting came after Singaporean Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan's visit to North Korea earlier this week as part of a regional tour that also included China. During his trip to Pyongyang last Tuesday, Balakrishnan met with his May 28, 2026