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  BTS Comeback D-9 — Spotify sets Han River cruise for immersive "SWIMSIDE" fan event SEOUL, March 12 (AJP) - As BTS counts down to the release of its comeback album ARIRANG, Spotify is taking the anticipation off the screen and onto the Han River. The streaming platform is launching “SWIMSIDE,” an immersive fan campaign built around BTS’s upcoming title track “SWIM,” which is set for release with the album on March 20 at 1 p.m. KST. At the heart of the campaign is the “Spotify × BTS SWIMSIDE Cruise,” a themed even March 12, 2026
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  PM heads to US, Switzerland to bid for UN AI hub SEOUL, March 12 (AJP) - Prime Minister Kim Min-seok left for the U.S. on Thursday to promote South Korea's bid to host an artificial intelligence (AI)-related hub for the U.N. and its agencies. During his weeklong visit, Kim is scheduled to meet with U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres and other officials in New York, where he will promote South Korea's initiative for global cooperation on AI-related projects. He is also expected to hold a meeting with seni March 12, 2026
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  Analysis: U.S. turns to Section 301 to sustain tariff strategy, what it means for Korea SEOUL, March 12 (AJP) -The Trump administration’s decision to launch a sweeping Section 301 investigation into South Korea and 15 other economies signals that Washington’s tariff-centered trade policy remains firmly intact despite a recent Supreme Court ruling that struck down a key legal foundation for earlier duties. The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) announced Wednesday that it is opening investigations into “structural excess capacity a March 12, 2026
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  No-frills Eastar Jet tops South Korean carriers in seat occupancy SEOUL, March 12 (AJP) - Eastar Jet filed more than 90 percent of its seats on average last year, the highest among South Korean airlines, the budget carrier said on Thursday. Of the carrier's roughly 33,600 flights with 6.33 million seats, about 5.71 million passengers were aboard, reaching an average seat occupancy rate of 90.14 percent. The figure is well above the aviation industry's average of 84.86 percent, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transpo March 12, 2026
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  Foreign investors flee Seoul as KRW weakness persists SEOUL, Mar. 12 (AJP) — Foreign investors pivoted to a net sell-off in South Korean financial markets between February and March, marking the first net outflow in six months. The South Korean won continued its steady decline, extending a period of weakness that began last month. The value of the won has depreciated by 2 percent since February, falling from a January average of 1,439.5 per dollar to 1,469.2 as of March 10 according to a Bank of Korea (BOK) release on Thursday, March 12, 2026
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  Asian stocks edge lower on oil supply fears, Hormuz disruption concerns SEOUL, March 12 (AJP) — Asian stock markets traded mostly lower Thursday as investors weighed volatile oil prices and the risk of prolonged shipping disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz despite a coordinated release of strategic crude reserves by major consuming nations. The International Energy Agency (IEA) said Wednesday that its 32 member countries agreed to release 400 million barrels of strategic oil reserves, the largest coordinated drawdown in the agency’s histor March 12, 2026
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  South Korea completes test of first homegrown air-launched anti-tank missile SEOUL, March 12 (AJP) - South Korea has successfully completed the test of its first homegrown air-launched anti-tank guided missile (ATGM), the Defense Agency for Technology and Quality said on Thursday. The Cheongeom, which literally means "heavenly sword" in Korean and is also called TAipers, was developed by the Agency for Defense Development (ADD) in 2022 and manufactured by Hanwha Aerospace. Mounted on a light armed helicopter, it is designed to precisely stri March 12, 2026
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  Shopping arcade in Seoul finds new life as elderly hangout SEOUL, March 12 (AJP) - A shopping arcade in central Seoul has found an unlikely second life as a favorite hangout for elderly people with little money. On the first floor of Nakwon Arcade in Jongno, a boisterous crowd of seniors fills the tables daily, some seated, others standing nearby, their laughter and chatter echoing all the way to the entrance. This is where the neighborhood’s best janggi (or Korean chess) players gather to compete. With recreational activities bann March 12, 2026
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  South Korean researchers develop task AI enabling robots to learn, execute everyday chores SEOUL, March 12 (AJP) - South Korean researchers have developed a robotic task artificial intelligence system capable of learning and carrying out routine household and workplace chores by observing human demonstrations, the state-run Korea Institute of Machinery & Materials (KIMM) said Thursday. The AI system, built by a team led by Kim Jeong-jung at KIMM's Department of AI Machinery, allows robots to acquire task skills from human demonstrations, replicate them in a virtua March 12, 2026
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  Photos show North Korean leader and daughter firing pistols during on-site inspection SEOUL, March 12 (AJP) - North Korean leader Kim Jong-un inspected a munitions factory producing light weapons such as pistols, state media reported on Thursday. According to the state-run Korean Central News Agency, Kim visited the factory the previous day to "learn about the munitions production." He was quoted as urging officials to "expand the factory's production capacity in a far-sighted way and raise the level of modernization of the production li March 12, 2026