South Korea deploys more service robots amid rising labor costs SEOUL, May 18 (AJP) - South Korea’s main gateway, Incheon International Airport, has deployed autonomous service robots as the country accelerates automation across service industries amid rising wage costs and labor shortages. Incheon International Airport Corporation said Monday that it has begun full-scale operations of 31 autonomous robots, including self-check-in robots, guidance and patrol robots, and docent robots designed to assist passengers and provide cultural inf May 18, 2026

South Korean chipmakers rescue Seoul market despite broad Asia selloff SEOUL, May 18 (AJP) - South Korean stocks ended higher on Monday as heavyweight semiconductor shares helped the benchmark index recover from a sharp early plunge. The market stood out against a broader selloff across Asia triggered by rising global bond yields, renewed oil price pressures and weakness in United States technology shares. The KOSPI rose 0.6 percent to close at 7,516.04, rebounding from an intraday low of 7,142.71 to reach a high of 7,636.20. The recovery occurred d May 18, 2026

ASIA INSIGHT: What back-to-back visits by Trump and Putin mean for China SEOUL, May 18 (AJP) - Just days after U.S. President Donald Trump left Beijing, Russian President Vladimir Putin is set to arrive there this week. The timing appears to be no coincidence. According to China's Foreign Ministry, Putin will visit China on Tuesday and Wednesday at the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping. The two leaders are expected to discuss bilateral cooperation, regional security and other broader global issues before signing a series of agreements. On May 18, 2026

Flights to Southeast Asia hit hardest as fuel costs force LCCs to cut routes SEOUL, May 18 (AJP) - South Korean low-cost carriers are cutting more international flights, particularly on Southeast Asian routes, even as fuel surcharges for June eased slightly from their peak, raising concerns over passenger inconvenience and limited compensation. Since the outbreak of the Middle East war, domestic low-cost carriers (LCCs) and mid-tier carriers have reduced more than 1,100 round-trip international flights, with Southeast Asian routes accounting for a large port May 18, 2026

Young adults mark Coming-of-Age Day with campus festivities SEOUL, May 18 (AJP) - Coming-of-Age Day celebrations were held across the country on Monday, with universities marking the occasion for students turning 19 this year. Observed every third Monday of May, the day encourages young adults to embrace their new responsibilities as members of society. It has long been a tradition to give roses and perfume to those reaching adulthood, while universities and local communities have increasingly hosted events celebrating young people enteri May 18, 2026

S. Korea launches special inspection to investigate construction defects in Seoul's GTX station SEOUL, May 18 (AJP) - South Korea's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport has launched a special on-site inspection of the GTX-A line's Samseong Station section over rebar omission and construction defects, the ministry said on Monday. The probe was triggered by the discovery that 50 of 80 main columns supporting the GTX platform at the underground fifth floor were built with only one row of main rebar instead of the two rows specified in the design, a shortfall o May 18, 2026

France honors South Korean director Park Chan-wook with top cultural order SEOUL, May 18 (AJP) - France has awarded South Korean film director Park Chan-wook the Commandeur in the Order of Arts and Letters, the highest rank of its cultural merit. French Culture Minister Catherine Pégard presented the medal Sunday in Cannes. The ceremony took place during the 79th Cannes Film Festival, where the 62-year-old is currently serving as the first South Korean filmmaker to preside over the festival jury. Established in 1957 by the French Ministry of Cu May 18, 2026

Lee attends memorial for Gwangju democratic uprising SEOUL, May 18 (AJP) - President Lee Jae Myung attended a ceremony marking the anniversary of the 1980 Gwangju Democratic Uprising in the southwestern city on Monday. The ceremony was held at the square of the former provincial office in Gwangju to remember those who rose up against military dictatorship to defend democracy 46 years ago and to comfort their bereaved families. The square, which officially reopened the same day after years of restoration work that began in 2019, May 18, 2026

Uzbekistan and Azerbaijan expand bilateral trade and transport networks SEOUL, May 18 (AJP) - Bilateral trade and transport volumes between Uzbekistan and Azerbaijan are surging following the introduction of a free trade regime between the two nations, the Embassy of Uzbekistan in Seoul said Monday. Total trade turnover reached 80.1 million dollars in the first quarter of 2026, marking a 42.5 percent increase from the same period last year. The economic expansion is driven by established intergovernmental platforms, including a joint commission that h May 18, 2026

Kookmin University undergraduate's AI paper accepted at ICML 2026 SEOUL, May 18 (AJP) - An undergraduate student in South Korea has authored a research paper on artificial intelligence that has been accepted for presentation at the 43rd International Conference on Machine Learning, Kookmin University said Monday. Kim Min-woo, a senior in the university's software program, is the first author of the paper titled "Memory as Dynamics: Learning Reliability-Guided Predictive Models for Online Video Perception." The research introduces a May 18, 2026