NATO family proves too tight for South Korea in Canadian bid SEOUL, July 07 (AJP) - South Korea's campaign to break into NATO's inner circle of submarine suppliers fell short as Canada chose Germany's TKMS over Hanwha Ocean, underscoring that alliance politics can outweigh technology and industrial advantages in major defense contracts. Ottawa on Monday designated TKMS as the preferred supplier for a program to procure up to 12 conventionally powered submarines. The acquisition is expected to cost at least $20 billion, while lifet July 7, 2026

Bethlehem to name road Korea Street after aid SEOUL, July 07 (AJP) - A road in Bethlehem will be named Korea Street this week, a symbolic gesture of appreciation for South Korea’s development and humanitarian support for Palestinians as the West Bank city struggles with the economic fallout from the prolonged Gaza war. The Palestinian Authority and Bethlehem Municipality will hold a ceremony Wednesday with the Representative Office of the Republic of Korea to Palestine and the Korea International Cooperation Agency, or July 7, 2026

Hormuz oil shock splits Asian industry in two SEOUL, July 07 (AJP) - South Korea's factories just lived through the most violent oil shock in history, and the strange part is that the country posted record exports while it happened. The war in Iran and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway carrying about a fifth of the world's oil, did not hit Asian industry evenly in the first half of 2026. It split it. Semiconductors sailed through on artificial intelligence demand, automobiles took a glancing blow, July 7, 2026

Won extends gains on second day of 24-hr FX trading SEOUL, July 07 (AJP) - The Korean won strengthened further Tuesday, the second day of round-the-clock trading in the domestic foreign exchange market, even as foreign investors sold local stocks. As of 12:30 p.m. (0300 GMT), the won was hovering around 1,521 per dollar, up more than nine won from the previous daytime closing level. South Korea shifted its dollar-won spot market to a 24-hour trading system on Monday, allowing continuous trading from 6 a.m. Monday to 6 a.m. Saturday July 7, 2026

Investors take profit instead of celebrating Samsung Elec record Q2 SEOUL, July 7 (AJP) — South Korea's main bourse sank Tuesday along with chip giants as investors took Samsung Electronics' second-quarter earnings as a cue to take profits rather than celebrate the record performance. As of 11:00 a.m., the benchmark KOSPI had plunged 4.29 percent to 7,697.18. The junior KOSDAQ edged down 0.41 percent to 843.60. Samsung Electronics estimated second-quarter operating profit at 89.4 trillion won, a figure that could approach 10 trillio July 7, 2026

Korean Wave fuels export growth even as it loses steam in Southeast Asia SEOUL, July 7 (AJP) - The Korean Wave is becoming a major force behind the country's economy, a report released by the Korea Foundation for International Cultural Exchange on Tuesday suggests. The foundation estimated that Korean Wave-related exports climbed 15.9 percent on-year to US$18.98 billion this year. Exports of Korean cultural content including K-pop and TV dramas totaled $10.19 billion this year, while related consumer goods and tourism exports reached $8.79 bil July 7, 2026

LG Electronics Q2 profit beats estimates on HVAC growth, tariff gains SEOUL, July 07 (AJP) - LG Electronics' second-quarter operating profit came in at an estimated 1.58 trillion won $1 billion), above the market consensus of 1.02 trillion won, according to the company on Tuesday. The preliminary figure compares with operating profit of 1.67 trillion won in the previous quarter, representing a 5.7 percent decrease quarter-on-quarter. Revenue for the April-June period came to 23.83 trillion won, compared with 23.72 trillion won in the July 7, 2026

Korea-India Future Society to host economic cooperation forum on July 21 SEOUL, July 07 (AJP) -The action plans and business opportunities emerging from the upgraded Korea-India economic partnership following President Lee Jae Myung's state visit to India will be outlined at a special forum hosted by the Korea-India Future Society on July 21. The forum will feature Ambassador Lee Seong-ho, South Korea's ambassador to India, and Cho Choong-jae, head of the Delhi Office of the Korea Institute for International Economic Policy (KIEP), according t July 7, 2026

Hot Stock: Hanwha Ocean nosedives 23% upon losing Canadian sub bid SEOUL, July 07 (AJP) — Shares of Hanwha Ocean plunged Tuesday after the South Korean shipbuilder failed to secure preferred bidder status for Canada's next-generation submarine procurement program, dashing investor hopes of winning one of the world's largest submarine export deals. The stock was trading at 89,900 won as of 9:50 a.m., down 22.57 percent from the previous session after triggering a volatility curb shortly after the market opened. Shares of HD Hyundai H July 7, 2026

Naver, KAI join forces on Korean defense AI platform SEOUL, July 07 (AJP) - Naver and cloud affiliate Naver Cloud, collectively known as Team Naver, have agreed to build a domestically developed defense artificial intelligence platform in partnership with Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI), the companies said. The three firms signed a strategic memorandum of understanding on aerospace and defense AI cooperation on Monday at KAI's headquarters in Sacheon, South Gyeongsang Province. Naver chief executive Choi Soo-yeon, Naver Cloud July 7, 2026