Canada to announce preferred bidder for 12 submarines Monday SEOUL, July 06 (AJP) -Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney will make a major defense announcement in Halifax, home to the country's largest naval base, on Monday before departing for the NATO summit in Türkiye, with South Korea and Germany awaiting a decision on Canada's multibillion-dollar submarine procurement program. Canadian daily The Globe and Mail reported Sunday, citing two government sources, that Carney is expected to formally announce whether South Korea or Ge July 6, 2026

Facial recognition now mandatory for mobile phone sign-ups in South Korea SEOUL, July 6 (AJP) - Starting Monday, South Korea is rolling out stricter identity verification procedures for signing up for a mobile phone line, according to the Ministry of Science and ICT said. To open a new account, customers must now complete identity verification via facial recognition. The measures aim to curb voice-phishing scams involving illegally obtained mobile phone lines. The country's three major mobile carriers and other operators will apply the strengthened July 6, 2026

Samsung rebate festival nets $1.3 billion in sales SEOUL, July 05 (AJP) - Samsung Electronics' monthlong "Gratitude Festival" promotion generated an estimated 2 trillion won, about $1.3 billion, in device sales before the event ended July 5, according to industry estimates, a haul that is expected to lift the company's consumer electronics division in its upcoming second-quarter earnings. The estimate is based on the value of digital Onnuri gift certificates Samsung issued during the campaign, which industry sour July 5, 2026

Trump targets domestic left in July 4 anniversary speech SEOUL, July 05 (AJP) - United States President Donald Trump used the country's 250th Independence Day address on July 4 (local time) to brand domestic political opponents as communists, in remarks that major American news outlets compared to the anti-communist hysteria of the 1950s. Speaking at the National Mall in Washington after a two-hour weather delay caused by severe thunderstorms, Trump returned repeatedly to communism across a roughly 40-minute address, framing the Nov July 5, 2026

US tariff threat looms over Samsung, SK hynix expansion SEOUL, July 05 (AJP) - South Korea's top chipmakers, Samsung Electronics and SK hynix, are bracing for renewed pressure from Washington to expand their United States manufacturing footprint, days after the two chipmakers committed 800 trillion won, about $522.8 billion, to a sweeping expansion of South Korea's domestic semiconductor base. Industry sources said Sunday that both companies are weighing how to respond to what they expect will be a fresh push from the adminis July 5, 2026

Trump filings show Coupang trades amid scandal SEOUL, July 05 (AJP) - United States President Donald Trump bought and sold shares of Coupang, the most-popular ecommerce service operator in South Korea, in the months surrounding the e-commerce giant's massive data breach, according to financial disclosure reports filed with the U.S. Office of Government Ethics. Three reports released in May and this month show 18 trades in Coupang Inc. shares between October 9 last year and May 22, conducted through two investment accounts July 5, 2026

SK hynix said to weigh 0.5% underwriting fee for U.S. ADR offering SEOUL, July 04 (AJP) - SK hynix is considering paying underwriting fees of about 0.5 percent of the proceeds for its planned U.S. American Depositary Receipt (ADR) offering, a level that could generate one of Asia's largest investment banking fee pools this year, Bloomberg News reported on Saturday. The South Korean memory chipmaker is in discussions with Bank of America, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase over underwriting fees and incentive compensation for the plan July 4, 2026

Samsung said to seek up to 20% DRAM price hike in third quarter SEOUL, July 04 (AJP) - Samsung Electronics is seeking to raise DRAM prices by about 20 percent in the third quarter as memory chip demand continues to recover, according to a report by a Chinese financial news outlet on Saturday. Chinese business publication Yicai reported, citing electronics industry executives and supply chain sources, that Samsung discussed higher DRAM contract prices with some customers in China last month and verbally notified them of the planned increase. July 4, 2026

South Korea's Lee rejects claims mega projects aimed at boosting approval ratings SEOUL, July 04 (AJP) - South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on Saturday rejected opposition claims that his administration's three large-scale regional development initiatives were politically motivated, saying the projects had long been part of his vision and were intended to improve people's lives rather than boost his approval ratings. In a post on X, Lee said the plan for what his administration has described as three "mega projects" to reshape the country July 4, 2026

U.S. stock buying seen keeping won weak through Feb. 2027 SEOUL, July 04 (AJP) - South Korea's won is likely to remain under sustained depreciation pressure through at least February 2027, driven by surging overseas equity investments by Korean households and companies, particularly into U.S. stocks, according to a report released Saturday by the Korea Institute of Finance. The report said the dollar-won exchange rate has undergone a structural upward shift since 2024 and is expected to stay near current levels for another 10 months, July 4, 2026