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  HD Hyundai Heavy another US Navy ship repair contract SEOUL, January 07 (AJP) - HD Hyundai Heavy Industries has secured another maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) contract from the U.S. Navy, this time for a logistics support vessel assigned to the Navy’s 7th Fleet. The company said on Wednesday it recently won a regular overhaul project for the 41,000-ton cargo ship USNS Cesar Chavez, which was commissioned in 2012, without revealing the value of the contract. HD Hyundai Heavy Industries said it will begin work on Jan January 7, 2026
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  Hyundai Steel Industry wins $450 million offshore wind contract in South Korea SEOUL, January 07 (AJP) - Hyundai Steel Industry, a unit of Hyundai Engineering & Construction, said on Wednesday it has won a $450-million contract to manufacture and install substructures for an offshore wind farm in South Jeolla Province. The company signed a deal with Hanwha Ocean covering fabrication and installation of substructures for the project. The contract is valued at 611.5 billion won ($450 million), with work scheduled to run from this month through January 2029 January 7, 2026
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  OPINION: Why Korean words are likely to stay “Language is the dress of thought,” wrote Samuel Johnson, suggesting that the words a society adopts reveal what it values, often more clearly than any manifesto or statistic. If that is true, then the latest update to the Oxford English Dictionary offers an unusually revealing glimpse into the cultural mood of the moment. This year, the dictionary added several Korean-origin words, including haenyeo and ramyeon, alongside terms such as jjimjilbang, bingsu, sunbae, January 7, 2026
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  Ramyeon, haenyeo among latest Korean-origin words added to Oxford English Dictionary SEOUL, January 07 (AJP) -As Korean dramas, music and food continue to spread across global streaming platforms and dining tables, the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) has added eight new Korean-origin words to its latest update, underscoring how Korean culture is becoming part of everyday English usage. The newly added entries include ramyeon, haenyeo and sunbae, along with bingsu, jjimjilbang, ajumma, Korean barbecue and officetel. The additions follow last year’s inclusion January 7, 2026
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  KOSPI unfazed in upward march as Asian markets turn subdued SEOUL, January 7 (AJP) - South Korean stocks surged Wednesday while most Asian markets traded lower, as renewed foreign buying and strength in artificial intelligence-related shares propelled the benchmark to fresh highs. In Seoul, the KOSPI rose 1.0 percent to 4,572.50 as of 11:00 a.m., extending its year-to-date rally and marking another record level. The advance followed a rotation in investor leadership, with foreign investors taking the baton from retail traders after Tuesday&# January 7, 2026
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  Record amounts of smuggled cigarettes seized SEOUL, January 7 (AJP) - Record amounts of smuggled cigarettes were seized last year, the Korea Customs Service (KCS) said on Wednesday. The customs watchdog said it has worked closely with major foreign customs authorities to crack down on multinational smuggling, seizing some 5.16 million packs or 103 tons of cigarettes bound for South Korea in separate cases, the largest since 2021, when about 3.6 million packs were detected. The massive seizure came after the KCS monitored January 7, 2026
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  LG CNS to lead key projects in Korean military's IT transformation SEOUL, January 07 (AJP) - LG CNS said on Wednesday it has secured back-to-back defense information technology contracts, strengthening its role in South Korea’s push to digitally transform its military. The company said it signed agreements for the Armed Forces Command, Control and Communications Command’s communications network integration project and the Defense Information Agency’s next-generation integrated defense facilities information system project. January 7, 2026
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  Lee begins final leg of China trip with startup forum in Shanghai SEOUL, January 7 (AJP) - President Lee Jae Myung, on a state visit to China, is set to meet entrepreneurs from both countries to discuss partnership and promote future cooperation at a forum in Shanghai on Wednesday. In a written press briefing, presidential spokesperson Kang Yu-jung said that the final leg of Lee’s four-day trip to China begins with a forum attended by about 400 entrepreneurs from startups and venture companies, where they will discuss ways to strengthen co January 7, 2026
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  Lee encourages Oceans Ministry staff with hearty meals SEOUL, January 7 (AJP) - President Lee Jae Myung has sent pizza to encourage staff at the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries which was relocated to the southern port city of Busan recently, the ministry said on Wednesday. The relocation from the administrative city of Sejong, which was finalized last month, was part of Lee's campaign pledges during last year's presidential election, aimed at taking the lead in the era of Arctic shipping routes while fostering new growth engi January 7, 2026
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  South Korea's Taihan wins power grid contract in California SEOUL, January 07 (AJP) - South Korea’s electricity equipment maker Taihan said on Wednesday that its U.S. subsidiary, T.E.USA, has secured a contract worth about 100 billion won ($77 million) to supply equipment for a 230-kilovolt extra-high-voltage power transmission project in the United States. The project involves construction of a new 230-kV transmission line in the Riverside area of Southern California and is aimed at meeting rising electricity demand while ensuring January 7, 2026