Samsung Q3 income to top $70 bn: consensus SEOUL, September 29 (AJP) - Samsung Electronics is expected to extend its milestone-setting earnings streak in the quarter ended September, eyeing a three-month operating profit of more than 100 trillion won ($70 billion) as the global memory boom rolls on. A recent one-month consensus compiled by financial data provider FnGuide puts July-September operating profit at around 106 trillion won, topping the previous quarterly record of 89.5 trillion won set just three months earlier. September 29, 2026

NMIXX sets October comeback ahead of world tour finale SEOUL, September 29 (AJP) -K-pop girl group NMIXX will release its sixth EP "Strange Muse" before wrapping up its first world tour with three encore shows planned in Incheon, JYP Entertainment said Tuesday. Upcoming album will be led by the title track "Birthday Wish," marking the group's first release since "Heavy Serenade" in May. It will also include "Kerosene" and "RudE TaLK," along with three unit tracks. September 29, 2026

2PM's Wooyoung sets seven solo shows across four Asian cities SEOUL, September 29 (AJP) - K-pop boy group 2PM member Jang Wooyoung will stage seven solo concerts across four Asian cities from November through March, JYP Entertainment said Tuesday. The world tour will kick off with two shows in Seoul on Nov. 14 and 15, followed by concerts in Hyogo, Japan, on Dec. 25 and 26. Wooyoung will then perform in Tokyo on Jan. 9 and 10 before wrapping up the schedule in Taipei on March 20. The singer addressed that he plans to incorporate jazz h September 29, 2026

NCT exhibition draws 4.55 million visitors SEOUL, September 29 (AJP) - A 10th-anniversary art balloon exhibition for K-pop group NCT drew more than 4.5 million visitors to Seoul's Seokchon Lake over 25 days, SM Entertainment said Tuesday. The exhibition attracted about 4.547 million visitors from Sept. 3 through 27, according to data compiled by the Lotte Future Strategy Institute. NCT worked with Lotte and Seoul's Songpa District on the installation, which featured large-scale art balloons around the lake as pa September 29, 2026

Foreign selling keeps KOSPI lower despite chip rebound SEOUL, September 29 (AJP) - South Korea's benchmark index remained below 6,900 Tuesday morning as foreign investors sold more than 1 trillion won ($762 million) of shares, offsetting gains in Samsung Electronics and other chip stocks. The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) stood at 6,859.59 as of 11:15 a.m., down 30.15 points, or 0.44 percent, from Monday's close. The index moved between 6,822.36 and 6,898.36 during the morning session. The KOSPI had fallen 2. September 29, 2026

Lee urges faster nuclear submarine, hypersonic missile push SEOUL, September 29 (AJP) - President Lee Jae Myung on Tuesday called for faster development of nuclear-powered submarines and hypersonic missiles, while ordering a probe into last week's DMZ mine blast. "A strong national defense is a key pillar for protecting the national interest," Lee said during a Cabinet meeting at the presidential office, calling for greater speed in building nuclear-powered submarines and advancing missile technologies, including hypersonic wea September 29, 2026

Naver pitches AI infrastructure to Mexico SEOUL, September 29 (AJP) - Naver has offered to help Mexico build a national artificial intelligence ecosystem, South Korea's largest internet company said Tuesday, after its executives met two cabinet ministers in the country. Chief Executive Choi Soo-yeon spent two days in Mexico from Sept. 24 with finance chief Kim Hee-cheol and data chief Kim Kwang-hyun, traveling with President Lee Jae Myung's business delegation. They met Economy Minister Marcelo Ebrard Casaubon an September 29, 2026

N. Korea declares nuclear status irreversible: UN address SEOUL, September 29 (AJP) - North Korean Vice Foreign Minister Kim Son Gyong used the United Nations podium on Monday to stress that his country’s status as a “nuclear-weapons State” is irreversible while condemning South Korea’s pursuit of nuclear-powered submarines. Kim accused Washington of turning its military alliance with Seoul and Tokyo into a more offensive and aggressive bloc “unmistakably aimed at the DPRK,” the acronym for North Korea& September 29, 2026

Samsung salutes Huang's Van Fleet Award in Times Square SEOUL, September 29 (AJP) - Samsung Electronics displayed congratulatory videos for Nvidia founder and CEO Jensen Huang in New York's Times Square following his selection as a recipient of the 2026 James A. Van Fleet Award, according to the company on Tuesday. The videos ran on Times Square billboards from 6 p.m. Sunday through Monday, highlighting Huang's leadership and contributions to the artificial intelligence industry under four themes — "Pioneer," &q September 29, 2026

Banks in South Korea to open at 9:30 a.m. from April 2027 SEOUL, September 29 (AJP) — South Korean banks are set to open 30 minutes later from April 2027, with branch hours changing from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. to 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. under a tentative agreement between the Korea Financial Industry Union (KFIU) and the Korea Financial Industry Employers Association. The deal, reached after about five months of negotiations, also includes a 3 percent wage increase and measures aimed at improving work-life balance. It comes as the government p September 29, 2026