Doctors' business income 9 times average wage in Korea SEOUL, October 27 (AJP) -Self-employed doctors earn nine times as much as the average wage earner in South Korea, suggesting why elite students favor medical degrees. Doctors reporting business income earned an average of 402 million won ($303,000) in 2024, compared with average annual pay of 44.75 million won for wage earners, according to National Tax Service data submitted to Rep. Moon Jin-seok of the ruling Democratic Party. Doctors’ median business income was 264 mi October 27, 2026

Victims of KB Kookmin Bank's data leak rise to over 2,200 SEOUL, October 27 (AJP) - The number of people affected by a data leak at KB Kookmin Bank has risen to 2,210 from an initial 119, after a further investigation found 2,091 additional cases, according to industry sources. The bank said Tuesday that the additional cases involving 460 employees and 1,631 customers were identified the previous day through an investigation conducted in cooperation with financial regulators and relevant agencies. The bank earlier said it detected the d October 27, 2026

KOPSI surge over 4% on Anthropic's IPO filing SEOUL, October 27 (AJP) - South Korean stocks surged more than 4 percent on Tuesday as foreign and institutional buying lifted semiconductor shares amid growing optimism over Anthropic's planned U.S. initial public offering (IPO). The benchmark KOSPI jumped 4.1 percent to 5,689.23 as of around 10:15 a.m. (0115 GMT), after trading between 5,654.51 and 5,707.70. Foreign investors bought 409.1 billion won (US$309 million) worth of shares, as institutions purchased 228.1 billio October 27, 2026

As Trump-Putin-Xi meeting is floated, Kim casts a fourth shadow SEOUL, October 27 (AJP) - An unprecedented trilateral meeting among the leaders of the U.S., Russia and China on the sidelines of November’s APEC summit in Shenzhen could put denuclearization and Ukraine on the table. Whether North Korea might receive a fourth invitation briefly returned to focus after Kim Jong-un’s surprise one-day visit to China amid murmurs about his health. Kim traveled to China on Saturday across a new bridge that finally opened after more tha October 27, 2026

Divide in priorities among imported-car buyers, survey finds SEOUL, October 27 (AJP) - First-time buyers of imported cars tend to prioritize price and safety while repeat buyers care more about brand and driving performance, a survey showed. The findings are based on the Korea Automobile Importers & Distributors Association (KAIDA)'s survey of 2,200 customers aged 25 to 59 who had either bought an imported car within the past three years or were considering buying one. When choosing an imported car, some 41.5 percent of first-time October 27, 2026

Celltrion Q3 profit hits record, tops preliminary estimate SEOUL, October 27 (AJP) - Celltrion posted record quarterly earnings for July to September, with operating profit jumping 74.3 percent from a year earlier to 525.3 billion won ($396.5 million) on surging sales of high-margin new products, the South Korean biopharmaceutical company said Tuesday. Revenue rose 53.1 percent to 1.58 trillion won, and the operating margin widened 4.0 percentage points to 33.3 percent. The confirmed results beat the preliminary figures Celltrion release October 27, 2026

Türkiye's new envoy calls Korea 'second home' in debut speech SEOUL, October 27 (AJP) - Türkiye's new ambassador to South Korea, less than a month into the job, told a Seoul reception in Korean on Monday that the country already felt like home, where Turkish people are accepted as brothers, not foreigners. "From the very first moments of my arrival, I have felt that Korea is not simply another country in which I have been asked to serve," Fatih Yıldız said. "Korea is a second home to us." Yıldız spoke at a re October 27, 2026

South Korea issues most travel warnings for Cambodia over last five years SEOUL, October 27 (AJP) - Cambodia was the country for which South Korea issued the most travel warnings over the past five years. According to a report submitted to lawmaker Kim Jun-hwan of the ruling Democratic Party by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Tuesday, seven travel warnings were issued for the Southeast Asian country between 2021 and October 2026. Next were Mexico, Iran, Lebanon, Israel and Thailand, with five such warnings each. The ministry's five-tier trave October 27, 2026

New device to stop drunk driving demonstrated Officials from the Korean National Police Agency and the Korea Road Traffic Authority demonstrate an alcohol ignition interlock device during an anti-drunk driving campaign at the Gangseo Driver's License Examination Center in western Seoul on Oct. 26, 2026. The device analyzes a driver's breath and prevents the vehicle from starting if the driver's blood alcohol concentration exceeds the legal limit. AJP Yoo Na-hyun October 26, 2026

ILLIT returns with fifth mini album ILLIT performs at a media showcase for the group’s fifth mini album ‘BREAK EVEN’ held at Woori WON Banking Hall at Blue Square in Hannam-dong, Yongsan-gu, Seoul, October 26, 2026. October 26, 2026