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  Korea beats European powers to rank 7th most powerful country SEOUL, December 12 (AJP) -South Korea ranked as the world’s seventh-most powerful country in 2025, surpassing European heavyweights such as France and Italy, according to the latest CEOWORLD Magazine assessment — a result that highlights the country’s expanding influence, increasingly driven by soft power alongside industrial and strategic strength. The 2025 ranking underscores a central reality of global order: a small group of states continues to set the pace f December 12, 2025
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  OPINION: Why China becomes more popular in 2025 SEOUL, December 12 (AJP) - The year 2025 has entered its final month. This year, unilateralism and protectionism have injected greater uncertainty into the world. China, however, has charted a different course. China has remained proactive, winning greater global goodwill through increasing opening up, stronger momentum of innovation, and an ever December 12, 2025
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  K-literature pipeline filled with next Han Kang candidates SEOUL, December 12 (AJP) - Han Kang's 2024 Nobel Prize has helped revive an almost-dead reading, literature and publishing community. Bookstores have regained life, and this year’s pipeline is rich with hopes of sustaining the Han Kang momentum. AJP introduces three potential post-Han candidates whose translated works have drawn overseas attention after publication and gained critical acclaim through major awards. Chung Bora “My grandfather used to say, ‘ December 12, 2025
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  Seoul taps sovereign funds to bankroll AI and next-generation tech SEOUL, December 12 (AJP) - South Korea launching three-digit-billion-dollar government-sponsored growth fund investing AI and next-gen technology companies through equity and projecting financing is working on a separate wealth fund to systematically groom non-listed unicorn darlings. During a televised policy briefing to President Lee Jae Myung on Thursday, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Koo Yun-cheol outlined plans for a fund modeled on Singapore’s Temase December 12, 2025
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  PHOTOS: Get early taste of Lunar New Year holiday at COEX SEOUL, December 12 (AJP) - Festive Gift Fair opened on December 10 at COEX in Seoul, running through December 13. Organized by Messe E&D and Korea Food Service News, the fair features diverse gift sets including health products, agricultural and marine products, household goods, and food and beverages. Visitors can purchase items directly at the event, and various sampling opportunities make the experience particularly engaging for attendees. This year's fa December 12, 2025
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  PHOTOS: Pet fair underway in Seoul SEOUL, December 12 (AJP) - The three-day "Christmas Seoul Pet Show" opened in Seoul on Dec. 12, showcasing a rapidly expanding companion animal market driven by the trend of "pet humanization" in South Korea. The event, which runs through Dec. 14, aims to promote the respect of companion animals, emphasizing their growing status as full-fledged family members in the country. This shift in perception — where pets are increasingly treated like human childre December 12, 2025
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  Asian markets rally on US optimism; Korean won volatile amid yen carry trade concerns SEOUL, December 12 (AJP) - Asian equity markets rallied across the board on Friday, lifted by optimism from Wall Street after U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s hawkish rate cut was interpreted as a signal that the American economy may avoid a recession. Despite the market rebound, currency volatility persisted. The Korean won closed at 1,476.3 per dollar as of 4 p.m., up 3.8 won from the previous session, amid concerns that it could again test the 1,480 level. Fears December 12, 2025
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  Ballet en Grand Jeté in Korea, blending graceful workout and fashion SEOUL, December 12 (AJP) - Once confined to the cultural elite, ballet in South Korea is stepping firmly into the mainstream — embraced as both a graceful workout and a fashion-forward lifestyle, propelled by star dancers, celebrities and social media. The shift is visible on major stages and smartphone screens alike. Leading male principals such as Kim Ki-min of the Mariinsky Ballet and Jeon Min-chul have gone viral on TikTok and Instagram, recasting ballet as aspirational December 12, 2025
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  Seoul, Beijing resume high-level trade talks after 7-year hiatus SEOUL, December 12 (AJP) - South Korea’s Trade Minister Kim Jung-kwan met Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao in Beijing on Friday, marking the first bilateral ministerial trade meeting between the two countries in seven years. The talks followed the recent South Korea–China summit and focused on restoring trade momentum. The ministers agreed to resume regular high-level consultations to strengthen economic cooperation. Seeking to expand economic engagement beyo December 12, 2025
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  Two workers still missing after construction site collapse in Gwangju SEOUL, December 12 (AJP) - Rescue workers have been searching for missing workers on Friday after a steel structure collapsed at a construction site in the southwestern city of Gwangju the previous day. The collapse occurred at the site for a library, leaving four workers trapped under the debris. Two of them were found dead and two others remain missing. Authorities believe the collapse started while concrete was being poured on the second-floor roof, burying the workers under December 12, 2025