Blue Dragon Awards: Power couple Hyun Bin and Son Ye-jin make history with dual acting wins SEOUL, November 20 (AJP) -South Korea’s star couple Hyun Bin and Son Ye-jin made history at the 46th Blue Dragon Awards, becoming the first married pair to win Best Actor and Best Actress on the same night. Their milestone moment lit up the ceremony at KBS Hall in Seoul on Wednesday, where actors Han Ji-min and Lee Je-hoon served as hosts for the live broadcast. The night otherwise belonged to “No Other Choice,” which swept major categories including November 20, 2025

Saewol ferry-like tragedy avoided as no casualties reported in a South Korean ferry disaster SEOUL, November 20 (AJP) - All 267 passengers and crew aboard the Queen Jenuvia II were safely rescued by 11 p.m. Wednesday, within hours after the 26,546-ton ferry ran aground near an uninhabited rock islet off South Korea’s southwestern coast as the Coast Guard rushed to the scene, mindful of preventing any repeat of the 2014 Sewol ferry disaster that killed more than 300 people. The ferry, carrying 246 passengers and 21 crew members, struck Jok Islet near Jangsan Island November 20, 2025

Asian shares finish broadly lower as AI-bubble anxiety persist SEOUL, November 19 (AJP) - Asian stocks edged lower for a second straight session on Wednesday, with investors remaining cautious ahead of Nvidia’s earnings and the growing “AI bubble” narrative that has weighed on sentiment across the region. South Korea’s benchmark KOSPI slipped 0.61 percent to 3,929.51, recovering part of its earlier plunge after falling as low as 3,854.95 in morning trade. Foreign investors sold a net 1.04 trillion won ($709 million) November 19, 2025

Star chef 'Fabri' kicks off Italian Cuisine Week in Seoul with cheese-infused kimchi dish SEOUL, November 19 (AJP) - Italian chef Fabrizio Ferrari, widely known in South Korea by his affectionate nickname "Fabri," opened this year's Italian Cuisine Week in Seoul on Wednesday with a cooking demonstration that blended Italy's signature cheeses with Korea's most familiar flavors. At High Street Italia in Gangnam, Ferrari prepared a pan of kimchi fried rice and finished it with a cooled, paper-thin cheese crisp set over the dish like a hat. The crisp, November 19, 2025

HOT STOCK: Hyundai Autoever and Samsung Electro survive AI overvaluation scare SEOUL, November 19 (AJP) - Hyundai AutoEver and Samsung Electro-Mechanics were among a selective KOSPI stocks that managed to survive this week’s sharp rout triggered by fears of an AI-driven bubble ahead of Nvidia’s earnings release scheduled for Thursday. Hyundai AutoEver — the Hyundai Motor Group affiliate responsible for software development and next-generation mobility strategy — gained 2.92 percent to close Wednesday at 186,500 won ($127.1). Its rally November 19, 2025

Aju-sponsored Korea-Japan forum calls for bilateral FTA as a stepping stone toward economic bloc SEOUL, November 19 (AJP) - South Korea and Japan — two of the largest economies in East Asia — are increasingly viewed as a single investment destination by foreign capital as their tech-driven manufacturing capabilities grow more interconnected. But the absence of a meaningful bilateral trade framework or policy coordination still constrains the growth potential that could be unlocked if the two nations were to combine their industrial strengths, lawmakers, scholars November 19, 2025

AI cover controversy in New Zealand poses wake-up call for Korean publishers SEOUL, November 19 (AJP) - It took less than a minute for ChatGPT to deliver a fully rendered image of Seoul's landmark Gwanghwamun draped in autumn leaves in the warm, painterly style of Studio Ghibli, the iconic Japanese animation studio. Image-making has become easy and ubiquitous ever since OpenAI added its image-generation feature, allowing users to transform their portraits into Ghibli-style illustrations within seconds. The feature quickly went viral across social me November 19, 2025

PHOTOS: Cold snap delivers early winter in South Korea SEOUL, November 19 (AJP) - South Korea experienced an abrupt onset of winter conditions this week, as temperatures across the nation plunged sharply, bringing unseasonably early snowfall to major mountain ranges. Jeju Island's Mt. Halla and the mainland's Mt. Jiri were blanketed in white, creating picturesque, albeit premature, winter landscapes. Despite only being mid-November, the intense cold snap evoked scenes typical of deep winter. Citizens on city streets were ob November 19, 2025

Samsung takes laid-back stance in HBM catchup with SK hynix on DRAM strengthening SEOUL, November 19 (AJP) - South Korea’s two dominant memory names Samsung Electronics and SK hynix are showing signs of divergence and avoiding a head-on clash in the red-hot high bandwidth memory (HBM) market, with strengthening DRAM prices reducing the pressure to take risks. Samsung Electronics, a long-time frontrunner in DRAM until the rise of HBM powering AI chips, appears to be in no hurry to ramp up its lagging HBM capacity, holding output at 150,000 wafers per month November 19, 2025

Alcoholic beverages to carry bigger warning labels SEOUL, November 19 (AJP) - Warning labels on alcohol bottles are getting bigger, bolder, and harder to ignore, the Ministry of Health and Welfare said on Wednesday. The measure, set to take effect as early as September next year, is part of efforts to raise awareness of health risks and dangers associated with drinking. The ministry believes bigger cautionary labels will help consumers take the warnings more seriously when purchasing alcoholic beverages. The background color of t November 19, 2025