KOSPI leads Asian rally on institutional buying SEOUL, August 12 (AJP) - South Korea's benchmark stock index surged Wednesday on institutional chase after a potential generous payouts by chip bellwethers. The KOSPI gained 233.51 points or 3.68 percent to 6,579.04 as Samsung Electronics climbed 16,000 won, or 6.7 cent, to 255,500 won and SK hynix 5.5 percent,to 1.504 million won. The advance far outpaced gains across the region, where Japan's Nikkei 225 added 0.8 percent to 67,524.06 and Shanghai's composite inde August 12, 2026

Hot Stock: LG Electronics fly on hopes for deeper Nvidia ties SEOUL, August 12 (AJP) - Shares of LG Electronics jumped nearly 13 percent on Wednesday, fueled by expectations that an anticipated meeting between LG Group Chairman Koo Kwang-mo and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang could lead to deeper cooperation in robotics and artificial intelligence infrastructure. LG Electronics closed at 205,000 won ($148), up 12.82 percent from the previous session, after climbing as high as 212,500 won during trading. Koo is visiting Nvidia August 12, 2026

Shareholders clear Asiana folding under the wing of Korean Air  SEOUL, August 12 (AJP) - Shareholders of Asiana Airlines gave their final blessing Wednesday to its merger with larger Korean Air, clearing the runway for South Korea's single full-service flag carrier's Dec. 17 liftoff after a five-year integration process. The approval came at Asiana’s 2026 extraordinary general meeting of shareholders in Seoul, in what is expected to be the airline’s final shareholder meeting before it is absorbed into larger full-service car August 12, 2026

Over 200 water tankers sent to southern province to combat drought SEOUL, August 12 (AJP) - Some 200 water tankers and 400 firefighters have been deployed to South Gyeongsang Province to provide emergency water supplies amid prolonged dry conditions exacerbated by recent extreme heat, fire authorities said on Wednesday. The emergency water supply to run for two days until Thursday comes as drought conditions have worsened across the southern region after weeks of dry weather, with no rainfall from late June to mid-July. These medium-sized truc August 12, 2026

Daegu named first hub for South Korea's AI drug-discovery drive SEOUL, August 12 (AJP) - South Korea has designated the southeastern city of Daegu as the first innovation hub for artificial intelligence-driven drug discovery under "K-Moonshot," the government's flagship program to embed AI across national science and technology research. The Ministry of Science and ICT said on Wednesday it had held a launch ceremony in Daegu for a pilot project to build an "AIxBio" research base focused on synthetic new drugs, drawing tog August 12, 2026

Lee accepts credentials of US Ambassador Steel and others SEOUL, August 12 (AJP) - President Lee Jae Myung welcomed U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Michelle Steel on Wednesday in their first meeting since the Korean American and former congresswoman took up her post in Seoul. Lee greeted Steel at Cheong Wa Dae during a ceremony in which he received credentials from newly appointed ambassadors of four countries. After accepting Steel's credentials, Lee said, "Welcome," before posing with her for a commemorative photo. He t August 12, 2026

China grabs over 80% of global ship orders, Korea at 16% SEOUL, August 12 (AJP) - With global ship orders falling by more than half in July from the previous month, China accounted for more than 80 percent of the orders, while South Korea accounted for just 16 percent. According to data released by London-based Clarkson Research Services on Wednesday, global ship orders last month totaled 3.57 million compensated gross tons (CGT) or 137 vessels, down 56 percent from 8.03 million CGT a month earlier and 22 percent from 4.55 million CGT a August 12, 2026

Money may buy happiness: SK hynix happier than Samsung SEOUL, August 12 (AJP) - Who says money can't buy happiness? SK hynix ranked among the top 3 percent of South Korean companies for employee happiness while archrival Samsung Electronics placed around the top 60 percent, according to a workplace survey released Wednesday, underscoring how the AI memory boom is translating into starkly different perceptions of reward inside Korea's two biggest chipmakers. The findings came from the latest Blind Index, compiled by workpla August 12, 2026

Samsung Securities liable for phantom-share losses, top court rules SEOUL, August 12 (AJP) - South Korea's Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that Samsung Securities was vicariously liable for employee negligence behind its 2018 "phantom-share" debacle, broadening the legal basis for compensation while leaving a 1.87 billion won ($1.3 million) award to the National Pension Service unchanged. A four-justice panel of the Supreme Court, with Justice Oh Kyeong-mi as the justice in charge, rejected appeals from both sides and upheld a lower cour August 12, 2026

SK hynix workers move to unify union to up bargaining power SEOUL, August 12 (AJP) - Workers at SK hynix are moving to establish a new union spanning production and office employees, with organizers seeking majority representation to strengthen bargaining power at the world's leading high-bandwidth memory maker. The proposed SK hynix Integrated Labor Union had attracted more than 1,250 members as of Wednesday after its organizing committee filed for official registration on Aug. 8, according to industry sources. The union could formall August 12, 2026