news highlight

• 
  In South Korea, even sleep becomes a public competition SEOUL, May 04 (AJP) - In South Korea, where overwork and sleep deprivation have become almost a national condition, even rest now comes with rules, timers and a scoreboard. At the Han River on Saturday afternoon, 170 contestants arrived armed with plush toys, mosquito-proof determination and creative signs — including one reading, “Don’t wake me up unless you’re a prince” matched in modern-day Sleeping Beauty gown for Seoul’s annual Han River Na May 4, 2026
• 
  Seven in 10 older elementary students in Korea use AI SEOUL, May 04 (AJP) - Seven out of 10 South Korean elementary school students in upper grades use generative artificial intelligence tools, surveyed showed Monday, with nearly 15 percent frequenting them to underscore how deeply AI has entered childhood education and daily life in one of the world’s most digitally connected societies. According to a nationwide survey released Monday by the Korean Teachers and Education Workers Union, 72.1 percent of fourth- to sixth-grade e May 4, 2026
• 
  Asian Culture Calendar SEOUL, April 30 (AJP) - South Korea Apr. 8 - May 27 Gyeongbokgung Saenggwabang Apr. 16 - May 31 Moonlight Tour at Changdeokgung Palace May. 2 - 3 Ajou Motor College Festival May. 4 - 5 Seoul Circus Festival May. 5 - 10 Hangang River Festival May. 13 - 24 Suragan Sisik Gonggam May. 16 - 17 Yeon Deung Hoe May. 22 - 25 Hwaseong Boating Festival Japan May. 1 - 6 Harapeko Circus Osaka May. 2 - 3 Nyanko Expo May. 2 - 5 Saku Hot-Air Balloon Festival May. 3 - 4 H May 1, 2026
• 
  As romance revives from recession in Korea, dating mimics reality TV SEOUL, April 30 (AJP) - For Jason Park, a corporate analyst in his mid-30s, the math of modern romance simply wasn’t adding up. Buried in work under lingering post-pandemic social atrophy, the prospect of a chance encounter felt less like a possibility and more like a statistical anomaly. "If I hadn't been there that day two years ago, I would still be wrapped up in work," Park says, glancing shyly at his girlfriend, Choi, a freelance announcer in her 30s. May 1, 2026
• 
  Credit card spending rises in Q1 despite weak consumer sentiment SEOUL, April 30 (AJP) - Credit card spending rose despite weakening customer sentiment due to the prolonged conflict in the Middle East. According to data compiled by the Credit Finance Association of Korea on Thursday, people went plastic with 322 trillion won (about US$220 billion) worth of purchases, or 7.2 billion transactions, in the first quarter, up 7.2 percent and 5.1 percent, respectively, compared to the same period last year. Personal card spending rose 6.8 percent to April 30, 2026
• 
  Big-tech layoffs: a prelude to AI replacement? SEOUL, April 24 (AJP) - What has long been feared is beginning to take shape. From May 20, Meta plans to cut about 8,000 jobs — roughly 10 percent of its workforce — while leaving 6,000 roles unfilled, even as it raises capital spending to as much as $135 billion this year for AI data centers and infrastructure. “We’re starting to see projects that used to require big teams now be accomplished by a single very talented person,” Mark Zuckerberg sa April 24, 2026
• 
  K-shopping wonderland lands in Seongsu as Musinsa scales offline push SEOUL, April 24 (AJP) - Gone are the days when group tourists shuffled through duty-free shops and the Dongdaemun marketplace. K-shopping today is about hip, affordability and fun — and sharing the experience with friends, on or off camera. To amplify that shift, a shopping-themed amusement park has arrived in Seoul’s trendiest district, Seongsu-dong. "I wish there was a store like this in the U.S.," said Maddie, a tourist from the United States, as she ex April 24, 2026
• 
  Gwanghallu Pavilion, setting of Korea's Romeo and Juliet tale, eyes national treasure status SEOUL, April 24 (AJP) — Gwanghallu Pavilion in Namwon, a southwestern city immortalized as the backdrop to Korea’s Romeo-and-Juliet-like love story, has been preliminarily designated as a national treasure, the Korea Heritage Service said Friday. The move marks an upgrade from its designation as a state treasure in 1963, reflecting its elevated historical, architectural and cultural significance. Widely regarded as the finest pavilion in the Honam region, Gwanghallu April 24, 2026
• 
  "Fight Club" goes digital in Korea, dragging teenage violence into the spotlight SEOUL, April 21 (AJP) - In the 1999 American cult classic Fight Club, members of an underground brawling group follow one defining rule: never talk about it. In today’s viral digital landscape in South Korea, violence is no longer hidden — it is performed, filmed and monetized in plain sight. Across YouTube, Telegram and livestreaming platforms, a burgeoning genre of “fight content” is blurring the line between sport and exploitation, drawing millions of v April 21, 2026