news highlight

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  South Korea enters peak heat wave after monsoon fades SEOUL, July 27 (AJP) -South Korea plunged into its most intense heat wave of the summer on Monday as the seasonal monsoon effectively came to an end, pushing heat indices above 38 degrees Celsius in parts of the country and prompting the government to raise its highest-level heat emergency alert. Most of the country remained under heat advisories or warnings, while severe heat alerts were issued across parts of the southeastern Yeongnam region, including Changwon, Jinju, Gimhae, Ya July 27, 2026
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  Silicon Valley VC courtship lifts KOSDAQ on hopes for startup capital SEOUL, July 27 (AJP) — President Lee Jae Myung's Silicon Valley outreach to some of the world's most influential venture capital firms gave South Korea's startup-heavy KOSDAQ a lift on Monday, even as enthusiasm surrounding his AI diplomacy over the weekend failed to spill over to the broader stock market. While headlines focused on Lee's meetings with Nvidia, Broadcom and other technology giants, Monday's attention shifted to his separate gathering with si July 27, 2026
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  Incheon airport braces for summer rush with nearly 4 million travelers SEOUL, July 27 (AJP) -South Korea's main gateway is preparing for one of its busiest summer holiday periods on record, with nearly 3.8 million passengers expected to pass through Incheon International Airport over just 17 days as inbound tourism continues to rebound. Incheon International Airport Corp. said Monday it expects about 3.77 million passengers to use the airport between July 25 and Aug. 10, averaging 222,000 travelers a day, up 1.9 percent from 3.70 million during th July 27, 2026
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  South Korea swelters through hottest vacation weekend SEOUL, July 26 (AJP) — South Korea's peak summer vacation season opened under suffocating heat on Sunday, with the heat index approaching 38 degrees Celsius across parts of the country's south, prompting heat-related deaths, livestock losses and a mass exodus to beaches and water parks. The Korea Meteorological Administration maintained its highest-level heat warnings across parts of North Gyeongsang, South Gyeongsang, South Jeolla and Daegu, where apparent temper July 26, 2026
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  Southeast Korea sizzles as heat hotspot spreads beyond 'Daefrica' SEOUL, July 26 (AJP) -South Korea's notorious summer heat is no longer confined to "Daefrica," the nickname long used for the sweltering city of Daegu, as extreme temperatures spread across much of neighboring North Gyeongsang Province in what meteorologists describe as a broader and more persistent heat wave. The Korea Meteorological Administration on Sunday expanded its highest-level extreme heat emergency warning to additional areas including Gyeongsan and Cheongdo, July 26, 2026
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  UNESCO expands Korean tidal flats World Heritage listing SEOUL, July 25 (AJP) - The mudflats where the world's rarest sandpiper refuels twice a year got bigger on the map that matters most. The UNESCO World Heritage Committee on Saturday approved a major expansion of Getbol, Korean Tidal Flats, adding four coastal wetlands and bringing South Korea's only natural World Heritage property on the mainland to six components stretching along the country's southwestern and southern coasts, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. Th July 25, 2026
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  AI boom rewrites "Happy Forever" in Korea's biggest divorce battle SEOUL, July 24 (AJP) — A handmade birthday poster once wished SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won and Roh Soh-yeong "Happy Forever." Nearly four decades later, their marriage has ended in a 944 billion won ($642 million) property settlement shaped not only by family history and corporate succession, but also by an artificial intelligence boom that transformed the value of Chey's fortune. The Seoul High Court on Friday largely upheld its earlier landmark ruling in w July 24, 2026
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  Court largely upholds landmark SK divorce ruling, cuts payout to 944 billion won SEOUL, July 24 (AJP) — A South Korean appeals court on Friday largely reaffirmed its landmark ruling in the country's "divorce of the century," ordering SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won to pay 944 billion won ($642 million) to his former wife, Roh Soh-yeong, after the Supreme Court sent the property division case back for retrial. The Seoul High Court's Family Division 1 reduced the property settlement from its previous 1.38 trillion won ruling but maintained t July 24, 2026
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  Top court refers ex-first lady's case to full bench amid conflicting rulings SEOUL, July 23 (AJP) - Former first lady Kim Keon Hee's appeal case was referred to the Supreme Court's full bench on Thursday, delaying a scheduled ruling amid conflicting lower court decisions over allegations involving election-related polls. The top court said it had decided to refer Kim's case to the full bench and postpone its ruling, just a day before the scheduled verdict was set to be delivered at 2 p.m. on Friday. No new date has been set. The move is widely July 23, 2026