[Today’s K-pop] Blackpink’s Lisa to drop new single next week

Lisa of Blackpink surprised fans by unveiling her upcoming solo single onstage at the Global Citizen Festival in New York on Sunday. She hit the stage at Central Park to headline the charity event with Post Malone and Doja Cat, performing her solo repertoire from "Lalisa" and "Money" to "Rockstar" and "New Woman." Also included in the list was “Moonlit Floor,” which will be rolled out Oct. 4, sampling Sixpence None the Richer’s 1997 hit

K-popSept. 30, 2024

Naver to cancel W400b of treasury shares to prop up value

South Korean portal giant Naver announced Monday it will buy back and cancel shares worth 400 billion won ($306 million) by the end of the year to boost its declining stock value. The latest measure will be separate from the ongoing shareholder return policy the company introduced in 2023, spanning three years. “From Oct. 2 to Dec. 28, we will repurchase about 2,347,500 shares which accounts for 1.5 percent of the total issued shares, and cancel them by Dec. 31," Naver said. "Giv

IndustrySept. 30, 2024

Kakao to unveil Nvidia partnership at conference next month

South Korean IT giant Kakao will unveil its new artificial intelligence service Kanana at the upcoming developers conference next month, the company said Monday. Holding the annual event dubbed "if kakaoAI 2024" from Oct. 22-24, the company will also announce its AI partnership with Nvidia, the leading graphic processor unit maker, Kakao said. On the first day of the event, Kakao CEO Chung Shin-a will deliver a keynote speech on Kakao's AI road map and Chief AI Officer Lee Sang-ho

IndustrySept. 30, 2024

Forum on Seoul income initiative to take place on Oct. 7

The Seoul city government will hold an international forum on its Stepping Stone Income welfare initiative at Dongdaemun Design Plaza on Oct. 7, marking the program's third-year run. Under the theme, “Solutions for Alleviating Poverty and Income Disparity,” the city government said its forum would bring together experts in economics, social welfare and sociology to discuss the city’s income support system and its results. The city’s Stepping Stone Income, or Didimdol

Social AffairsSept. 30, 2024

Korean premiere of Zeffirelli version of 'Turandot' to be staged at KSPO Dome

A grandiose version of Giacomo Puccini’s opera "Turandot" is coming to Korea this October. Originally introduced by the late Italian director Franco Zeffirelli, this version was first staged at the historic Arena di Verona in 2010 and has since become a hallmark of grandeur in the opera world. “Korean audiences will be left speechless and moved by Zeffirelli’s original 'Turandot,’ which has set a benchmark in the history of opera,” said stage direct

CultureSept. 30, 2024

Ven. Seongpa's art is 'seon' meditation

Known as a Buddhist spiritual leader, Ven. Seongpa has combined Buddhist practice with artistic creation, with his art as both the process and the result. Seongpa has unveiled some 120 works created over the past decades at the exhibition entitled “Seongpa Seonye – COSMOS,” which opened at the Seoul Arts Center last week. While his art encompasses a wide range range of genres, from calligraphy and ceramics to painting and sculpture, the exhibition focuses on lacquer works. Lacq

Arts & DesignSept. 30, 2024

Seoul shares dip over 2% ahead of US economic data; won at 9-month high

Seoul shares fell by more than 2 percent Monday as investors remained on the sidelines ahead of the releases of key economic data in the United States later this week. The local currency ended at a 9-month high against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index dropped 2.13 percent, or 56.51 points, to 2,593.27. Trading volume was moderate at 352.4 million shares worth 10.5 trillion won ($8.03 billion), with losers outnumbering winners 708 to 181. Institutions and foreign inv

MarketSept. 30, 2024

Israel targets Palestinian group in first strike on Beirut center

BEIRUT -- Israel hit a Beirut apartment block on Monday, killing three members of a Palestinian armed group in its first strike on the city center since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza nearly one year ago. Israel has turned its focus from Gaza to Lebanon in recent days, carrying out attacks on Iran's regional allies. Strikes on Hezbollah targets killed the Iran-backed group's leader Hassan Nasrallah on Friday. Monday's drone attack targeted a "flat belonging to Jamaa Islamiya,&

World NewsSept. 30, 2024

Court upholds license suspension for doctor who reused needles

A doctor of traditional Korean medicine recently failed to overturn the suspension of his medical license for reusing disposable multineedles. The Seoul Administrative Court dismissed the lawsuit filed by the doctor, who sought to reverse the Health Ministry’s decision to suspend his license, according to media reports Monday. The doctor had his license suspended for one month by the ministry after it was discovered that he had reused sterilized disposable multineedles on 11 patients betwe

Social AffairsSept. 30, 2024

[KH Explains] Is Hyundai-GM partnership win-win to beat Tesla, Chinese rivals?

Hyundai Motor Company and General Motors seem like very different automakers. One is a South Korean juggernaut known for its efficiency and clean design, while the other is a symbol of American muscle, built on a century of dominance in trucks and sport utility vehicles. Yet earlier this month, these two giants signed a sweeping partnership. “In a time of intense competition from Tesla and an ever-growing Chinese EV threat, Hyundai and GM are probably betting that their combined strengths

MobilitySept. 30, 2024

Daewoong's new drug patents reach 88% of total

South Korean drug maker Daewoong Pharmaceutical said Monday that more than 88 percent of its patents registered over the past five years in the country have been for new drugs, reflecting the firm’s efforts to enhance its competitiveness in both domestic and global markets through the development of advanced pharmaceuticals. According to data from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, Daewoong registered nine domestic patents from 2020 to September 2024. Of these, eight are related to the

CompaniesSept. 30, 2024

Twenty-somethings No. 1 in overdue phone bills: data

Of all age groups, those in their 20s have the highest total amount in overdue mobile bills, followed by those in their 30s, according to government data Monday. The Ministry of Science and ICT data, obtained by Rep. Park Chung-kwon of the ruling People Power Party, revealed that as of the end of July, overdue mobile phone payments for people in their 20s reached 5.82 billion won ($4,454,189), with 39,839 overdue cases. Twenty-somethings had the most cases and highest total overdue amount of all

Social AffairsSept. 30, 2024

Cabinet demands Assembly reconsider special counsel bill to probe first lady

The Cabinet passed a motion Monday demanding that the opposition-led National Assembly reconsider three contentious bills, including the one that mandates a special counsel investigation into several allegations against first lady Kim Keon Hee. The motion was passed during a morning Cabinet meeting presided over by Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, 11 days after the parliament passed the bills pushed through by the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea amid a ruling party boycott. "We will d

PoliticsSept. 30, 2024

Samsung Town sold for W1.1tr to offset market concerns

Koramco REITs Management & Trust, a real estate asset manager based in Seoul, has completed the sale of a landmark property to Samsung SRA Asset Management for 1.1 trillion won ($841 million), marking South Korea's largest commercial real estate deal this year. The Asset is an 81,117-square-meter skyscraper located in the Gangnam Business District in southern Seoul. The office property forms part of Samsung Town, an office complex housing the affiliates of Korea’s top conglomera

IndustrySept. 30, 2024

Seoul to hold grand military parade on Tuesday, disrupting major city routes

Seoul will host a large-scale military parade Tuesday in celebration of the 76th anniversary of the Korean Armed Forces, with tanks and infantry marching through some of the city’s busiest streets. The event is expected to cause significant traffic disruptions, as major roads will be closed throughout the day. People are advised to use public transportation and adjust travel plans to avoid delays. The march will begin at 1:40 p.m. from the Seoul Air Base, in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province. In

Social AffairsSept. 30, 2024

Shut up and dance

A large group of people wearing blue headphones, dance out in the open by the Han River. But no music is blaring. This is a silent disco. Instead of speaker stacks, DJs broadcast their sets directly to wireless headphones, allowing people to adjust the volume to their liking. This creates a more personalized, immersive experience while minimizing noise pollution, meaning people can gather and dance in places they normally couldn't. And in this case, it was the Han River's parks. More

Hashtag KoreaSept. 30, 2024

At UN, South Korea ramps up bid to win over N. Korea's old friends

South Korea ramped up its diplomatic efforts to gain greater influence over North Korea’s traditional allies and old friends -- China, Cuba, and Iran -- with Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul spearheading a series of high-level talks on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York. Central to the efforts was Cho's third face-to-face meeting of the year with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Saturday, a meeting South Korea's Foreign Ministry described as part of &

Foreign AffairsSept. 30, 2024

Psy's touch or new trend in music? P Nation’s solo stars lose their shine

Many K-pop chart-toppers who joined Psy’s P Nation in recent years are struggling to replicate the success they once enjoyed. Music critics point to Psy’s involvement in his artists’ music production and the current trend in music which shows a decline in the popularity of solo dance singers. P Nation, a small entertainment agency founded by Psy after he left YG Entertainment in 2018, quickly gained attention largely due to the "Gangnam Style" singer's global f

K-popSept. 30, 2024

Incheon Airport to replace Narita as Delta Air Lines’ Asian hub

ATLANTA – Incheon International Airport has been named the new Asian hub of Delta Air Lines, replacing Japan’s Narita Airport. Incheon International Airport Corporation announced on Monday that it will collaborate with Delta to expand the Asia-Pacific network, alongside the upcoming launch of the Incheon-Salt Lake City route in June, following a meeting between IIA President and CEO Lee Hag-jae and Delta Air Lines CEO Edward Bastian at Delta's headquarters in Atlanta, on Wednesd

IndustrySept. 30, 2024