N. Korea sweet wrappers, noodles on Seoul streets in balloon blitz

North Korean sweet wrappers and packets of crackers made at a factory once visited by leader Kim Jong Un were seen by AFP reporters on streets in the South Korean capital Wednesday. The nuclear-armed North has sent thousands of balloons carrying bags of trash southwards since May, in a tit-for-tat propaganda war between the two Koreas, with Seoul blasting K-pop and anti-regime messages from loudspeakers along the border in return. South Korea's military warned of a fresh batch of balloons e

DefenseJuly 24, 2024

Choo Shin-soo becomes oldest position player in KBO history

Former major league All-Star Choo Shin-soo became the oldest position player to appear in a game in the South Korean league Wednesday. At 42 years and 11 days old, Choo started as designated hitter for the SSG Landers against the KT Wiz at KT Wiz Park in Suwon, just south of Seoul, in their Korea Baseball Organization regular-season game. Choo moved past former Lotte Giants player Felix Jose, who was 42 years and eight days old when he played in his final KBO game on May 10, 2007. Jose also home

BaseballJuly 24, 2024

4-year prison term sought for actor Yoo Ah-in over drug charges

Prosecutors on Wednesday demanded a four-year prison term for actor Yoo Ah-in on charges of habitually abusing illegal drugs. The 37-year-old actor, whose latest works include the dark fantasy Netflix series "Hellbound," faces charges of illegally using propofol, a medical anesthetic, under the pretext of cosmetic procedures on 181 occasions between 2020-2022. He was also accused of abusing three other medical anesthetic drugs, including midazolam and ketamine. Charges against him also

Social AffairsJuly 24, 2024

Ador's Min files suit against 5 Hybe officials

The feud between Hybe and Ador CEO Min Hee-jin shows no signs of abating as Min filed a lawsuit on Wednesday against Hybe’s CEO Park Ji-won, Outside Director Lim Soo-hyon, Chief Legal Officer Jung Jin-soo, Chief Financial Officer Lee Kyung-jun and Chief Communications Officer Park Tae-hee for obstruction of business, detection of content such as electronic records and defamation. Min claims the five Hybe officers have repeatedly illegally acquired messenger conversations between individual

K-popJuly 24, 2024

Blackpink’s Lisa named Louis Vuitton ambassador

Lisa of Blackpink has been named as a new house ambassador for Louis Vuitton, the luxury brand announced Tuesday. "I am very excited to welcome Lisa as a House Ambassador. She has a daring spirit and charisma that I find incredibly compelling. She is as bold and creative with her music as she is with her fashion, and it is a privilege to accompany her on this journey,” Nicolas Ghesquiere, Louis Vuitton’s artistic director of women’s collections, said in a press statement.

K-popJuly 24, 2024

[Business Diplomacy] Korea becomes popular destination for US governors

South Korea seems to have been a popular destination for US state governors. This year alone, four governors leading the US industrial heartlands of the Midwest and the South visited Korea to meet with corporate partners and attract new investors. “We're very excited about the relationship that we have built with Korea and Korean companies and we want it to grow,” Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear said upon his first visit to Korea in July. “If there are ways that we can improve

IndustryJuly 24, 2024

Payment delays prompt exodus from Tmon, Wemakeprice

Sellers are leaving Tmon and Wemakeprice, the online shopping platforms owned by Singapore-based e-commerce giant Qoo10, due to delays in payment reportedly caused by liquidity issues, according to industry sources, Wednesday. Major retailers like Lotte Shopping, GS Retail and Hyundai Department Store suspended sales on Tmon and Wemakeprice earlier this week, citing a failures in getting paid by the two platforms. Similarly, travel agencies including Hana Tour, Modetour and Yellow Balloon Tour a

IndustryJuly 24, 2024

Samsung Biologics' H1 earnings hit W2tr for first time

Leading global contract development and manufacturing organization Samsung Biologics announced Wednesday that its earnings for the first half of this year reached an all-time high, surpassing 2 trillion won ($1.5 billion). According to its financial results for the first half of this year, the company reported consolidated revenue of 2.1 trillion won and an operating profit of 655.8 billion won, reflecting on-year increases of 33 percent and 47 percent, respectively. In the second quarter, conso

IndustryJuly 24, 2024

Lawmaker suggests special law to combat YouTube slander

A ruling party lawmaker on Wednesday addressed the need for legislation to crack down on defamatory YouTube content, citing recent controversy over the blackmail of a popular mukbang star. During a confirmation hearing for Lee Jin-sook, nominee for Korea Communications Commission chair, Rep. Shin Sung-bum pressed for her views on the issue, noting it has inflicted immense harm on the victims. The discussion was prompted by a recent incident involving Tzuyang, a renowned mukbang content creator w

Social AffairsJuly 24, 2024

2nd generation of owner families at mid-level conglomerates owns 33.5% of shares

An analysis of 81 conglomerates categorized as "middle market enterprises" showed Wednesday that the second generation of owner families owns a total of 33.5 percent of company shares. Corporate tracker CEO Score analyzed the shareholding structure of companies with 2 trillion won ($1.44 billion) or more in assets, and found that the combined value of shares held by owner families' second generations came to 13.39 trillion won as of July 15. The second generation in the report r

CompaniesJuly 24, 2024

Hybe taps Lee Jae-sang as new CEO

Hybe has appointed its current Chief Strategy Officer Lee Jae-sang to be the new CEO, the company said Wednesday. According to the K-pop powerhouse, Lee's appointment is to be finalized following approval at the upcoming shareholders and board of directors meetings. Lee has been selected to lead the forthcoming "Hybe 2.0" strategy, with a leadership transition project underway since the beginning of the year. Lee graduated from Yonsei University and previously worked at global man

K-popJuly 24, 2024

Zyx Technology, Eomji House team up for interior design innovation

South Korean design software developer Zyx Technology said Wednesday that it signed a memorandum of understanding with Eomji House, an interior architecture and design firm, to foster mutual exchange and cooperation. Zyx Technology and Eomji House will collaborate on developing and refining new technologies. They will also plan innovation in the large business-to-business interior market and enhance their competitiveness through each other's technological resources. Under the partnership wi

IndustryJuly 24, 2024

[Today’s K-pop] SHINee’s Minho heads to Paris Olympics

Minho of SHINee will join the Paris 2024 Olympics as one of the “Olympic Friends,” said label SM Entertainment Wednesday. He and actor Lee Dong-wook were selected as the first “friends” of the sporting event and promoted the Winter Youth Olympic Games Gangwon 2024 earlier this year. The veteran idol will attend the 33rd Olympic Games which open Friday and will root for the national team and promote the event. Separately, the singer and actor will return to TV screens as t

K-popJuly 24, 2024

Source Music, Ador CEO Min locked in legal battle

Hybe subsidiary Source Music and Ador CEO Min Hee-jin are taking legal action against each other for purportedly spreading false information regarding the launch of K-pop girl group NewJeans. Source Music took to social media platform X on Tuesday to post: “Min Hee-jin’s claim that Source Music copied her (girl group) launching strategy is false.” “We did not copy the launching strategy she presented when she was the then-chief business officer at Source Music,” Sou

K-popJuly 24, 2024

National Museum of Korea provides major grant to Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art

The National Museum of Korea will award the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art $1.4 million as part of its overseas Korean Galleries Support Program. It marks the largest grant ever awarded by Korea's state-run museum to any institution. The grant will be awarded over four years to help the museum expand the program that aims to deepen the public's interest in Korean art and culture. The program includes reinstalling the museum’s permanent collection of Korean art i

Arts & DesignJuly 24, 2024

Shareholder activism in Korea ‘partial success’: SquareWell

While shareholder activism is yet to take full hold in South Korea with only a handful of initiatives making it past the vote, activist investors seem to have gained traction here in recent years. According to London-based shareholder advisory SquareWell Partners' recent report, Korean firms are increasingly being targeted by activist investors, with the number soaring from nine in 2020 to 71 in 2023. Still, many of the recent activist campaigns have failed to win a majority of shareholder

MarketJuly 24, 2024

North Korean trash balloon falls on Seoul presidential office

At least one North Korean balloon carrying trash landed on the grounds shared by the South Korean presidential office and the National Defense Ministry in Yongsan, central Seoul, on Wednesday morning. South Korea’s Presidential Security Service said that some trash dropped by the North Korean balloon was identified on the grounds of the Yongsan presidential office and the adjacent defense ministry. The balloon contained mostly scraps of paper and plastic, according to the South Korean mili

PoliticsJuly 24, 2024

Seoul shares close lower on tech, auto losses

Seoul shares closed lower Wednesday as most tech stocks and autos finished in negative terrain. The local currency rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) lost 15.58 points, or 0.56 percent, to close at 2,758.71. Trade volume was moderate at 458.6 million shares worth 10.9 trillion won ($7.87 billion) with losers outnumbering gainer 489 to 368. Foreigners offloaded a net 271.7 billion won worth of local shares, while institutions and retail investors n

MarketJuly 24, 2024

Seoul vows W106.5b to support youth exiting foster care

The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced Wednesday that it would spend 106.5 billion won ($76.9 million) over the next five years to help youth transitioning out of foster care or child care institutions to adjust to independent living, becoming the first local government to do so in South Korea. The city government’s plan includes providing job consultation services, raising independent living capabilities, subsidizing living costs and providing additional help in adjusting to society

Social AffairsJuly 24, 2024

K-pop industry raked in $900 million from overseas last year, data shows

With all the hype surrounding the K-pop industry, how much does it actually earn? The Korea Culture and Tourism Institute sought to answer this question with data, which revealed that the K-pop industry raked in nearly $900 million from overseas last year. In 2023, the estimated overseas sales of K-pop amounted to 1.24 trillion won ($893 million), exceeding 1 trillion won for the first time, according to the government-run organization's report on Wednesday. Compared to the previous year, K

CultureJuly 24, 2024