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UPDATE: Chip boom lifts Korea's factory jobs after 26-month slide
SEOUL, October 16 (AJP) - The extraordinary chip boom fueling full-capacity production and expansion at South Korea’s chip factories has spilled over to the job front, lifting factory employment for the first time in more than two years, although opportunities for young people remained constrained.
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Oil surge lifts Korea's import prices despite stronger won
SEOUL, October 16 (AJP) — South Korea's import prices rebounded in September on a double-digit surge in global oil prices despite a stronger won that weighed on export prices amid the strongest export volume growth in nearly 17 years.
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To sell or not to sell, that is the question in Seoul
SEOUL, October 15 (AJP) — South Korean retail investors are caught between a market tailspin and faint hopes of a repeat of the first-half rally as mounting losses make it increasingly costly and painful to unwind stock positions financed by more than 34 trillion won ($25.22 billion) in borrowed money.
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TSMC and ASML earnings suggest chip binge is far from over
SEOUL, October 15 (AJP) - Contrary to the panicky selloff in chip stocks over fears of an overhyped AI boom, stellar earnings and bullish guidance from Taiwan’s TSMC and Dutch equipment maker ASML suggest the chip binge is far from over.
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Seoul, USFK look at different timetables for wartime OPCON transfer
SEOUL, October 15 (AJP) - South Korea and U.S. Forces Korea are sounding like a broken record as they repeat differing views over the conditions and timing for transferring wartime operational control to Seoul. Gen. Xavier Brunson, commander of U.S. Forces Korea (USFK).
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South Korea can help close AI divide: World Bank VP
SEOUL, October 15 (AJP) - South Korea’s digital expertise, manufacturing strength and rapid modernization make it well placed to help narrow a global wealth divide that artificial intelligence could deepen, a senior World Bank executive said. “What we call Big AI is an ecosystem dominated by just a handful of advanced countries — not even all advanced countries — and a small number of global corporations,” said Kim Sangbu, the World Bank Group’s vice presiden
by Lee Jung-woo
Ukraine war poses different stakes for South Korea, Japan
SEOUL, October 14 (AJP) - The Russia-Ukraine war is nearing the five-year mark with little sign of an exit, with both sides expanding attacks on energy infrastructure and extending the war’s repercussions to draw East Asian countries closer to the epicenter. Japan has entered a defense deal with war-engaged Ukraine to purchase battlefield-tested Ukrainian interceptor drones. South Korea is equally engaged with Kyiv but in the opposite direction — a diplomatic spat triggered by Ukrai
Korean bonds join global safe-haven rally on equity rout
SEOUL, October 15 (AJP) — An equity rout driven by concerns over AI overspending is steering investors toward government bonds in Seoul and other major markets despite stronger-than-expected U.S. inflation and the prospect of a prolonged monetary tightening cycle. The three-year Korean government bond yield closed Thursday 1.6 basis points lower at 3.867 percent, while the 10-year yield fell 6.8 basis points to 4.193 percent, its lowest since Aug. 5. The 20-year and 30-year yields droppe
Will Sejong make the FSC a backseat driver in Korean finance?
SEOUL, October 14 (AJP) - The Financial Services Commission (FSC) got its orders to move to Sejong on Tuesday. On Wednesday, it was running command in central Seoul against a hacking spree that has hit 16 financial companies, the kind of crisis that relocation will soon test. After second emergency response meeting held Wednesday at Government Complex Seoul, the FSC said intrusions had been confirmed across banks, savings banks, mutual finance, card and capital firms, peer-to-peer lenders and c
