Seoul shares open slightly higher on Wall Street gains

South Korean stocks opened slightly higher Wednesday tracking overnight gains on Wall Street led by improved appetite for tech shares. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 3.72 points, or 0.09 percent, to 3,998.65 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight on Wall Street, the S&P 500 added 0.25 percent, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.39 percent. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite increased 0.59 percent. In Seoul, top tech giant Samsung Electronics rose 1.16 percen

Dec. 3, 2025

S. Korea's foreign reserves rise to over 3-yr high in Nov.

South Korea's foreign reserves rose for the sixth consecutive month in November to reach a three-year high, the central bank said Wednesday. The country's foreign reserves had stood at $430.66 billion as of end-November, up $1.84 billion from a month earlier, according to the data from the Bank of Korea. It marked the highest level since August 2022, when the figure stood at $436.43 billion. The increase was largely attributable to an increase in investment income and a rise in foreign currency

Dec. 3, 2025

S. Korea posts 1.3% Q3 GDP growth, faster than initial estimate: BOK

South Korea's economy expanded at the fastest pace in nearly four years in the third quarter, buoyed by strong exports and improving private consumption, central bank data showed Wednesday. The real gross domestic product rose 1.3 percent in the July-September period from the previous quarter, 0.1 percentage point higher than the earlier estimate, according to preliminary data from the Bank of Korea. The reading marked the fastest quarterly expansion since the fourth quarter of 2021, when the ec

Dec. 3, 2025

OECD maintains S. Korea's 2025 growth outlook at 1 pct, projects improvement in 2026

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development on Tuesday maintained its growth forecast for the South Korean economy at 1 percent this year, while projecting an improvement in 2026, according to Seoul's finance ministry. "Growth is picking up," the OECD said in a report released by the ministry, noting the country's real gross domestic product, a key measure of economic growth, is expected to weaken to 1 percent in 2025 before rising to 2.1 percent both in 2026 and 2027. The latest 2

Dec. 2, 2025

[Gadget Review] Galaxy Z TriFold blurs line between phone and tablet

Samsung Electronics has pushed the foldables category into uncharted territory with the Galaxy Z TriFold — its first triple-folding smartphone and arguably its boldest experiment in mobile design since the original Galaxy Fold. Unveiled Tuesday, the device blurs the line between phone and tablet more seamlessly than any Samsung model to date, signaling a new phase in form factor evolution. Fully unfolded, the Galaxy Z TriFold reveals a 10-inch display, delivering a viewing experience comparable

Dec. 2, 2025

Seoul shares end almost 2% higher on chip, auto gains

South Korean stocks closed sharply higher Tuesday, snapping a three-day losing streak, buoyed by gains in major chipmakers and automakers, as the United States has confirmed that tariff rates on imports from Seoul would be lowered to 15 percent retroactively. The Korean won increased against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 74.56 points, or 1.9 percent, to close at 3,994.93. Trade volume was moderate at 315.13 million shares worth 12.23 trillion won ($8.32 bil

Dec. 2, 2025

How ex-employee exposed 33.7 million users: Coupang's security gaps explained

Fear is mounting over large-scale personal data breaches in Korea, with the latest incident at Coupang exposing information from 33.7 million users. The leak — believed to have been carried out by a former insider — has raised broader questions about how vulnerable major platforms remain despite heavy spending on cybersecurity. This explainer breaks down what happened, why insider attacks are uniquely hard to prevent, and what experts say needs to change. The leak affected nearly every Coupang u

Dec. 2, 2025

CJ, CP Group partner to expand K-food in Southeast Asia

CJ CheilJedang said Tuesday it has signed a strategic partnership with CP Axtra, the retail arm of Thailand’s largest conglomerate Charoen Pokphand Group (CP Group), to accelerate the distribution of K-food products across Southeast Asia. The memorandum of understanding, signed Monday at CJ’s Seoul headquarters, commits the two companies to combining CJ’s product development capabilities with CP Axtra’s extensive retail network. CP Group dominates Thailand’s retail sector. Its subsidiary CP Axtr

Dec. 2, 2025

Is Coupang too deeply embedded? Users conflicted over next steps

The fate of South Korea’s largest e-commerce platform, Coupang, hangs in the balance after a devastating data breach that exposed nearly all of its 33.7 million user accounts, a crisis of exceptional weight given how embedded the platform is in the daily lives of millions. There is outrage among the nearly three-quarters of the population affected by the cybersecurity lapse that led to the leakage of consumer data, including names, phone numbers, email addresses and shipping addresses. But many

Dec. 2, 2025

Celltrion, Galux partner on multispecific antibody drugs

Korean biopharma giant Celltrion has teamed up with artificial intelligence drug design startup Galux to co-develop next-generation autoimmune disease therapies using multispecific antibodies, the companies said Tuesday. Under the collaboration, Galux will handle AI-based antibody design and early-stage validation, while Celltrion will lead preclinical and clinical development and commercialization. The companies aim to establish a faster, more efficient model that shortens the path from candida

Dec. 2, 2025

Hanwha unveils W100b Jeju satellite megahub

SEOGWIPO, Jeju Island — Hanwha Systems on Tuesday held an official completion ceremony for the Jeju Space Center on the Hawon Techno Campus located in Seogwipo, Jeju Island, signifying the opening of Korea’s biggest private-led satellite manufacturing facility. With an investment of about 100 billion won ($68 million), Hanwha Systems established the Jeju Space Center with a satellite development and assembly bloc, a satellite function and condition testing facility, a satellite assessment clean

Dec. 2, 2025

US confirms retroactive cut of Korean auto tariffs to 15%

The US has confirmed it reduced tariffs on South Korean automobiles from 25 percent to 15 percent, effective retroactively to Nov.1, a move expected to ease uncertainty and cost pressures for automakers such as Hyundai and Kia. The reduced rate comes after Seoul on Nov. 26 introduced legislation in parliament tied to the country’s $350 billion investment pledge in the US, a prerequisite outlined in the bilateral memorandum of understanding signed on Nov. 14. The memorandum stipulated that tariff

Dec. 2, 2025

K-defense climbs global rankings on Europe export boom

Korea’s four major defense companies — Hanwha Group, Hyundai Rotem, LIG Nex1 and Korea Aerospace Industries — boosted their combined arms revenues by 31 percent to $14.1 billion last year, cementing their positions on the world’s top 100 arms producers. According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute’s 2024 Top 100 report released Tuesday, all four Korean firms made the list for the second consecutive year, reflecting the country’s rapid ascent as a global defense exporter. Han

Dec. 2, 2025

Woori unveils four-person shortlist for group chair

Woori Financial Group on Tuesday unveiled its shortlist for its next chair, naming current Chair and CEO Yim Jong-yong and banking chief Jung Jin-wan among the four candidates. The list also includes two external contenders whose names were withheld for privacy reasons. The nominations follow the launch of the group’s succession process in late October, during which the executive nomination committee reviewed candidates’ management performance through internal and external evaluations, results f

Dec. 2, 2025

Paris Baguette opens 700th overseas outlet

Paris Baguette, the bakery brand operated by South Korean food conglomerate SPC Group, said Tuesday it has opened a new store at Westfield London — marking its 700th overseas outlet and underscoring the brand’s accelerating global expansion. The milestone comes just a year after Paris Baguette surpassed 600 international stores in October 2024, reflecting the pace of its overseas growth. The Westfield location is the brand’s fourth UK store, following openings at Battersea Power Station, Kensing

Dec. 2, 2025