Author: Seoul Reporter

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, middle, inspects the operations of free shuttle buses in western Seoul because the strike by town’s unionized intracity bus employees entered its second day, Wednesday. Courtesy of Seoul Metropolitan Authorities The longest-ever strike by Seoul’s intracity bus employees entered its second day Wednesday, prompting town authorities to implement emergency transportation measures, together with rising subway and chartered bus providers.The unionized bus employees within the capital launched their first strike in two years Tuesday after wage talks with the administration broke down.As of early Wednesday morning, solely 562, or 8 p.c, of town’s 7,018 intracity buses had…

The dealing room of Hana Financial institution in Seoul, Wednesday / Yonhap Overseas buyers turned internet consumers of South Korean shares in December, a month after promoting off the second-largest quantity in historical past, central financial institution knowledge confirmed Wednesday.Offshore buyers purchased a internet $1.19 billion value of native shares final month, following $9.13 billion in internet sell-offs the earlier month, in line with knowledge from the Financial institution of Korea (BOK).The November sell-off was the most important because the report promoting of $9.33 billion in April.The nation’s benchmark KOSPI index rose greater than 7 % in December, aided by…

Monetary Companies Fee Chairman Lee Eok-won speaks on the enterprise report assembly of financial-related establishments beneath the Monetary Companies Fee held on the Authorities Complicated Seoul Annex in Jongno-gu, Seoul, on Jan. 12. (Photograph courtesy of the Monetary Companies Fee) Korea Growth Financial institution (KDB) will inject over 250 trillion received in complete funding into superior industries and infrastructure sectors over the subsequent 5 years. IBK Industrial Financial institution of Korea (IBK) additionally determined to provide over 300 trillion received to small and medium enterprises, small enterprise house owners, and enterprise and startup sectors by 2030. This…

Dex / Xportsnews, courtesy of Netflix KoreaNetflix’s hit Korean relationship present “Single’s Inferno” is promising its hottest season but — and even the person who as soon as went viral for his personal legendary pool scene is conceding he has been topped.At a manufacturing showcase held Wednesday in Seoul, the creators and panelists of “Single’s Inferno” Season 5 teased what they described as essentially the most explosive pool scenes within the present’s historical past. The occasion introduced collectively producers Kim Jae-won and Park Soo-ji together with celeb panelists Hong Jin-kyung, Lee Da-hee, Tremendous Junior’s Kyuhyun, rapper Hanhae and Dex, the…

A drum set and drumsticks gifted by President Lee Jae Myung to Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, who as soon as performed heavy steel drums, Wednesday / Courtesy of Cheong Wa Dae President Lee Jae Myung gifted a drum set to Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi following their summit, Cheong Wa Dae mentioned Wednesday, in one other gesture of friendship for Takaichi, who as soon as performed heavy steel drums.Following their summit talks Tuesday that sought deeper bilateral relations, Lee gave Takaichi a drum set made by the Korean model Markers and a pair of drums crafted by a Korean…

A scene from the musical “Kinky Boots” / Courtesy of CJ ENMFor years, Korea’s booming musical theater scene has drawn overseas guests with its polished productions and emotionally charged performances. But for a lot of non-Korean audio system, the expertise usually got here with a level of frustration. The music and choreography landed, however the story itself remained considerably out of attain.That hole is now starting to slim. At a number of theaters in Seoul, subtitle glasses powered by synthetic intelligence (AI) have entered business use for common audiences, marking the primary time the know-how has been made obtainable at…

Wreckage on the website the place a practice was derailed when a development crane collapsed and fell onto its carriages, inflicting a number of casualties, in Sikhio district, Nakhon Ratchasima province, Thailand, Jan. 14. Reuters-YonhapBANGKOK — A development crane fell onto a shifting passenger practice, inflicting a fiery derailment that killed a minimum of 29 individuals Wednesday in northeastern Thailand. One other 64 individuals had been injured and rescuers had been nonetheless looking out the wreckage and giving first support.The derailment occurred on a part of an formidable deliberate high-speed rail challenge that can finally join China with a lot…

Seoul Nationwide College college students pose earlier than being departing for Peru to take part in a social accountability program. Courtesy of Seoul Nationwide CollegeSeoul Nationwide College (SNU) despatched a scholar volunteer group to Peru as a part of the college’s international social accountability program, Jan. 10.Based on an SNU official, Wednesday, the college’s World Social Duty Heart dispatched the group as a part of the World Program plus Social Duty (SWP+SR) program. The group, named “Narangha,” consists of 24 members, together with undergraduate college students, advisory members and a school supervisor.The group will perform social contribution actions in underprivileged…

President Lee Jae Myung of South Korea (left) speaks at his summit with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi in Nara, Japan, on Jan. 13, 2026. (Kim Tae-hyeong/Hankyoreh) At his summit with the Japanese prime minister on Tuesday, President Lee Jae Myung emphasised the significance of cooperation between Korea and Japan in addition to three-way collaboration with the US to reply to quickly altering worldwide circumstances, and pressured that Korea, China and Japan ought to search frequent floor for cooperation. The 2 leaders additionally agreed to coordinate on points associated to the state of affairs on the Korean Peninsula.Following his summit with…

Elon Musk’s AI firm xAI is on the heart of an argument over the unfold of deepfake pictures. AFP-YonhapAs Elon Musk’s synthetic intelligence firm xAI faces backlash over deepfake pictures, Korea’s Framework Act on the Improvement of Synthetic Intelligence is about to take impact subsequent week. All eyes are on whether or not this laws — the world’s first complete AI regulation — can successfully fulfill its position.Nevertheless, skepticism is rising concerning the regulation’s effectiveness, with many predicting it is going to face sensible hurdles in blocking xAI’s deepfake companies or limiting entry. Trade officers mentioned Tuesday that xAI’s AI…