Why Korea's industrial giants want a piece of Westinghouse

South Korea's leading conglomerates are considering a multitrillion-won investment in US nuclear power company Westinghouse Electric, in a move that could give Korean businesses a stronger foothold in America's expanding nuclear energy market. But the proposed investment raises a central question: Will buying a stake in Westinghouse translate into construction and equipment contracts for Korean companies? SK Group, Samsung C&T, Hyundai Engineering & Construction and Doosan Enerbility are reviewi

Oct. 15, 2026

Parliament nods through new crime agency chief

The National Assembly on Thursday adopted a confirmation report to approve Kim Ji-yong as the inaugural chief of the Serious Crime Investigation Agency. The Security and Public Administration Committee of the National Assembly adopted the report Thursday afternoon, a day after a 12-hour confirmation hearing on Kim, a former career prosecutor. During his confirmation hearing, Kim denied that he had a close relationship with former President Yoon Suk Yeol, who is now incarcerated in connection wit

Oct. 15, 2026

Elderly couple's reunion after husband with dementia goes missing warms hearts

An elderly couple's emotional reunion after a man with dementia went missing in central Seoul has touched hearts online. Footage released by the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency showed the elderly man who, having apparently lost his way, sat alone on a bench in a street in Jung-gu on the morning of Sept. 17. Around the same time, his wife visited a nearby police station to report her husband missing, explaining that he had dementia. Using details provided by the wife, including her husband's phy

Oct. 15, 2026

[Room Tone] More than telling time

For years, mechanical watches occupied a unique place in my personal list of interests. They belonged to the usual collection of things that supposedly signaled that someone had reached a certain point in life; a signifier of position or status, supposedly. A well-tailored suit. Perhaps a two-door car that rattles your teeth every time you hit a pothole. Or maybe a fancy mechanical watch. There was something compelling about the idea of a tiny machine sitting on your wrist, powered by an intrica

Oct. 15, 2026

Lee urges 'warlike resolve’ against violent crime after stabbing attack

President Lee Jae Myung on Thursday called for extraordinary measures to combat violent crime, urging authorities to respond "with the resolve of declaring war" on such offenses. A series of violent attacks has raised public concerns, particularly a stabbing rampage at a large commercial complex in Incheon’s Guwol-dong on Tuesday. The attack left eight people injured, including a woman in her 20s who remained unconscious after undergoing emergency surgery. Lee pointed to a succession of violent

Oct. 15, 2026

Hangang Bus, housing crisis take center stage in Seoul city audit

Seoul's water transportation service Hangang Bus and the housing affordability crisis took center stage in the parliamentary audit of Seoul's municipal government on Thursday. At the audit, ruling Democratic Party of Korea lawmakers targeted Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, raising the possibility of his involvement in corruption allegations concerning Hangang Bus. The main opposition People Power Party, of which Oh is a member, hailed the soft landing of the Hangang Bus operation, and instead focused on

Oct. 15, 2026

Defense minister says Seoul ready for OPCON transfer despite USFK concerns

Defense Minister Kang Shin-chul said Thursday that mutual trust between South Korea and the United States is key to the wartime operational control transfer, saying Seoul could assume OPCON "even now without problems." Kang made the remarks during a National Assembly Legislation and Judiciary Committee audit of the military courts held at the Defense Ministry headquarters in Seoul. "If the South Korea-US alliance proceeds with the transition with mutual trust guaranteed, it will create an even s

Oct. 15, 2026

Beyond firewalls: Singapore's cyber playbook for Korean banks

SINGAPORE — Singapore's cybersecurity chief called for continuous monitoring and closer cooperation between governments and businesses Thursday, offering insights as South Korea confronts a series of cyber intrusions targeting financial institutions. Gwenda Fong, chief executive of Singapore's Cyber Security Agency, said organizations must move beyond a "compliance-based mindset" centered on periodic security checks, particularly as artificial intelligence enables hackers to exploit vulnerabilit

Oct. 15, 2026

Busan film fest draws biggest crowds in 11 years amid political storm

The Busan International Film Festival recorded more than 200,000 admissions this year, its highest tally since 2015, organizers said Thursday, as the 31st edition reached its final day. Screenings accounted for 200,043 admissions, according to the festival's final report. Add in talk sessions, stage greetings and other side events, and total attendance climbed to 277,027 — about 40,000 more than last year. The uptick was thanks to a reshuffled schedule, according to festival organizers. For the

Oct. 15, 2026

Data manipulation found at 30 election commissions

Falsified voter turnout entries occurred at 30 election commissions nationwide during the June 3 local elections, special counsel Lee Tae-hwan's team said Thursday. The special counsel team found data manipulation in 25 districts, cities and counties in its review of turnout records and interviews with some 70 election officials. A joint team of prosecutors and police found such false alterations at five regional election commissions. The election commissions in question were found to have alter

Oct. 15, 2026

Trump doubles down on $50b Korean investment claim for Alaska LNG ahead of midterms

US President Donald Trump has again asserted South Korea pledged $50 billion to a massive liquefied natural gas project in Alaska, despite Seoul's insistence that no final investment decision has been made, as he touts foreign investment ahead of next month’s midterm elections. In a post on Truth Social on Wednesday, Trump said he had launched the Alaska LNG project, describing it as the largest energy infrastructure project in the state’s history. "This 50 billion dollar infrastructure investme

Oct. 15, 2026

Samsung's top brass converge in Tokyo as Japan chip ties deepen

Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong reportedly met with five top executives in Tokyo this week, fueling speculation over the company's semiconductor strategy in Japan and broader business priorities. According to industry sources Thursday, the executives traveled to Tokyo on Tuesday to meet Lee, who was already in Japan. The group included Vice Chairman Chung Hyun-ho, a longtime confidant of Lee; Park Hark-kyu, head of Samsung's business support office; Jun Young-hyun, head of the Device S

Oct. 15, 2026

Posco targets LNG cargo tank market with Hanwha Ocean

Posco said Thursday it signed a memorandum of understanding with Hanwha Ocean to develop and test liquefied natural gas carrier cargo tanks made from its proprietary high-manganese steel, aiming to expand the material's commercial use in shipbuilding. The agreement was signed at Hanwha Ocean's shipyard in Geoje, South Gyeongsang Province, with Posco CEO Lee Hee-geun and Hanwha Ocean CEO Kim Hee-cheul in attendance. Under the deal, Hanwha Ocean will build a demonstration vessel equipped with stee

Oct. 15, 2026

Seoul seeks to turn Trump-Kim summit into four-way peace talks: minister

South Korea aims to expand a potential summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un into four-party talks involving the two Koreas, the US and China, with the goal of replacing the Korean Peninsula's decades-old armistice system with a permanent peace regime, Unification Minister Chung Dong-young said Wednesday. "Our strategic objective is to turn a US-North Korea summit into four-party talks and link those discussions to the establishment of a peace regime," Chun

Oct. 15, 2026

Jeju police say no signs of child abuse found before father-daughter deaths

Jeju police said Wednesday that they found no signs of danger during repeated checks on a father and his 4-year-old daughter who were later found dead in a car, as questions mounted over whether authorities had done enough to protect the child. According to the Jeju Provincial Police Agency, Seogwipo police conducted eight in-person assessments of the father and daughter between Nov. 10 last year and July 27, either independently or alongside municipal child protection officials, but found no ev

Oct. 15, 2026