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South Korea

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South Korea
South Korea
Latest news, in-depth features and opinion on South Korea, covering politics, economy, society, K-pop and Seoul’s relationships with North Korea, Japan, China and the United States.
Capital
Seoul
Head of State
Lee Jae-myung
Lee Jae Myung
Head of Government
Prime Minister Kim Min-seok
A ship sails in the Han River after leaving the Jamsil pier in Seoul’s Songpa ward on September 18, 2025. Photo: Yonhap/EPA
Seoul

South Korea uses AI to prevent suicides, track crime on Seoul’s Han River bridges

AI sounds an alarm if it identifies a person staying for more than 300 seconds in a bridge’s ‘loitering zones’, allowing humans to swoop in.

History

The West was never the whole world. It’s time to move on

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2026 Xi-Trump summit

Trump and his CEOs want China’s business – but has Asia moved on?

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Mainland China

Being Chinese | How to deal with this ‘very Chinese time’ in Western lives

The question is not whether outsiders are getting China or Chinese culture right, but what we choose to do with their attention.

Foreign tourists in traditional Chinese costumes take photos near the Forbidden City in Beijing on April 16. Photo: AP
Electric & new energy vehicles

Peugeot, Jeep take on Chinese rivals with new models using local EV tech

Peugeot and Jeep are following in the footsteps of Hyundai Motor’s Ioniq to regain lost ground in mainland China.

The Philippines

Western powers ramp up support for Philippines’ Luzon economic hub

Eight more countries will invest in the project as they accelerate regional trade diversification in sectors ranging from AI to energy.

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China-Latin America relations

China restores US beef trade amid Trump-Xi summit, alarming Brazilian exporters

Beijing’s renewal of import licences for US beef plants comes as Brazil nears its annual quota cap and scrambles for alternative markets.

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People shop for beef at a supermarket in Fuzhou, Fujian province. China has renewed import licences for hundreds of US beef plants. Photo: China News Service/VCG via Getty Images
Crime in Hong Kong

Truck driver arrested after accident leaves 1 highway worker dead, 5 others hurt

Truck hit back of worker’s patrol vehicle parked in closed slow lane of Cheung Tsing Highway, which then struck minivan carrying South Korean tourists.

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2026 Xi-Trump summit

Macroscope | Trump-Xi summit puts US vulnerabilities on display

China weaponising rare earths turned the tables on Trump, showing how unprepared Western governments and firms were for a full trade war.

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Technology

Samsung union’s strike threat fuels fears of South Korea’s economic slowdown

The AI boom and SK Hynix’s profit-sharing arrangement with its workers have reportedly galvanised Samsung’s biggest union to take action.

Union members from Samsung Electronics stage a protest in front of the company’s plant in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi province last month. Photo: The Korea Times
SCMP Highlights

Hong Kong parks as gyms, vegetarian omakase: 7 Lifestyle highlights

From a Hong Kong coach turning parks into gyms to vegetarian omakase in Vancouver, here are five stories from SCMP’s recent reporting.

Fitness coach Ash Ayonote leads a group session at the Wai Man Road Playground in Sai Kung, in Hong Kong’s New Territories. Photo: Edmond So
China stock market

AI | Chinese chip ETFs pause trading as they warn of soaring premium risks

With two funds trading at least 30 per cent above net asset values, the large premiums would trigger sell-offs when sentiment turns.

Japan

Japan-South Korea ‘comfort women’ row stoked by statues abroad

The removal of wartime sex slave memorials in Germany and New Zealand has electrified certain LDP hardliners, risking a diplomatic rift.

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Semiconductors

Chinese memory module makers ramp up production with new CXMT DRAM

Founded in 2016, CXMT is widely regarded as China’s only domestic DRAM maker to have achieved mass production.

CXMT is also moving towards a domestic initial public offering to fund further expansion. Photo: Handout
Diplomacy

Opinion | North Korea is not Iran. The same pressure tactics won’t work

North Korea’s nuclear reality and the overlapping interests of the US, China and Russia make tension reduction a prerequisite.

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Illustration: Craig Stephens
Hong Kong transport

HK Express cuts surcharge by 12.8% as fuel prices ease amid Mideast war

Adjustment follows similar moves by Cathay Pacific and Hong Kong Airlines, which have both announced reductions in fuel surcharges.

War and conflict

‘Like whale bones’: South Korea’s war memorial sparks conflict over symbolism

Critics argue the Korean war memorial should not be in a space in Seoul long associated with pro-democracy protests and its imperial past.

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2026 Xi-Trump summit

Leaving so soon? US, China hold briefest trade talks yet before leaders’ summit

The two delegations met in Seoul’s Incheon Airport, spoke for a few hours and skipped the press conferences typically held after earlier sessions.

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Chinese Vice-Premier He Lifeng shakes hands with US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent prior to trade talks in South Korea on Wednesday. Photo: Xinhua
Extreme weather

South Korea adds ‘extreme heat emergency’ to first major alert update in decades

Over the past five years, the average number of heatwave days and tropical nights has surged nearly threefold compared to the 1970s.

China trade

Asia needs ‘institutional toolbox’ to survive global shocks, China experts warn

Ahead of Trump’s China visit, experts at an RCEP forum discuss a supply-chain overhaul, looking to insulate the world’s biggest trading bloc.

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Defence

South Korea signals ‘phased’ support for US-led Hormuz mission after ship attack

Defence Minister Ahn said the support could include political backing, personnel dispatches and sharing of information and military assets.

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South Korean Defence Minister Ahn Gyu-back places a wreath during a visit to the Korean War Memorial in Washington on Tuesday. Photo: South Korea’s Ministry of National Defence/EPA
2026 Xi-Trump summit

China and US teams race to find easy summit deliverables at meeting in Seoul

The two sides will seek to ‘iron out any last-minute issues’ in single day of talks, economist says.

Vice-Premier He Lifeng and US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent last met in person in Paris on March 16. Photo: Handout
2026 Xi-Trump summit

China-US trade talks kick off in Seoul ahead of high-profile leaders’ summit

Trade deals, export controls on critical minerals and the Iran war likely to be talking points as senior officials sit down for negotiations.

US-China relations

US confirms delegation to Apec meeting in China as Trump sets off for Beijing

US representatives to attend Apec trade and investment meetings in Shanghai and Suzhou this month as key Trump-Xi summit looms.

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China-EU relations

In a bind over rare earths, Europe watches US-China tussle from the sidelines

As Xi Jinping and Donald Trump prepare to meet in Beijing, one European diplomat says the bloc is aware ‘we have little leverage here’.

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China’s rare earth controls have kept a chokehold on European industry. Photo: AP
Asian cinema: Korean films

How The King’s Warden sold 16 million tickets and saved the Korean box office

Producer Lim Eun-jung, director Jang Hang-jun and actor Yoo Hae-jin explain why the historical drama struck a chord with Korean audiences.

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Yoo Hae-jin in a still from The King’s Warden, which has revitalised a sluggish Korean film industry.
China stock market

Emerging markets rebound on inflows as Xi-Trump talks eyed for momentum

Mainland China, Hong Kong stock markets may benefit from Xi-Trump meeting as renewed interest in AI shows investors keen to re-engage, analysts say.

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SCMP Highlights

Philippine pageant debate, Chinese stealth jets in Pakistan: 7 Asia highlights

From controversy about a Philippine pageant winner to Japan’s social recluses, here are a few highlights from SCMP’s recent Asia reporting.

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