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Jhoo Dong-chan

Korea Times AI content 2 team Reporter

Do not go gentle into that good night, old age should burn and rave at close of day; Rage, rage against the dying of the light, though wise men at their end know dark is right, because their words had forked no lightning they, do not go gentle into that good night.

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South Korea

Korea levies anti-dumping duties on European PVC paste resin

The Ministry of Finance moved Friday to impose anti-dumping duties ranging from 25.79 percent to 31.55 percent on imports of European polyvinyl chloride (PVC) paste resin, a move intended to curb market distortions caused by low-cost imports and protect domestic suppliers. The decision concludes a nearly yearlong trade dispute initiated last August when the Korea Trade Commission accepted a complaint filed by Hanwha Solutions. Investigators confirmed that material imported from Germany, France, Norway and Sweden had been dumped into Korea below fair market value, inflicting material injury on the domestic manufacturing sector. The newly approved definitive tariffs are scheduled to take effect on Aug. 5 and will remain in place for five years following a formal legislative notice period. PVC paste resin is a fine powder raw plastic material that, when blended with plasticizers, forms a workable paste utilized across a broad range of consumer and industrial products, including synthetic leather, wallpaper, flooring and gloves. The definitive duties represent an adjustment downward from pr

Jul 10, 2026By Jhoo Dong-chan
Korea levies anti-dumping duties on European PVC paste resin
Environment & Animals

Seoul Grand Park reopens Japanese macaque habitat with nature-based redesign

Seoul Grand Park said Friday that its Japanese macaque enclosure has been completely redesigned into an eco-friendly, natural habitat, with public viewing scheduled to resume Saturday. The extensive renovation marks a shift away from the previous concrete flooring and monotonous rock structures. The revamped facility features soil and sand bedding, varied seasonal flora and dedicated pools to replicate a more authentic wild environment. By replacing the hard ground, the park enables the primates to engage in natural behaviors such as digging, foraging, sunbathing and grooming. The newly introduced water elements are designed to encourage social play and resting. To improve animal welfare and expand environmental options for the macaques, officials installed a network of structural elements throughout the enclosure. These upgrades include tree-shaped vertical climbing structures standing five and seven meters tall, which facilitate leaping, swinging and balancing while offering the animals a vantage point overlooking the nearby lake. A combination of multilength ropes, swinging play nets

Jul 10, 2026By Jhoo Dong-chan
Seoul Grand Park reopens Japanese macaque habitat with nature-based redesign
Economy

Toss Insight warns of mixed risks, deposit slowdown for banks

Toss Insight, the financial management research institute under Viva Republica, released a comprehensive industry outlook report Friday highlighting the mixed structural vulnerabilities facing Korean commercial and digital banks amid growing macroeconomic uncertainties. The report, titled "The Era of Uncertainty: Banking Industry Outlook and Response Strategies," establishes three distinct economic paths — baseline, optimistic and pessimistic — spanning the second half of 2026 through 2027 to gauge bank profitability, asset quality and growth indicators. Rather than offering flat projections, the institute used probability distributions to map out potential "tail risks" — extreme scenarios where financial metrics could deteriorate significantly. The analysis underscores a double-edged sword across all projected paths. While high-interest rates and economic expansion boost net interest margins and loan growth, they simultaneously increase debtor repayment burdens, driving up loan delinquency and nonperforming asset rates. Conversely, a low-rate, cooling economy eases borrower distre

Jul 10, 2026By Jhoo Dong-chan
Toss Insight warns of mixed risks, deposit slowdown for banks
South Korea

Korea Times webinar offers foreign students strategies for landing internships

The Korea Times held an online seminar Thursday for international students studying in Korea, offering guidance on securing internships as the country expands programs to attract and retain global talent. The session, titled "Smart Strategies for Finding Internships in Korea" and held via Zoom, was led by Shim Hwa-yung, CEO of HireDiversity, which operates the HireVisa platform to support foreign nationals with visas and settlement. Shim said many Korean companies are open to hiring international students but often hold back simply because they are unsure whether it's legal to do so, adding that explaining students can work legally once they obtain part-time work permits can shift employers' thinking. The seminar covered job search channels including Saramin, JobKorea, Incruit, LinkedIn, university international offices and career centers, fairs hosted by government and public institutions and student communities, and advised networking through multiple channels rather than relying on one platform. Shim recommended highlighting university projects, research, clubs and volunteer work when

Jul 10, 2026By Jhoo Dong-chan
Korea Times webinar offers foreign students strategies for landing internships
South Korea

Incheon offers subsidies to foreign, domestic investors to spur job growth

Facing a cooling global economy and shifting supply chains, the port city of Incheon, west of Seoul, is turning to direct financial incentives to retain corporate interest and fuel its local labor market. City officials said Friday that Incheon will deploy targeted employment subsidies, offering up to 6 million won ($4,350) per new worker to eligible foreign-invested firms and relocating domestic companies. The initiative reflects a growing push among regional hubs outside of Seoul to aggressively court corporate capital as national economic growth moderates. Under the plan, the metropolitan government will distribute 1 million won monthly per eligible employee for up to six months. The measure targets companies that expanded their payrolls significantly over the past year or moved operations to the city, which sits adjacent to the capital and hosts the country's primary international airport. To qualify, foreign-invested entities must hold a foreign equity ratio of at least 30 percent and have added more than 20 full-time domestic workers to their payrolls in 2025 compared to the previ

Jul 10, 2026By Jhoo Dong-chan
Incheon offers subsidies to foreign, domestic investors to spur job growth
Lifestyle

Korea to dispatch 700 young cultural ambassadors worldwide

Korea is launching a major initiative to position its younger generation at the forefront of global cultural diplomacy, moving beyond the traditional export of commercial entertainment to foster deep, grassroots international exchanges. On Friday, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, in partnership with the Korean Foundation for International Cultural Exchange, announced the official launch of the "2026 Youth K-Culture Global Frontier" program. The initiative will deploy approximately 700 young Koreans to 36 countries starting this month, transforming raw passion for the country’s cultural output into structured, hands-on international experiences. The program splits participants into two tracks: self-directed projects and corporate internships. Under the self-directed track, young artists and creators will design and execute international cultural exchange projects across various disciplines, including visual arts, webtoons, literature and fashion. Early initiatives showcase a strong emphasis on collaborative creation rather than simple exhibition. This week, participants from

Jul 10, 2026By Jhoo Dong-chan
Korea to dispatch 700 young cultural ambassadors worldwide
People & Events

Hundreds of educators to convene in Seoul as demand for Korean language teaching soars

At a time when digital acceleration threatens to replace traditional classrooms with algorithms, hundreds of educators are gathering in Korea to make a case for the deeply human power of cultural connection through language. On July 13, approximately 550 Korean language educators from around the globe will assemble at Coex convention center in southern Seoul for the 2026 World Korean Language Educator Conference. The event marks a significant bureaucratic milestone, bringing together four major government bodies — the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Overseas Koreans Agency — for their first joint assembly in nine years as they work together to streamline global educational support. The conference comes during a historic surge in global demand for Korean language teaching, driven by the enduring footprint of Korean cultural content, academic migration and professional opportunities. The 547 international attendees reflect a diverse lineup, including 211 instructors from King Sejong Institutes, 43 primary an

Jul 10, 2026By Jhoo Dong-chan
Hundreds of educators to convene in Seoul as demand for Korean language teaching soars
People & Events

Korea's traditional liquors step into neon-lit Seoul hotspot to woo Gen Z

Korea is bringing its ancestral spirits out of rural distilleries and into the neon-lit heart of Seoul’s fashion district, launching a high-profile retail initiative aimed at capturing global tourists and the domestic market. The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, alongside the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corp. (aT), will officially open a second branch of Sool Gallery inside Doota Mall in Dongdaemun, Seoul’s bustling, neon-lit tourist and shopping hub, on Friday. The move represents a strategic push by policymakers to transform traditional alcohol into a modern cultural commodity. Rather than treating it as a legacy product from a bygone era, the ministry is re-introducing it to a target demographic of local Generation Z consumers and international travelers. "Dongdaemun is a primary destination where younger consumers and global tourists converge," said Kim Jeong-wook, deputy minister of the Agricultural Business Innovation Policy Bureau. "We anticipate that this new Sool Gallery will become an accessible, engaging hub where visitors can experience our heritag

Jul 9, 2026By Jhoo Dong-chan
Korea's traditional liquors step into neon-lit Seoul hotspot to woo Gen Z
Companies

Nongshim taps New York dining scene for expanded US marketing push

Nongshim said Thursday it is expanding its U.S. marketing push this month with a series of collaborations in New York, including a special menu item with a popular Korean restaurant and a pop-up at the Korean Cultural Center. The largest instant noodles and snack company in Korea is partnering with Atoboy, a Korean restaurant in New York, to serve a Shin Ramyun Pancake throughout July, marking the 40th anniversary of Nongshim's Shin Ramyun brand and Atoboy's 10th anniversary. The dish combines boiled Shin Ramyun noodles pan-fried into a crisp pancake topped with shrimp and cheddar cheese, finished with the noodle seasoning and the restaurant's aged chili oil. Nongshim will also operate a Shin Ramyun snack booth at Atoboy's anniversary celebration July 28 at Radio Park in New York. Separately, Nongshim is working with the Korean Cultural Center New York, under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, to run a Shin Ramyun Bunsik booth until Aug. 22 inside a Korean internet cafe-themed event space on the center's second floor. The event is part of the center's 2026 summer culture campai

Jul 9, 2026By Jhoo Dong-chan
Nongshim taps New York dining scene for expanded US marketing push
South Korea

Korea turns to AI to drive next phase of global media expansion

The global expansion of television has long faced a stubborn linguistic barrier: the immense cost and time required to dub programming into local languages. Now, the Korean government is betting on advanced artificial intelligence (AI) to eliminate that friction, aiming to beam thousands of hours of Korea's cultural exports directly into foreign living rooms at a fraction of traditional production costs. The Ministry of Science and ICT convened a high-level summit of the "Global K-FAST Alliance" in Seoul, Thursday, to aggressively scale an initiative that blends generative AI with Free Ad-supported Streaming TV (FAST) — a rapidly growing global market projected to reach $23 billion by 2030. By using what industry insiders call an "AI Dubbing Agent," Korean software firms have successfully integrated voice separation, context-aware translation and emotional synthesis. The technology automatically replicates nonverbal cues and performance dynamics from original Korean audio, seamlessly translating and revoicing content into English, Spanish and Portuguese. The pilot phase has already yi

Jul 9, 2026By Jhoo Dong-chan
Korea turns to AI to drive next phase of global media expansion
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