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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
Hongkongers hold the world’s 15th most powerful passport according to this year’s Henley Passport Index, which measures visa-free access. Photo: Fung Chang
Hong Kong society

Hong Kong passport ranks 15th globally, rising 3 places in visa-free access index

Hongkongers improve in travel mobility, with visa-free access to 171 destinations, but still trail leaders Singapore, as well as Japan and South Korea.

China society

Outside In | Plight of Hebei’s freezing elderly shows urgent need for pension reform

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Australia

South Korean church deploys ‘special force’ to recruit Australian youths

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Yoon Suk-yeol

South Korea’s Yoon sentenced to 5 years in prison over martial law charges

The ruling comes days after prosecutors in a separate case demanded Yoon Suk-yeol be sentenced to death for masterminding insurrection.

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Supporters of South Korea’s former president Yoon Suk-yeol gather in front of the Seoul Central District Court on Friday. Photo: AFP
Blackpink

Blackpink star Jennie’s 8 top brand collaborations as she turns 30

The K-pop singer has been a style icon for Chanel, Jean Paul Gaultier, Calvin Klein, Jacquemus, Adidas and more.

Obituaries

Nie Weiping, Chinese Go master known for victory over Japanese rival, dies at 73

The win catapulted him to national icon status and sparked a fever for the board game across China.

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China-South Korea relations

South Korean leader takes ‘pragmatic approach’ to reset ties with China, Japan

The president made back-to-back trips to the neighbouring countries as tensions are running high between Beijing and Tokyo.

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South Korean President Lee Jae Myung takes a selfie with Chinese leader Xi Jinping after a dinner at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on January 5. Photo: AFP
SCMP Highlights

China’s Ningbo cuisine; Hong Kong goes Back to the Past: 7 Lifestyle highlights

From the rise of Korean-style cafes in Hong Kong to dementia’s link to ‘brain drains’, here are seven stories from SCMP’s recent reporting.

Hong Kong stock market

Hong Kong stocks snap 4-day winning streak as Chinese tech giants falter

Online travel-booking agency Trip.com slumps 19 per cent after China opens antitrust probe into the company.

Hong Kong

Legal Tales | Time to end bid-rigging in Hong Kong with criminalisation, tougher enforcement

In the wake of the Tai Po fire, an all-too-common practice in building management and maintenance comes under the spotlight – and must be redressed.

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The catastrophic blaze at Tai Po’s Wang Fuk Court has exposed widespread bid-rigging in Hong Kong’s building management and maintenance industry. Photo: Sam Tsang
IPO

Alibaba, JPMorgan said to back Chinese chip firm’s Hong Kong listing

Montage Technology could raise up to US$900 million in an IPO as soon as this month, sources say.

Bull statues sit in front of screens showing stock prices outside Exchange Square in Hong Kong on August 18, 2023. Photo: Reuters
Japan

Video | South Korea and Japan’s leaders jam to K-pop hits

South Korea’s Lee Jae Myung and Japan’s Sanae Takaichi played drums while covering two K-pop songs from the boy band BTS and the animated film Kpop Demon Hunters.

Cambodia

‘Not the end’: Cambodia keeps up scam crackdown after Chen Zhi sent to China

Phnom Penh signals zero tolerance for scam centres following the deportation of the Prince Group tycoon.

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Japan

South Korea-Japan summit exposes ‘strategic’ divide amid great-power tensions

While Seoul urged broader regional cooperation that would include China, Tokyo emphasised closer alignment with Washington.

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Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi (left) and South Korea’s President Lee Jae Myung shake hands during a visit to Horyu-ji Temple in Ikaruga, Nara prefecture, on Wednesday. Photo: AFP
China travel

‘Structurally hurt’: why are Chinese tourists spending less abroad than before?

China’s outbound travel sector has bounced back from the pandemic, but the era of duty-free shopping sprees appears to be over.

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Customers shop for skincare products at a duty-free shopping mall in China’s southern Hainan province. China has opened up to more duty-free retail in recent years, reducing the need for Chinese tourists to splash out while abroad. Photo: Getty Images
Netflix

Video | KPop Demon Hunters leads to record export of ramyeon

The surge in food exports from the country comes amid the popularity of Netflix film KPop Demon Hunters.

South Korean celebrities

Video | KPop Demon Hunters leads to record export of Korean instant noodles in 2025

The surge in food exports from the country comes amid the popularity of Netflix film KPop Demon Hunters.

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Tourism

What’s fuelling South Korea’s running boom? A look at the fitness obsession

From office workers to ultra-marathoners, South Korea’s running boom is reshaping streets, travel and retail as millions hit the pavement.

Runners set off during the DMZ International Peace Marathon, in the Demilitarized Zone in Gangwon province, in South Korea, on September 21, 2025. Some 10 million South Koreans now identify as runners, according to industry and tourism data, roughly double the figure from 2015. Photo: The Korea Times
South Korea martial law 2024

South Korea’s Yoon could become ‘martyr’ if given death penalty: analysts

While prosecutors have demanded death for the disgraced ex-president over his martial law debacle, a life imprisonment sentence is seen as more likely.

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Hong Kong stock market

Hong Kong stocks advance as investors turn to China amid Middle East uncertainty

Hang Seng Index extends rally as regional markets find support amid rising tensions between the US and Iran.

Japan

Japan PM, South Korean president rock out to K-pop in surprise drum duet

The Japanese leader led the session by showing the South Korean president how to play the drums after their talks in Nara.

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Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi (right) and South Korean President Lee Jae Myung during a drum session after their summit in Nara on Tuesday. Photo: Cabinet Public Affairs Office/Kyodo
South Korea martial law 2024

South Korean prosecutors demand death penalty for ex-leader Yoon

Prosecutors seek death for Yoon Suk-yeol over martial law decree that plunged the country into chaos. Experts expect a life term as executions are rare.

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South Korea’s ousted former president Yoon Suk-yeol arrives to attend his trial at Seoul Central District Court in May 2025. Photo: AP
Thailand

Suspected scam boss linked to South Korean student’s death arrested in Thailand

The arrest follows international outrage over the killing of the university student, which led to a joint Thai–South Korean investigation.

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Artificial intelligence

DeepSeek founder’s latest paper proposes new model training to bypass GPU limits

The development underscores the start-up’s focus on maximising cost efficiency amid a deficit in computational power relative to the US.

Art

Damien Hirst and Do-ho Suh among top artists showing in Seoul in 2026

Seoul’s 2026 art scene will also see the opening of the Centre Pompidou Hanwha Seoul and the return of the Gwangju and Busan biennales.

Nest/s (2024), by Do Ho Suh. A comprehensive survey of Suh’s practice will be mounted at the Seoul branch of the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea, in September 2026. Photo: Courtesy of Do Ho Suh Studio
Aviation accidents

Fury erupts over ‘mound of death’ in South Korea’s worst air disaster

Opposition MPs accuse officials of trying to bury a report that blames a known design flaw for the nation’s deadliest crash.

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The wreckage of the Jeju Air aircraft that crashed at Muan International Airport, South Korea, in December 2024. Photo: Reuters
Japan

Japan PM seeks unity with South Korea’s Lee as China tensions persist

Takaichi aims to bolster ties with Seoul by avoiding ‘divisive’ issues as Tokyo grapples with Beijing’s economic retaliation.

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Hong Kong stock market

Hong Kong stocks climb as yuan strengthens and investors broaden focus beyond US

Hang Seng Index advances as investors shift focus, boosting Asian equities, with pharmaceutical and healthcare shares leading gainers.

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