Korea JoongAng Daily - Daily News from Korea

This article is by Lee Jian and read by an artificial voice.

[REVIEW]

New musical "Arang," which opened Tuesday at the National Theater of Korea, is a game changer in the local theater scene.

Produced by ACOM, behind large-scale historical musicals such as "Hero" and "Empress Myeongseong," "Arang" carries an experimental excitement and, simultaneously, the scale and shine of legacy prestige theater.

Hand-painted ink wash imagery on stage, decadent hanbok (traditional Korean dress), poetic lyrics, orchestration that fluidly moves through Eastern and Western sounds and choreography brimming with drama add up to a nuanced and refreshing show that prioritizes meaning over ornament and sets a new bar for the genre.

The show takes one brazen gamble, however, by setting its protagonist as a technical device, and not a moral one. More bluntly, he is incredibly unlikable.

Set in 460 A.D., the musical follows a king of Baekje (18 B.C. to A.D. 660) named Yeokyung. Constantly anxious about losing his throne — a recurring concern of many kings in the Korean monarchy — he is plagued by nightmares.

This is where the musical opens. In another nightmare, the king wanders a sort of postapocalyptic wasteland amid a sandstorm until, this time, he arrives at a picturesque, dreamlike utopia.

A full moon that gleams against the shimmering water, with majestic mountains behind, and peach blossom trees with petals blowing in the wind like snow — which are hand-painted with blotted ink on hanji (mulberry paper) — make it feel as though audiences have truly entered a dream, setting the aesthetic of the show.

In this paradise, the king encounters a woman whom he immediately falls in love with. When he wakes from the dream, he orders his loyal servant, Hyangsil, to find her. And it turns out she exists: Arang. But she is newly married and deeply in love with another man, Domi.

From here, events spiral into a series of violent, blood-spattering destruction as the king's maniacal desire to make Arang his wife curdles into obsession and plain madness.

Villains can be protagonists, to be fair. But the musical's king is not engaging enough for the audience to follow his line of action, especially because viewers are not given time to understand him beyond the madness — his father was assassinated and he rose to the throne during precarious times. Giving only a few lyrics and lines to achieve this, though it makes for a fast-moving show, is insufficient.

But to its bracing credit, the show does not seek audience sympathy for Yeokyung, and there is a distinct refusal to redeem him. His actions are undeniably deranged and the musical's resistance to soften them is a wise urge resisted. Still, as a viewer, this reporter could not understand why she had to sit through four of his solos — the most in the show. We get it. You have issues.

The choice crystallizes in the moment Yeokyung kills Hyangsil after the faithful servant pleads with him to abandon his fixation on Arang. When the blade falls, the stage empties emotionally. Yeokyung stands alone, staring unapologetically into the darkened auditorium, unforgiven and isolated both within the narrative and from the audience. He stares out blankly under the spotlight.

The weakness is offset by the rest of the show.

The score moves fluidly between Eastern and Western melodies, blending violins with haegeum (two-stringed fiddle) and flute with daegeum (large bamboo flute) and piri (reed instrument). The result does not sound new or inventive — the melodies feel safe and slightly bland — but it is executed well to achieve its intended purpose, which is to be a recognizable musical theater score with distinct traditional sounds and rhythm.

One of the most memorable numbers is "O Moon, My Moon," sung by Arang and the couple's spiritual protector Bia in the first act as Domi leaves at the king's command, promising to return.

Sung in the style of jeongga, a restrained and refined traditional vocal form, the piece gai...

This article is by Kim Ki-hwan and read by an artificial voice.

As speculation grows over who will succeed Jerome Powell as chair of the U.S. Federal Reserve, former Fed Gov. Kevin Warsh has emerged as a front-runner. Warsh also serves as a member of the board of directors at Korean e-commerce giant Coupang.

U.S. President Donald Trump said Thursday he will announce the next Fed chair nominee on Friday morning during remarks at a documentary screening for "Melania" at the Trump-Kennedy Center in Washington.

"It's going to be, somebody that is very respected, somebody that's known to everybody in the financial world. And I think it's going to be a very good choice. I hope so," Trump said.

Citing sources familiar with the matter, Bloomberg reported that Trump is preparing to nominate Warsh as the next Fed chair. Reuters also noted that Warsh met directly with Trump at the White House late Thursday night, suggesting a final round of vetting before the announcement.

The final short list reportedly includes three more candidates: Kevin Hassett, director of the White House National Economic Council; Christopher Waller, Fed governor; and Rick Rieder, chief investment officer at financial firm BlackRock. While all four are seen as critical of current interest rate levels, they differ in how quickly or aggressively they would ease monetary policy.

On prediction market platform Polymarket, Warsh's odds of nomination surged to 96 percent at one point on Friday. Over the past month, Warsh and Hassett have jostled for the top spot. However, with Trump, decisions are often fluid until the official announcement is made, analysts noted, recalling that even the nomination of U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent shifted multiple times before the announcement.

Born in New York in 1970, Warsh has followed a classic elite trajectory. He earned a degree in public policy from Stanford University, followed by law and business degrees from Harvard. After starting his career at Morgan Stanley in 1995, he worked for the President George W. Bush administration in 2002 as special assistant to the president for economic policy and executive secretary at the White House National Economic Council.

In 2006, at age 35, he became the youngest-ever Fed Governor. After leaving the Fed in 2011, he joined Stanford University's Hoover Institution and became a board member at Coupang in 2019.

Trump is reportedly drawn to Warsh for his ability to navigate the Fed's internal decision-making structure and his preference for rate cuts based on clear data and process. While not viewed as aggressively dovish, Warsh is seen as someone who would prioritize order and credibility — key to balancing market trust with the Fed's independence.

Powell's term ends in May. The next Fed chair must be confirmed by a Senate vote. Since taking office in January last year, Trump has openly pressured the Fed to lower interest rates, casting aside the traditional norm of central bank independence. Despite this, Powell proceeded with three rate cuts totaling 0.75 percentage points over the past year, bringing the benchmark rate to 3.75 percent.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.

This article is by Choi Min-ji and read by an artificial voice.

Generative AI is rapidly transforming fan content in Korea, enabling ordinary fans to turn shows, songs and celebrities into viral animations, covers and remixes, blurring the line between creative participation and copyright risk.

One such example was a scene from a video created by college student Park Ji-soo, who reimagined an episode of the Netflix cooking survival show "Culinary Class Wars" (2024-) season 2 in an animated style.

Fan content refers to noncommercial creative works made by fans using original materials. These include fan fiction, fan art, fan magazines known as fanzines, and cosplay.

In one such piece of fan content created by Park, a white-haired chef with his hands behind his back looks down at a challenger with a fierce glare. His opponent is "Fan Master" Kim Tae-woo, a culinary researcher who once worked under chef Hou Deok-juk.

Kim strikes first, with a flurry of sharp attacks following, but Chef Hou avoids them without even lifting his hands. Then, with a single wave of energy, Hou knocks Fan Master to his knees. As Fan Master sobs with his head bowed, Hou helps him to his feet.

The two-minute video, uploaded on Jan. 3 to the YouTube channel Spoop, has recorded 1.05 million views as of Monday.

"I used AI for both the visuals and the background music," said Park, who created the video. "I depicted the showdown between Hou and Fan Master like a martial arts movie and added heart eyes to chef Lee Ha-sung as he looks at chef Son Jong-won — elements that weren't in the original but reflect the underlying story and emotion, expressed through animation."

With generative AI programs lowering the barriers to entry, fan content is evolving both in quantity and quality. With AI, fan content is expanding into genres like video and music.

The "Good Goodbye" (2025) stage performance by singer Hwasa and actor Park Jung-min at the Blue Dragon Film Awards in November last year, which gained attention for its romantic undertones, was recreated as a reply song sung by an AI-generated version of Park.

On Dec. 2, 2025, the YouTube channel Doldolz uploaded a music video with a title that translates to "We should hear what Park Jung-min has to say too." The original song remains, but a male AI vocal was added and the lyrics were changed.

The line "You better laugh loudly so I regret everything" became "I'll probably regret everything, but I'll still let you go." The video has surpassed 1.35 million views.

The channel Ppong Me The Money uploaded content that reinterprets hip-hop tracks into trot songs using AI. One such video, a trot rendition of Jay Park's "Mommae" (2015), released early last month, has racked up more than 7 million views.

Following its popularity, Jay Park himself performed the trot version of "Mommae" at the Melon Music Awards and on the KBS music show "The Seasons: 10CM's Pat-Pat" (2025).

"I've been a longtime fan of hip-hop," said Kim, a channel called Ppong Me The Money. "I wanted to make it more accessible and fun for people who might find hip-hop intimidating."

Some entertainment agencies are also encouraging AI-based fan content creation. A2O Entertainment runs "A2O Zone," where fans and artists reinterpret and evaluate original content, and hosts AI Content Creator Camps, where creators use AI to make content.

"Instead of simply consuming content, fans can grow their affection and interest in the artist by creating their own," A2O said.

Experts believe the use of AI in fan content will continue to grow.

"Just as YouTube changed how videos are distributed, generative AI is changing how they are made," said Yoo Jin-hee, adjunct professor at Chung-Ang University's Graduate School of Advanced Imaging Sciences. "Fan content has become easier to create thanks to AI, and fandom creations now gain influence quickly and easily through the internet and social media."

"With improvements in both quality and volume, fan content is increasingl...

This article is by Lim Sun-young and read by an artificial voice.

What began as a quirky sweet among social media-savvy 20-somethings has exploded into a nationwide dessert craze — and now even grandparents are lining up for a taste of the Dubai chewy cookie.

On Monday, over 50 people, ranging from children to older adults, lined up for more than half an hour at Paris Baguette's Gwanghwamun 1945 branch in Jongno District, central Seoul. Despite a staff announcement that purchases were limited to two per person, consumers were delighted to get their hands on the "Dubai Chewy Ball," a spinoff of the wildly popular Dubai chewy cookie.

The so-called "Dubai dessert" craze is spreading beyond its original Gen Z and millennial fanbase to all ages. The Dubai chewy cookie, or "Dujjonku" in Korean — a portmanteau of "Dubai" and the Korean words for "chewy" and "cookie" — has spawned a variety of related products and continues to sell out early despite the relatively steep price of 5,000 to 10,000 won ($3 to $7) apiece. Analysts point to a mix of factors behind the frenzy: strong product appeal, the power of social media and a consumer trend of seeking "small luxuries" amid economic uncertainty.

"Compared to previous dessert trends like tanghulu — candied fruits on a stick — this product's flavor and texture appeal to a wider age range," said Lee Eun-hee, a professor emeritus of consumer studies at Inha University. "The exotic image of 'Dubai' in the name also makes a strong impression on consumers, which has fueled the craze."

The dessert's cross-generational appeal is evident in stores. Kim Dong-yeon, 78, who came from Cheonan, South Chungcheong, queued up with a friend to buy the Dubai chewy balls.

"I bought them for myself," he said. "My grandson said they were trending, so I stopped by while visiting Seoul." He later shared them with four friends.

"My teenage son asked me to buy them, and it was worth the effort to come early," a shopper named Oh Se-jin, 47, said.

"I'm so hooked on these cookies now, I don't even mind waiting in line," another queuer, 27-year-old Lee Ji-eun, added.

Though the Dubai chewy cookie trend began in small local shops, major food and retail corporations have since jumped on the bandwagon. Between Dec. 26, 2025, and Monday, a total of 82 "Dubai dessert" products were registered with the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety as new items.

The Dubai chewy cookie is a Korean twist on the once-popular Dubai chocolate. It features kadayif — shredded Middle Eastern phyllo dough strands — panfried in butter and blended with pistachio cream, then shaped into a ball, wrapped in marshmallow and dusted with cocoa powder. Though labeled a "cookie," its chewy texture is closer to rice cake with a crisp shell.

The recipe has inspired a wave of spinoffs in cake, tart, doughnut and bingsu (shaved ice dessert) forms. Paris Baguette, Korea's leading bakery chain, followed its chewy ball with a chewy tart, while Starbucks Korea will release a Dubai Chewy Roll at select stores on Jan. 30.

"We received many customer requests for Dubai-themed desserts," said a Starbucks Korea spokesperson. "We're also considering launching a Dubai-themed drink."

Convenience stores, department stores and hotels are also joining the competition, proving that the dessert's popularity is backed by strong sales.

Convenience store chain CU's Dubai-style chapssaltteok (sticky rice cake) sold 1.8 million units within two months. A Dubai-style cake from the cafe franchise A Twosome Place sold out in just five minutes after preorders opened on Monday.

At Sulbing, another cafe chain known for its bingsu, sales of its Dubai-themed chocolate shaved ice rose 42 percent in December 2025 compared to the previous month, despite it being the offseason.

"As the trend grows, companies are focusing more of their resources on Dubai-inspired product development," said one industry insider.

"This craze is likely to last longer than past dessert trends, but the key to...

This article is by Seo Ji-eun and read by an artificial voice.

[NEWS ANALYSIS]

Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed a desire to restore ties with South Korea during a recent diplomatic ceremony as Moscow remains locked in confrontation with the West, and Seoul continues to be classified as an "unfriendly country."

"In the past, by adhering to pragmatic approaches, our countries achieved truly positive results in trade and business," Putin said during a ceremony to receive credentials from new ambassadors, including South Korea's new envoy to Moscow, Lee Sok-bae, at the Kremlin on Jan. 15. "We look forward to restoring relations with the Republic of Korea."

The remarks came after nearly four years of frozen ties following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, which prompted South Korea to join Western sanctions. Ties worsened further after Russia and North Korea signed a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in June 2024, and North Korea dispatched military personnel to support Russia in its war against Ukraine.

Putin's message has drawn scrutiny because it aligns with South Korean President Lee Jae Myung's foreign policy agenda of "pragmatic diplomacy," which prioritizes national interests over ideology.

South Korea's Foreign Minister Cho Hyun said last month he would continue necessary communication with Russia, a stance echoed by the Russian Embassy in Seoul, which stated that diplomatic and economic channels remain open. With peace process talks for the Russia-Ukraine war led by U.S. President Donald Trump underway, the ministry reported to President Lee that it will seek to encourage Russia to play a constructive role on issues related to the Korean Peninsula.

Putin has previously stated a desire to improve ties with South Korea, but until now, he has consistently placed the burden on Seoul to take the first step.

"It depends on Seoul as to whether Russian-Korean cooperation will be returned to a trajectory of partnership," he said at a similar credential ceremony in December 2023.

At that time, Putin also highlighted cooperation on "mutually beneficial" economic ties and efforts toward "the political and diplomatic settlement for the situation on the Korean Peninsula" — while the Korean Peninsula agenda was notably absent from his most recent remarks, a shift possibly linked to Russia's deepening military alignment with North Korea.

In June 2024, during a meeting with international news agencies, including a South Korean outlet, he said Moscow "highly appreciates" Seoul's restraint in not sending arms to Ukraine but once again stressed that it was "the choice of the Korean leadership" for any improvement of bilateral ties.

Former South Korean Ambassador to Russia Park Ro-byug told the Korea JoongAng Daily that the latest message shows a noticeably more proactive tone, without explicitly conditioning rapprochement on Seoul's actions.

"This time, by saying Russia 'looks forward to' restoring ties, the message carries a more active nuance," Park said, adding that South Korea being mentioned ahead of eight likewise "unfriendly" European countries may also indicate Seoul's relative "priority" in Moscow's diplomatic recalibration.

Doo Jin-ho, director of the Eurasia Research Center at the Korea Research Institute for National Strategy under the Defense Ministry, suggests Putin's remarks aren't just routine rhetoric.

"Compared to similar statements in the past, the strategic environment has changed qualitatively," Doo said. "Russia believes it has regained the initiative on the battlefield and views an end to the war as a matter of timing, and is [considering] when and how to pursue an exit strategy."

Doo added that the reappointment of Lee Sok-bae — a veteran diplomat who served previously as top envoy to Russia from 2019 to 2022, during the transition into war — may also have been interpreted by Moscow as a "signal" that Seoul seeks to manage bilateral ties, prompting a "reciprocal message" from Putin.

While...

The author is a music critic and director of the classical music brand Poongwoldang.

Gaetano Donizetti's opera "L'elisir d'amore" (1832) depicts a lighthearted farce about uneducated rural villagers who are duped by a bogus potion seller into buying a supposed elixir that promises love. Amid the noisy bustle and comic tone of the work, however, one aria emerges with a striking seriousness. It is "Una furtiva lagrima," sung by Nemorino. Even before the voice enters, the bassoon's deep sound softens the listener's heart. It is likely the most famous solo passage ever written for that instrument in opera.

If heard without knowledge of the story, the aria can easily be mistaken for a sad song. The phrase "a furtive tear" suggests, at first glance, the tears of an unfortunate man whose love has gone unanswered. In reality, the tear belongs to a woman. It is the tear of emotion and remorse that quietly forms in Adina's eyes when she finally realizes, after a long delay, the sincerity of the man who has loved her for so long. Nemorino notices that tear, and his feelings surge.

Within the opera as a whole, this aria feels almost like an isolated island. Yet the composer clearly intended to give sufficient emotional weight to Nemorino's swelling heart. One cannot help but imagine how anxious he must have been, and how painful that waiting must have felt. Although the moment is unquestionably a happy one, memories of loneliness and past hurt would have flashed through his mind in that instant. It is much like the tears shed by an athlete who, after enduring grueling training and fierce competition, finally stands on an Olympic podium.

In this way, joy carries within it the memory of sorrow. The human heart is subtle and deep. This conspicuously expressive melody in a minor key suggests that even the simple country youth who is mocked for buying a love potion from a fraud possesses a sincerity that cannot be dismissed as ignorance. His feelings are not shallow or foolish simply because he is uneducated.

So let us warmly glimpse the feelings he sheds in private and then calmly pretend not to notice. And let us tell everyone he meets that the potion he bought truly worked.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.

Kim Won-bae

The author is an editorial writer at the JoongAng Ilbo.

A comment by chef and judge Ahn Sung-jae on Netflix's "Culinary Class Wars 2" (2024–) drew wide attention. He praised a dish as being "honest," referring to cooking that brings out the natural flavor of ingredients in a simple manner, with the chef's intent clearly realized in the dish and conveyed directly to the diner. The same concept can be applied to the current government's real estate policy. What is needed is not stronger regulation but an "honest" policy.

On Jan. 23, President Lee Jae Myung posted on his X account, indicating that the government would not extend the suspension on heavier capital gains taxes for multihomeowners, which is set to expire on May 9. On Sunday alone, he posted four more messages in succession. "No government can defeat the market, but no market can defeat the government either," he wrote. "The benefit of holding on should not exceed the cost of holding on."

The presidential office explained the remarks as a matter of "normalizing the abnormal" and "administrative principles." At a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday, President Lee said, "We must correct our [...] resource allocation, which is abnormally concentrated in real estate. We must not leave unfairness and abnormality untouched simply because we fear immediate consequences and resistance." The underlying concern is understandable. Whether the approach is appropriate, however, is open to question.

One point must not be overlooked in the decision to end the suspensions. With the Oct. 15 real estate measures last year, designated regulation zones were expanded to cover all of Seoul, increasing the number of areas subject to heavier capital gains taxes. Ending the suspension under these conditions does not mean returning to the status quo; instead, it amounts to expanding the scope of heavier taxation.

The presidential office appears to be aware of this. At a press briefing on Wednesday, Kim Yong-beom, the presidential chief of policy, said, "Looking back, May 9 was a somewhat hastily decided date. With last year's expansion of regulation zones, there is a possibility that those affected did not fully realize that they would suddenly fall under heavier taxation." Kim explained that though the suspension would end, discussions were underway regarding allowing additional time.

Imposing heavier taxes on multihomeowners is possible. But how can a top tax rate of 82.5 percent for owners of three homes be described as normalization? It is an extreme response to overheating housing prices. In effect, it serves more as evidence that the real estate policy of the early Lee Jae Myung administration has not worked. Currently, all apartments in Seoul are designated as land transaction permit zones. Those without a genuine residential need cannot buy homes, and multihomeowners find it difficult to even sell one. Under what conditions will these restrictions be lifted?

President Lee's remarks at his New Year press conference on Jan. 21 fit into the same context. Regarding real estate tax regulations, he said, "It is desirable to avoid them as much as possible. It is best to use them as a last resort." Ultimately, this means that taxes will act as a tool to respond to housing prices. That makes this a moment for caution. What is needed now is not strong language but thoughtful plans. Korea's real estate tax system has become a patchwork shaped more by market responses than by adherence to tax principles. The foundation of taxation lies in the expectation that taxpayers can accept levies appropriate to their ability to pay. A comprehensive design that can win public consent is needed.

However, the messages from the presidential office are inconsistent. Kim said, "This is not something that can be announced in a month or two. [...] Comprehensive simulations are needed." By contrast, the president's message has involved moral language about correcting "abnormality" and "unfairness." It is wo...

The author is the chair of the board at KAIST and the former minister of environment.

International media reactions to Korea's "AI Basic Act, also known as the "Framework Act on the Development of Artificial Intelligence and the Establishment of a Trustworthy Foundation," which took effect on Jan. 22, have been broadly positive. Many noted that Korea moved quickly to enact a law that addresses both the regulation and promotion of AI before the core obligations of the "EU AI Act" come fully into force. At the same time, concerns have been raised that the law could dampen startup innovation and that it does not address issues such as AI systems' energy consumption and efficiency, grid interconnection or data center cooling water, leaving legal and institutional linkages as a future task.

The global AI race has already moved beyond competition in computing power, including semiconductors, data, algorithms and GPUs, and beyond the battle for talent. It is now confronting bottlenecks in power infrastructure. Chief executives of global big tech firms have repeatedly warned that without a secure electricity supply, power grids, an appropriate energy mix and carbon-free power, there will be no room for the expansion and commercialization of the AI economy or for national strategies. The electricity required for AI model training and inference, cooling systems and AI services is enormous. As a result, Google, Meta, Apple, Amazon and Microsoft are transforming themselves from mere power consumers into buyers, developers and system players in electricity. They must respond to surging data center demand, uncertainty in power procurement and delays and bottlenecks in grid connections. In practice, shortages of large transformers have increasingly delayed data center power hookups and grid access for years.

Data centers require high-quality power with no outages, fluctuations or delays, supplied 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. As AI competition intensifies, big tech companies are shifting from 100% renewable energy (RE100), which targets 100 percent renewable energy, to 24/7 carbon-free energy (24/7 CFE). Because of intermittency, RE100 requires conventional energy to fill temporal gaps. Google has already declared a goal of using 24/7 CFE by 2030. International organizations, including the UN's 24/7 CFE Compact, are developing related technologies, certification and operating standards, raising expectations that this will become an international norm.

For now, RE100 remains the de facto global standard among corporate indicators. Over the past decade, solar power has risen to 7 percent of global electricity generation as of 2024, while its levelized cost of electricity, LCOE, has fallen by about 90 percent. This reflects China's construction of an ultra-low-cost supply chain through economies of scale, capital investment, industrial policy and lower financing costs, allowing it to dominate 80 to 95 percent of the global solar value chain, from polysilicon to ingots, wafers, cells and modules, according to the IEA in 2023. In the Korean market, analyses suggest that the share of Chinese products has risen to around 90 percent by the mid 2020s.

Solar power's LCOE itself is low. In reality, however, costs rise sharply due to the need for firm power to compensate for intermittency, measures to address output volatility, transmission network construction, frequency control and energy storage systems. As the share of renewables grows in the energy mix, the burden of resolving frequency maintenance, voltage stability, grid protection and control systems and bottlenecks in transmission and distribution networks increases both technically and institutionally, as the IEA has noted. Actual electricity generation and installed capacity are entirely different concepts. The capacity factor, calculated as actual generation divided by installed capacity multiplied by time, is only 13 to 17 percent for solar power, compared to 75 to 85 percent for n...

The leadership of the People Power Party (PPP) under Jang Dong-hyeok has finalized a decision to expel former party leader Han Dong-hoon over allegations related to opinion manipulation on an internal party message board, turning internal division into reality. Expulsion is the most severe disciplinary measure available to the party. Han has been stripped of his party membership and barred from rejoining for five years.

The stated grounds for the punishment were that members of Han's family posted multiple messages criticizing former President Yoon Suk Yeol and his wife. Yet the decision was pushed through in a closed vote just 17 minutes into the first leadership meeting after Jang returned from an eight-day hunger strike, giving the impression that the ruling faction was moving to eliminate Han as a political rival. Han immediately responded by saying, "We are the owners of this party and of conservatism. We will return," while lawmakers aligned with him demanded the resignation of the leadership, pushing the party's internal strife to an extreme.

Power struggles and self-inflicted chaos within a political party are ultimately matters for that party to bear. But it is deeply troubling for the main conservative opposition party to slide toward an irreparable state. After succeeding in a change of government, the PPP suffered a crushing defeat in the 2024 general election amid persistent conflict between the party and the administration and allegations of corruption involving the core of power. Matters worsened with the impeachment of former President Yoon following his declaration of martial law and the ongoing trial on charges of insurrection. The party's collapse to a point where it could no longer earn the support of moderates or even reasonable conservatives contributed to the emergence of a ruling party with an overwhelming majority in the National Assembly.

If the PPP hoped to play its role as an opposition force and restore its prospects of returning to power, it should have first brought an end to internal conflict and rebuilt itself as a reasonable conservative party. Instead, it remains consumed by struggles for party control and continues to be mired in factional disputes framed as pro-Yoon versus anti-Yoon. Such self-destructive infighting alienates not only moderates but also pragmatic conservatives who feel the need for a counterweight to the dominant ruling party. The party's persistently low approval ratings reflect this reality.

The internal conflict is continuing even as local elections loom just four months away. Jang, who is pushing to change the party's name, has yet to draw a clear line against hardline "Yoon Again" supporters, mindful of his core base. If electoral victory were the goal, the leadership should have sought to broaden support by backing Han, who opposed martial law and showed potential appeal to centrist and center-right voters. Instead, the party has chosen what critics call subtraction politics, inviting accusations that it is less interested in winning elections than in removing rivals for factional gain.

The current situation exposes a broader crisis in Korean democracy and conservative politics. Across parties, figures favored by hardline supporters are increasingly capturing leadership positions. The absence of a credible force to check the dominant ruling party raises the risk of one-sided governance and presidential overreach. If the PPP fails to reclaim its role as a conservative opposition party, it will face the public's unforgiving demand for its exit, starting with the upcoming local elections.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.

This article is by Lee Jae-lim and read by an artificial voice.

Samsung Electronics reported a sharp rebound in profitability in 2025, with full-year operating profit jumping more than 33 percent on year to 43.6 trillion won ($30.5 billion), driven by a memory semiconductor supercycle fueled by strong demand and supply shortages that pushed up chip prices.

The company also said on Thursday that it will begin shipping its sixth-generation high bandwidth memory, HBM4, to key customers, including Nvidia, starting next month, as the product has entered the final verification stage with the U.S. AI chip giant.

The operating profit figure marked the fourth-highest annual result in Samsung's history and closely matched the market consensus of 43.4 trillion won compiled by FnGuide. Annual sales, meanwhile, climbed to a record 333.61 trillion won, up 10.88 percent from a year earlier, exceeding analysts' expectations of 329.1 trillion won. Net profit surged 31.23 percent to 45.21 trillion won, also beating the market forecast of 39.8 trillion won.

The company delivered a major earnings surprise for the fourth quarter of 2025, posting record-high figures for both operating profit and revenue. Quarterly operating profit soared 209.17 percent year on year to 20.1 trillion won, far surpassing the consensus estimate of 16.71 trillion won. Sales rose 23.82 percent to 93.84 trillion won, topping the forecast of 89.5 trillion won. Net profit more than doubled, rising 153.3 percent to 19.64 trillion won, well above expectations of 15.62 trillion won.

By business segment, the semiconductor division led with an operating profit of 16.4 trillion won, a dramatic increase of 465.5 percent from a year earlier. Samsung expects tight supply conditions across its memory portfolio — including HBM, conventional dynamic random access memory, or DRAM, and NAND — to continue throughout the year and said it is receiving requests from customers for long-term supply contracts, which it plans to pursue selectively.

The company expects to deliver samples of its next-generation HBM4E to customers in the middle of the year. HBM production for 2025 is already fully booked, and Samsung anticipates HBM revenue will more than triple in 2026 compared to the previous year.

In contrast, the mobile and network business posted an operating profit of 1.3 trillion won, down 43.48 percent year on year, as smartphone sales declined following the fading impact of new model launches. The consumer electronics division, which includes TVs and home appliances, swung to an operating loss of 600 billion won due to seasonal weakness and the impact of global tariffs.

Samsung Display reported an operating profit of 2 trillion won, up 122.22 percent on year, supported by strong smartphone demand and increased sales for information technology and automotive displays. Harman, Samsung's automotive electronics subsidiary, saw operating profit fall 25 percent to 300 billion won, though it plans to expand sales of automotive products such as digital cockpits and car audio systems while maintaining growth in its audio business.

Samsung Electronics shares closed at 160,700 won on Thursday, down 1.05 percent from the previous trading session.