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Born on February 18, 1985, in Seoul, Song Jae Rim's journey to stardom was anything but conventional. He first made a name for himself as a runway model before transitioning to acting. With his striking features and natural charisma, Song graced the catwalks of major designers like Juun. J, Herin Homme, and Ha Sang Beg, while also making appearances in high-profile magazines such as Vogue Girl Korea and Bazaar Korea. His presence on the runway earned him widespread recognition in the fashion world, but his true passion lay in acting.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.Jung Da-yun didn’t quite like what she saw in the mirror. Her ears weren’t big enough.She booked a visit to a South Korean clinic offering “elf ear” injections.For about $70, a plastic surgeon injected the ridged cartilage of her ears with a hyaluronic-acid filler that caused her ears to perk up.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.Chasing autumn in South Korea, Bengaluru-based Jiwangi Singh and Milan Tanna turned their K-drama dreams into a thoughtfully planned 12-day holiday.When narrowing down their next international trip, the couple wanted a destination that blended culture, coastal charm and immersive local experiences—without stretching their budget. South Korea checked all the boxes.They spent a total of ₹2.75 lakh, striking a balance between smart savings and meaningful splurges.“We built our itinerary to save where it mattered and spend on must-do experiences.

For the emerging megacities of Asia, the oil crisis that spread out from the Strait of Hormuz is like the acute phase of a chronic condition. The largest migration in human history is filling their streets and alleyways to bursting point.Urbanization and births will add a billion more people between now and 2050. Jakarta and Dhaka, with 42 million and 37 million people respectively, have overtaken Tokyo at 33 million as the world’s biggest metropolises.

Last week’s AI Impact Summit ended the way these gatherings routinely do. This time with a ‘New Delhi Declaration,’ a non-binding hymn to cooperation and the hope that “AI could be made to serve humanity.” It’s the sort of empty language that dozens of countries and international organizations can sign up to without changing a thing.The most revealing statement came from the industry. Hours before the declaration, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman offered a bit of moral arithmetic in an interview with the Indian Express.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. SEOUL—North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un kicked off his country’s most important political event in half a decade with confidence, gearing up for an era of military expansion and defiance as a self-declared nuclear power. The 9th Party Congress, where North Korea’s leadership sets out its foreign policy and economic and military goals for the next five years, opened Thursday with a celebratory atmosphere.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. India’s big-ticket push for global prominence in artificial intelligence begins on 16 February. The AI Impact Summit has driven hotel prices higher across New Delhi, and attendance rates for global heads of state match those seen when India hosted the G20 summit in 2023.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. SEOUL—The young daughter of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un appears increasingly positioned to become the rogue nation’s next leader, Seoul’s spy agency said, though Pyongyang itself has stayed mum on succession plans. Kim Ju Ae, believed to be about 13 years old, has attracted widespread speculation since first appearing in public more than three years ago.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. SEOUL—The hundreds of prize payouts were mostly just a few bucks each, part of a promotional campaign by a South Korean cryptocurrency exchange. The total reward pot: 620,000 Korean won, or about $425.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Before dawn last Wednesday, three sisters in Ghaziabad, all minors, jumped out of a high-rise flat and ended their lives. In the confused explanations that followed, it emerged that the girls were fixated on Korean pop culture and that their family had tried to restrain them.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Mumbai: Hyundai Motor Company has returned to the International Cricket Council (ICC) as a premier partner for two years after a decade-long hiatus. This time, the partnership is global, involving the company’s Seoul headquarters.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. SEOUL—After the last whistle blew at the youth women’s World Cup final in November, the Netherlands coach sounded dejected. His side had just lost 3-0.

The comments came after the three countries held their first economic dialogue in five years on Sunday, seeking to facilitate regional trade as the Asian export powers brace against U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs. Japan and South Korea are seeking to import semiconductor raw materials from China, and China is also interested in purchasing chip products from Japan and South Korea, the account, Yuyuan Tantian, said in a post on Weibo. All three sides agreed to strengthen supply chain cooperation and engage in more dialogue on export controls, the post said. During Sunday's meeting, the countries' trade ministers agreed to «closely cooperate for comprehensive and high-level» talks on a South Korea-Japan-China free trade agreement deal to promote «regional and global trade», according to a statement released after the meeting.

The countries' three trade ministers agreed to «closely cooperate for a comprehensive and high-level» talks on a South Korea-Japan-China free trade agreement deal to promote «regional and global trade», according to a statement released after the meeting. «It is necessary to strengthen the implementation of RCEP, in which all three countries have participated, and to create a framework for expanding trade cooperation among the three countries through Korea-China-Japan FTA negotiations,» said South Korean Trade Minister Ahn Duk-geun, referring to the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership. The ministers met ahead of Trump's announcement on Wednesday of more tariffs in what he calls «liberation day», as he upends Washington's trading partnerships. Seoul, Beijing and Tokyo are major U.S. major trading partners, although they have been at loggerheads among themselves over issues including territorial disputes and Japan's release of wastewater from the wrecked Fukushima nuclear power plant.

Shares in companies such as Japan's Toyota and Honda and South Korea's Hyundai Motor and Kia Corp fell, wiping off some $16.5 billion in value, after Trump on Wednesday unveiled a 25% tariff on imported cars and light trucks to take effect on April 3. On the streets of Tokyo and Seoul, and in «motor city» Gwangju, people were concerned the levies would have a far-reaching impact, speaking to the singular role the car industry has played in the post-war economic rise of the two U.S. allies. While car production helped transform Germany, Italy and France after World War Two, its influence in Asia has been even more profound. Automakers form the nucleus of vast networks of group companies that impact almost every facet of working life in the two countries. In Japan, where the industry accounts for roughly 3% of gross domestic product, it is the automakers — particularly Toyota — that set the precedent for national wage increases through annual talks between unions and management.

U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) designated South Korea as a 'sensitive' country. The U.S. department has not explained why South Korea was added to the list, which can cause curbs on cooperation, though a DOE spokesperson said Seoul faced no new limits on bilateral cooperation in science and technology from the designation. In a statement relayed by the finance ministry after a ministerial meeting, Choi called on South Korean agencies to actively foster understanding with Washington, and for the industry minister to meet with the U.S. Secretary of Energy this week. Despite the DOE assurances over bilateral cooperation not being impacted, politicians in Seoul have traded blame over the sensitive country designation. The main opposition Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung on Monday criticised the current South Korean government, calling the U.S. move a «perfect diplomatic failure» which is feared could limit cooperation between the countries in the high-tech field.

Grand Theft Auto 6 trailer 2 launch. Despite fans still analyzing the first trailer 15 months later, everyone is eagerly waiting for the second glimpse of Leonida and Vice City. Many fans believe that the second trailer could drop on April 1, and while it may sound like an April Fool's joke, there are reasons why this theory could be more believable than it seems.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Hyundai Motor India Ltd's proposals to buy goods and services in excess of ₹31,000 crore next financial year from related companies, which could be more than half the purchases it made in the previous fiscal, have divided two of the country's leading proxy advisory firms. Stakeholders Empowerment Services (SES) and Institutional Investor Advisory Services (IiAS), both based in Mumbai, have put out contrasting notes on Hyundai's resolutions for dealing with seven related companies.

Yoon Suk Yeol left a detention centre in Seoul on Saturday, after prosecutors decided not to appeal a court decision to cancel the arrest warrant of the impeached leader. Yoon remains suspended from his duties and under insurrection charges over his short-lived martial law imposition on December 3. The criminal case is separate from his impeachment trial, in which the Constitutional Court is expected to decide in coming days whether to reinstate him or remove him from office. The Seoul Central District Court cancelled Yoon's arrest warrant on Friday, citing the timing of his indictment and «questions about the legality» of the investigation process.

live-fire military exercises in Pocheon, South Korea, a fire official said. An official at Gyeonggi-do Bukbu Fire Services said out of the eight people who had been wounded, four were seriously hurt. Pocheon is about 40 kilometres (25 miles) northeast of Seoul and near the heavily militarised border with North Korea.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. SEOUL—When Ukraine was scrambling this winter to understand how to respond to the threat of thousands of North Korean soldiers deployed to fight alongside Russia, it turned to someone steeped in Pyongyang’s ways: a North Korean defector.

prime residential space in 2024, followed by 237 sq ft in Hong Kong and 344 sq ft in Singapore, according to a Knight Frank report. In comparison, Mumbai offers 1,066 sq ft, marking a 2.6% decline over the past decade as prices have risen. Bengaluru has also become less affordable, with space purchasable for $1 million decreasing by 9% to 3,617 sq ft. In Delhi, one can buy 2,239 sq ft, up 11% from a decade ago. The Prime International Residential Index (PIRI 100), which tracks luxury property price changes across 100 global cities, has recorded a 3.6% annual increase in 2024. Of these, 80 cities saw either positive or stable price growth. Seoul 18.4%, Manila 17.9%, and Dubai with 16.9% growth led global price appreciation in prime real estate.