By Joyce Lee, Heejin Kim and Laurie Chen SEOUL/BEIJING, Jan 2 (Reuters) - Chinese President Xi Jinping will host South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on a state visit starting on Sunday, signalling Beijing's intent to strengthen ties with Seoul amidst strained relations with Japan over Taiwan.

World markets began 2026 with gains, with benchmarks in Britain and South Korea hitting records as optimism over the future of artificial intelligence carried over into the new year.In early European trading,

Official data shows that foreign arrivals in South Korea rose sharply in November, climbing 17.3 per cent from a year earlier

South Korea is one of the few countries that allow farming to extract bile from bears, mostly Asiatic black bears known as moon bears, for traditional medicine or as food believed to promote vitality and stamina.

South Korea is chasing a coal-free future in efforts to slash carbon emissions, an ambitious goal for the fossil fuel-dependent country

Lee’s visit is positive sign for China-South Korea relations. But both sides must heed the lessons from the THAAD dispute.

South Korea's factory activity expanded in December, after two months of contraction, on a rebound in export demand, a private-sector survey showed on Friday, with manufacturers' optimism surging to a 3-1/2-year high.

The US$27.7 million contract covers combat management systems for two next-generation Philippine Navy frigates.

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung will meet with Chinese leader Xi Jinping during his inaugural state visit to the world’s No. 2 economy, just as tensions simmer between Beijing and Tokyo.

South Korea's exports rose in December for a seventh consecutive month and wrapped 2025 at a record as exports have surpassed $700 billion for the first time, government data showed on Thursday.