Yonhap News Summary

The following is the second summary of major stories moved by Yonhap News Agency on Friday.

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■ (LEAD)(News Focus) KOSPI pummeled by AI investment fears, briefly dips below 5,000

SEOUL -- South Korea's benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) was rocked by investment fears over artificial intelligence (AI) data centers on Friday, hit by worries that a Democratic Party victory in the U.S. midterm elections may put a brake on the AI spending boom.

Taking a cue from a tech sell-off on Wall Street overnight, the KOSPI plummeted more than 8 percent, briefly dipping below 5,000 points in intraday trading. The index pared some losses but plunged 6.02 percent to close at 5,059.69.

https://en.yna.co.kr/view/AEN20261106004451320?section=national/diplomacy

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■ (LEAD) Lee nominates head of defense procurement agency as new justice minister

SEOUL -- President Lee Jae Myung has nominated Lee Yong-cheol, the incumbent chief of the defense procurement agency, as new justice minister, his chief of staff said Friday.

Lee also nominated Ahn Duk-su, currently chief of the National Tax Service's Seoul office, as the agency's new head and named Choi In-ho, president of the Korea Housing & Urban Guarantee Corp., as his secretary for political affairs, presidential chief of staff Lim Kwang-hyun told a press briefing.

https://en.yna.co.kr/view/AEN20261106009751315?section=national/politics

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■ KNPA deputy chief nominated as new police chief

SEOUL -- Kim Jong-chul, deputy commissioner general of the Korean National Police Agency (KNPA), was nominated Friday to serve as the agency's new commissioner general, filling a post that has remained vacant for nearly two years since former President Yoon Suk Yeol's declaration of martial law.

Kim said he felt a heavy sense of responsibility over his nomination as KNPA commissioner general at a critical time, ahead of a meeting of the National Police Commission convened to deliberate on his appointment.

https://en.yna.co.kr/view/AEN20261106007600315?section=national/politics

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■ (LEAD) Arms review committee approves plan for nuclear-powered submarine project

SEOUL -- A review committee of the state arms agency on Friday passed the basic plan for South Korea's nuclear-powered submarine program, officials said, moving forward with efforts to build the core naval asset under an agreement with the United States.

The decision-making body under the defense ministry approved the plan for the Jang Bogo N project during a regular meeting earlier in the day, the Defense Acquisition Program Administrion (DAPA) said in a release. The project will formally be launched in 2027.

https://en.yna.co.kr/view/AEN20261106007751315?section=national/defense

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