6,625.93KOSPI · Oct 8 close · −2.62% · closed today for Hangeul Day; next trading day is Monday the 12th

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1,338.5 wonWon per dollar · Oct 8 Seoul close · down 1.9 won · overnight trading in the 1,342s
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, FRI., OCT. 9, 2026No. 5 · Morning, 6:00 a.m. KST6 a.m. KST
S&P 5007,765.36▼0.47%10/8Nasdaq27,193.34▼1.25%10/8KOSPI6,625.93▼2.62%10/8KOSDAQ892.27▼3.01%10/8USD/KRW1,342.7▲3.3 KRW10/9WTI$91.49▲3.62%10/8
World · MarketsPress ✓ 5 outlets · oil prices and indexes are market data · the airport attack is the Houthis' claim

Brent crude tops $105 on Houthi missile and Hormuz attacks. New York falls even as Trump says "no strike on Iran before the election"

Airlines suspended routes after the claimed strike on Riyadh's airport. Korean stocks are closed today for Hangeul Day, so last night's shock will land all at once when trading opens Monday the 12th

Oil jumped again overnight. Brent crude from the North Sea topped $105 a barrel on Oct. 8 local time (Bloomberg), and West Texas Intermediate (WTI) rose more than 3% to the $91 range. Flashpoints flared across the Gulf at once. Yemen's Houthi rebels claimed they attacked King Khalid International Airport in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, with ballistic missiles. The Saudi-led coalition said it intercepted two missiles, but smoke was seen rising from the airport, and Lufthansa and Indian airlines suspended Riyadh routes (Reuters, AP). Some Korean travelers were stranded at Saudi airports. Reports said Iranian attacks on tankers in the Strait of Hormuz had picked up again after a gap of several months (The Washington Post). Reports also said the Pentagon had ordered Central Command to prepare to resume large-scale operations against Iran. President Trump wrote on social media that he would "under no circumstances" attack Iran before the Nov. 3 midterm elections. He said he was having "productive discussions" with Iran, but that the naval blockade would stay in place.

On Wall Street, all three major indexes fell on oil and interest-rate worries. The S&P 500 dropped 0.61% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq 1.37%. AI-linked stocks such as Nvidia and Oracle weakened after reports that OpenAI had told investors its annualized revenue was about $50 billion (CNBC). The 10-year Treasury yield stayed in the 5.2% range. Asian countries are rushing to stockpile crude (Reuters). The worry that higher oil lifts prices, and that the Federal Reserve could then raise rates further, shook stocks and bonds together. Korea's market is on a trading holiday today. The KOSPI closed yesterday at 6,625.93, down 2.62%, despite Samsung Electronics' record earnings. Last night's oil moves and the New York decline will be priced in when trading opens on the next trading day, Monday the 12th. Korea imports almost all of its oil, so higher prices spill into the exchange rate, consumer prices and corporate costs all at once. The things to watch over the weekend are whether Trump's pledge to hold off on an attack actually calms tensions, and whether the Houthis and Hormuz keep pushing oil higher.

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By the numbers
$105+Brent crude. Topped $105 a barrel on the 8th (Bloomberg)
+3.6%WTI. Rose to $91.48 a barrel
5.23%U.S. 10-year Treasury yield. Rates above 5% persist
Culture · LiteraturePress ✓ 6 outlets · reason for the choice is from the Academy's announcement

Canadian poet Anne Carson wins the Nobel Prize in literature. Her reaction: "Everybody's gone mad"

Canadian poet Anne Carson, 76, was announced on Oct. 8 as the winner of the 2026 Nobel Prize in literature. The Swedish Academy cited a "bold and creative body of work" that converses playfully with the classical tradition and creates new forms for modern literature. Carson is also a classicist who has taught ancient Greek literature. She is known for writing that moves across poetry, prose, translation and performance. Her best-known works include Eros the Bittersweet, Autobiography of Red, and Nox, in memory of her late brother. When the news came, she was in Iceland "listening to the wind," and asked for her reaction, she said, "Everybody's gone mad." Italy's ANSA news agency reported that she said she would donate the prize money. She is the first poet to win since Louise Glück in 2020, and the first Canadian since Alice Munro in 2013. In an El Mundo interview she said, "In a time when everyone is busy, a short poem is more useful than prose." The 2024 laureate Han Kang once wrote a blurb for Nox calling it "piercingly true." Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney congratulated her, calling it "a proud moment for Canada."

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Word of the day
Swedish AcademyCulture

An academic institution founded in 1786. Its 18 members, who serve for life, choose the Nobel laureate in literature each year. The selection process is kept secret for 50 years.

U.S. · ImmigrationPress ✓ 5 outlets · the abuse claim is Vice President Vance's statement

U.S. blocks Microsoft's foreign employees from applying for green cards. Vance: "Hire Americans"

On Oct. 8 the U.S. administration excluded Microsoft (MS) from the PERM labor certification program, the first step in the employer-based green card process. Vice President JD Vance claimed at a news conference that MS had abused the visa system while cutting American employees. He said the exclusion would continue "as long as necessary." Reports say other tech companies, including Adobe, were also targeted.

Vance said he would also overhaul the H-1B and J-1 visa programs. The decision directly affects foreign workers at U.S. tech companies who are waiting for green cards, including Korean engineers. MS's official response has not yet been confirmed.

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DiplomacyPress ✓ 5 outlets · attributed to the Foreign Ministry announcement

Seoul recalls ambassador to Ukraine over 'North Korean POWs' row, a first in 18 years

On Oct. 8 the government decided to recall Park Ki-chang, its ambassador to Ukraine. After President Zelensky made public the repatriation of North Korean POWs to South Korea, Seoul said a confidential agreement had been broken and demanded a public apology. When Ukraine did not comply, Seoul stepped up its protest. The last time Seoul took the step of recalling an ambassador from a host country was in 2008, when it called home its ambassador to Japan over the Dokdo textbook issue, 18 years ago.

A spokesperson for Ukraine's Foreign Ministry said "diplomacy must come before emotion" and that Kyiv is open to resuming dialogue. The Foreign Ministry also said it "will continue consultations," so the recall is not a step toward severing relations.

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SemiconductorsPress ✓ 4 outlets · revenue is attributed to the company's announcement

TSMC's Q3 revenue up 50% to a record. Same day as Samsung, same market reaction

TSMC, the world's largest foundry, reported Q3 revenue on Oct. 8 of about NT$1.4942 trillion (about 62.8 trillion won), the highest ever for a quarter. That is up about 50% from a year earlier and above the market forecast of NT$1.46 trillion compiled by LSEG. Rising AI chip orders from customers such as Nvidia drove the gain. The same day, U.S.-based GlobalFoundries signed a $2 billion deal to supply TSMC with silicon interposers for AI chips.

Samsung Electronics also reported quarterly operating profit of 107 trillion won the same day, but the share-price reaction was lukewarm for both companies (Bloomberg). The numbers are records, yet the market worried more about how long an AI investment boom propped up by debt can last. The next checkpoint is next year's capital spending plan, due at this month's earnings briefing.

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In brief
  • The FT reported that Starbucks considered acquiring the Mexican food chain Chipotle. If completed, it would be the largest deal in the restaurant industryFT · Reuters
  • A special bonus pool for Goldman Sachs' top executives is expected to top $500 million. Wall Street pay could draw fresh controversy amid high oil pricesFT · Bloomberg
  • Italian Prime Minister Meloni passed an electoral-law change that gives the winner extra seats. She had staked her job on it, saying she would resign if it failedReuters · The Guardian
  • Ukraine said it hit the Omsk refinery, Russia's largest. It added one more supply worry on a day when oil was surgingReuters and others
  • The U.S. Treasury sanctioned 17 vessels that carried Iranian crude. Together with the naval blockade, it narrows Iran's routes for oil exportsReuters and others
  • Coupang has filed an administrative suit and applied for a stay of execution against a penalty surcharge of around 620 billion won over a data leak and other violations. The court fight drags onYonhap · Hankyung
  • U.S. prosecutors added charges against Venezuela's Maduro and his wife, Flores, for torturing U.S. citizens. The pressure has moved into the courtroomReuters · Bloomberg
Seven minutes every morning, one front page — see About

Unverified — what we could not confirm

"The U.S. will strike Iran again soon." There were reports of a Pentagon preparation order, but Trump said there will be no attack before the Nov. 3 midterm elections. The blockade stays.
"The financial-sector hacker is a 26-year-old Chinese man in Guangdong." The person named claims his number was stolen. Police say they are keeping that possibility open. Identity unconfirmed.
"The Coupang outage was hacking again." No evidence. The company calls it a systems error and says it is looking into the cause. No sign of hacking has been announced.
Glossary · dotted words — economics, law, security and science terms explained in the context of the story. The list grows every day.
INSIDEBrent crude tops $105 on Houthi missile and Hormuz attacks. New York falls even as Trump says "no strike on Iran before the election"World · MarketsCanadian poet Anne Carson wins the Nobel Prize in literature. Her reaction: "Everybody's gone mad"Culture · LiteratureU.S. blocks Microsoft's foreign employees from applying for green cards. Vance: "Hire Americans"U.S. · ImmigrationSeoul recalls ambassador to Ukraine over 'North Korean POWs' row, a first in 18 yearsDiplomacyTSMC's Q3 revenue up 50% to a record. Same day as Samsung, same market reactionSemiconductors