This should be considered a good thing for South Korea as China has repeatedly shown they are willing to use economic retaliation to try and coerce policy changes where the U.S. has not:

South Korea’s exports to the United States exceeded those to China so far this year, data showed Monday, raising the possibility that the U.S. could be the top export destination for South Korea for the first time in 22 years.

Outbound shipments to the U.S. amounted to $53.3 billion from January through May 2024, compared with South Korea’s export value to China of $52.69 billion, according to the data from Statistics Korea and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

If the current trend continues, the U.S. will be the No. 1 export destination for South Korea for the first time since 2002.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

Great win by the South Korean soccer team:

Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Lee Kang-in scored for his second straight match, as Korea defeated China 1-0 at home Tuesday to conclude the second round in the Asian qualification for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Lee netted his 10th international goal in front of 64,935 fans at Seoul World Cup Stadium in the final Group C match of the second round in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) World Cup qualification.

Korea had already clinched the top spot in their group, and also a ticket to the third round, after beating Singapore 7-0 last Thursday. China, on the other hand, needed at least a draw to reach the third round without needing help from other teams.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

Considering everything going on lately with the North Koreans; I have to wonder if this crossing into South Korea was really inadvertant or not?:

About 20 North Korean soldiers briefly crossed the inter-Korean land border earlier this week and went back to the North’s side after the South’s military fired warning shots, the Joint Chiefs of Staff said Tuesday.

The North Korean soldiers crossed the Military Demarcation Line (MDL) within the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) separating the two Koreas in the central section of the border at around 12:30 p.m. Sunday, according to the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS).

The South Korean military conducted warning broadcasts and fired warning shots, prompting the North Koreans to return to their side of the border, the JCS said, adding that there was no unusual activity after the warning shots.

JCS spokesperson Col. Lee Sung-jun said the military assesses the soldiers, who were working on an unspecified task inside the DMZ, did not intend to cross the MDL, considering that they returned immediately after the warning shots.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

I suspect we will see North Korea launch their own loudspeaker broadcasts along with more trash attacks in the near future:

The powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un threatened Sunday to take “new responses” if South Korea keeps sending anti-Pyongyang leaflets across the border and blasting loudspeaker broadcasts, calling it a “prelude to a very dangerous situation.”

The statement by Kim Yo-jong came after the South resumed propaganda loudspeaker broadcasts toward the North in retaliation against the North’s repeated sending of trash-filled balloons amid rising tensions in the inter-Korean border regions.

“Seoul’s politicians are continuing to create a new crisis environment … They are formalizing once again provocative behaviors by resuming loudspeaker provocations as a countermeasure to our challenging initiatives,” Kim said in the statement carried by the Korean Central News Agency.

Kim claimed that the North was going to stop sending the balloons early this week, but it ended up flying more in response to the anti-Pyongyang leafleting by North Korean defectors and activists in the South.

“Our counteraction (of sending balloons) was to end on the 9th, but the situation has changed … The loudspeaker broadcast provocation has finally begun in border areas. This is a prelude to a very dangerous situation,” she said.

“If South Korea chooses to engage in the leaflet-scattering and loudspeaker provocations across the border, without a doubt, they will witness our new response,” Kim said. Kim, however, did not specify what the new responses will be.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

This is probably another reason why the Yoon administration should not have made this possible find of oil of the coast of Korea public because the opposition controlled National Assembly doesn’t want to give them credit:

The government’s ambitious project to excavate oil and gas in the East Sea is expected to face challenges in securing a budget from the National Assembly, according to sources, Sunday.

While the government aims to allocate a budget of 100 billion won ($72.4 million) next year for initial drilling, the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) is putting on the brakes, first demanding the transparent disclosure of relevant information regarding the project.

According to the government, a budget of 100 billion won is needed for drilling one prospective structure. Its goal is to commence initial exploratory deepwater drilling within the first half of the 2025, following sequential exploratory drilling of the four remaining prospective structures.

For next year, following the usual practice, the government plans to cover approximately 50 percent of the total project cost, or 50 billion won, through the Korea National Oil Corp. (KNOC). The remaining 50 percent will be provided as government loans to KNOC.

Korea Times

Here is the reason the opposition is giving:

“The trade ministry and the KNOC have refused to submit key documents, including those related to the appropriateness of Act-Geo’s selection, the bidding process, project feasibility evaluation results, the list of domestic and international advisory panels, meeting minutes and final reports,” the lawmakers said.

They stated that a review of relevant documents submitted by the government is needed before determining the appropriateness of the proposed budget.

The ruling People Power Party refuted the claims, saying the DPK is objecting for political purposes

It is pretty clear that the opposition will keep delaying funding for this oil find just to ensure the Yoon administration doesn’t get credit for it.