Seoul, November 13, 2026 — a summary of Korea’s culture and creative industries.
K-Beauty goes public on Wall Street. The first U.S.-listed exchange-traded fund dedicated to Korea’s beauty ecosystem, the Guinness Atkinson K-Beauty ETF (ticker KBTY), began trading on NYSE Arca on November 12. It closed its debut session at $25.3957 on volume of 2,943 shares, with a 0.55% annual management fee. The fund tracks the Indxx K-Beauty Index and holds 25 Korean companies spanning cosmetics brands, ODM/OEM manufacturers, packaging firms, distribution and aesthetic-medical businesses. Amorepacific is the largest holding at 8.57%, followed by Pharma Research (7.35%), Korea Kolmar (6.67%) and APR (6.30%).
K-Pop’s BoyNextDoor tours North America. The group opened its first-ever North American headline tour on October 30 in Dallas and reached Vancouver on November 13, en route to a ten-city run that ends in Mexico City on November 24. The set list adds “Fly Away,” the opening theme they recorded for the Pokémon anime “Pokémon | Wonder Voyage.” The world tour, which began in Seoul in July, continues to six Asian cities afterward.
K-Food exports hit records ahead of Kimchi Day. According to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, K-Food Plus exports reached $8.32 billion by the end of July 2026, up 5.3% year on year — a record. Korean ramyeon topped $1 billion in exports earlier than ever, and exports crossed the $10 billion mark 19 days faster than last year. Kimchi Day on November 22 will be marked with kimchi festivals in Korea, the United States, Germany and Malaysia.
K-Drama’s “The Remarried Empress” dominates Disney+. The series topped Korea’s TV/OTT drama buzz ranking with a 21.16% share in the first week of November, and ranked No. 2 on FlixPatrol’s global Disney+ TV-show chart. Disney says it became the most-watched local original in its first three days, charting in the top 10 in 76 countries and No. 1 in more than 50 markets. Episodes 7–8 arrive November 18.
K-Fashion expands overseas. Shinsegae Department Store’s Hyper Ground export platform opened its first pop-ups in Taiwan and Malaysia, following earlier runs in New York and Tokyo. Brand Matin Kim, operated by Hago Haus, now runs 32 overseas stores across nine countries, with Senegal planned this year.
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