※[Global Morning Briefing] summarizes global news delivered by Seoul Economic Daily.
US Holds 'Trump Festival,' Iran a 'Khamenei State Funeral'... A Same-Day Contest to Consolidate Their Systems
US President Donald Trump and the Iranian regime each held large-scale national events on the same day, moving to consolidate their respective systems. The United States is preparing its largest-ever commemorative event for its 250th anniversary Independence Day on Friday, while Iran plans to solidify internal unity through the state funeral of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in a US airstrike. Amid continued tensions over nuclear negotiations, both countries are displaying their political presence through national events.
Trump will deliver a speech in person at the official ceremony held on the National Mall in Washington, DC, emphasizing the achievements of his second term. The event will feature fireworks with 850,000 shells along with various commemorative activities, and some US media outlets criticize that the event has effectively turned into a political event for Trump and his 'MAGA' supporters. With a heat wave forecast, Trump previewed that he "will give a very long speech."
In Iran, Khamenei's state funeral runs for six days starting Thursday, with a funeral prayer service to be held on the 5th (Iran time), overlapping with US Independence Day. The Iranian government expects tens of millions of mourners to attend, and figures from more than 100 countries are also set to pay their respects. Local media analyzed that the state funeral carries political meaning, aiming to rally public sentiment shaken after the war and to highlight the legitimacy of the next leadership system. On the other hand, some citizens are pushing back, saying forced mobilization is taking place, effectively compelling public institution employees and workers to attend and restricting store operations.
'Taylornomics' This Time a Wedding... A 30.8 Billion Won Ultra-Luxury Wedding to Stir New York
World-renowned pop star Taylor Swift is holding a mega-wedding with National Football League (NFL) player Travis Kelce at New York's Madison Square Garden. Attention is focused on whether so-called 'Taylornomics'—in which Swift's concerts stimulate local economies—will be reproduced at the wedding.
According to local media, the wedding will run for three days including pre-events and the main ceremony, with about 1,000 guests expected to attend. The wedding cost, including venue rental and decorations, is estimated at more than 20 million dollars (about 30.8 billion won). New York City plans to deploy about 130 police officers and control roads to manage the large crowds and ensure safety. Ahead of the wedding, Swift and Kelce donated 26 million dollars to several charities in the United States.
The market expects the wedding, like the concerts, to generate significant economic effects. As guests, reporters, and fans flock to New York en masse, sales in the hotel, tourism, and dining industries are expected to increase. Earlier, the US Federal Reserve (Fed) noted in its 2023 economic conditions report that Swift's concerts pushed Philadelphia hotel sales to their highest level since the pandemic. Wedding market research firm The Knot forecast that Swift's wedding would bring the effect of increasing global wedding-related spending by 2.2 billion dollars (about 3.3 trillion won) over the next two years.
AI Chip Bet on a 30-Million-Won-Range SUV... Xpeng Targets Market With 'Value-for-Money EV'
Xpeng, an electric vehicle maker called 'China's Tesla,' unveiled a new sport utility vehicle (SUV) equipped with a high-performance artificial intelligence (AI) chip at a price in the 30-million-won range, strengthening its value-for-money strategy. Amid a slowing growth pace in China's electric vehicle market, the strategy is to target young consumers by leveraging price competitiveness and advanced technology, and to accelerate its entry into overseas markets.
Xpeng unveiled its new SUV 'MONA L03' in Beijing. The pre-sale price is 143,800 to 165,800 yuan (about 32.6 million to 37.6 million won), and it will launch both pure electric and extended-range electric vehicle (EREV) models. The premium model is equipped with two of its self-developed 'Turing' AI chips, achieving computing performance of up to 1,500 TOPS, and it also highlighted fast-charging performance that can charge the battery from 10% to 80% in 19 minutes.
Xpeng explained that it secured price competitiveness by lowering costs through developing its own AI chips while enhancing autonomous driving performance. The industry sees that a model combining both technological prowess and price will strengthen market competitiveness amid the recent slowdown in car sales in China. Attention is also drawn to whether Xpeng, which is pursuing entry into the Korean market, will position the L03 as its flagship model.
Zuckerberg: 'AI Agent Development Slower Than Expected'
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg acknowledged that artificial intelligence (AI) agent development is progressing more slowly than initially expected. He publicly admitted that visible results have not appeared as quickly as anticipated despite large-scale investment and organizational restructuring.
According to Reuters, Zuckerberg said at an internal town hall meeting, "Over the past four months, the pace of AI agent development has not accelerated to the level we expected," adding that "the company's bet on the new organizational structure has not yet borne fruit." Meta explained that although it restructured itself around AI—including cutting about 10% of its workforce this year and reassigning 7,000 employees to a dedicated AI organization—the changes did not proceed as smoothly as expected.
However, Zuckerberg said he expects the effects of AI investment to appear in earnest within the next three to six months. Meta is significantly expanding its investment in the AI sector, including planning capital expenditures (CAPEX) of up to 145 billion dollars this year with the goal of developing artificial superintelligence (ASI).
