Yonhap reports on the matter

A bit of a red alert for risk as there were earlier reports of explosions near the Korean borders and South Korean military sources are now saying that North Korea has blown up the inter-Korean liaison office in Kaesong.

Kaesong is a city in North Korea but nears the border with South Korea, and this is an interesting development amid rising tensions between the two countries.

For some context, there was a warning issued by North Korea on this already yesterday here. The inter-Korea liaison office is seen as a symbol of diplomatic achievement by the two countries so this is a step back in terms of that.

The headline is causing a bit of a dip in risk and stocks - the won also moved lower - but I'm not sure if there's really much in this to suggest a major military escalation. But it certainly is a step closer especially with North Korea's recent threats.

S&P 500 futures are now at 0.8% after having been around 1.4% higher earlier.