Most Popular
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10-man S. Korea lose to Indonesia to miss out on Paris Olympic football qualification
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Hybe-Ador feud should have limited effect on Hybe's overall performance: analysts
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Second Gimpo civil servant found dead, after apologizing for not finishing work
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DP leader says he will meet Yoon without conditions
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First-ever meeting of president, opposition chief set to finally happen
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NewJeans' singles, Japanese debut to proceed as planned, despite Hybe-Ador feud
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Blinken calls on China to press N. Korea to end its 'dangerous' behavior
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Experts raise concerns about Japan putting pressure on Naver over Line
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Samsung mobile chief, Google device head meet in Seoul
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Ship linked to NK arms shipments to Russia is moored in China: State Dept.
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S. Korea eyeing heavy taxes on 'speculative' foreign apartment owners
South Korea's ruling party is pushing to impose heavy taxes on "speculative" foreigner buyers of apartments here amid their rising home ownership, officials said Wednesday. The move comes as the Democratic Party (DP) has vowed to create countermeasures if necessary amid rising concerns over foreigners' apartment purchases for speculative purposes. According to the officials, a DP lawmaker has recently proposed a bill aimed at helping prevent foreign investors from speculating
Aug. 5, 2020
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S. Koreans’ demand for personal credit loans surge 2.3% in July
Korean lenders’ personal credit loans extended to borrowers gained 2.3 percent on-month in July, following the largest-ever increase in June, data showed Tuesday, fueling concerns on the nation’s heated housing market and the dire job market amid the coronavirus pandemic. Outstanding personal loans extended to individual borrowers by five major lenders here rose a combined 2.28 percent, or 2.7 trillion won ($2.26 billion), from the previous month to 120.2 trillion won last month, in
Aug. 4, 2020
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Vietnam-EU FTA to benefit S. Korean fashion firms: KITA
South Korean fashion firms based in Vietnam are expected to benefit from the free trade agreement (FTA) between the Southeast Asian country and the European Union, which went into effect this month, a report showed Tuesday. "Under the agreement, clothes producers based in Vietnam can enjoy the benefit of the latest FTA for goods made with South Korean materials," the Korea International Trade Association (KITA) said in its report. Clothes produced with Chinese materials, on the oth
Aug. 4, 2020
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S. Korea's inflation rises 0.3% in July
SEJONG -- South Korea's annual inflation rose 0.3 percent in July, marking the first upturn in three months, as signs of a recovery in consumer sentiment have appeared amid the coronavirus pandemic, data showed Tuesday. The July tally compares with zero growth in June, according to the data released by Statistics Korea. The nation's inflation was unchanged on-month, the data showed. Core inflation, which excludes agricultural and petroleum products, rose 0.7 percent from a year earlier. Ut
Aug. 4, 2020
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Concerns of liquidity trap rise as cash deposits grow
Despite the nation’s monetary and fiscal policymakers’ measures to funnel liquidity into the market to offset risks from the coronavirus, cash flows into unexpected areas, such as bank deposits, have been fueling concerns of a liquidity trap, officials and experts recently noted. South Korea’s M2 money supply came to 3.065 quadrillion won ($2.56 trillion) in May, up 10.6 percent on-year, data from the Bank of Korea released in July showed. The figure marked the largest amou
Aug. 3, 2020
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Tax authorities zero in on foreigners with multiple homes
SEJONG -- The nation’s tax agency has launched a probe targeting 42 foreigners who own multiple apartments here and are alleged to have evaded taxes, as part of the government’s drive to curb surging housing prices and discourage speculative investment, officials said Monday. The probe involves a 40-something US citizen who has purchased 42 homes in South Korea since 2018 for 6.7 billion won ($5.6 million) in total. The American underreported their rental income to evade income t
Aug. 3, 2020
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Apartment 'jeonse' deals in Seoul hit 9-year low in July
Apartment lease contracts in the South Korean capital of Seoul sank to a nine-year low in July amid tighter rules, municipal data showed Monday. The number of apartment lease contracts, called "jeonse" here, stood at 6,304 in July, the lowest monthly level since data tracking began in 2011, according to the data from the Seoul city government. The July reading amounted to 46 percent of this year's monthly high of 13,661 recorded in February. Jeonse is a home rental arrangement uniq
Aug. 3, 2020
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S. Korea ranks 2nd in GDP growth rate after China: OECD
South Korea’s economy declined 3.3 percent on-year during the second quarter, but it ranks second in terms of gross domestic product growth rate among major economies, data showed Sunday. According to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the nation’s second-quarter GDP growth rate was the second-highest among 14 major economies. China clinched the first place as its economy grew 11.5 percent during the same period. The OECD -- a forum of 37 mostly
Aug. 2, 2020
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S. Koreans' nonessential spending plummets amid coronavirus
South Korean consumers purchased far fewer nonessential items in the first quarter than normal due to economic uncertainty sparked by the coronavirus pandemic, data showed Sunday. The combined essential spending came to 84.81 trillion won ($71 billion) in the January-March period, accounting for 40.56 percent of total household expenditures, according to the data released by the Bank of Korea. It is the first time that the proportion of essential spending in total household expenditures surpa
Aug. 2, 2020
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S. Korea's growth rate second highest among 14 major countries
South Korea's economy contracted 3.3 percent in the second quarter from a quarter earlier, but it fared well compared with other major economies, data showed Sunday. South Korea's gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate was the second highest among the 14 countries that included the United States, China, Germany and France, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), a group of 36 mostly rich and advanced nations. The OECD has released GDP growth rates for
Aug. 2, 2020
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Export slump eases due to reopenings, chips on recovery track
South Korea's exports extended their slump to a fifth consecutive month in July amid the fallout of the new coronavirus, but the pace of decline slowed sharply due to reopenings, data showed Saturday. Outbound shipments came to $42.8 billion last month, down 7 percent from $46 billion posted a year earlier, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The latest figures were better than what the market had expected. According to a poll by Yonhap Infomax, the f
Aug. 1, 2020
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S. Korea’s industrial output recovers in June
South Korea’s industrial output gained 4.2 percent on-month in June, showing signs of recovery from the contractions prompted by the coronavirus pandemic in recent months, data from Statistics Korea showed Friday. Along with industrial output -- which had rebounded from a 1.2 percent on-month drop in May and a consistent five-month slide -- retail sales and facility investment inched up 2.4 percent and 5.4 percent, respectively, in the same period. This put the key indicators of the nati
July 31, 2020
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NPS to raise overseas investment ratio to 50% by 2024
South Korea’s public pension fund National Pension Service said that it will expand its overseas investment proportion to over 50 percent during the next five years, seeking for higher returns amid market uncertainties caused by COVID-19. The NPS’ decision-making Investment Management Committee met Friday at The Plaza Seoul Hotel under the chairmanship of Health Minister Park Neung-hoo to discuss the organization’s mid-term overseas investment blueprint. “As a long-ter
July 31, 2020
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S. Korea to deliver $5.15m in ODA via World Bank
South Korea will provide over $5 million through the World Bank to assist emerging economies amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ministry of Economy and Finance said Friday. “We will deliver $5.15 million, which is around 6 billion won, to six emerging economies to help them deal with COVID-19 and (to pursue) digital and green (development) projects,” the ministry said in a release. “This latest approval for official development assistance will enhance international cooperatio
July 31, 2020
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S. Korea's industrial output rebounds in June
SEJONG -- South Korea's industrial output rebounded in June, possibly indicating that the nation's economy hit bottom amid the coronavirus pandemic, data showed Friday. The nation's overall industrial production gained 4.2 percent on-month in June, following a 1.2 percent on-month decline in May, according to data compiled by Statistics Korea. Compared with a year earlier, overall industrial production also rose 0.7 percent in June. Retail sales rose 2.4 percent from a month earlier as the n
July 31, 2020
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S. Korea to inject W40tr into ‘innovative’ champion firms
South Korea on Thursday unveiled a financial package to inject some 40 trillion won ($33.48 billion) into 1,000 selected innovative businesses over the next three years. The plan seeks to promote synergies between the financial sector and actual industries, and to ultimately shore up the so-called “Korean New Deal” -- the country’s midterm economic stimulus program worth 160 trillion won. “(The government) will designate 1,000 innovative business pioneers from various
July 30, 2020
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S. Korea holds hearing on potential FTA with Uzbekistan
South Korea said Thursday it will hold a public hearing on the envisioned free trade pact with Uzbekistan, as the country aims to boost exports in the face of the new coronavirus pandemic. The meeting will be held Friday by inviting representatives from business, energy and agricultural groups, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. South Korea and Uzbekistan have already completed a feasibility study on the proposed free trade agreement. Earlier this month, Finance Minist
July 30, 2020
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S. Korea, US extend $60b currency swap deal by 6 months amid pandemic
South Korea and the United States have agreed to extend a $60 billion bilateral currency swap agreement by six months in an effort to help ease lingering market uncertainties amid the new coronavirus outbreak, the Bank of Korea (BOK) said Thursday. In late March, the BOK and the US Federal Reserve signed the bilateral currency swap facility to help ease financial market jitters caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The swap agreement, initially set to end on Sept. 30, will be extended until March 3
July 30, 2020
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Corporate loans lead liquidity jump this year
South Korea's corporate loans have risen sharply this year amid the coronavirus outbreak, leading the overall surge in the country's money supply, central bank data showed Wednesday. The country's M2 money supply came to 3,065.8 trillion won ($2.56 trillion) at the end of May, up 10.6 percent from a year earlier, according to the data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). It marks the largest amount ever, and the on-year growth rate also represents a record high. Corporate lending contributed more t
July 29, 2020
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Corporate bond sales increase 3.8 in H1
South Korean companies' bond sales rose nearly 4 percent in the first half, but their share offerings went south, data showed Wednesday. Local businesses raised 89.4 trillion won ($74.5 billion) by selling bonds in the January-June period, up 3.8 percent from a year earlier, according to the data from the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). Increased sales of debt by nonfinancial companies and asset-backed securities led the overall rise, offsetting a fall of 965 billion won in the issuance
July 29, 2020