Most Popular
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Exports to US reach all-time high, widen gap with China
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Trump rekindles criticism: US forces defending 'wealthy' S. Korea 'free of charge'
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[Music in drama] Rekindle a love that slipped through your fingers
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Opposition-led Assembly unilaterally passes bill to probe Marine's death
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S. Korea discussed possible participation in AUKUS Pillar 2 with Australia: defense minister
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[New faces of Assembly] Architect behind ‘audacious initiative’ believes in denuclearized North Korea
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Seoul Metro to seek legal action against malicious complaints
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Illit, mired in controversy, remains on Billboard charts for 5th week
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On May Day, labor unions blast Yoon's foreign nanny proposal
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Golden chance to liquidate babies’ gold rings?
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Fiscal chief expresses optimism on economic rebound in 2020
The government on Monday expressed confidence that the South Korean economy will rebound in 2020, dispelling market concerns on the various growth forecasts.It also assessed that the latest mortgage loan restrictions have already been effective in reining in the overheated housing market. “I am confident that our economy may rebound next year and I am not just saying this out of personal sentiments or wishful thinking,” said Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki, in
Dec. 30, 2019
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S. Korea mobilizes extensive tax actions for economic momentum in 2020
In line with its all-out efforts to revitalize the economy by any means in the upcoming year, South Korea will introduce a set of new tax rules to reinforce sanctions for delinquent taxpayers and expand tax reduction benefits for innovative small-sized businesses, the Ministry of Economy and Finance said Monday.In a pan-government policy brochure titled “Things to change in 2020,” the government listed key policy changes that will take shape in 2020, many of them slated to take effec
Dec. 30, 2019
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Korea's industrial output gains 0.4% in November
South Korea's industrial output growth accelerated in November, supported by a modest gain in the service sector, data showed Monday. The November industrial output rose 0.4 percent from a year earlier, rebounding from a 0.4 percent decline in October, with both retail sales and facility investment growing from a month earlier in November, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. The data showed the production in the mining, manufacturing, gas and electricity industries declined
Dec. 30, 2019
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S. Korea expands benefits for IP-backed financing
In line with its policy initiative to boost innovative growth, South Korea will expand administrative and financial benefits for small companies with source technology and banks that approve loans based on intangible intellectual assets, the country’s intellectual property office said Sunday.Starting Tuesday, the Korean Intellectual Property Office will offer a 50 percent discount on its annual IP fees for banks that hold collateral in the form of patents, utility model rights or design ri
Dec. 29, 2019
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Housing rule violators to be forced to pay back mortgage loans
Starting as early as mid-January, home buyers caught breaking the government’s real estate regulations will immediately have to redeem their mortgage loans, financial authorities said Sunday.The Financial Services Commission is working on an additional set of measures to restrain speculative buying sprees in the housing market, focusing on jeonse loan borrowers, officials said Sunday.Under the forthcoming rules, jeonse loan borrowers who purchase a residence priced over 900 million won ($7
Dec. 29, 2019
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S. Korea picks 11 local, foreign banks for won-yuan FX trading in 2020
South Korea's finance ministry said Sunday it has selected 11 banks, including five foreign banks, as the lenders responsible for setting prices for direct won-yuan transactions next year.The banks will be also tasked with taking the lead in providing liquidity to the market, the Ministry of Economy and Finance said in a statement. The six South Korean banks are KB Kookmin bank, Industrial Bank of Korea, Shinhan Bank, Woori Bank, KEB Hana Bank and Korea Development Bank. And the five local
Dec. 29, 2019
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Korea's Dec. exports estimated to fall by slower pace: poll
South Korea's exports are widely expected to extend its slump to a 13th month in December, but its declining pace may slow down, on the back of a rebound in global chip prices amid progress in a trade deal between the United States and China, a poll showed Sunday.The country's exports are estimated to reach $45.9 billion this month, down 4.7 percent from a year earlier, according to the poll conducted on seven local financial organizations by Yonhap Infomax, the financial information service arm
Dec. 29, 2019
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Korea's inflation projected to grow 0.59% in Dec.: poll
South Korea's consumer prices are again expected to fall short of the target this month, mainly due to a fall in prices of agricultural products, a poll showed Sunday.In a recent survey by Yonhap Infomax, the financial news arm of Yonhap News Agency, seven local analysts predicted the country's consumer prices to grow 0.59 percent from a year earlier in December. In November, inflation gained 0.2 percent on-year.December would mark the 12th consecutive month the country's consumer prices have gr
Dec. 29, 2019
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BOK vows to maintain monetary easing stance in 2020
South Korea’s central bank said Friday that it plans to keep its monetary easing stance next year in a bid to support economic recovery. “We plan to maintain a monetary easing stance to support recovery in economic growth and stabilize inflation at the target level of 2 percent,” the Bank of Korea said in its report outlining the direction of its monetary policy for 2020. “We expect South Korea’s economic growth rate to fall short of the potential growth rate
Dec. 27, 2019
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Consumer sentiment slightly worsens in Dec.
South Korea's consumer sentiment slightly deteriorated from a month earlier in December but remained positive for a second consecutive month, central bank data showed Friday.The composite consumer sentiment index came to 100.4 in the month, compared with 100.9 in November, according to the data from the Bank of Korea.A reading above 100 means optimists outnumber pessimists. The index remained above 100 for a second-straight month after breaching the benchmark for the first time in the seven mont
Dec. 27, 2019
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BOK eyes accommodative monetary policy, more support measures in 2020
The Bank of Korea will maintain an accommodative monetary policy next year to help boost the country's economic growth and spur record-low inflation in Asia's fourth-largest economy, while also considering other means to assist the local economy, the central bank said Friday."Under the direction of its monetary policy in 2020, the Bank of Korea will maintain the easing stance of its monetary policy to support the recovery in growth and to ensure the rise in consumer prices will be stabilize
Dec. 27, 2019
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BOK warns of household debt rise amid heated housing market
South Korea’s monetary authorities on Thursday reiterated their warning against increasing household debt especially for the elderly as the heated real estate market continues to attract liquidity.According to a report released by the Bank of Korea, the outstanding household debt, including credit spending, came to 1,572.7 trillion won ($1.35 trillion) as of end-September. The figure, which has gained 3.9 percent on-year, marks the lowest growth since the second quarter of 2004, when the h
Dec. 26, 2019
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Number of private money lenders slightly down in H1
The number of private money lenders in South Korea edged down 0.2 percent in the first half of the year from six months earlier, data showed Thursday. The number of registered private money lenders and brokers reached 8,294 as of the end of June this year, down 16 from six months earlier, according to the data from the Financial Supervisory Service.The total amount of outstanding loans by private lenders was 16.7 trillion won ($14.3 billion) at the end of June, down from 17.3 trillion won six mo
Dec. 26, 2019
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[News Focus] Payouts for jobless soared 81% since 2017
SEJONG -- Data provided by a state-funded agency showed that the volume of unemployment benefits paid to the jobless has sharply increased over the past two years.The figures, from the Korea Employment Information Service, suggest that the economic slowdown is forcing more and more people to leave their workplaces or close their businesses.South Korea saw monthly payouts of unemployment benefits reach 704.4 billion won ($605.1 million) in October 2019, compared with 388.8 billion won in October
Dec. 26, 2019
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Population mobility falls 8% in Nov.
The number of South Koreans who changed residences to a different region fell in November, as tightened regulations aimed at reining in housing prices sapped the country's population mobility, data showed Thursday. The number of people who changed their residences declined 8 percent last month from a year earlier to 566,000, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. The population mobility rate -- the number of those changing residences for every 100 people -- fell 1.2 percentage point
Dec. 26, 2019
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Public sector's debt growth accelerates in 2018
South Korea's public sector debt growth accelerated in 2018, but its share of the country's gross domestic product remained flat, the finance ministry said Thursday.The country's public sector debt, known as D3, which includes the debt of the central government and state-funded firms, reached 1,078 trillion won ($926 billion) as of end-2018, up 34 trillion won from a year ago, according to data compiled by the Ministry of Economy and Finance.It accounted for 56.9 percent of the country's GDP las
Dec. 26, 2019
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[Monitor] Rehired mid-aged workers earn less than W2m
Six out of 10 workers in their 40s, 50s and 60s who have been rehired earn less than 2 million won per month, data from Statistics Korea showed earlier this week.The wage tended to decrease as they get older with those in their early 40s receiving an average of 2.3 million won, those in their early 50s 2.17 million won and those in their early 60s 1.83 million won.The data was collected from those who were out of a job as of October 2017 and were reemployed a year later.(khnews@heraldcorp.com)
Dec. 25, 2019
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Over 71% of 2020 budget to be allocated for H1
The South Korean government on Tuesday vowed to further accelerate its fiscal spending next year, seeking to revitalize the economy following years of sluggish growth.The Ministry of Economy and Finance confirmed the fiscal allocation plan for 2020 at a Cabinet meeting under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon.Under the fiscal program, 71.4 percent of the annual expenditure or 305 trillion won ($262 billion) out of 414.1 trillion won has been allocated for the January-June period -- t
Dec. 24, 2019
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From loan control to tax probes, Korea wages war on housing prices
Following the unexpected stringent mortgage control measures announced by the government last week, state agencies are also ramping up pressure to cool down the real estate market by conducting tax probes on individuals and even limiting the use of credit loans for buying houses.The National Tax Service said Monday it will investigate 257 homeowners and track the source of their funds. They are suspected of having purchased expensive apartments with money transferred from parents and relatives,
Dec. 24, 2019
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[News Focus] Korea falls short of G-20 average in Q3 growth
SEJONG -- South Korea’s policymakers are struggling to invigorate the sluggish economy, having suffered minus 0.37 percent on-quarter growth in the first quarter this year.The nation posted 1.04 percent on-quarter economic growth in the second quarter, on the back of the base effect from the deep slump in the previous quarter.But its third-quarter growth stayed at 0.41 percent due to continuous lackluster export performance and slower-than-expected improvement in private consumption.The fi
Dec. 24, 2019