Prices of vegetables jumped sharply in recent weeks due to heavy downpours that followed a long drought, industry sources said Wednesday.The price of napa cabbage soared 26.2 percent to 1,416 won ($1.2) per kilogram Tuesday from a month earlier, according to the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation. The price of spinach jumped 12.7 percent to 4,568 won per kilogram from 4,053 won, while that of lettuce gained 4.4 percent to 662 won from 634 won per 100 grams.The price of cucumbers w

Economy July 5, 2017

Hyundai Heavy Industries, a major shipyard here, said Wednesday that it has signed a memorandum of understanding with Saudi Aramco and others to build a plant in Saudi Arabia that will make engines used for ships and power generation.The Hyundai Heavy-Aramco consortium will spend US$400 million to set up an engine plant in Ras Al-Khair, eastern Saudi Arabia, by 2019, the company said. This photo, provided by Hyundai Heavy Industries, shows its own developed HiMSEN engine. (Yonhap)Hyundai Heavy e

Industry July 5, 2017

South Korea's national debt as measured in outstanding state bonds issued exceeded 950 trillion won ($826.2 billion) last month, mainly due to the government's expansionary fiscal policy to cope with an economic slowdown, data showed Wednesday. The conservative administrations of ex-Presidents Lee Myung-bak and Park Geun-hye had favored the issuance of Treasury bills and various types of bonds to finance the fiscal expansion, rather than raising taxes. The nation's debt, which covers the central

Economy July 5, 2017

Samsung Electronics said Wednesday the company was named Asia's most popular brand for the sixth consecutive year backed by its successful launch of the Galaxy S8 smartphones.Citing the report released by Campaign Asia-Pacific and Nielsen, the South Korean tech giant said the company was the No. 1 player among Asia's top 1,000 brands. U.S. tech giant Apple was the runner-up, trailed by Japan-based Sony and Switzerland-based Nestle. (Yonhap)Campaign Asia-Pacific said the result came as Samsung co

Industry July 5, 2017

South Korean manufacturers' business sentiment reached the highest in over two years, but pessimism still outweighed optimism overall, a survey showed Wednesday.A survey of some 2,200 manufacturing firms put the business sentiment index at 94 in the third quarter, up five points from the second quarter but under the threshold of 100, the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry said.  The reading marks the highest since the first quarter of 2015, when the comparable figure was 97. The last ti

Economy July 5, 2017

South Korea's foreign exchange reserves hit a record high in June due to a hike in the value of non-dollar currencies when converted into the U.S. greenback, central bank data showed Wednesday.As of the end of June, the country's foreign exchange reserves came to $380.57 billion, up $2.11 billion from the previous month, the Bank of Korea said in a statement. Foreign exchange reserves consist of securities and deposits denominated in overseas currencies, as well as International Monetary Fund re

Economy July 5, 2017

The South Korean finance ministry said Tuesday that it tightened its monitoring of the local financial market following the latest missile launch by North Korea.After launching a ballistic missile earlier in the day, Pyongyang claimed in an official announcement that it has successfully test-fired an intercontinental ballistic missile directly challenging calls by the international community to halt weapons of mass destruction development. The benchmark KOSPI lost 0.58 percent to finish at 2,380

Economy July 4, 2017

Kakao Bank, South Korea's second Internet-only bank, aims to eventually lead the online payment market, by taking advantage of its robust mobile ecosystem, the bank's two co-chief executives said Tuesday.Kakao Bank, led by Kakao, operator of Korea's dominant messaging app KakaoTalk, is set to officially begin its operation later this month. Kakao's consortium includes Korea Investment Holdings, Kookmin Bank, eBay and China's Tencent Holdings. (Yonhap)Although Kakao Bank will focus on expanding o

Industry July 4, 2017

Samsung BioLogics, a biopharmaceutical unit of South Korea's Samsung Group, said Tuesday that it has clinched a contract worth 63.6 billion won ($55 million) to supply for India's leading pharma player, Sun Pharmaceutical Industries.Under the long-term deal, the multinational company has appointed Samsung BioLogics to manufacture Tildrakizumab, an inhibitor for the treatment of moderate to severe psoriasis.  (Photo courtesy of Samsung BioLogics) (Yonhap)"This contract is meaningful as Samsung Bi

Industry July 4, 2017

Mortgage loans by those in their 20s and 30s have risen dramatically in the past 4 1/2 years, government data showed Tuesday, raising concerns of overdue payments.The average household whose head is in his 20s and 30s had 115 million won ($100,104) in mortgage loans last September, up 37.6 percent from 4 1/2 years earlier, according to figures by the Bank of Korea. Those in their 40s had 116 million won in mortgage loans last September, up 22.7 percent from 4 1/2 years earlier.The comparable fig

Economy July 4, 2017

President Moon Jae-in's policy advisory panel said Tuesday that the government will expand hiring of young people in the public sector, the latest in a series of efforts to create jobs.Currently, public companies and other public agencies are required by law to employ a set number of unemployed youths each year. The government will raise the mandatory ratio of hiring of unemployed youths in the public sector to 5 percent, beginning next year, the State Affairs Planning Advisory Committee said.Th

Economy July 4, 2017