Most Popular
-
1
Exports to US reach all-time high, widen gap with China
-
2
Trump rekindles criticism: US forces defending 'wealthy' S. Korea 'free of charge'
-
3
[Music in drama] Rekindle a love that slipped through your fingers
-
4
S. Korea discussed possible participation in AUKUS Pillar 2 with Australia: defense minister
-
5
[New faces of Assembly] Architect behind ‘audacious initiative’ believes in denuclearized North Korea
-
6
Seoul Metro to seek legal action against malicious complaints
-
7
On May Day, labor unions blast Yoon's foreign nanny proposal
-
8
Illit, mired in controversy, remains on Billboard charts for 5th week
-
9
Opposition-led Assembly unilaterally passes bill to probe Marine's death
-
10
[KH Explains] Will alternative trading platform shake up Korean stock market?
-
Over 200,000 foreign residents take out life insurance policies: data
The number of foreign residents who took out life insurance policies here topped 200,000 in 2015, with their subscriptions rising at an annual rate of 16 percent over the past five years, industry data showed Sunday.According to the data compiled by the Korea Insurance Development Institute, a total of 212,000 foreigners took out life insurance in 2015, compared with 186,000 in 2014, 164,000 in 2013 and 142,000 in 2012. (Yonhap)The pace is much higher than the annual growth rate of 3.9 percent f
IndustryMay 7, 2017
-
Exports of camera modules, panel display equipment, face masks surge in 2016
Outbound shipments of such products as camera modules, flat panel display equipment and face masks rose the sharpest among South Korean goods whose exports topped $100 million annually in 2016, government data showed Sunday.Overall shipments of goods abroad for Asia's fourth-largest economy contracted 5.9 percent on-year, but exports of modules, panel-related gear and makeup products all jumped by double and triple digits, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said. (Yonhap)Exports of modul
IndustryMay 7, 2017
-
Samsung Fire & Marine buys stake in Vietnamese insurer
Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance Co., South Korea's top non-life insurance company, said Sunday that it has agreed to buy a 20 percent stake in a Vietnamese non-life insurer, as part of its efforts to tap deeper into the Southeast Asian country.Under the deal with a Vietnamese state-run oil firm, Petrolimex, Samsung Fire will buy the stake in PJICO, Vietnam's fifth-largest non-life insurer with a 7 percent market share. (Yonhap)The value of the deal was not disclosed.Samsung Fire established its
IndustryMay 7, 2017
-
Direct taxes account for record 55.3% of all dues collected by the govt. in 2016
Direct taxes collected by the state made up a record 55.3 percent of all dues collected in 2016, official data showed Sunday.The rise comes as the government reformed its tax credit rules on income and transfer taxes, the finance ministry said. It said the percentage of direct taxes to overall revenue earnings has been on the rise for the past three years. A rise in direct taxes generally reflects a more balanced form of taxation and better distribution of wealth.Last year, the ministry said tha
EconomyMay 7, 2017
-
Korea to inject W2.5tr to reduce rail accidents
South Korea will invest 2.5 trillion won ($2.2 billion) in railway facilities and safety systems to sharply reduce rail accidents this year, the government said Sunday. The budget allocated to help prevent train crashes and other major rail accidents has been marked up 32 percent, or 610.3 billion won, from last year, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transportation said in a statement. Workers engage in removing a derailed passenger train near Yulchon station in the southern port of Yeos
IndustryMay 7, 2017
-
Land owned by foreigners up 2.3% last year
The total amount of South Korean land owned by foreigners increased 2.3 percent in 2016 compared to a year earlier, the government said Sunday.At the end of 2016, foreign investors owned a total of 234 million square meters of land worth 32.31 trillion won ($28.5 billion), accounting for 0.2 percent of the country's overall territory, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transportation said in a statement. In the previous year, foreigners held 32.57 trillion won worth of land estimated
EconomyMay 7, 2017
-
Prevalence of ovarian cancer among 20-somethings soars
The prevalence of ovarian cancer among South Korean women in their 20s has jumped nearly 50 percent over the past five years due to a change in their life patterns, data showed Sunday.According to the data by the Health Insurance Review & Assessment Service, 20-something ovarian cancer patients stood at 1,218 last year, up a whopping 48 percent from 825 in 2012. (Yonhap)Last year's figure accounted for 6.7 percent of all ovarian cancer patients in the country, but the increase rate outpaced that
TechnologyMay 7, 2017
-
Listed manufacturers retire tiny portion of treasury shares: report
Most listed manufacturing firms in South Korea tend to hold or resell treasury shares instead of canceling them in order to help controlling shareholders strengthen their managerial control, a report said Sunday.According to the report by professor Kim Woo-jin of Seoul National University, treasury share cancellations by listed manufacturing companies came to 174 cases between 2004 and 2015.The figure accounted for only 2.3 percent of stock buybacks, resales and retirement conducted by all 7,428
MarketMay 7, 2017
-
Petroleum exports to China rise in Q1 despite THAAD row
Exports of oil and related goods to China increased 2.6 percent in the first quarter of 2017 from a year earlier in the face of an ongoing diplomatic tussle over the deployment of an advanced US missile defense system in South Korea. industry data showed Sunday.According to the data compiled by the Korea Petroleum Association, petroleum exports to China amounted to 22.48 million barrels in the January-March period, compared with 21.91 million barrels in the year earlier period. (Yonhap)In terms
IndustryMay 7, 2017
-
Korean finance minister urges measures against unfair trade practices
South Korea's chief economic policymaker has called for bold measures against unfair trade practices, expressing worries over growing protectionism by advanced economies.At an annual gathering of the Asian Development Bank in Yokohama, Japan, on Saturday, South Korean Finance Minister Yoo Il-ho also said Asian countries should raise their guard against short-term downside risk in order to regain their recovery momentum. "We need to take stern measures against unfair trade practices, which w
EconomyMay 7, 2017
-
Chaebol owner-managers make huge income in 2016
Major owner-managers of conglomerates in South Korea, known as chaebol here, earned at least 10 billion won ($8.8 million) in dividends, compensation and other income in 2016, data showed Sunday.According to the data by market Chaebul.com and conglomerates' 2016 business reports, Lee Kun-hee, chairman of tech giant Samsung Electronics Co. and chief of No. 1 conglomerate Samsung Group, topped the income list with 195.4 billion won last year. This undated file photo shows the headquarters of Samsu
IndustryMay 7, 2017
-
Korean midsize hybrid car market halved this year
Sales of midsize hybrid cars were halved in the first four months of this year, mainly due to existing vehicle models becoming dated and the popularity of new non-hybrid vehicles, market watchers said Sunday.Data provided by carmakers showed sales of the Sonata, K5 and Malibu hit 2,268 units at the end of April, down a sharp 49.7 percent from a year earlier.Broken down by month, sales in January plunged 62.6 percent on-year, with numbers backtracking 41.7 percent and 29.7 percent in the followin
MobilityMay 7, 2017
-
Foreign ownership of Korean stocks hits 10-year high: data
Foreign ownership of South Korean stocks hit a 10-year high on large-scale net buying of shares by overseas investors, market data showed Sunday.According to the Korea Exchange, overseas investors bought 6.7 trillion won ($5.9 billion) worth of shares more than they sold coming into this year. On Friday when the benchmark Kospi hit a record high, foreigners controlled over 534.1 trillion won worth of local stocks, equivalent to 36.72 percent of the aggregate value of all listed shares, the bours
MarketMay 7, 2017
-
Samsung Heavy resumes operations after deadly crane accident
Samsung Heavy Industries Co. said it partially resumed operations Saturday, after being shut down for six days following a deadly crane accident at one of its shipyards earlier this week. The Ministry of Employment and Labor had ordered the South Korean shipbuilder to suspend operations at its shipyard in the southeastern port city of Geoje after two cranes collided at the dockyard Monday, causing a structure to fall from one of the cranes. Six workers at the site were killed and another 25 were
IndustryMay 7, 2017
-
Downtown hotels becoming fresh vacation spots for locals
Hotels in central and other main districts of Seoul have seen a sharp rise in bookings made by locals for the long holiday ending early next week, as many opt to avoid the hassle of traveling abroad and instead indulge in a brief city retreat, industry sources said Saturday.Hotel bookings made for the last week of April spiked 256 percent from the previous week, according to a hotel and restaurant reservation app Dailyhotel. (Yonhap)Lotte Hotel Seoul said the booking rates jumped over 20 percent
IndustryMay 7, 2017
-
Seoul stocks set to rise next week
South Korean stocks are set to rise further next week on positive market factors, analysts said Saturday. They expect the country's benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index to maintain its upward momentum next week as foreigners are expected to buy more undervalued stocks. The broader index closed at 2,241.24 points Thursday, up 1.6 percent from a week ago. The stock markets were closed on Friday, a national holiday. KB Securities analyst Bae Sung-young said the main index is expected to test
MarketMay 7, 2017
-
Jobless rate among inexperienced 20s, 30s hits record in Q1
SEJONG (Yonhap) -- The unemployment rate for the age group of 20s and 30s with no career experience hit a record high in the first quarter, due largely to a sluggish recruitment market and preference for hiring experienced workers, government data showed Saturday.The tally on the unemployed aged 20-39 who have never had a job came to 95,000 in the January-March period, recording the highest level since the government began to track related data in 1999, according to Statistics Korea. The number
EconomyMay 6, 2017
-
Korean economy to gain further momentum after election: BOK chief
YOKOHAMA, Japan (Yonhap) -- The South Korean economy will gain further momentum after the presidential election set to take place early next week, central bank governor said Saturday, citing strong exports and improved consumer sentiment amid signs of recovery in global economies.“In the past, domestic consumption tended to gather momentum on positive anticipation over the economy in the first year of the new administration, since the new government had pushed its drive for boost measures,
EconomyMay 6, 2017
-
Semiconductor, display segments boost component makers
Record-high earnings of Korean semiconductor and display giants sent their domestic component manufacturers’ stock prices rising high.The stock prices regarding light-emitting diode, printed circuit boards and LED display makers saw 40.4 percent, 38.8 percent and 38.7 percent hikes, respectively, as Samsung, LG Electronics and SK hynix’s profit skyrocketed in the first three months, according to Daeshin Securities on Friday. During the same period, the Korea Composite Stock Price Ind
MarketMay 5, 2017
-
[News Focus] Outlook improves for ‘undervalued’ Kospi
The rosy outlook of the “undervalued” main bourse in South Korea is likely to continue for the time being, as robust economic fundamentals outweigh uncertainties, the main bourse operator said.The forecast came after the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index closed at an all-time high Thursday, after reaching 2,241.14, on the back of a buying spree by foreign investors. It broke the closing record of 2,228.96 set on May 2, 2011. The record came in line with a series o
MarketMay 5, 2017