South Korea's dependency ratio is expected to spike over the next 60 years in line with its fast aging population, becoming the highest among major advanced economies, a report said Thursday. Asia's fourth-largest economy is forecast to have a dependency ratio of some 80 people in 2075, the highest among members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, according to the repor...

South Korean stocks opened higher Thursday, taking a cue from overnight gains on Wall Street. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 6.71 points, or 0.29 percent, to 2,324.05 in the first 15 minutes of trading. On Wednesday, US stocks rose to post a five-day winning streak on tech gains. The Dow Jones industrial average was up 0.4 percent to 21,012.42, and the Nasdaq Composite In...

The operating income of South Korea’s top 10 conglomerates surged by more than 80 percent on-year in the first quarter of this year, according to Chaebul.com, Wednesday. The combined operating income of the groups’ 89 nonfinancial subsidiaries increased to 17.9 trillion won ($15.9 billion) with their debt servicing capabilities significantly improved. The country’s largest automaker Hyundai Mot...

Woori Bank has launched an artificial intelligence-based financial adviser, or “robo adviser,” as well as robots built for customer assistance at local branches. The nation’s fourth-largest commercial bank announced Wednesday the AI-based program “Woori Robo-Alpha” will reach out to customers to offer asset management portfolios “tailored to their investment propensity,” starting Wednesday. Woor...

The first-tier stock market in South Korea remained ceilingless for three consecutive days Wednesday. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index closed at 2,317.34, up 0.24 percent compared to Tuesday closing at a record-high 2,311.74, despite losses in gains from early morning trade. Opening at 2,318.86, the Kospi peaked at 2,322.54 in about 10 minutes -- the highest in history. The index...

South Korean shares extended their winning streak to a fourth day to end at a fresh record high Wednesday, taking a cue from overnight gains on Wall Street, analysts said. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 5.66 points, or 0.24 percent, to reach an all-time high of 2,317.34. Trade volume was slim at 380.45 million shares worth 5.35 tr...

The Finance Ministry said Wednesday that the government will release a road map by the end of June on how to create jobs in the public sector, alluding to a 10 trillion won ($8.89 billion) supplementary budget proposal by President Moon Jae-in. In a report to the State Affairs Planning Advisory Committee, Moon’s de facto transition team, the ministry said that the government would speed up the p...

The South Korean financial regulator has fined 14 individuals a combined 2.4 billion won ($2.1 million) for using undisclosed information to avoid losses through stock trading of Hanmi Pharmaceutical, a leading local drug firm, in September last year. The Financial Services Commission said its securities and futures commission made the decision Wednesday to impose massive fines on individuals fo...

President Moon Jae-in’s pledge to usher in an “era of zero irregular jobs” in the public sector within his five-year term has raised concerns about the possible negative effects of the initiative. According to a government-run information portal, irregular employees numbered 144,205, or 33.6 percent of the total workforce, at 335 public organizations as of end-March. But Moon, who took office o...

The ratio of South Korea's short-term foreign debt to its foreign reserves hit the highest level in more than a year in the first quarter on increased foreign investment in local bonds, data showed Wednesday. The country's short-term external debt -- with a maturity of one year or less -- totaled $115.4 billion as of the end of March, up $10.2 billion from three months earlier, according to the ...

South Korean shares traded higher late Wednesday morning, set to close at a fresh record high, as individual buyers scooped up market heavyweights amid upward momentum, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index gained 4.52 points, or 0.2 percent, to 2,316.26 as of 11:20 a.m. Large caps on the Seoul bourse were largely mixed. Market behemoth Samsung Electronics remained unc...

South Korean stocks opened higher Wednesday, taking a cue from overnight gains on Wall Street. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 9.28 points, or 0.4 percent, to 2,321.02 in the first 15 minutes of trading. On Tuesday, US stocks rose to post a four-day winning streak. The Dow Jones industrial average was up 0.21 percent, to 20,937.91 and the Nasdaq Composite Index gained 0.0...

Moody’s Investors Service cut its rating on China’s debt, saying that the outlook for the country’s financial strength will worsen as debt rises and economic growth slows. Moody’s reduced the rating to A1 from Aa3 and changed the outlook to stable from negative, the company said in a statement on Wednesday. The offshore yuan extended losses after Moody’s downgrade, weakening 0.12 percent to 6.8...

South Koreans' overseas stock investment has jumped nearly 40 percent in 2017 from a year ago, data showed Wednesday, as retail investors apparently turn to foreign markets amid a domestic rally dominated by large caps. According to the data by the Korea Securities Depository, local investors' direct transactions of stocks traded overseas came to $6.32 billion as of Friday, up 39.9 percent from ...