Most Popular
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Yoon sorry for shortcomings but insists policies were right
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1 in 3 Koreans live alone, family types becoming diverse
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S. Korea ‘strongly’ protests Japan’s claim over Dokdo in diplomatic bluebook
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US 'incredibly concerned' about suspected NK-Iran military ties
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Korean won weakens amid heightened uncertainty
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Korea, Japan finance chiefs vow to tame rampant FX market volatility
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Seoul says will cut power to porn festival planned on Han River
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Sewol victims commemorated on tragedy's 10th anniversary
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K-pop group's manager dismissed for setting up spycam in theater dressing room
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Chanel, Louis Vuitton see muted growth in Korea
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Extra budget will help virus-hit small merchants: finance minister
SEJONG -- Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said Tuesday a fourth supplementary budget would help small merchants navigate through the difficult time as they were hit by a recent resurgence of the new coronavirus. "The government has actively taken bold measures to overcome the economic crisis," Hong told Yonhap News TV. Hong said the fourth extra budget will become "welcome rain" for small merchants to overcome this crisis. Hong made the remarks as the ruling Democratic Par
Sept. 22, 2020
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Nonghyup Bank files for approval of Beijing branch
Major South Korean lender Nonghyup Bank has applied for China's approval to open a branch in Beijing as part of its Asian push, industry sources said Tuesday. Nonghyup Bank, which lodged the application with the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission late last month, is expected to receive preliminary approval by February at the latest. It usually takes six months to receive preliminary approval from the Chinese financial authorities to open a branch in the world's second-largest ec
Sept. 22, 2020
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US halves anti-dumping tariffs on S. Korean oil pipelines
The United States has nearly halved its anti-dumping tariffs on oil pipeline products from South Korean steelmakers, industry sources said Tuesday. The US Department of Commerce has decided to levy a tariff of 4.23 percent to 9.24 percent on South Korean oil pipelines, far lower than the 2018 ruling of up to 18.77 percent. The tariff reduction came after the Court of International Trade (CIT) ordered Washington to readjust its earlier duties in January following complaints from South Korean st
Sept. 22, 2020
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S. Korea inches close to legalizing shared accommodation biz
South Korea has moved a step closer to officially legalizing the shared accommodation business in rural areas, according to the country’s top fiscal chief. The “Korean Airbnb” -- modeled after the US shared lodgings company -- would allow business operators to run such services by using empty houses in non-urban areas for all guests -- locals and foreigners alike. “We have reached a mutually beneficial consensus on using empty homes in farming and fishing areas as l
Sept. 21, 2020
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S. Korea to set rules for fiscal soundness
SEJONG -- South Korea plans to unveil rules to ensure fiscal soundness, Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said Monday. The rules, which aim to keep the growth rate of government spending at a level of nominal growth of gross domestic product (GDP), will be announced by the end of this month, Hong told lawmakers. However, such rules will be exempted in time of a crisis, like the coronavirus pandemic, Hong said. The move comes amid concerns that this year's four extra budgets could strain fi
Sept. 21, 2020
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Kia halts 2 local plants on COVID-19 cases for 4 days
Kia Motors Corp., South Korea's second-biggest carmaker, said Monday it has suspended two of its domestic plants for four days, as some of its workers were confirmed to have contracted the new coronavirus. Kia halted the operations of two plants in Gwangmyeong, just south of Seoul, from Wednesday through Monday, with all of the 6,000 employees at the plants staying at home, a company spokesman said over the phone. "As of noon Monday, 11 assembly line workers were confirmed to have been in
Sept. 21, 2020
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Exports rise 3.6% in first 20 days of September
SEJONG -- South Korea's exports rose 3.6 percent on-year in the first 20 days of September, marking the first 20-day rise in six months due to a sharp gain in exports of semiconductors, customs data showed Monday. The nation's outbound shipments stood at $29.6 billion in the Sept. 1-20 period, up $1.02 billion from a year ago, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service. The average daily exports during the 20-day period, however, dropped 9.8 percent. The coronavirus pandemic has
Sept. 21, 2020
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Self-employed high earners’ tax evasion totals W10tr in decade
The amount of evaded income taxes from self-employed high earners in South Korea totaled nearly 10 trillion won ($8.58 billion) from 2010 to 2019, according to data compiled by the National Tax Service. The report, submitted to the ruling Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker and parliamentary finance committee member Rep. Yang Hyang-ja, showed that the nation’s tax agency investigated 7,760 business owners with high income. Over the past 10 years, these taxpayers reduced their accumulated
Sept. 20, 2020
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'Vaccine nationalism' likely to delay end of coronavirus pandemic: BOK
South Korea’s central bank warned Sunday that efforts by individual nations to prioritize their own citizens over others for access to a future coronavirus vaccine are likely to push back the time frame for the pandemic’s end. “There are projections that development of some of the vaccines will be complete by the second half of 2021,” the Bank of Korea said in its regular report on the global economy. “But there is a possibility that the end of the coronavirus p
Sept. 20, 2020
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Disaster relief fund payments to kick off before Chuseok
South Korea’s government will start handing out the emergency relief funds tailored for the socially vulnerable early next week, in time for the Chuseok holiday that starts on Sept. 30, officials said Sunday. According to the Ministry of Economy and Finance, the Ministry of Employment and Labor, and the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, small-sized merchants, non-standard contract employees, and families with young children will start to receive the special allowance on Sept. 28-29. The
Sept. 20, 2020
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Science ministry, OECD to hold videoconference to promote tech cooperation
South Korea's Ministry of Science and ICT said Sunday it will hold a joint videoconference with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) to forge closer ties in key technology sectors. Officials from the ministry and the OECD will exchange views on the upcoming post-coronavirus digital era, and how to handle advances in neurotechnology innovations in the online workshop, which runs from Monday through Thursday. "International cooperation in the digital tech realm
Sept. 20, 2020
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Researchers develop cheap, long-lasting catalyst to extract hydrogen from water
South Korean researchers have developed an affordable and long-lasting electrocatalyst that can cleanly and efficiently extract hydrogen from water, a state-run science institute said Sunday. A team of researchers led by Yoo Sung-jong has made a special catalyst that can produce hydrogen without relying on expensive platinum, the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) said. It said the new process also overcomes the main shortcomings of non-platinum-based electrocatalyst that suffere
Sept. 20, 2020
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S. Korea's seaport cargo down 18% on coronavirus
Cargo processed at South Korean seaports fell 18.2 percent in August in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak, government data showed Sunday. Cargo handled at the country's ports came to 117.34 million tons last month, down from 143.43 million tons a year earlier, according to the data by the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries. Handling of export-import cargo shrank 19.7 percent on-year to 100.8 million tons last month, leading the overall decline. Hit by the coronavirus pandemic, container car
Sept. 20, 2020
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S. Koreans drink 8.5 days per month on average: poll
South Koreans on average consumed alcoholic beverages 8.5 days per month in 2019, a poll showed Sunday, with a growing number of people drinking at home this year due to the virus pandemic. It marked a slight drop from 8.8 days posted in 2017 and 2018, according to the report released by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. Around 43 percent of South Koreans picked beer as the most preferred type of alcoholic beverage, followed by soju, a distilled liquor made with grain, with
Sept. 20, 2020
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S. Korea to expand emergency loans for virus-hit small biz
The South Korean government has rolled up its sleeves once again to help virus-battered small businesses. Next Wednesday it plans to expand its ongoing emergency loan program for merchants and entrepreneurs, and a Finance Ministry representative said it will also try to minimize the impact of the lockdown measures on the economy. “The government has raised the credit limit on the second round of its emergency lending program, from the previous 10 million won ($8,620) to 20 million won
Sept. 18, 2020
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Coronavirus pandemic accelerates digital transformation: finance minister
SEJONG -- The coronavirus pandemic is accelerating digital transformation and the world needs to prepare for this structural change in a post-pandemic era, South Korea's finance minister has said. Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki made the remarks at an online meeting of the Group of 20 Finance and Health Ministers on Thursday, the ministry said in a statement. Hong said the pandemic has accelerated digital transformation and contactless solutions in businesses and society, while increasing the
Sept. 18, 2020
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Fiscal chief urges for extra budget approval by next Tuesday
South Korea’s fiscal chief on Thursday asked the National Assembly to approve the recently submitted fourth supplementary budget bill by early next week, aiming at handing out emergency relief funds ahead of the Chuseok holiday. He also pledged to help small business owners digitalize their operations by providing online delivery systems to offline stores and traditional markets, in an extended effort to revamp the economy in the post-coronavirus era. “Sept. 22 is the eff
Sept. 17, 2020
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[News Focus] Korea’s national debt to top 800 trillion won
SEJONG -- South Korea’s national debt is projected to surpass 800 trillion won ($682 billion) in the coming weeks, marking the first time in its history. The growth pace is proving serious in the wake of the government’s active allocation of supplementary budgets. The national debt is a core indicator for fiscal soundness, reflecting liabilities held by the central and local governments at home and abroad. According to the National Assembly Budget Office, the sovereign debt was es
Sept. 17, 2020
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Toss users spend 65% of cash relief within month: data
Users of Toss, a local financial services app operated by Viva Republica, spent 65 percent of their disaster relief funds in less than a month, the company said Thursday, referring to its data analysis. According to the estimate, 65 percent of the total 395.2 billion won ($336.5 million) in spending by 778,000 recipients was spent before end-May, after the Korean government started to dole out some 14 trillion won to every Korean household that month. Viva Republica compiled the data from use
Sept. 17, 2020
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Kia halts 2 domestic plants following confirmed COVID-19 cases
Kia Motors Corp., South Korea's second-biggest carmaker, said Thursday it has suspended two of its domestic plants as at least eight workers have been confirmed to have contracted the coronavirus. Kia halted the operations of two plants in Gwangmyeong, just south of Seoul, from late Wednesday and sent all of the 6,000 plant workers home, a company spokesman said over the phone. "As of 3:30 p.m., nine assembly line workers were confirmed to have been infected with the virus," he sai
Sept. 17, 2020