Most Popular
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Yoon's approval rating plunges to all-time low
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S. Korea votes in favor of Palestinian bid for UN membership
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Russia's denial of entry of S. Korean national unrelated to bilateral ties: Seoul official
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Bae Doo-na shares portraying Korean identity in Hollywood's 'Rebel Moon'
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[From the Scene] Monks, Buddhists hail return of remains of Buddhas
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Medical schools granted enrollment quota flexibility for next year
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Yoon offers first one-on-one meeting with opposition leader next week
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Korean art gets spotlight at Venice Biennale 2024
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Iran fires air defense batteries in provinces as sound of explosions heard near Isfahan
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France rejects opening Paris flight routes to T'way Air, deals blow to Korean Air merger
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Consumer financing firms’ 2019 net up 5.7%
Consumer financing firms in South Korea saw their combined net profit gain 5.7 percent in 2019 from a year earlier on the back of a robust gain in interest income, data showed Wednesday. The combined net profit of 107 credit financial firms stood at 2.05 trillion won ($1.68 billion) in 2019, up 111.2 billion won from a year earlier, according to the data by the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). Their interest income rose 6.7 percent on-year to 5.66 trillion won in 2019, the data showed.
April 29, 2020
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ABS issuance sharply up in Q1
The issuance of asset-backed securities (ABS) in South Korea surged in the first quarter from a year earlier due mainly to a hike in sales of mortgage-backed securities, the financial watchdog said Wednesday. A combined 22.7 trillion won ($18.5 billion) worth of ABS was issued in the January-March period, up 12.9 trillion won from the previous year, according to the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). ABS are backed by underlying assets, such as auto loans, home loans, credit card receivable
April 29, 2020
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BOK expands pilot program to go coinless
The Bank of Korea (BOK) has signed an agreement with major local retailers to further expand its pilot program to go coinless, the bank said Wednesday. Under the memorandum of understanding, signed Tuesday, convenience store chains E-Mart 24 and Ministop will now deposit any change left from cash purchases directly to customers' bank accounts when requested, according to the BOK. The agreement adds more than 7,000 convenience stores to the list of places where such services are available, alo
April 29, 2020
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Korea's industrial output falls 0.3% in March amid virus pandemic
SEJONG -- South Korea's overall industrial output fell 0.3 percent in March from a month earlier, data showed Wednesday, as the coronavirus pandemic hit exports and private consumption. The data compiled by Statistics Korea, however, showed production in the mining, manufacturing, gas and electricity industries rose 4.6 percent from a month earlier. From a year earlier, overall industrial output also gained 0.6 percent. The output in the service sector declined 4.4 percent on-month, markin
April 29, 2020
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Corporate direct financing down 6% in March
South Korean companies’ stock and bond sales fell 6 percent in March from a month earlier due to a decline in sales of corporate debt, data showed Tuesday. Local companies raised a combined 16.11 trillion won ($13.1 billion) by selling stocks and bonds in March, down 1.02 trillion won since February, according to the data from the Financial Supervisory Service. The decline is attributable to the 7.4 percent on-month fall in debt offerings to 15.64 trillion won, the FSS said. Last month,
April 28, 2020
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Brokerages' Q1 earnings tumble on market rout
Major South Korean securities companies racked up weak earnings in the first quarter mainly due to the market rout caused by the coronavirus outbreak, industry data showed Tuesday. Of the major brokerage houses, KB Securities Co. posted an operating loss of 20.8 billion won ($17 million) in the January-March period, swinging from last year's operating profit of 117.6 billion won. The firm logged a net loss of 14.7 billion won, compared with a profit of 87.3 billion won a year ago. Shinhan In
April 28, 2020
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S. Korea needs additional W4.6tr to give relief handouts to every household
SEJONG -- South Korea needs an additional 4.6 trillion won ($3.8 billion) to give coronavirus relief handouts to every household, Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said Tuesday, as part of the government's plans to ease the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic. South Korea had originally planned to give relief handouts to households that rank in the bottom 70 percent of gross income, but it changed the plans to provide the handouts to every household. Hong told a parliamentary meeting
April 28, 2020
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Korea's consumer sentiment hits over decade low in April
South Korea's consumer sentiment hit the lowest in more than a decade in April, central bank data showed Tuesday, amid concerns over the new coronavirus. The country's composite consumer sentiment index came to 70.8 in the month, down 7.6 points from a month earlier, according to the data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). A reading below 100 means pessimists outnumber optimists. The reading for April marks the lowest since December 2008, but the rate of drop slowed from an 18.5-point on-month pl
April 28, 2020
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[News Focus] South Korea outstrips Japan in 2019 per capita GDP: OECD
SEJONG -- South Korea’s per capita gross domestic product as of 2019, assessed by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, is drawing attention in terms of gauging the current level of ordinary Koreans’ purchasing power on the global stage. The France-based organization has estimated that the nation’s per capita GDP reached $43,426 (50.59 million won, based on the 2019 average exchange rate against the US dollar) last year, which far exceeds the “nomi
April 28, 2020
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Finance minister holds meeting with heads of economic organizations
Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki held a meeting with heads of economic organizations on Monday to discuss economic relief packages for companies hit by the coronavirus pandemic, the finance ministry said Monday. The meeting is aimed at hearing opinions from experts as South Korea seeks to stimulate economic growth after apparently bringing the coronavirus outbreak under control. Heads of economic organizations called for the government to swiftly implement financial aid programs for virus-hit bu
April 27, 2020
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S. Korea expands foreign aid, offers ‘K-quarantine’ boost
To shore up the global economy and contain the fallout from COVID-19, South Korea will provide $400 million for health projects in developing countries and postpone the maturity of debts worth $110 million, the country’s fiscal chief said Monday. Also, to keep up the momentum of the Moon Jae-in administration’s New Southern Policy and New Northern Policy, the government will double the volume of its official development assistance to $7 billion over the next three years. “
April 27, 2020
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Insurers' risk-based capital ratio falls in Q4
Insurance companies in South Korea saw their risk-based capital ratio fall in the fourth quarter of last year, data showed Monday. The risk-based capital (RBC) ratio -- the actual solvency capital divided by the minimum solvency capital required -- of insurance firms stood at 269.5 percent at the end of December, down 17.4 percentage points from three months earlier, according to the data from the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). The RBC ratio is required to stay above the regulatory stan
April 27, 2020
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BOK offers additional $1.2b to banks via US currency swap
The Bank of Korea (BOK) said Monday it will deliver an additional $1.26 billion to local banks under its currency swap deal with the US Fed in a move to help stabilize the local foreign exchange market. The BOK held its fifth online auction to provide up to $4 billion. Bids undershot the target amount, possibly indicating the stabilization of the local market, the BOK noted. "Considering that bids fell short of those of last week (at $2.12 billion), the recent drop in the London Interba
April 27, 2020
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4 in 10 listed firms log Q1 earnings surprises despite virus
Four in 10 major listed firms in South Korea pulled off earnings surprises in the first quarter of this year despite the coronavirus pandemic, market data said Monday. Fourteen out of the 35 companies listed on the country's main and secondary stock markets posted first-quarter operating income that were more than 10 percent higher than market consensuses, according to the data from Yonhap Infomax, the financial news arm of Yonhap News Agency. The firms covered the ones that unveiled first-qu
April 27, 2020
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Korea's April exports tipped to dip 25%: poll
South Korea's exports are expected to have plunged by a whopping 25 percent in April from a year earlier, a poll showed Monday, as the new coronavirus pandemic has dealt a harsh blow to global trade and corporate activities. Outbound shipments are estimated at $36.4 billion this month, according to the poll by Yonhap Infomax, the financial news arm of Yonhap News Agency. The survey was carried out on nine local brokerage houses. The sharp decrease was also attributable to the falling global o
April 27, 2020
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S. Korea to offer over $400m to emerging nations for coronavirus-related health projects
South Korea will offer more than $400 million to emerging nations this year to help them push for health projects against the novel coronavirus, Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said Monday. Hong made the remarks at a meeting with economy-related ministers earlier in the day as South Korea seeks to share coronavirus information with the world. The money will be offered through the nation's Economic Development Cooperation Fund, Hong said. South Korea will also postpone debt payments worth $110 m
April 27, 2020
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Safeguarding mask supplies at border
Soon after South Korea reported the first novel coronavirus infection here, the government moved swiftly to contain its spread. Not only health authorities, but each public office had its own role to play. The Korea Customs Service, a government agency under the Ministry of Economy and Finance, was assigned to prevent the possible outflow of masks, considered fundamental sanitary gear, to secure public safety. To stabilize South Korea’s face mask supply, the KCS embarked on
April 26, 2020
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[Herald Interview] ‘Preemptive customs actions have minimized COVID-19 impact’
South Korea has grabbed global attention for its early-stage prevention handling of the novel coronavirus pandemic with relatively little impact on the economy. Driving such innovation, along with the public health authorities, was the country’s customs agency, which promptly adjusted the clearance system to deal with the supply issues caused by the crisis. “Dedicated to safeguard the global supply chain, we have established and operated special customs clearance centers around th
April 26, 2020
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[News Focus] ‘Debt-based’ stock purchases surge 34% in one month
SEJONG -- Stock investments are often likened to a zero-sum game, as winners take the money of losers. It is impossible for every participant in the capital market to see capital gains even if the market is bullish, as their buying and selling timing is various. Further, the probability of becoming losers grows when individuals use credit-based purchase, which is dubbed the “leverage” investment. This allows investors to buy more stocks beyond their cash deposit
April 26, 2020
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S. Korea's economy to shrink 0.3% in 2020
South Korea's economy is expected to contract 0.3 percent this year, a private research institute said Sunday, as the coronavirus pandemic crippled economic activities worldwide. The forecast by Hyundai Research Institute, however, is higher than the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which has predicted that Korea's economy will shrink 1.2 percent this year as the global economy is expected to hit its worst year since the Great Depression of the 1930s over the pandemic. The world economy is
April 26, 2020