Most Popular
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Korea's food inflation surges to third-highest in OECD
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W13tr cash handout likely top agenda for Yoon's 1st meeting with Lee
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[AtoZ into Korean mind] Humor in Korea: Navigating the line between what's funny and not
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Med school deans urge for freeze of 2025 quota
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Yoon seeks rebound, taps 5-term lawmaker as chief of staff
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Medical standoff deepens as doctors reject new med school plan, talks
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N. Korea says Kim guided simulated nuclear counterattack drill
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Culture Ministry, KTO unveil Hallyu-themed tours
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[Herald Interview] Why Toss invited hackers to penetrate its system
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BOK chief says won will level off if Middle East conflict eases
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Big firms sharply cut performance pay, dividends on dismal earnings
Major South Korean companies sharply cut payments of performance-based pay and dividends for 2019 due to abysmal earnings, industry sources said Wednesday. Top-cap Samsung Electronics Co. recently decided to lower the maximum amount of performance pay for workers at its semiconductor division to 29 percent of their annual salary from 50 percent in 2018. Samsung's operating income tumbled 53 percent on-year to 27.7 trillion won ($23.4 billion) last year due mainly to a protracted slump in chip
Feb. 5, 2020
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BOK board members see slow but clear signs of improvement: minutes
A majority of South Korea's monetary policy board members apparently see gradual but definite signs of improvements in economic conditions surrounding the country, minutes from their latest rate-setting meeting showed Tuesday, possibly indicating the board may stand pat on rate cuts for some time. "The local economy continues to face an overall slump but is showing signs of improvement in certain sectors," one of the board's seven members told the meeting held Jan. 17, according to t
Feb. 4, 2020
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S. Korea set to approve tougher penalties against hoarding of protective masks
South Korea is set to approve tougher penalties Tuesday against those who engage in hoarding of protective masks, as China's coronavirus outbreak has sparked a sharp rise in demand for such masks, officials said. Under the tougher penalties, a person who engages in hoarding of protective masks will face a prison sentence of a maximum two years or a maximum fine of 50 million won ($42,108), the Ministry of Economy and Finance said in a statement. Such penalties will go into effect Wedne
Feb. 4, 2020
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Authorities to provide liquidity to coronavirus-hit firms
South Korea's financial authorities said Tuesday that they are working on a plan to provide emergency liquidity to smaller firms and self-employed people hit hard by a new coronavirus. The plan includes extension the maturity of debts and provision of fresh loans to eligible smaller firms and self-employed people, officials said. Businesses that could be eligible for the financial assistance are likely to include restaurants, lodging facilities and others in the tourism sector. The authoriti
Feb. 4, 2020
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Korea's consumer price growth hits 14-month high in January
SEJONG --South Korea's consumer prices rose 1.5 percent on-year in January, marking their fastest gain in 14 months, the statistics agency said Tuesday. The country's inflation also rose 0.6 percent on-month in January on the back of increased prices of agricultural and industrial products, according to Statistics Korea. Core inflation, which excludes agricultural and petroleum products, increased 0.9 percent from a year earlier. Utility prices were unchanged on-year in January, while prices
Feb. 4, 2020
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New coronavirus to strain Korean economy: finance minister
The accelerating spread of the novel coronavirus, unless terminated swiftly, is likely to weigh down on South Korea’s economy, the nation’s chief fiscal policymaker said Monday. With this latest stance, Seoul’s government tightened its guard from its earlier suggestion that the economic impact of the epidemic would remain limited. “Unless terminated in its early stage, the novel coronavirus will act as downside pressure on the economy” Deputy Prime Minister an
Feb. 3, 2020
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Government intervention helps quell exchange rate volatility in short term: BOK
The South Korean government’s intervention in the foreign exchange market, including the buying and selling of US dollars, has so far helped stabilize volatile exchange rates, a report released by the nation’s central bank showed Monday. According to the Bank of Korea’s recent report on the local foreign exchange industry, the government’s decision to purchase around $100 million from 2005 to 2018 helped rein in currency volatility by 0.003 percentage point in terms of
Feb. 3, 2020
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S. Korea to allocate W400b for exporters amid new coronavirus
South Korea said Monday it will chip in 400 billion won ($334 million) to support exporters potentially facing troubles due to the outbreak of the new coronavirus in China. "Concerns over South Korea's exports have been rising due mainly to the geopolitical tension in the Middle East and the latest spread of the novel virus," Industry Minister Sung Yun-mo said during a meeting with trade-related organizations in Seoul. "Although the new coronavirus has not yet had any impact on
Feb. 3, 2020
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Retailers in S. Korea close outlets due to new coronavirus
A string of major retailers, including duty-free shops and hypermarket chains, across the have temporarily shut down some of their stores, industry sources said Monday, stoking concerns that China coronavirus outbreak could affect consumer confidence in the sector. Shilla Duty Free, one of the country's leading duty-free operator, on Sunday closed its two outlets in central Seoul and on the southern resort island of Jeju after two coronavirus-infected people had each visited the shops. The co
Feb. 3, 2020
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S. Korea's debt-GDP ratio increases at 2nd-fastest pace worldwide
South Korea's ratio of private debt to gross domestic product grew at the second-fastest click among major economies in the third quarter of 2019, data showed Monday. Household debt in Asia's fourth-largest economy accounted for 95.1 percent of the country's GDP as of end-September last year, up 3.9 percentage points from a year earlier, according to the data by the Institute of International Finance. The growth rate was the second highest among 34 major countries in the world,
Feb. 3, 2020
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Novel coronavirus expected to weigh on S. Korea's economy: finance minister
The rapid spread of the novel coronavirus is expected to weigh on South Korea's economy unless the epidemic is contained swiftly, Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said Monday. The coronavirus epidemic has had a limited impact on the Korean economy so far, but it is difficult to determine how the virus will affect the nation's economy, Hong told a meeting with economy-related ministers earlier in the day. "There is a high possibility that this situation could slow China's economy," Hong
Feb. 3, 2020
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[News Focus] Korea’s payouts for jobless people soar 103% in 5 years
SEJONG -- In the early and mid-2010s, the government’s yearly payouts for jobless people ranged between 3.3 trillion won ($2.7 billion) and 4.5 trillion won. Amid moderate growth in the volume of unemployment benefits, the figure recorded 4.67 trillion won in 2016 during the previous administration, according to the Korea Employment Information Service. But the situation began to change in 2017 in the aftermath of en masse business closures by self-employed people, who account
Feb. 2, 2020
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S. Korea joins efforts to conclude RCEP negotiations this year
South Korea said Sunday it will attend a high-level meeting on a mega Asia-Pacific trade pact this week as part of its efforts to expand its trade network around the globe. During the two-day meeting that kicks off in Bali, Indonesia, on Monday, the participants will set a detailed timeline of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and seek to hold the final signing ceremony later in 2020, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. It will be the first gathering
Feb. 2, 2020
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Korea's exports down for 14th straight month on extended chip slump
South Korea's exports fell at a slower-than-expected pace in January but extended the slump to a 14th consecutive month due to fewer working days and still weak demand for chips, data showed Saturday. Outbound shipments came to $43.35 billion last month, down 6.1 percent from $46.17 billion a year earlier, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The declining pace was slower than the median forecast of a 7.5 percent on-year drop as a fall in chip exports
Feb. 1, 2020
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S. Korea eases rules on extended work hours
South Korea introduced a new regulation Friday allowing an exemption from the 52-hour workweek restriction for institutes involved in crucial research projects or companies that see workloads unexpectedly surge. The Ministry of Employment and Labor proclaimed the revised enforcement rule of the Labor Standards Act, which loosened the requirements for granting special extended work hours. The rule went into effect immediately. The extended work hours system, which temporarily all
Jan. 31, 2020
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S. Korea ready to take action against economic fallout from new coronavirus
South Korea said Friday it is ready to take action to reduce the impact of the new coronavirus on Asia's fourth-largest economy. The country reported its seventh case of the novel virus earlier in the day despite enhanced quarantine efforts to stem its spread. "So far, the (outbreak) has not had a significant impact on our economy," Vice Finance Minister Kim Yong-beom said during a meeting with economy-related vice ministers. The remark came as the global financial market has been
Jan. 31, 2020
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Negative outlook prevails in Korean industry: KIS
The industrial outlook for 2020 is negative for eight of South Korea’s 11 major industries, in part due to the slowing global economy, according to credit rating agency Korea Investors Service on Thursday. Sectors that fell into the “negative industrial outlook” category were construction, steel, distribution, automotive, transportation, petrochemicals, life insurance and non-life insurance. The outlook for refiners, shipbuilders and securities rated neutral, according to t
Jan. 30, 2020
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BOK not mulling further rate cut over coronavirus: official
The nation’s central bank is not considering additional rate cuts to counter the potential impact of the Wuhan coronavirus on the Korean economy, a senior official said Thursday. “We need to keep monitoring the outbreak. Although it is expected to affect sentiment and the market, including the country’s economic growth, consumer prices and current account, it’s too early to predict the extent of its impact,” Yoon Myun-shik, senior deputy governor of the Bank of K
Jan. 30, 2020
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S. Korea enjoys trade surplus of $71.5b with FTA partners
South Korea enjoyed a surplus of $71.5 billion in trade with free trade agreement partners in 2019, data showed Thursday. The country suffered a deficit of $32.4 billion from trade with non-FTA partners, according to the data compiled by the Korea Customs Service. Last year, South Korea posted a trade surplus for the 11th consecutive year at $39.1 billion. Outbound shipments to FTA partners also decreased at a slower pace of 9.2 percent on-year to $398.4 billion in 2019, compared with the de
Jan. 30, 2020
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Banks' lending rates slightly up in Dec.
Lending rates on fresh loans extended by banks in South Korea slightly rebounded in December from a month earlier, central bank data showed Thursday. The average interest rate on all new loans extended by banks on households in the month came to 2.98 percent, up 0.02 percentage point from the month before, according to preliminary data from the Bank of Korea. The rate on all outstanding loans averaged 3.4 percent last month, down 0.02 percentage point from November. The average rate on fresh
Jan. 30, 2020