Most Popular
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10-man S. Korea lose to Indonesia to miss out on Paris Olympic football qualification
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Hybe-Ador feud should have limited effect on Hybe's overall performance: analysts
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Second Gimpo civil servant found dead, after apologizing for not finishing work
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DP leader says he will meet Yoon without conditions
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First-ever meeting of president, opposition chief set to finally happen
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NewJeans' singles, Japanese debut to proceed as planned, despite Hybe-Ador feud
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Blinken calls on China to press N. Korea to end its 'dangerous' behavior
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Experts raise concerns about Japan putting pressure on Naver over Line
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Samsung mobile chief, Google device head meet in Seoul
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Ship linked to NK arms shipments to Russia is moored in China: State Dept.
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[News Focus] Number of nonregular workers up 900,000 during Moon’s term
SEJONG – State employment data showed that job creation under the Moon administration two years has been entirely in nonregular positions. The number of regular jobs -- positions with permanent contracts and consequently greater protections for workers -- has fallen over the period. The figures suggest the number of regular workers stayed at a similar level during the first year of President Moon Jae-in’s term -- 13.42 million as of August 2017 and 13.43 million as of August 2018.
Jan. 27, 2020
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[News Focus] Boon or bane: How will real estate curbs play at the ballot box?
The Moon Jae-in administration’s continued efforts to curb skyrocketing housing prices were mostly attempts to divert the market’s liquidity towards innovative industries, to reduce the widening wealth gap, and to cut back on the nation’s snowballing household debts. But in light of the approaching parliamentary elections, slated for April this year, skepticism has been mounting that the government’s heavy-handed push may be populist gestures to divide political camps an
Jan. 27, 2020
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S. Korea's land price growth falls below 4% in 2019
South Korea's official land prices grew less than 4 percent in 2019, data showed Monday, expanding at a slower pace than the previous year for the first time since 2013. The country's land prices increased 3.92 percent on-year in 2019, slowing from a 4.58 percent gain in 2018, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. Land prices in Seoul posted the highest growth at 5.29 percent, followed by the administrative town of Sejong, 130 kilometers south of the capital city, w
Jan. 27, 2020
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Korean economy may pull of slower-than-expected growth in 2020
South Korea's economy is expected to rebound this year from the slowest growth in a decade last year, but it may continue to face many economic headwinds, including sluggish demands at home and abroad, analysts said Monday. Asia's fourth-largest economy grew 2 percent from a year earlier in 2019, the slowest since 2009, as its exports and facility investment remained weak, the Bank of Korea said last week. Earlier, the country's finance ministry expected the economy to grow in the lower 2 per
Jan. 27, 2020
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Woori Financial to shortlist new CEO candidates for banking unit
Woori Financial Group, a major South Korean banking group, plans to shortlist new CEO candidates for its flagship banking unit next week, a company official has said.Woori Financial has selected seven candidates for the top post at Woori Bank. It declined to identify them because the process is under way.The successful candidate will begin a two-year term as Woori Bank‘s CEO if approved at Woori Bank’s general shareholders‘ meeting in March, the official said.Woori Bank, South
Jan. 25, 2020
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BOK floats 6tr won worth of fresh bills ahead of Lunar New Year's Day
The Bank of Korea said Thursday it has issued over 6 trillion won ($5.15 billion) worth of fresh banknotes ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday that starts on Friday.The move apparently comes in preparation for high demand for fresh bills due to the long-lived tradition of elders offering cash gifts to younger ones after receiving deep bows as the first greeting in a new year.For the past 10 days, the South Korean central bank supplied about 6.09 trillion won worth of fresh banknotes to banks and
Jan. 23, 2020
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S. Korea fines Google over YouTube Premium service
South Korea's telecommunications regulator said Wednesday it has imposed a fine of 867 million won ($740,000) on Google Limited Liability Corp. for violating local telecom laws in the operation of its YouTube Premium service.In a two-year investigation through December 2018, the Korea Communications Commission (KCC) found Google didn't properly notify the YouTube Premium service users of the fact that the streaming service converts to a charged service after a one-month free trial service. "
Jan. 23, 2020
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S. Korea’s 2019 economic growth skids to lowest in decade
South Korea’s economy in 2019 marked the slowest growth pace in a decade, mostly weighed down by the US-China trade tensions, the central bank said Wednesday.The nation’s gross domestic product expanded 2.01 percent on-year, according to advance data from the Bank of Korea.While the government’s 2-percent target has been attained, it fell short of the potential growth rate of 2.5-2.6 percent. This also was the slowest on-year growth since 2009, when the economy grew 0.8 percen
Jan. 22, 2020
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S. Korea prepared to curb economic fallout from China coronavirus
South Korea's finance ministry said Wednesday it will make efforts to minimize possible economic fallout from the spread of the China coronavirus amid worries that it could hurt local consumption.Vice Finance Minister Kim Yong-beom made the remarks at a meeting with senior financial officials earlier in the day, the ministry said in a statement. South Korea's financial markets are seeing volatility rise amid jitters over the virus, which emerged in the central Chinese city of Wuhan late last mon
Jan. 22, 2020
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Korea's 2019 growth slowest in decade, Q4 expansion faster than expected
The South Korean economy expanded at the slowest pace in a decade in 2019, largely weighed down by an extended slump in outbound shipments amid a lengthy trade row between the United States and China, the central bank said Wednesday.South Korea's gross domestic product expanded 2 percent in 2019 from a year earlier, according to advance data from the Bank of Korea.The figure marks the slowest on-year growth since 2009, when Asia's fourth-largest economy expanded 0.7 percent in the aftermath of t
Jan. 22, 2020
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Korea's exports to rebound next month: finance minister
South Korea's finance minister voiced hope on Tuesday that the nation's exports are likely to post a monthly gain next month.Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki made the remarks as exports fell 0.2 percent in the first 20 days of January, marking the lowest rate of decline in a year, as outbound shipments of semiconductors rebounded.January exports are unlikely to rebound due to fewer working days later this month, Hong said, as the Lunar New Year holiday begins on Friday.Last year, the Lunar New Year
Jan. 21, 2020
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‘Most CEOs attending WEF pessimistic on 2020 economic growth’
A majority of corporate honchos attending the annual World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, have given the thumbs down to global economic growth this year, a survey by global accounting and consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers showed Tuesday.Over 50 percent of the corporate leaders have lowered their forecast for this year’s global economic growth pace, amid lingering uncertainties such as excessive regulations and the prolonged US-China trade war.The survey conducted between Septem
Jan. 21, 2020
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S. Korea to launch financial data exchange platform in March
South Korea will test-run a financial data exchange platform in March, enabling users to sell and purchase such data conveniently, the nation’s top financial regulator said Tuesday, in a move seen as an effort to accelerate digital transformation. According to the policymaking Financial Services Commission, the data will be uploaded to the platform by providers including financial and public institutions, insurance companies and mobile operators. It will then be purchased by buyers such as
Jan. 21, 2020
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Banks likely to ease lending to firms, but tighten household loans: poll
Banks in South Korea will likely expand their lending to local companies, especially small and medium-sized enterprises in the first quarter but tighten their rules on loans to local households, a central bank poll showed Tuesday.In a quarterly survey conducted by the Bank of Korea, the index measuring the banks' overall attitude toward fresh loans came to 4 for the January-March period, compared with negative 5 for the previous quarter.The rise comes amid expectations for better conditions for
Jan. 21, 2020
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Korea's exports down 0.2% in first 20 days of January
South Korea's exports fell 0.2 percent in the first 20 days of January, marking the lowest rate of decline in a year, as outbound shipments of semiconductors rebounded, data showed Tuesday.The country's exports stood at $25.7 billion in the January 1-20 period, down $40 million from the same period last year, according to the Korea Customs Service.The rate of decline was also much less than the 2 percent fall in the December 1-20 period last year, the data showed.By product, exports of semicondu
Jan. 21, 2020
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S. Korea vows to bolster economic cooperation with Russia, Mongolia
South Korea plans to bolster economic ties with Russia, Mongolia and other Central Asian nations and use the momentum to buttress recovery of the export-driven economy, the top fiscal policy chief said Monday.“We will strengthen economic cooperation with our neighboring nations in line with the New Northern Policy,” said Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki in a meeting with economy-related ministers. A cooperative scheme with Russia in nine key sectors including ra
Jan. 20, 2020
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Korea Eximbank to extend W69tr in loans to firms in 2020
The Export-Import Bank of Korea said Monday that it will extend 69 trillion won ($59.5 billion) in loans to South Korean companies this year to help boost the economy.The figures represent a 16 percent hike from 2019, according to the South Korean state-run policy lender.Under the plan, the Export-Import Bank of Korea set aside 20 trillion won for companies that make industrial materials, parts and equipment in 2020, compared with 19 trillion won in 2019.The move is the latest in a series of Sou
Jan. 20, 2020
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Korea's exports to Canada surge since launch of FTA
South Korea's exports to Canada have shot up 14 percent since the implementation of their free trade deal, data showed Monday, despite increased protectionism and the slowing economy around the globe.Outbound shipments to Canada stood at $5.6 billion in 2019, compared to $4.9 billion posted in 2014, according to the data from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The two countries implemented the bilateral FTA in January 2015 after decadelong negotiations.The combined trade between South K
Jan. 20, 2020
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S. Korea aims to boost agricultural exports by 6.7% in 2020
South Korea said Monday it seeks to expand its outbound shipments of agricultural goods by 6.7 percent to hit $7.5 billion in 2020 by diversifying its product portfolio and penetrating deeper into emerging markets including Southeast Asia.In 2019, exports of agricultural goods reached $7 billion, compared to $6.9 billion posted a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. Last year, South Korea's overall exports slipped 10.3 percent amid growing protectionism
Jan. 20, 2020
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ICT exports sink 20% in 2019 on trade row, chip slump
South Korea's exports of information and communications technology products nosedived nearly 20 percent on-year in 2019, data showed Monday, due mainly to a lengthy trade row between the United States and China and a drop in chip prices.Outbound ICT shipments totaled $176.9 billion last year, falling sharply from $220.4 billion in 2018, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The decrease was also caused by a base effect, as the country posted record-high exports in 2018.ICT exp
Jan. 20, 2020