Most Popular
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Blinken calls on China to press N. Korea to end its 'dangerous' behavior
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Naver’s Line ownership in jeopardy as Japan ups pressure
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South Korea to launch space security center under spy agency
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Hybe refutes Ador CEO Min's denial of breach of trust
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S. Korea, Japan could consider simplified entry agreement: Seoul official
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New celebrity-endorsed therapy for face contouring requires only a pair of rubber bands
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[Weekender] How DDP emerged as an icon of Seoul
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Doctor group's incoming head renews call for govt. to scrap medical school quota hike for dialogue
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[Herald Interview] Guggenheim Museum makes a push for technology-based art with LG
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Korea’s top finance firms put aside W1.7tr for Hong Kong-tied ELS compensation
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S. Korea's Q3 jobless numbers top 1 mil mark for first time
South Korea's jobless numbers in the third quarter surpassed the 1 million mark for the first time since the country struggled with the fallout of the Asian financial crisis, government data showed Sunday. Numbers released by Statistics Korea showed the average monthly unemployment stood slightly over 1.06 million in the July-September period, up a sharp 102,000 from a year earlier. This is the highest reading for the third quarter after the 1.33 million tallied in 1999,
Oct. 14, 2018
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S. Korea sees surplus from media content surge in Aug.
South Korea's trade surplus in the media content sector grew a 16-month high in August on the back of the growing popularity of Korean culture products and eased tensions with CHina over a US missile system, central bank data showed Saturday.South Korea logged a trade surplus of $42.7 million in sound and image services in August, the highest since $55 million tallied in April last year, according to the data compiled by the Bank of Korea.The trade balance in this s
Oct. 13, 2018
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Trade minister to attend RCEP talks in Singapore
South Korea's trade minister will attend the ministerial meeting of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership in Singapore to discuss ways to deepen economic ties with the fast-growing bloc, his office said Friday.Kim Hyun-chong will participate in the latest round of talks for RCEP -- a proposed mega trade deal involving Asian nations -- in Singapore on Saturday, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said. RCEP is in essence a massive regional trade deal between the 10 members
Oct. 12, 2018
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Economy backed by exports, domestic consumption despite growing uncertainties: finance ministry
South Korea's economy is showing decent growth on the back of robust exports and domestic consumption, although capital spending and job creation remain sluggish and external uncertainties are on the rise, a government report said Friday.A weaker job market, rate hikes in the United States and rising oil prices pose downside risks for Asia's fourth-largest economy, the finance ministry said in its monthly economic assessment report."The economy is still on a firm growth path backed by sound
Oct. 12, 2018
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Korea's jobless rate rises in Sept., sluggish job creation continues
South Korea's jobless rate rose slightly in September due to a fall in employment in the retail and restaurant sectors, with poorer-than-expected job creation continuing, government data showed Friday.The unemployment rate stood at 3.6 percent last month, up 0.3 percentage point from a year earlier, marking the highest rate for September since September 2005, according to the report compiled by Statistics Korea.The number of employed people reached 27.05 million in September, up 45,000 from the
Oct. 12, 2018
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Korean banks' household lending slows in Sept.
Household lending by South Korean banks grew at a slower pace in September than the previous month despite an increase in mortgages, central bank data showed Thursday.Outstanding household loans from banks came to 807.7 trillion won ($707.9 billion) as of the end of last month, up 5.1 trillion won from June, according to the data from the Bank of Korea.The on-month gain was lower than the 5.9 trillion won tallied in August.But home-backed mortgages increased by 3.6 trillion won on-month to 594.7
Oct. 11, 2018
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Korea ranks 2nd in World Bank's human capital index
South Korea came in second in the World Bank Group's human capital index, which shows the productivity of the next generation of workers, the bank's report showed Thursday.Singapore ranked first with its index standing at 0.88. South Korea and Japan tied for second with 0.84. Hong Kong, Finland, Ireland and Australia came next in that order, according to the report titled "World Development Report 2019: Changing Nature of Work."The HCI measures the amount of human capital that a child
Oct. 11, 2018
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Korea's current account hits $8.44b in Aug.
South Korea's current account surplus continued to remain firmly in the black in August on brisk overseas sales, central bank data showed Thursday.The country's current account surplus came to $8.44 billion in August, up from $6.03 billion in the black a year ago, according to the preliminary data from the Bank of Korea. From a month earlier, the August figure declined from a yearly high of $8.76 billion.Asia's fourth-largest economy has maintained a current account surplus for 78 straight month
Oct. 11, 2018
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Korean economy underperforms growth potential
Economists have raised the alarm on the weakening growth momentum of the Korean economy, calling on the government to take steps to prevent the country from being stuck in a prolonged slowdown.Local research institutes predict that Asia’s fourth-largest economy will next year expand at a slower pace than its annual potential growth rate, which is estimated by the Bank of Korea to be around 2.8-2.9 percent. The potential growth rate refers to the maximum growth an economy could achieve thro
Oct. 10, 2018
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[Monitor] Economic value of household labor reaches W360tr
The economic value of nonpaying housework reached some 360 trillion won as of 2014, according to a report from Statistics Korea. That figure, the most recent available, was 33.3 percent higher than five years earlier, when it stood at 90.1 trillion won. It was also one-fourth of the nation’s gross domestic product. If converted into a monthly wage, it would be about 590,000 won.Nonpaying housework refers to preparing meals, cleaning, taking care of children, pets and plants, purchasing goo
Oct. 10, 2018
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Corporate sales, employee salary show gains while hiring stalls
The country's leading firms have increased their sales and employee salaries over recent years but hiring has stalled, an analysis showed Wednesday.Corporate appraiser CEO Score studied 307 of the top 500 companies in terms of sales and found that their annual employee salaries rose 12.5 percent on average between 2014 and 2017, from 63 million won ($55,668) to 70.9 million won. Staff sizes, by comparison, increased 1.8 percent, from 1.19 million to 1.21 million.The companies were selected on th
Oct. 10, 2018
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Household debts rise in both total, individual average from year ago
Nearly four out of 10 South Koreans have an average household debt of 80 million won ($70,690), an increase of 3.3 percent from a year ago, according to figures from a credit information provider.The data, provided by National Information & Credit Evaluation Inc. to ruling party lawmaker Kim Byung-wook for parliamentary inspection, showed that 19 million people, or 37 percent of the country's population, had household debts as of the end of June this year. Their lending totaled 1,531 trillio
Oct. 10, 2018
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IMF cuts growth outlook for S. Korea to 2.8 % this year
The International Monetary Fund on Tuesday lowered its growth outlook for South Korea to 2.8 percent from 3 percent amid sluggish corporate investment and domestic consumption. It also slashed the country's growth projection for next year to 2.6 percent from 2.9 percent, becoming the latest global institution to be less optimistic about Asia's fourth largest economy.Last month, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development also trimmed its growth estimate for South Korea to 2.7 perce
Oct. 9, 2018
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Facility investment down as manufacturers move abroad
Domestic facility investment has continued to decline in recent months, while overseas investment by the nation’s manufacturers is on a steep rise.Facility investment in South Korea contracted 1.4 percent on-month in August, marking the sixth consecutive month of downward movement, according to data released last week by Statistics Korea. It was the longest streak of decline in facility investment in Asia’s fourth-largest economy in nearly two decades. The figure fell for 10 months i
Oct. 8, 2018
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Unpaid household chores valued at W361tr in 2014: data
The value of unpaid household work, such as meal preparation and child care, was estimated at 361 trillion won (US$319 billion) in 2014, state data showed Monday.The 2014 figure was up 90.1 trillion won, or 33 percent, from five years earlier, according to the data released by Statistics Korea.All household chores, including caring for family members, and volunteering, were included in the so-called household satellite account, and the calculation shows the value of unpaid services and activitie
Oct. 8, 2018
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BOK chief affirms independent rate-setting decision
South Korea's central bank chief stressed its right to make monetary policy decisions without political interference a week before the rate-setting meeting."I will not freeze the interest rate even though a rate hike is necessary, or vice versa, in an apparent response to outside voices," Bank of Korea Gov. Lee Ju-yeol said in a media meeting held on Friday.His comment follows calls by some high-ranking government officials, including Prime Minister Lee Nak-yeon, for a rate increase as
Oct. 7, 2018
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S. Korea, UK sign MOU for expanded trade partnership
South Korea's trade promotion agency said Sunday it has reached an initial agreement with Britain to expand the two countries' already-strong partnership. The Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency said its CEO, Kwon Pyung-oh, signed the memorandum of understanding with Britain's International Trade Secretary, Liam Fox, for a strategic partnership in bilateral investments, trade information exchanges, and joint overseas projects. "Britain is the world's fifth-biggest economy in terms of gr
Oct. 7, 2018
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[Photo News] Post-Brexit partnership
Oct. 5, 2018
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Korea's consumer price growth hits 1-year high in September
South Korea's consumer price growth continued to stay above 1 percent in September, hitting the highest level in a year, on a sharp rise in prices for agricultural goods and the service sector, government data showed Friday.The country's consumer price index climbed 1.9 percent last month from a year earlier, accelerating from the previous month's 1.4 percent on-year gain, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea.The on-year rise marks the highest since September last year, when the co
Oct. 5, 2018
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Real estate takes up largest proportion of Koreans' assets: report
Real estate accounted for more than half of South Korean households' total assets, with the rate of homes owned for investments far higher compared to major economies, a report showed Thursday.It is based upon an analysis of features of household assets in five nations -- South Korea, the United States, Britain, Australia and the Netherlands -- by the Mirae Asset Retirement Institute. According to the report, real estate property accounted on average for 51.3 percent of the total assets of South
Oct. 4, 2018