Most Popular
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1 in 3 Koreans live alone, family types becoming diverse
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Korea, Japan finance chiefs vow to tame rampant FX market volatility
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US 'incredibly concerned' about suspected NK-Iran military ties
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K-pop group's manager dismissed for setting up spycam in theater dressing room
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K-pop singer lost consciousness after being hit by foul ball, cancels show
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Korean Muslim YouTuber's plan to build mosque in Incheon goes viral
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[Kim Seong-kon] Democracy and the future of South Korea
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Why is Apple Pay struggling to get purchase in Korea?
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Yoon's office denies considering liberal figures for key posts
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Seoul says Fu Bao loan 'not going to happen'
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Tax revenue continues to rise through April
South Korea's national tax revenue continued to rise in the first four months of the year bolstered by an increase in corporate and value added taxes, the finance ministry said Tuesday.The government collected a total of 105.3 trillion won ($93.1 billion) in dues in the January-April period, up 8.4 trillion won from a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Strategy and Finance. The amount is equal to 43.5 percent of the 242.3 trillion won in tax revenue earmarked for 2017. Taxes collected so
June 13, 2017
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Tougher lending rules to adversely affect economy: think tank
A move to tighten South Korea's lending rules to curb household debt could adversely affect the overall economy, a local think tank said Monday. In a report on the impact of lending rules and household debt, the Korea Economic Research Institute warned against stricter regulations involving the debt-to-income ratio as changes will force borrowers spend less and further drag down the already fragile economy."In South Korea, home prices are higher than the norm for an economy of this si
June 12, 2017
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Korea's direct investment in Vietnam tops $50b in 2016
South Korea has provided over $50 billion in foreign direct investment to Vietnam, data from Vietnam’s State Capital Investment Corp. showed Monday.The accumulated FDI by South Korean businesses in one of the fastest-growing economy in Asia reached $50.6 billion, spanning 5,773 projects from 1988 to 2016.In 2016, the volume of investment from South Korea reached some $6.9 billion, a 2.53 percent increase from 2015. It made up 30.8 percent of the entire FDI inflow into Vietnam. Japan a
June 12, 2017
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[Monitor] Next year’s budget plan up 6%
The Ministry of Strategy and Finance has drawn up the government’s proposal for next year’s spending on Monday, at a size of 424.5 trillion won, 6 percent larger than that of this year‘s.One of the largest increases of 8.9 percent is to be made on public welfare, health and employment, boosting the spending to 141.1 trillion won.On the other hand, environmental and cultural spending will be cut by 3.9 percent and 5 percent. The largest budget decrease will be made on social ove
June 12, 2017
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[Photo News] Visitors gather at model house for new town in Yangcheon-gu
June 12, 2017
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[Photo News] Onion prices surge over 50%
June 12, 2017
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Korea's finance minister to meet his Indian counterpart
Top economic policymakers of South Korea and India will hold talks later this week to discuss ways to enhance bilateral economic cooperation, the finance ministry here said Monday.In the fifth Seoul-New Delhi finance ministers' meeting to be held on Wednesday in Seoul, South Korea's Kim Dong-yeon and his Indian counterpart Arun Jaitley will share views on current macroeconomic situations facing both countries and economic policies being pursued to fuel growth. They will also talk about issues li
June 12, 2017
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Korea joins privacy rules on corporate transfer of data among APEC economies
South Korea has acceded to a single privacy framework for the corporate transfer of data across Pacific Rim border nations, known as the Cross-Border Privacy Rules system, government officials said Monday.The CBPR system, endorsed by the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation in 2011, is aimed at facilitating e-commerce among the APEC countries and making the safe transfer of privacy data involving e-commerce and free movement of data. Under the system, participating businesses are required to implem
June 12, 2017
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BOK chief hints at monetary tightening
South Korea’s central bank chief said Monday he may consider monetary tightening if the economic recovery accelerates, in an indication of a more hawkish stance.“Uncertainties about growth remain still high and inflation pressure from the demand side is not strong. Thus, we need to maintain expansionary monetary policy for the time being,” BOK Gov. Lee Ju-yeol said in a speech to celebrate the bank’s 67thh anniversary.“However, if economic recovery continues and sho
June 12, 2017
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Controversy brews over tax increases
The 11.2 trillion won ($10 billion) extra budget unveiled last week is set to be funded mostly by excessive tax revenues without issuing state bonds and thus increasing the national debt that currently stands at 680 trillion won.This may help President Moon Jae-in persuade opposition lawmakers to agree to the additional fiscal spending plan, which was proposed less than a month after he took office to implement programs designed to create more jobs and boost the livelihoods of low-income familie
June 12, 2017
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Korea to extend $1b loan to Philippine leader's infrastructure program
South Korea will extend a soft loan of $1 billion to a massive infrastructure development plan in the Philippines over the coming six years, industry sources said Monday.The Export-Import Bank of Korea (Korea Eximbank) will provide lower-interest, long-term loans under the state-run economic development cooperation fund President Rodrigo Duterte is planning to spend $168 billion on big-ticket items such as railways and ports over the next six years as part of his ambitious socioeconomic ag
June 12, 2017
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Korea unlikely to achieve 3% growth this year
South Korea is unlikely to achieve economic growth of 3 percent this year, according to analysts and foreign brokerages on Monday, as mounting household debt crimps private consumption. The Bank of Korea has predicted that the economy would grow 2.6 percent this year, compared to a 2.8-percent expansion last year.Japanese investment bank Nomura Securities, in a research note released last Tuesday, raised its forecast for South Korea's economic growth this year to 2.7 percent, from a previous for
June 12, 2017
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Govt. seeks 6% expansion in 2018 budget
Government ministries and other public entities are hoping to boost their annual spending by 6 percent next year to better meet social welfare, education, and research and development outlays, the finance ministry said Monday.According to the Ministry of Strategy and Finance, government offices have submitted preliminary requests for their 2018 budget that totaled 424.5 trillion won ($377.1 billion), compared with 400.5 trillion won earmarked for this year. The request, if finalized, will mark t
June 12, 2017
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Korea’s household debt-to-GDP ratio rises 3rd-fastest on-year
South Korea showed the third-highest rise of household debt compared to gross domestic product on-year at the end of last year out of the 43 nations surveyed by the Bank for International Settlements, data showed Sunday.South Korea’s household debt-to-GDP ratio came to 92.8 percent as of the fourth quarter of 2016, up 4.7 percentage points compared to the previous year, according to data from the Basel-based financial institution.Before South Korea came Norway, which rose at the steepest r
June 11, 2017
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Korea's exports plunge 12.2% in first 10 days of June
South Korea's exports plunged 12.2 percent in the first 10 days of June from a year earlier, the latest customs data showed Sunday, after posting seventh straight months of growth.Total outbound shipments reached $12.2 billion during the cited period, down 12.2 percent from the same period last year, according to the findings compiled by the Korea Customs Service. The decrease comes partly on the back of huge increases of ships exported in early June of last year, the agency said."The numbe
June 11, 2017
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Korea ranks 5th among OECD states in Q1 food price growth
South Korea ranked fifth among the 35 Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development countries in the growth of food prices in the first quarter, OECD data showed Saturday. In the January-March period, Korean food prices jumped 3.9 percent from a quarter earlier, following Turkey with 9.7 percent growth, Latvia's 5.9 percent, the Czech Republic's 4.1 percent and Estonia's 4 percent, the data showed. Local officials say the spread of avian influenza and the outbreak of foot-and-mouth
June 11, 2017
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Aging society to fuel growth in agriculture-fishery sector, health care services
South Korea's rapidly aging society is expected to fuel growth in the country's agricultural and fisheries sector, and health care services, a local think tank said Sunday, calling on the country to better prepare for changes down the road.According to the report by the Korea Institute for Industrial Economics and Trade, the number of local households whose head is aged over 60 will jump from 28.7 percent as of last year to 40.7 percent in 2026 and reach 57.8 percent in 2045. The state-run
June 11, 2017
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Korea expected to be 15th-largest rice producer in 2017: FAO
South Korea is expected to become the world's 15th largest producer of rice this year, a report by the United Nations food organization showed Sunday.According to the Food Outlook by Food and Agriculture Organization, South Korea is set to produce 4.1 million tons of rice this year, down 3.1 percent from 4.2 million tons in 2016.The total should be equivalent to 0.8 percent of all rice to be harvested this year around the world that could reach 502.6 million tons, the report said. Numbers
June 11, 2017
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S. Korea ranks 5th among OECD states in Q1 food price growth
South Korea ranked fifth among the 35 Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries in the growth of food prices in the first quarter, OECD data showed Saturday. In the January-March period, Korean food prices jumped 3.9 percent from a quarter earlier, following Turkey with 9.7 percent growth, Latvia's 5.9 percent, the Czech Republic's 4.1 percent and Estonia's 4 percent, the data showed. Local officials say the spread of avian influenza and the outbreak of foot-and-mout
June 10, 2017
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[Monitor] Unemployment credit applicants surpass 300,000
The number of applicants for “unemployment credit” has surpassed 300,000 in the past 10 months since its launch last August, said the National Pension Service Friday.The unemployment credit is a program for job-seekers in which the government pays up to 75 percent of their national pension fees. This enables the jobless to maximize the amount of pension they receive in the future since their unemployment period is recognized as the duration of entitlement to the national pension just
June 9, 2017