Shinhan to bet big on insurance tech startup

Shinhan Financial Group announced Tuesday that it will invest 6.5 billion won ($4.82 million) into Habit Factory, an advanced data analysis insurance technology start-up, through the group’s strategic investment fund. According to the financial institution, Habit Factory is a Seoul-based "insurtech" company -- a portmanteau of “insurance” and “technology” that aims to innovate the traditional insurance industry through the use of information technologies

Oct. 10, 2023

Seoul sees no major disruptions in oil, gas imports amid Israel-Palestine conflict

South Korea has seen no major impact from the Israel-Palestine conflict on the country's imports of crude oil and natural gas, the trade ministry said Monday. Officials from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the state-run Korea National Oil Corp. and the Korea Gas Corp held an emergency meeting earlier in the day to look into the supply of the two key fuel sources following the conflict, the ministry said. The government expects no delays or disruptions in importing oil and gas fr

Oct. 9, 2023

Foreigners ditch sluggish Korean stocks

Foreign investors dumped more than 6 trillion won ($4.44 billion) worth of shares listed on Kospi, Korea’s main bourse, in the past three months amid the slow stock market, data from the Korea Exchange showed Sunday. Non-Korean investors’ net buying on Kospi this year dropped to 7.23 trillion won on Friday after reaching the peak at 14.06 trillion won on June 16. The offloaded shares in the past three months -- worth 6.73 trillion won -- mean foreigners have sold nearly half of the

Oct. 8, 2023

Subway fare in greater Seoul rises to 1,400 won

The basic fare for the subway in the Seoul metropolitan area has gone up by 150 won (US$0.11) to 1,400 won starting Saturday, city government officials said. The adjusted fare was applied from the first trains operating across Seoul, the surrounding Gyeonggi Province and Incheon earlier in the day. It is the first time that public transportation fares in the capital have been raised in eight years since the last markups in June 2015. The basic subway fare now stands at 1,400 won if paid by credi

Oct. 7, 2023

Foreign reserves down for 2nd month in September on strong dollar, stabilization measures

South Korea's foreign reserves fell for a second straight month in September due to the US dollar's rise and market stabilization measures, central bank data showed Friday. The country's foreign reserves had come to $414.12 billion as of end-September, down $4.18 billion from the previous month, according to the data from the Bank of Korea. The dollar's ascent last month reduced the converted value of holdings denominated in other currencies, the BOK explained. The dollar ind

Oct. 6, 2023

BOK, BIS, other central banks seek to launch cross-border transaction project

South Korea's central bank said Friday that, along with the Bank for International Settlements and other central banks, it will launch a project together to automate compliance procedures and offer real-time monitoring in cross-border transactions. In a statement, the Bank of Korea said BIS Innovation Hub Singapore Centre, Reserve Bank of Australia, the BOK, Bank Negara Malaysia and Monetary Authority of Singapor will launch a project, dubbed Project Mandala, which explores the feasibility

Oct. 6, 2023

S. Korea's consumer prices accelerate in September on higher oil costs

South Korea's on-year consumer prices accelerated by the most in five months in September, driven by higher oil costs and rising prices of some farm goods, data showed Thursday. Consumer prices, a key gauge of inflation, rose 3.7 percent last month from a year earlier, according to the data from Statistics Korea. In August, consumer prices increased 3.4 percent on-year, accelerating from 2.3 percent growth tallied in July. It was the highest on-year rise since the 3.7 percent growth tallied

Oct. 5, 2023

Korea to begin experiment with central bank digital currency

South Korean authorities are to chart out a new era of digital payments, carrying out a pilot test for a central bank digital currency, or CBDC, to determine how it could be used as savings and transactions vehicles, according to an announcement made by related authorities on Wednesday. From the fourth quarter of next year, not only banks and other financial institutions, but also individuals will be able to test out the CBDC platform under a pilot program. The Bank of Korea, Financial Services

Oct. 4, 2023

S. Korea, UAE hold formal talks for free trade deal

South Korea and the United Arab Emirates have launched formal negotiations for a bilateral free trade agreement, Seoul's industry ministry said Wednesday. The two nations agreed in 2021 to push for forging a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, and the first round of talks kicked off in Seoul on Monday for a four-day run, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The CEPA is a type of FTA, which emphasizes a broader scope of economic cooperation and exchanges on top

Oct. 4, 2023

Industrial output rises 2.2% in August on chip recovery

South Korea's industrial output rebounded in August from a month earlier on the back of a robust recovery in the chip sector, data showed Wednesday. The industrial output advanced 2.2 percent in August from the previous month, after slipping 0.8 percent in July, according to Statistics Korea. It was the sharpest growth since a 2.3 percent rise tallied in February 2021. The rebound came after the country's industrial output, retail sales and facility investment all lost ground at the sa

Oct. 4, 2023

Why retail investors are flocking to state bonds

The South Korean government has decided to allow retail investors to directly invest in state bonds from next year amid the recent fervor for bond investments among individuals. Last month, the government announced its planned revision to the State Bond Act, which aims to roll out bond products solely for retail investors. Korea issues state bonds worth 150 trillion won ($110 billion) every year, but the market has been largely dominated by institutional investors. As of the end of June, almost

Oct. 3, 2023

S. Korea's drop in exports eases in Sept. on chip sales recovery

South Korea's exports fell for the 12th consecutive month in September but logged the smallest on-year decline so far this year, as global demand for semiconductors has been on the recovery track, the industry ministry said Sunday. Outbound shipments fell 4.4 percent on-year to $54.66 billion last month, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. Exports have marked an on-year drop since October last year amid aggressive monetary tightening by the United S

Oct. 1, 2023

Households in capital areas hold 70 pct larger assets than non-metropolitan families: data

Assets held by South Korean households in Seoul and the surrounding metropolitan areas were some 70 percent larger than those owned by households in the non-metropolitan regions, data showed Saturday. The average per-household assets in Seoul, the western city of Incheon and the surrounding Gyeonggi Province came to 692.46 million won (US$512,554) as of end-March, some 69.2 percent greater than 409.35 million won owned by each non-capital household, according to the data by Statistics Korea pres

Sept. 30, 2023

Inflation driving up costs to eat out

The inflation rate for food prices at dining establishments and prices of processed foods has been increasing at a faster pace than the overall inflation rate for consumer goods, a state-led agency’s data showed Saturday. According to Statistics Korea, the inflation rate for food prices at dining establishments in August came to 5.3 percent, while the inflation of consumer prices reached 3.4 percent. Government data also showed that food prices at restaurants have been increasing for 27 st

Sept. 30, 2023

S. Korean refiners set for turnaround in Q3 on stronger margins

Major South Korean refiners are expected to post a turnaround in their third quarter earnings, recovering from losses and dismal profits in the previous quarter, on the back of stronger margins amid rising oil prices, according to analysts Friday. SK Innovation Co., the energy unit under SK Group, is forecast to log 667.5 billion won (US$498 million) in the operating profit for the July-September period, turning around from a loss of 107 billion won in the previous three months, according to the

Sept. 29, 2023

Chuseok food cost hits all-time high

Amid rising inflation, an increasing number of Koreans are opting for more affordable ready-to-eat meals, or meal kit, products over traditional dishes to prepare a table for the Korean Thanksgiving holiday of Chuseok that runs from Sept. 28 through Sept. 30 this year. During Chuseok, setting up a "charye" -- a table full of food offerings including fruits, rice, fish and meat -- is prepared to honor one’s ancestors. However, the cost of preparing a four-person charye is expected

Sept. 28, 2023

Biz outlook stays flat for October amid slowing economy

South Korea's business sentiment remained unchanged for October amid sluggish exports of the country's key products, a central bank poll showed Wednesday. Local companies' business sentiment index amounted to 73 for the coming month, unchanged from the previous month, according to the survey by the Bank of Korea. The index measures corporate prospects for business conditions the following month. A reading below 100 means pessimists outnumber optimists. The central bank said busine

Sept. 27, 2023

S. Korea’s consumer sentiment turns sour in September: BOK index

South Korean consumers turned pessimistic about overall economic conditions in September for the first time in four months, amid woes over weak exports and rising prices. The composite consumer sentiment index (CCSI) in September stood at 99.7, down 3.4 points from the 103.1 a month before, the Bank of Korea’s report showed Tuesday. “The concerns about the weak exports and contraction in purchasing power due to the rise in prices pulled down the composite consumer sentiment index,&

Sept. 26, 2023

[Herald Interview] S&P economist tells Korea to brace for worst-case scenario with China

China’s economic slowdown could deteriorate more than initially projected, increasing the strain on Korea’s export-reliant growth in the short term, an economist from S&P projected. “The number one issue (in China) has to do with private sector debt and over-leveraging. That is a problem that has been building for more than a decade," Diego Iribarren from S&P Global Market Intelligence said in an interview held in the company’s office in central Seoul on Sept

Sept. 25, 2023

Major Korean firms fare worse than US counterparts in H1

South Korea's major companies performed far worse than their US counterparts in the first half of 2023 due to the sluggish chip and energy sectors amid a global economic slowdown, a report showed Monday. South Korea's top 100 nonfinancial firms listed on the main local bourse saw their combined sales edge up 0.3 percent on-year to $746.3 billion in the January-June period, according to the report by the Federation of Korean Industries. In contrast, the combined top line of the 100 lead

Sept. 25, 2023