While there is no official definition agreed on globally, zombie firms are widely referred to as those that are risky, unproductive and unviable, yet which still manage to avoid immediate default, most likely thanks to continued support from banks, investors or governments, in light of misaligned incentives. The existence of zombie firms can be said to be inevitable for any country adopting market capitalism, at least for a certain period and under certain conditions, such as immediately after u

Viewpoints Sept. 30, 2024

The South Korean government is expected to see another significant shortfall in tax revenue this year, due mainly to the sluggish semiconductors industry and the real estate market slump, according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance on Thursday. The government is forecast to collect 337.7 trillion won ($254 billion) this year, 29.6 trillion won -- 8.1 percent -- less than the ministry's earlier forecast when planning the 2024 budget. This year’s projection is 6.4 trillion won unde

Economy Sept. 26, 2024

With all the hype surrounding the K-pop industry, how much does it actually earn? The Korea Culture and Tourism Institute sought to answer this question with data, which revealed that the K-pop industry raked in nearly $900 million from overseas last year. In 2023, the estimated overseas sales of K-pop amounted to 1.24 trillion won ($893 million), exceeding 1 trillion won for the first time, according to the government-run organization's report on Wednesday. Compared to the previous year, K

Culture July 24, 2024

South Korea’s labor market remains strong even as the country’s economy went through one of the toughest years in history during 2023, according to official figures. It is fortunate, given that weak exports and depressed domestic demand have combined to bring gross domestic product growth down to the lowest in modern history last year except for crisis years. On a four-quarter moving average basis, the country’s employment rate for the whole population aged 15 years or older st

Viewpoints May 27, 2024

The Korea Development Institute’s revised economic forecasts and comments, released last week, contained sources of confusion for investors regarding the central bank’s monetary policy direction for the rest of the year because it warned against tying the country’s interest rate policy too closely to that in advanced economies. In its biannual event, South Korea’s most influential research institute upgraded this year’s economic growth forecast to 2.6 percent from 2

Viewpoints May 20, 2024

SHENZHEN, China, Oct. 17, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- In August 2022, students at the Mabalacat City College (hereinafter referred to as "MCC") in the Philippines had a particular hybrid learning class. Unlike classes in the past, the teaching content was explicit at a glance on the smart screen, and the teacher in the classroom could communicate and interact smoothly with online students throughout the entire class. Everyone immersed themselves in lively discussions and enjoyed the char

PR Newswire Oct. 17, 2023

Global investment banks offered a lukewarm outlook for South Korea’s near-term growth, with their average projection for 2024 remaining at 1.9 percent as of July, according to a report from the Korea Center for International Finance on Monday. If the Korean economy aligns with these forecasts and achieves 1 percent growth for two consecutive years, it would be the first time since collecting a growth rate statistic in 1954. The Korean economy's growth rate has fallen below 2 percent o

Industry Aug. 14, 2023

South Korea’s economy showed a slight sign of recovery, with 0.3 percent growth in the first three months of 2023 on the rebound of private consumption as the COVID-19 pandemic wanes. The country’s gross domestic product -- the value of all goods and services created -- grew 0.3 percent in the January-March period, showing signs of recovery from the minus 0.4 percent of the previous quarter. It showed a 0.8 percent increase from the same period of 2022, data from the Bank of Korea sh

Economy April 25, 2023

The South Korean government may dial back the scale of tax cuts aimed at curbing inflation, as tax revenue for this year is likely to fall below the estimate. According to the Ministry of Economy and Finance, Korea’s tax revenue amounted to 54.2 trillion won ($41 billion) in the first two months of this year, marking a 15.7 trillion won drop from the 69.9 trillion won recorded in the same period last year. If the tax revenue from March to December is similar to the year before, the total

Economy April 10, 2023

South Korea's total fertility rate hit an all-time low last year, government data showed Wednesday, darkening prospects for one of the world's most aged countries. In 2022, the country saw 249,000 newborns, down 4.4 percent, or 11,500 less, than that of the year before. The fertility rate, the average number of children women aged 15-49 have, fell to 0.78, down 0.03 from the 0.81 of the previous year, according to Statistics Korea. The figure hit an all-time low since the statistics

Economy Feb. 22, 2023

South Korean companies have seen revenue growth this year, but their fiscal health has deteriorated due to increased debt and lowered profitability, according to a report from a major business lobby group Monday. Despite their growing revenue, the slowdown in the growth rate, inventory piling up and soaring borrowing costs draw concerns as the country’s economy is largely expected to see headwinds next year, with sluggish exports and uncertainties in the global market. “Companies h

Economy Dec. 26, 2022

Short throw projector capable of projecting a 100-inch screen at a distance of 1.1m Extremely immersive gameplay with industry-leading 4ms input lag and 240Hz refresh rate Enjoy free movies even in broad daylight with 4000 lumens brightness and 1,200,000:1 contrast ratio 4K UHD resolution, HDR 10 & HLG support for overwhelming resolution and picture quality SEOUL, South Korea, Sept. 27, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Optoma launches the short throw 4K UHD cinema gaming projector 'Optoma GT

PR Newswire Sept. 27, 2022

  South Korea's economy grew at a faster pace in the second quarter of this year as private spending rose amid eased coronavirus restrictions despite shrinking exports, central bank data showed Thursday. The country's gross domestic product (GDP) -- a key measure of economic growth -- increased 0.7 percent in the April-June period from three months earlier, according to the preliminary data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). The growth slightly quickened from the previous quarter's 0.6 percent r

Economy Sept. 1, 2022

The South Korean government on Tuesday said that the total number of critically ill COVID-19 patients will peak between 800 and 900 in early September. The government added the number of deaths from COVID-19 could also reach between 100 and 140 during the same period. The government, however, did not change its projection for the number of daily infections, which it previously anticipated to peak at around 200,000 cases in late-August. “The COVID-19 spread is expected to peak by the e

Social Affairs Aug. 16, 2022

Foreign holdings of South Koreans stocks on the benchmark Kospi dipped to 606.2 trillion won ($464.1 billion), or 30.51 percent of the total, Thursday -- the lowest level since August 2009 as fears over US Federal Reserve rate hikes and a possible recession have dampened investor optimism. Data from the Korea Exchange showed Sunday heavy net selling by foreign investors this year. They had offloaded 10.6 trillion won in shares as of Friday. The Kospi closed at 2,527.94 that day, a 15 percent dr

Market Aug. 15, 2022

South Korea’s daily COVID-19 infections surpassed 150,000, reaching a four-month high since April, the government announced Wednesday. The number of critically ill patients also topped 400, amid a prolonged resurgence fueled by the fast spread of a highly contagious omicron strain. “The speed at which COVID-19 spreads is accelerating again,” Lee Ki-il, a deputy health minister, said during a COVID-19 response meeting on Wednesday. The country added 151,792 new COVID-19 case

Social Affairs Aug. 10, 2022

Bank of Korea Gov. Rhee Chang-yong told lawmakers Monday that the central bank will deliver the usual 0.25 percentage point interest rate hikes this year, while acknowledging that the economy would fall short of the 2.7 percent annual growth for 2022. The central bank a month ago backed its biggest single rate raise of 0.5 percentage point to tame persistent inflation prompted by a global surge in materials and food costs. The bank holds three more board meetings, each in August, October and No

Economy Aug. 1, 2022

South Koreans expect prices to rise at a record level in the next 12 months and the economy to underperform, a Bank of Korea survey showed Wednesday, as the export-led economy faces shrinking growth over poor exports. In a monthly survey of 2,500 households conducted July 11-18, consumers forecast inflation to average 4.7 percent, hitting its highest level since 2008 when the central bank began releasing the data. The all-time high, up from the previous 3.9 percent in June, also marked the lar

Economy July 27, 2022

Global credit appraiser Fitch Ratings on Wednesday lowered its 2022 growth outlook for the South Korean economy to 2.4 percent, citing the fallout of the protracted war between Russia and Ukraine and China's economic slowdown. The latest outlook is a 0.3 percentage-point drop from its March estimate of 2.7 percent growth for Asia's fourth-largest economy. Fitch said slower global growth and China's economic slowdown are posing "external challenges" to the South Korean ec

Industry June 15, 2022

CJ CGV, South Korea's largest multiplex cinema chain, said Sunday that it will expand investment in high-technology, multi-projection screens and premium theaters to meet changing customer demand in the post-pandemic era. "We will focus more on expanding high-tech screens in a bid to help movie fans not only watch content but also experience something more special at theaters," said Cho Jin-ho, who is in charge of content programming in CGV. "We are also adding more small pri

Film June 12, 2022