Articles by Kim Yon-se
Kim Yon-se
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[News Focus] ‘Sagging economy’ faces 2nd rebound in dollar, oil
SEJONG -- Prices of the US dollar and gasoline directly affect a large proportion of South Korean businesses and households in terms of manufacturing costs and purchasing power.While monetary authorities sometimes have intervened in the foreign exchange market and hamper the cheap dollar in an attempt to promote exports, the greenback’s current strong position versus the Korean won suggests the local economy has been sagging.Simultaneously, a hike in international prices of crude oil, whic
Economy July 18, 2019
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[News Focus] Portion of pessimists over economy hits record: poll
SEJONG -- A large proportion of self-employed people have closed their businesses and joined the growing number of jobless people over the past two years. Simultaneously, the state payment of unemployment benefits has climbed to an all-time high.The Moon government started providing some young jobless people with 3 million won ($2,540) for six months per individual, while the number of people who lost jobs has been drastically increasing among those in their early 50s, 40s and late 30s. The
Economy July 17, 2019
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[News Focus] Seoul apartments resilient to property measures since 2017
SEJONG -- The Moon Jae-in government has introduced stern regulations on rebuilding old apartments or redeveloping old areas in Seoul. Housing redevelopment projects have been effectively blocked in the capital.The city authorities have also fallen behind in increasing housing supply for citizens.The central government has bolstered rules on mortgages under the guise of curbing apartment prices in the city. The ceiling of bank loans for housing purchases has sharply been lowered as part of a set
Economy July 15, 2019
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[News Focus] Seoul-Sejong Expressway to revamp Korea’s traffic map
SEJONG -- There are three major expressways linking the Seoul metropolitan area and the southern parts of the country.Along the western side of the peninsula, there is the Seohaean Expressway running between Seoul and Mokpo, South Jeolla Province. The oldest route, the Gyeongbu Expressway, runs between Seoul and Busan. Lastly, the Jungbu Expressway runs from Hanam, Gyeonggi Province to Tongyeong, South Gyeongsang Province.Over the past decades, the highways have played a great part in the countr
Social Affairs July 14, 2019
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[News Focus] Working-age population falls to 2013 level
SEJONG -- South Koreans have expressed significant fears about the nation’s workforce and growth potential in the coming decades, and it appears that recent demographic changes lend weight to those concerns.Two or three years ago, people aged between 15 and 64 began declining in number after a long period of continuous growth.People in this age group are classified as members of the working-age population, according to Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development criteria. At pres
Social Affairs July 9, 2019
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[News Focus] Korea vitalizes redeveloping harbors on 3 sides
SEJONG -- Earlier this year, South Korea pledged to foster “smart harbors” across the country as part of a move in a variety of sectors preparing for the coming era of the “fourth industrial revolution.”The futuristic harbors will likely be equipped with state-of-the-art technologies such as artificial intelligence, the internet of things and robotics, according to the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries.Officials said the project’s focus will be 31 harbors designated
Industry July 8, 2019
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[News Focus] Transition to farming loses luster for city dwellers
SEJONG -- Over the past decade, a growing number of urbanites in South Korea have moved to rural areas to tap the agriculture industry, helped on their way by various government-led benefits for new farming households.A large proportion of them were in their 40s, 30s and 20s, and quit salaried jobs in big cities to take up farming.But the situation has changed. Many of them have failed to accommodate themselves to the rural life and farm work.Among their troubles are difficulty getting along wit
Social Affairs July 4, 2019
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[News Focus] Payments for jobless soar in Daejeon, Gwangju, Daegu
SEJONG -- The nation’s jobless rate, which posted the critical 4 percent or over for the fifth consecutive month this year, has forced the government to pay out ever-higher amounts in benefits for the unemployed. The growing volume of payouts reflects the sentiment-reflected jobless rate, a measure that also takes underemployment into account. The sentiment-reflected jobless rate far exceeds the official unemployment rate of 4 percent mark, having hovered around 12 percent f
Social Affairs July 2, 2019
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[News Focus] Baby boomers make waves in job market
SEJONG -- They were the backbone of the country’s social and economic development in the 1980s and 1990s, and many of them are still working in core posts in the public and private sector.But now South Korea’s baby boomer generation -- born between 1955 and 1963 -- are having to deal with a retirement that many are not ready to accept.As some employers have a mandatory retirement age 60 or earlier, boomers have been leaving their main jobs since 2010, with knock-on effects on the job
Social Affairs July 1, 2019
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[News Focus] 2019 jobless rates exceed levels during decade-old crisis
SEJONG -- An election campaign pledge of President Moon Jae-in early 2017 was to create 1.31 million jobs -- 500,000 in the private sector and 810,000 in the public sector.At that time, he criticized the theory that employment should follow market principles, saying that “the (next) government (unlike past administrations) will be able to create up to 1.31 million jobs by taking the initiative (not by handing it over to the market).”In addition, he suggested that parents with prescho
Economy June 27, 2019
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[News Focus] Korea’s agricultural products to tap America after Paris
SEJONG -- South Korea is sparing no efforts to promote its agricultural products globally, including Korean traditional dishes, beverages and alcoholic drinks.According to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, “K-food Fair” held in Paris earlier this month drew wide attention from European consumers and retailers.“Twenty-one Korean producers participated in the fair in France and signed export contracts worth $17 million (19.6 billion won),” said a ministry
Economy June 25, 2019
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[News Focus] Busan, South Jeolla top senior-population ranking
SEJONG -- South Korea saw its senior population surpass 15 percent of the total last month for the first time. Seniors are people aged 65 or over, according to standards set by the United Nations.The number of senior citizens came to 7.8 million out of the total 51.84 million as of May, according to the Ministry of Interior and Safety.This indicates that 1 out of every 6 or 7 Koreans are aged 65 or above, which is posing social concerns over a variety of sectors such as the national pension, tax
Social Affairs June 24, 2019
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[News Focus] Korea’s 2019 growth may fall to 10-year low
SEJONG -- Two major economic indices under the Moon Jae-in administration have plumbed to new lows since the nation was hit by the 2008-09 global financial crisis.Those are the growth of gross domestic product in the first quarter and the current account balance in April 2019.South Korea suffered a contraction of 0.4 percent in GDP during the January-March period on a quarter-to-quarter basis.This was the worst quarter-on-quarter GDP performance since the first year of the Lee Myung-bak governme
Economy June 20, 2019
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[News Focus] Financial regulator still not in list for Sejong relocation
SEJONG -- It has been more than six years since the Ministry of Economy and Finance moved from Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province, to Sejong Self-Governing City. Nonetheless, some former functions of the ministry remained in Seoul after it handed over its financial industry policy authority to the Financial Services Commission in 2008, when the former Lee Myung-bak government took office. Since then, the FSC has been in charge of both supervisory policy and financial industry policy. The commissi
Politics June 19, 2019
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[News Focus] Korea’s household debt-to-income to top 200%
SEJONG -- The record household debt in South Korea is an Achilles’ heel when it comes to economic growth, as the financial liability of citizens is putting a damper on private consumption.Some market analysts say that Korea’s collective household debt is estimated to have topped 2,000 trillion won ($1.68 trillion). They claim the latest figure of about 1,500 trillion won, released by the Bank of Korea, does not include loans extended to the self-employed.In any case, the outstanding
Economy June 16, 2019
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