Tensions flared between South Korea’s fiscal chief and the ruling party leader on Wednesday, as they publicly disagreed over the timing of an additional release of COVID-19 relief funds and who should benefit. Prime Minister and Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki struck a defiant tone against the idea pitched by the ruling Democratic Party Chairman and a leading potential contender for 2022 presidential race Lee Nak-yon to begin discussions on a fourth round of emergency handouts to all househo

Economy Feb. 3, 2021

Tension in South Korea’s financial market escalated Tuesday over groups of retail investors vowing to defend themselves in battles with short sellers here if the government moves to lift a temporary ban on the negative betting system next month. The Korea Stockholders Alliance, which represents around 22,000 retail investors, has launched a monthlong protest, threatening to wage an all-out war against short sellers, claiming that foreign and institutional investors benefit the most while

Market Feb. 2, 2021

South Korea plans to set up 3,000 rapid charging stations for electric vehicles by the end of this year to expand the use of eco-friendly cars, the Finance Ministry said Monday. “Creating convenient charging infrastructure is a very important task to keep pace with the expansion of electric vehicle supply,” said Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki while presiding over a meeting to promote “Big 3” industries. Big 3 industries refer to green cars, biohealth, and non-memory chips

Economy Feb. 1, 2021

South Korean brokerage firm Mirae Asset Daewoo said Friday its consolidated operating profit exceeded 1 trillion won last year, making it the first Korean financial company to reach the milestone Its consolidated group operating profit surged by 52 percent to 1,104 trillion won ($988 million) in 2020, while its profit before tax increased 26 percent to 1.12 trillion won. It posted 818.3 billion won in net profit, a 23 percent on-year increase. The company said it ushered in an era of over 1

Market Jan. 29, 2021

The government will extend some 38.4 trillion won ($34.86 billion) in financial support for companies and small merchants suffering from liquidity crunch ahead of Lunar New Year’s Day, the Finance Ministry said Wednesday. The size of the financial support package, usually planned weeks before the holiday to spur spending, has increased by 2.1 trillion won from last year. The three-day Lunar New Year holiday kicks off on Feb. 11. “Although the third wave of the COVID-19 epidemic

Economy Jan. 20, 2021

The government will launch a joint monitoring and decision-making system with related agencies to provide a full compensation to those who experience side effects from the COVID-19 vaccine, the Finance Ministry said Tuesday. Along with the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency and Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, the ministry will set up the system to better respond to emergent cases and study correlations between vaccines and adverse reactions, as well as to make decisions on whether t

Economy Jan. 19, 2021

Bank of Korea Gov. Lee Ju-yeol on Friday expressed concerns about the stock market’s recent rally, warning retail investors that their debt-backed equity buying spree could lead to big losses. The country’s benchmark Kospi has been on a bullish run since November, setting record highs last week when the market closed above the 3,000 mark on Jan. 7 for the first time in its 38-year history. Individual investors have continued to snap up shares amid record-low interest rates and abun

Economy Jan. 15, 2021

South Korea’s economy last year suffered its worst year for job losses in 22 years, as companies of all sizes struggled to keep employees in the face of the prolonged pandemic, data showed Wednesday. According to Statistics Korea, the number of employed people here came to 26.9 million last year, down 218,000 from a year earlier, as hotels and restaurants slashed employment. The largest annual job loss on record was 1.27 million jobs in 1998, when the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis took

Economy Jan. 13, 2021

Concerns over the government‘s announcement that it would end a temporary ban on short-selling rose among retail investors Tuesday, as they claim that the reactivation of such trading practice could create market disruptions. The Financial Services Commissions said it would end the prohibition on the trading strategy that makes a negative bets on stocks on March 15, as planned. The ban was imposed to prevent market volatility in the aftermath of COVID-19 pandemic in March last year for

Market Jan. 12, 2021

The South Korean government will actively consider joining the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, or CPTPP, and improve systems to engage in the new global trading order evolving in the region, its fiscal chief said Monday. Stressing that megasized free trade pacts such as the Asia-Pacific agreement will become foundations for changes in the global economic order, Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said the government will begin unofficial talks with member countri

Economy Jan. 11, 2021

Vice Finance Minister Kim Yong-beom vowed on Thursday to strengthen monitoring on swelling of liquidity spilled over to the country’s asset markets amid concerns over the stock market’s sharp pandemic-era rally. Buoyed by fiscal stimulus and relief packages provided during the COVID-19 crisis management procedure, the abundant liquidity has flown into the stock and real estate markets to the point where the government is beginning to worry whether the real economy could catch up.

Economy Jan. 7, 2021

The government will spend over 26 trillion won ($23.9 billion) to develop new towns and build infrastructure in the first half of the year in a bid to curb soaring housing prices, the Finance Ministry said on Wednesday. Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki unveiled detailed plans for a government-led 110 trillion won investment project program that will be carried out throughout the year by public agencies, state-run firms and private companies. “The investment project will center on housing s

Economy Jan. 6, 2021

Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki on Tuesday called for banks and other financial firms to channel more funds into sectors like green cars and biotechnology to help the virus-hit economy come back strong. The country’s top economic policymaker underlined the importance of the financial industry’s role in helping the nation‘s economy rebound this year and moving toward becoming a pacesetting economy. “There is abundant liquidity in the market. But inflows into future growth

Economy Jan. 5, 2021

Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki on Monday reiterated the government’s commitment for economic growth of 3.2 percent this year and stressed its drive to stabilize soaring housing price at the same time. Urging ministry officials to prepare for structural changes in the post COVID-19 era, Hong vowed to make all-out efforts to achieve the target of a 3.2 percent economic growth and to create 150,000 additional jobs this year. “We must promote domestic consumption as much as possible un

Economy Jan. 4, 2021

South Korea‘s consumer price inflation hovered below 1 percent this year for the second consecutive year, data showed Thursday. According to data by Statistics Korea, the consumer price index stood at 105.42 in 2020, up 0.5 percent from a year earlier. In 2019, the index rose 0.4 percent. Core inflation, which excludes volatile food and oil prices, grew 0.4 percent in 2020, the lowest since a 0.2 percent fall in 1999. It marks the first time annual inflation has stayed below 1 percent

Economy Dec. 31, 2020