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Govt. to closely monitor financial markets after US rate freeze
The finance ministry said Thursday it will closely monitor the country's financial markets to assess the impact of the latest US rate freeze, noting persistent uncertainties surrounding global trade. In an interagency meeting on macroeconomic and financial issues chaired by Acting Finance Minister Kim Beom-suk, authorities agreed that the global financial markets remained generally stable following the US Federal Reserve's rate freeze decision, which factored in rising employment and inflationar
May 8, 2025 -
Seoul shares open higher on US gains following Fed's rate freeze
South Korean stocks opened slightly higher Thursday tracking overnight gains on Wall Street after the Federal Reserve kept the benchmark rates unchanged. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 8.01 points, or 0.31 percent, to 2,581.81 in the first 15 minutes of trading. In the United States, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.7 percent, and the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.27 percent. Earlier, the US central bank held its key rates steady, pointing to risks posed by both higher
May 8, 2025 -
Govt. to execute 70% of extra budget within 3 months to support economy
The government will execute 70 percent of the recently passed 13.8 trillion-won ($9.9 billion) extra budget within three months to boost the local economy and support export companies amid global trade uncertainties, the finance ministry said Thursday. The Ministry of Economy and Finance announced the plan at a meeting of economy-related ministers, saying the swift execution is aimed at maximizing the impact of fiscal spending. The extra budget, approved by the National Assembly last week, inclu
May 8, 2025 -
S. Korea's foreign reserves fall to 5-yr low in April: BOK
South Korea's foreign reserves posted a monthly decline in April to reach the lowest level in five years amid the weak local currency, central bank data showed Thursday. The country's foreign reserves had stood at $404.67 billion as of end-April, down $4.99 billion from a month earlier, according to the data from the Bank of Korea. It marked the lowest level since April 2020, when the foreign reserves came to $403.98 billion. Last month's decline was due mainly to a currency swap agreement betwe
May 8, 2025 -
Coupang posts record Q1 sales on favorable FX conditions, new business growth
E-commerce giant Coupang Inc. said Wednesday it has posted record sales for the first quarter, backed by favorable foreign exchange rate conditions and growth of its emerging business areas. Coupang's sales for the January-March period totaled 11.5 trillion won ($7.91 billion), up 21 percent from a year ago, the company said in a statement. Operating profit jumped more than threefold to 233.7 billion won, while net profit totaled 165.6 billion won, turning from a loss in the same period last yea
May 7, 2025 -
Air passenger traffic to Japan hits record high in Jan.-April period
The number of flight passengers traveling from South Korea to Japan hit a record high of approximately 9 million in the first four months of this year, government data showed Tuesday. A total of 8.88 million passengers flew from domestic airports to Japan from Jan. 1 to April 28, according to the data from the Incheon International Airport Corporation and Korea Airports Corporation. With an average of around 49,000 people using Incheon International Airport daily in April, the total number is es
May 6, 2025 -
Korea's construction production dips by most in over 26 years in Q1
South Korea's production in the construction sector declined by the most in more than 26 years in the first quarter amid industry slumps and political uncertainty caused by former President Yoon Suk Yeol's martial law bid, data showed Monday. The value of construction completed, a measure of production in the construction sector, fell 20.7 percent on-year in the January-March period, compared with a 9.7 percent on-year decline in the fourth quarter of last year, according to data by Statistics K
May 5, 2025 -
Won's volatility over dollar deepens over Washington's tariff uncertainties
The Korean currency's volatility over the dollar deepened last month due to uncertainty surrounding Washington's sweeping tariffs on American imports, according to central bank data on Sunday. The average daily fluctuation in the won-dollar rate for April was 9.7 won, or 0.9 percent, according to the data by the Bank of Korea. This marked the largest volatility since November 2022, when fluctuations reached 12.3 won and 0.9 percent amid optimism over a potential shift in the U.S. Federal Reserve
May 4, 2025 -
Won gains to 5-month high
The Korean won gained its value sharply against the greenback on Friday, reaching the 1,390 won range for the first time in five months during after-hours trading. The won against the dollar strengthened to 1,397.2 won at around 18:42 p.m., gaining value by 30 won from 1,426.9 won, the closing price of the previous after-hours trading session. Its value per dollar stood at 1,393.27 won as of 9:50 p.m. The won's appreciation came amid the gain of the Chinese yuan. With China indicating a softenin
May 2, 2025 -
Economic leadership vacancy intensifies uncertainty in Korea
South Korea faces heightened economic uncertainty after Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok’s abrupt resignation late Thursday, disrupting key policy initiatives that include imminent US tariff negotiations. Choi resigned Thursday night shortly after the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea filed his impeachment motion, with acting President Han Duck-soo — who had himself already announced his own resignation earlier in the day to be effective at midnight — accepting the resignation soon after.
May 2, 2025 -
Industry ministry to execute W981.4b of extra budget for tariff response, advanced industry support
The industry ministry said Friday it will swiftly execute 981.4 billion won ($684 million) in extra budget to support tariff-hit companies and advanced industries. With the additional budget, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy will spend a total of 2.3 trillion won in 2025. The 2025 budget includes 380 billion won in trade insurance for small and medium-sized enterprises and exports of defense and shipbuilding industries amid global trade uncertainties sparked by the US administration's
May 2, 2025 -
Govt. reaffirms vigilant monitoring of financial markets amid political turmoil
Top economic and financial policymakers on Friday vowed to maintain round-the-clock monitoring of the financial markets amid heightened political uncertainties following the resignations of the prime minister and finance minister, the finance ministry said. The renewed pledge was made during an emergency meeting on macroeconomic and financial issues, chaired by acting Finance Minister Kim Beom-suk and attended by Bank of Korea Gov. Rhee Chang-yong, and the chiefs of the Financial Services Commis
May 2, 2025 -
Consumer prices rise 2.1% in April on higher food, service costs
South Korea's consumer prices grew at the 2 percent level for the fourth consecutive month in April, mainly driven by an increase in food and service costs, government data showed Friday. Consumer prices, a key gauge of inflation, increased 2.1 percent from a year earlier last month, according to the data from Statistics Korea. This follows a 2.2 percent on-year rise in January, which marked the steepest on-year increase since July, and 2 percent and 2.1 percent gains in February and March, resp
May 2, 2025 -
Credit card spending by foreign residents in Korea jumps 65% in 4 years, hitting W56tr
Foreign nationals living in South Korea are a growing force in the country’s consumer economy, spending 56.3 trillion won ($39.3 billion) on locally issued credit cards in 2023, according to a December 2024 report from the Migration Research and Training Center based on Shinhan Card data. That’s a 65 percent increase from 34.1 trillion won in 2019. The figure only includes transactions made by foreign nationals living in Korea who hold credit cards issued by Shinhan, one of South Korea’s largest
May 1, 2025 -
S. Korea's exports rise 3.7% in April; shipments to US down 6.8%
South Korea's exports gained 3.7 percent from a year earlier in April, marking a third consecutive month of increase, while outbound shipments to the United States dropped sharply on the Donald Trump administration's hefty tariffs, data showed Thursday. Outbound shipments came to $58.2 billion last month, according to data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. Imports dropped 2.7 percent on-year to $53.3 billion, resulting in a trade surplus of $4.88 billion. Exports to the US
May 1, 2025