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Seoul shares end lower ahead of Trump's reciprocal tariffs
Seoul shares ended lower Wednesday as investors await US President Donald Trump's "reciprocal" tariffs set to be announced this week. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 15.53 points, or 0.62 percent, to close at 2,505.86. Trade volume was slim at 510.62 million shares worth 7.24 trillion won ($4.9 billion), with decliners outpacing gainers 593 to 275. Foreigners sold a net 724.47 billion won worth of stocks, offsetting institutions' an
April 2, 2025 -
'What would Yoon do?': FSS chief defiant over vetoed minority shareholder bill
Lee Bok-hyun, the governor of the Financial Supervisory Service, said on Wednesday that he had tendered his resignation in protest against the acting president’s veto of a bill led by the opposition, which aimed to hold company directors accountable for harming general shareholders through their boardroom decisions. However, the chair of the Financial Services Commission rejected his resignation offer. Lee, whose term ends in June, has been a strong advocate for amending the Commercial Act to br
April 2, 2025 -
Govt. eyes freezing utility prices in H1 to ease household burden
Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok said Wednesday that the government will work to keep utility prices from rising throughout the first half of the year to help mitigate the financial burden on households. "The government will absorb cost increases as much as possible through cost-cutting measures and self-restructuring efforts to keep public utility fees, including electricity, gas and rail service rates, unchanged in the first half of the year," Choi said while presiding over a meeting with econom
April 2, 2025 -
S. Korea seeks to boost animal medicine market to W4tr by 2035: ministry
South Korea will work to triple the size of the animal medicine market to 4 trillion won ($2.7 billion) by 2035 as part of efforts to foster new growth engines for the economy, the agriculture ministry said Wednesday. The government also aims to increase the country's exports of veterinary medicine products fivefold to 1.5 trillion won and create 15 animal pharmaceutical companies with an annual revenue of at least 50 billion won each over the next 10 years, according to the Ministry of Agricult
April 2, 2025 -
Inflation expected to remain stable at around 2% despite uncertainties: BOK
South Korea's consumer inflation is expected to remain stable around the target rate of 2 percent, though close monitoring is required amid persistent uncertainties at home and abroad, the central bank said Wednesday. Bank of Korea Deputy Gov. Kim Woong made the assessment during a meeting meant to review price trends, after government data showed that consumer prices, a key gauge of inflation, rose 2.1 percent from a year earlier in March, accelerating from 2.0 percent in February. The increase
April 2, 2025 -
Financial watchdog chief again calls for revision of Commercial Act
The chief of the country's financial watchdog on Wednesday reiterated the need for the proposed revision of the Commercial Act, insisting it will help protect shareholders and also support the advancement of the capital market. In a radio interview, Lee Bok-hyun, governor of the Financial Supervisory Service, said he had offered to resign, but was not accepted, after acting President Han Duck-soo vetoed the opposition-led bill on expanding the fiduciary duty of corporate directors from solely th
April 2, 2025 -
Seoul shares open lower ahead of US tariff rollout
Seoul shares opened lower Wednesday as investors remain watchful ahead of US President Donald Trump's reciprocal tariff rollout. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 6.06 points, or 0.24 percent, to 2,515.33 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, US stocks ended mixed, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average down 0.03 percent to 41,989.96 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite up 0.87 percent to 17,449.89. US President Donald Trump is set to launch so-called reciprocal tariffs
April 2, 2025 -
Consumer prices rise 2.1% in March on rising food, service costs
South Korea's consumer prices grew at the 2 percent level for the third consecutive month in March, driven by a weaker local currency that pushed up food prices and rising service costs, government data showed Wednesday. 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 a 2 percent gain in Februa
April 2, 2025 -
Financial watchdog raises questions over Homeplus debt sale, urges MBK Partners to share pain
The country's financial watchdog on Tuesday raised questions over the circumstances surrounding Homeplus Co.'s debt sale and filing for court rehabilitation and called on private equity firm MBK Partners Ltd. to be more responsible for the retailer's fiasco. The Financial Supervisory Service has been inspecting MBK Partners, which controls Homeplus, to look into whether there had been any flaws in the process of the retailer's short-term debt sale and its filing for court rehabilitation. On Marc
April 1, 2025 -
S. Korea to continue negotiations with US on trade barrier issues raised in USTR report: ministry
The South Korean government will continue negotiating with Washington on non-tariff measure issues ahead of the planned announcement of US reciprocal tariffs, the industry ministry said Tuesday, shortly after the office of the US Trade Representative released an annual report on foreign trade barriers. The government will work to address US concerns over non-tariff measures with Washington through various communication channels, including working-level consultative bodies and the implementation
April 1, 2025 -
BOK to extend special loan program for small firms in wildfire-ravaged regions
The central bank said Tuesday it will extend 75 billion won ($50.8 million) in loans to small and midsized companies in southern regions affected by recent massive wildfires. The Bank of Korea plans to allocate 40 billion won for affected small businesses in the southeastern city of Daegu and the surrounding North Gyeongsang Province, 150 billion won for those in the southern city of Pohang and 10 billion won for firms in South Gyeongsang Province as part of a special aid program, according to i
April 1, 2025 -
Number of executives at top 30 firms falls last year amid slowdown
The number of executives at South Korea's top 30 conglomerates declined last year amid an economic slowdown, while that of employees increased, a market tracker said Tuesday. According to an analysis of 2024 business results released by 235 affiliates of the 30 conglomerates, the number of executives at the 235 companies came to 9,746 in 2024, down 0.7 percent from a year earlier, according to Leaders Index. The number of employees at the firms, on the other hand, gained 1.7 percent on-year to 9
April 1, 2025 -
S. Korea's exports rise 3.1% on-year to $58.3b in March on strong chip, IT sales
South Korea's exports gained 3.1 percent from a year earlier in March, marking a second consecutive month of increase, driven by robust demand for semiconductors and other information technology products, data showed Tuesday. Outbound shipments came to $58.3 billion last month, compared with $56.5 billion the previous year, according to data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. Imports rose 2.3 percent on-year to $53.3 billion, resulting in a trade surplus of $4.98 billion. Ou
April 1, 2025 -
W10tr extra budget aimed at addressing 'pressing issues': finance ministry
The finance ministry said Monday its proposal of a supplementary budget of 10 trillion won ($6.8 billion) aims to tackle the nation's most "pressing issues" rather than serve as an economic stimulus. When asked by reporters whether the proposed budget was sufficient to boost the economy, ministry spokesperson Kang Young-kyu emphasized that it is primarily designed to address the most urgent issues, particularly those stemming from the country's worst-ever wildfires. Asia's fourth-largest economy
March 31, 2025 -
Seoul shares dip 3% to near 2-month low ahead of reciprocal tariffs; won sharply down
South Korean stocks fell 3 percent to a near two-month low Monday ahead of US reciprocal tariffs set to be announced later this week amid the removal of a short selling ban. The local currency sharply fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index dropped 76.86 points to close at 2,481.12, marking the lowest closing since Feb. 3, when it finished at 2,453.95. Trade volume was slim at 385.5 million shares worth 8.1 trillion won ($5.5 billion), with losers sharply outn
March 31, 2025