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Combined operating profit of top 500 firms jumps 66% in 2024, mainly on chip boom
The combined operating profit of South Korea's top 500 companies surged 66 percent from a year earlier in 2024, driven largely by a rebound in the global semiconductor market, a report showed Wednesday. According to the report from corporate tracker CEO Score, the total operating profit of the top 500 firms reached 183.7 trillion won ($125.3 billion) in 2024, up from 110.6 trillion won the previous year. The companies' combined annual sales rose 5.8 percent to 2,523 trillion won from 2,384 trill
March 26, 2025 -
Business sentiment for April pessimistic over global trade risks: poll
South Korea's business sentiment remains pessimistic for April, a poll showed Wednesday, amid growing uncertainties associated with global trade. The business survey index of the country's top 600 companies by sales stood at 88 for next month, according to the monthly poll by the Federation of Korean Industries. A reading below 100 means pessimists outnumber optimists, while a figure above the benchmark means the opposite. The index has remained below 100 for 37 consecutive months since April 20
March 26, 2025 -
AmCham hosts Alaska governor in Seoul for energy, trade talks
The American Chamber of Commerce in Korea is hosting Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy for a two-day visit to Korea, starting Tuesday. The visit aligns with AmCham’s ongoing “Buy America” campaign, which promotes the competitiveness of US products and services. Accompanying the governor are representatives from Glenfarne Group, the lead developer of the Alaska LNG project, and the Alaska Gasline Development Corporation. Earlier in the day, the delegation held discussions on bilateral energy cooperat
March 25, 2025 -
Seoul shares end lower for 2nd day on tech losses
Seoul shares ended lower Tuesday for the second straight session due to tech losses despite eased concerns over the Trump administration's tariff sanctions. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index dropped 11.26 points, or 0.62 percent, to close at 2,615.81. Trade volume was moderate at 431.77 million shares worth 8.1 trillion won ($5.5 billion), with decliners outpacing gainers 576 to 303. The KOSPI opened higher, tracking overnight gains on Wal
March 25, 2025 -
Retail sales up over 4% in Feb. on strong online demand: data
South Korean retailers saw their sales gain more than 4 percent in February from a year earlier thanks to robust demand for e-commerce services, data showed Tuesday. Last month, the combined revenue of major retail companies rose 4.4 percent from a year ago, according to data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The ministry said the increase is mainly attributable to strong demand for online shopping and food delivery services. Sales from the online sector jumped 16.7 percent
March 25, 2025 -
S. Korea to focus 2026 fiscal policy on economic recovery amid belt-tightening stance
South Korea will prioritize economic recovery in next year's fiscal policy, while enhancing support for next-generation research and development projects, the finance ministry said Tuesday. The objectives are part of the government's 2026 budget guidelines, approved by the Cabinet the same day, which also emphasize maintaining fiscal soundness, according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance. The ministry said while the national debt remains at a manageable level compared with other major econo
March 25, 2025 -
Financial watchdog to get tougher on loose internal control
South Korea's financial watchdog said Tuesday it will map out a stricter supervisory system for banks and other financial firms, and take stern measures against their lack of internal control systems amid the continued extension of inappropriate loans. The Financial Supervisory Service said Industrial Bank of Korea had extended inappropriate loans totaling 86.2 billion won ($58.6 million), higher than its earlier estimate of 24 billion won, to the bank's ex-employees and their family members. Th
March 25, 2025 -
Seoul shares open higher on auto, battery gains
Seoul shares opened higher Tuesday, tracking gains on Wall Street, helped by gains in auto and battery stocks. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 2.27 points, or 0.09 percent, to 2,634.34 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.42 percent, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite advanced 2.27 percent. Auto and battery stocks led gains. Top carmaker Hyundai Motor jumped 5.16 percent, its smaller affiliate Kia rose 3.04 percent, and lead
March 25, 2025 -
Banks' bad loan increase remains flat in Q4
South Korean banks' bad loans remained nearly unchanged from three months earlier in the fourth quarter, data showed Tuesday. Loans classified as substandard or below held by local banks came to 14.8 trillion won ($10.09 billion) as of end-December, up 0.3 trillion won from three months earlier, according to the data from the Financial Supervisory Service. The percentage of SBLs to the total outstanding loans came to 0.53 percent at the end of December, unchanged from three months earlier. The r
March 25, 2025 -
Consumer sentiment worsens in March amid growth woes: BOK
South Korea's consumer sentiment worsened in March amid deepening concerns about growth momentum due to weak domestic demand and slowing exports, the central bank said Tuesday. The composite consumer sentiment index stood at 93.4 this month, down 1.8 points from that of February, according to the survey conducted by the Bank of Korea (BOK). This marked the first decline in three months, as the index had dropped to a two-year low of 88.2 in December, mainly due to President Yoon Suk Yeol's surpri
March 25, 2025 -
BOK launches digital currency pilot for real-world use
100,000 individuals to try digital currency payments in nationwide pilot project April- June South Korea is set to introduce real-world digital currency payments through a pilot project called “Project Han River” next month, as part of its efforts to keep pace with the rapidly evolving payment landscape, the country’s central bank announced Monday. According to the Bank of Korea, the central bank has issued digital currency to participating local banks, which will, in turn, provide tokenized dep
March 24, 2025 -
Retirement leads to self-employment for many in Korea — yet half earn below minimum wage
With 48.8 percent of older self-employed earning below minimum wage and 23.2 percent of the workforce self-employed, South Korea mirrors middle-income economies more than wealthier OECD peers In South Korea, growing numbers of older workers find themselves squeezed out of the traditional job market and forced to turn to self-employment as a last resort. But far from offering a path to financial independence, new research reveals that nearly half of them are now earning less than the legal minimu
March 24, 2025 -
Samsung Electronics tops domestic sales for 22 consecutive years: report
Samsung Electronics Co. has held the No. 1 spot in annual sales among South Korean companies for 22 consecutive years from 2002 to 2023, an industry analysis report showed Monday. According to the report from the Korea CXO Institute, a corporate data firm, Samsung Electronics was found to have ranked first in terms of sales every year since 2002. The institute also excluded financial firms and companies that changed ownership due to management difficulties in its analysis. The report is based on
March 24, 2025 -
Seoul shares rise for 5th session on tech gains; won at 3-week low
Seoul shares rose for the fifth consecutive session Friday, led by chip shares, despite lingering concerns about US President Donald Trump's sweeping tariff scheme. The Korean won fell to the lowest level in three weeks against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 6.03 points, or 0.23 percent, to close at 2,643.13. Trade volume was moderate at 482.32 million shares worth 13.73 trillion won ($9.37 billion), with decliners outpacing gainers 562 to 316. Foreigners bou
March 21, 2025 -
KEPCO keeps electricity rate frozen for Q2
The state-run Korea Electric Power Corp. said Friday it will freeze the adjusted fuel cost for the second quarter as part of efforts to improve its financial stability. KEPCO said it will keep the adjusted unit fuel cost, a key part of the country's electricity rates, unchanged at 5 won per kilowatt-hour for the April-June period. The company has maintained the adjusted unit fuel cost at 5 won since the third quarter of 2022. For the second quarter, KEPCO initially had to decrease the cost to -4
March 21, 2025