Most Popular
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Hybe-Ador feud should have limited effect on Hybe's overall performance: analysts
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Second Gimpo civil servant found dead, after apologizing for not finishing work
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DP leader says he will meet Yoon without conditions
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First-ever meeting of president, opposition chief set to finally happen
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Blinken calls on China to press N. Korea to end its 'dangerous' behavior
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NewJeans' singles, Japanese debut to proceed as planned, despite Hybe-Ador feud
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Experts raise concerns about Japan putting pressure on Naver over Line
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Samsung mobile chief, Google device head meet in Seoul
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More med professors to take day off each week while govt. urges them to stay
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South Korea to launch space security center under spy agency
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Korea's jobless rate rises steadily amid dip in OECD average
South Korea's unemployment rate has risen steadily in the past few years, while jobless numbers among Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development members as a whole have fallen, official data showed Sunday. Data by Statistics Korea and the OECD showed that Asia's fourth-largest economy has entered a recovery stage, albeit a weak one, but growth has not led to more positions being created. This is in contrast to most other OECD member states that reported improvements in the job market
Sept. 24, 2017
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Korea's top trade negotiator to leave for US ahead of talks
South Korea's top trade negotiator left for the United States on Sunday ahead of the second round of talks on possible amendments to their free trade pact, an official said.Trade Minister Kim Hyun-chong is set to meet with US politicians and business executives in an apparent move to assess the US atmosphere ahead of the special session meeting of a joint committee scheduled for Oct. 4 in Washington.Kim is scheduled to attend a roundtable to be hosted by the US Chamber of Commerce on Monday. The
Sept. 24, 2017
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Household's debt burden hits new high in Q1: report
South Korean households' debt service burden reached an all-time high in the first quarter of the year with the pace of its growth ranking first worldwide, an international report said Sunday.According to the report by the Bank for International Settlements, the debt service ratio of the local household sector came to 12.5 percent in the January-March period.It was up 0.7 percentage point from a year earlier and marked the highest level since the first quarter of 1999, when BIS started to compil
Sept. 24, 2017
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Korea's E-Mart exits China market with sale of remaining stores
South Korea's hypermarket chain E-Mart has reached a deal to sell off five of its six remaining stores in China effectively ending its 20-year presence in the market, industry sources said Sunday.Sources in the retail investment banking sector said E-Mart inked an agreement with Thailand's CP Group to hand over the stores in Shanghai pending approval from Chinese regulators. They said that the company is in the process of selling off its one outlet in Xishan by the end of the year. Exact details
Sept. 24, 2017
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Korea calls for united voice against rising protectionism
South Korea's trade minister issued a call Friday for a united front from leading Asian and European economies against protectionist trends and for the promotion of open trade and investment to benefit all sides.Paik Un-gyu, the minister of trade, industry and energy, made the request at the Asia-Europe Meeting, which is being attended by 250 trade ministers and senior officials from 51 nations to discuss trade and industrial issues. "Today, the global economy faces new challenges. Protecti
Sept. 22, 2017
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Debt of self-employed hits 521 tln won
Debt incurred by self-employed businesses in South Korea has reached 521 trillion won ($459 billion) and countermeasures are in the works, a senior official said Friday.Speaking at a financial forum, Kim Yong-beom, vice chairman of the Financial Services Commission (FSC), said some 6 percent of the loans have been extended to poor-credit borrowers, putting them at high risk of default.Kim based his remarks on data provided by local credit appraiser Nice Information. The total includes both corpo
Sept. 22, 2017
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S. Korea, US trade chiefs hold first face-to-face meeting
The top trade negotiators of South Korea and the United States held their first face-to-face meeting in Washington on Wednesday to discuss the future of the countries' free trade agreement (FTA), both sides said.The talks between South Korean Trade Minister Kim Hyun-chong and US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer came as Washington seeks to amend the five-year-old deal known as KORUS. "They discussed ways to move forward," a USTR spokesperson told Yonhap, noting the talks foll
Sept. 21, 2017
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Smaller firms lag far behind big counterparts in debt service capability: BOK
Smaller South Korean firms lagged far behind their larger counterparts in debt service capability, the country's central bank said Thursday, in the latest sign of a deepening polarization of corporate performance.The interest coverage ratio of all South Korean firms stood at 9 in the first half of this year, up from 6.8 from a year earlier, the Bank of Korea said in a report, citing data compiled by credit appraiser NICE Information Service.The ratio -- a firm's operating profit divided by its i
Sept. 21, 2017
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[Monitor] Businesses in Korea show low survivability
A report showed that the rate of survival for businesses in Korea remains low compared to those in Western Europe.The Korea International Trade Association said the survivability rates of lasting one and five years for businesses here came to 62.4 percent and 27.3 percent, respectively.By type, service and manufacturing businesses showed respective rates of 84 percent and 8.9 percent.The report pointed out that Korea has a higher proportion of small businesses than other countries, which are mor
Sept. 21, 2017
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Moon assures US Korean economy strong despite NK provocations
President Moon Jae-in urged the US to actively invest in the Korean economy during his meeting with prominent businessmen in New York, as he attends the 72nd session of the United Nations General Assembly this week. In a meeting with American financial heads including the chairman of Goldman Sachs at the New York Intercontinental Hotel, Moon assured international business leaders that the fundamentals of the Korean economy are excellent despite ongoing concerns regarding the “North Korea
Sept. 21, 2017
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Govt. to purchase 350,000 tons of rice for reserve
South Korea will increase the purchase of local rice that will be set aside for reserve purposes this year to help stabilize prices on the domestic market, the agriculture ministry said Thursday.The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs said it will buy 350,000 tons of rice harvested this year from Sept. 25 to Dec. 31. It will increase the purchase of rice from last year's 82,000 tons to 90,000 tons and buy 260,000 tons of packaged rice. Some 10,000 tons of rice will be set aside for A
Sept. 21, 2017
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Korea's conglomerates' internal trade edges down in 2016
Transactions among affiliates of South Korea's large business groups fell slightly in 2016 compared to a year earlier amid government pressure to root out unfair practices, the country's corporate watchdog said Thursday.A total of 152.5 trillion won ($134.7 billion) worth of inter-affiliate deals by units of 27 conglomerates were made last year, down 7.1 trillion won from a year earlier, according to the Fair Trade Commission. But the deals accounted for 12.2 percent of all business contracts in
Sept. 21, 2017
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Korea says no big impact from US decision to reduce bond holdings
South Korea said Thursday that the Federal Reserve's decision to trim its balance sheet is likely to have a limited impact on Asia's fourth-largest economy."I don't think the Fed's decision will have a big impact on the domestic financial markets," Bank of Korea Gov. Lee Ju-yeol told reporters at the BOK headquarters in central Seoul.He said the decision is in line with market expectations, a view shared by Vice Finance Minister Ko Hyoung-kwon.The US central bank announced Wednesday th
Sept. 21, 2017
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Korea offers financial assistance for struggling companies in China
South Korea will provide financial assistance and an insurance package for local companies suffering from losses in China due to anti-Korean sentiment and regulatory hurdles, the trade ministry said Thursday.Korean companies in automotive parts, cosmetics and foods have faced tougher customs checks in China after Seoul deployed an advanced missile defense system on its soil against North Korea, a move strongly opposed by Beijing. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said it will doub
Sept. 21, 2017
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Korea, India to hold talks on trade deal improvement
South Korea and India will hold a new round of talks on the improvement of a bilateral trade deal in Seoul this week, the commerce ministry here said Wednesday.The third-round meeting to improve the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement is scheduled to start in Seoul on Thursday for a two-day run, the ministry said. CEPA is a type of free trade agreement that emphasizes two-way economic cooperation on top of market opening.In 2010, the two Asian economic powerhouses implemented the CEPA,
Sept. 20, 2017
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[Monitor] Household debt surges 55.3% in 5 years
The amount of household debt in South Korea has surged by 55.3 percent in five years, according to data given by relevant authorities including the Financial Services Commission, the Financial Supervisory Service and the Bank of Korea.The data released by the office of the Liberty Korea Party’s Rep. Shim Jae-cheol showed that household debt has exceeded 1.4 trillion won as of August this year. The average debt held by each household came at 46.9 million won last year, up from 36.8 million
Sept. 20, 2017
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Korea’s ‘4th industrial revolution’ development lags behind US, EU, Japan: report
Technology and investments related to Korea’s competitiveness in the “fourth industrial revolution” is far behind other advanced countries such as the United States, Japan and Europe, according to the Hyundai Research Institute. The institute released a report on the international comparison of the research and development status of industries based on the fourth industrial revolution Monday, revealing that Korea’s total score for industrial technology evaluation was 77.
Sept. 20, 2017
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Monthly leases account for more than 60% of Korea's housing rental system in 2016: report
Monthly lease agreements accounted for more than 60 percent of South Korea's housing rental market last year as fewer people opt for the so-called "jeonse" system, a report showed Wednesday.According to the report by the state-run Korea Development Institute, 60.5 percent of people paid monthly rent in 2016, while 39.5 percent lived in jeonse homes.In 2010, jeonse was the most common housing rental type in the country, at 50.3 percent. Jeonse is a home rental arrangement unique to
Sept. 20, 2017
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Korean biz survival rate lower than EU
South Korean small and medium enterprises have a lower survival rate than their European Union counterparts with some 6 out of 10 surviving more than one year and less than 30 percent past five years, data showed Wednesday.A total of 62.4 percent of Korean companies remained opened for more than one year as of 2015, and 27.3 percent were doing business beyond five years, according to the data by the Korea International Trade Association. Korean businesses' one-year survival rate is lower than Ge
Sept. 20, 2017
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Credit card app makes it easier to go Dutch
Splitting the bill is set to become easier, as South Korea’s financial watchdog is set to introduce a system that allows people to use just one credit card to divide the bill.After meeting with the CEOs of eight credit card companies in July, Korea Financial Services Commission decided to allow a system where customers can split the bill by paying the divided amount via mobile application under certain circumstances. Previously, customers had to ask store owners to charge them separa
Sept. 19, 2017