Most Popular
-
1
Blinken calls on China to press N. Korea to end its 'dangerous' behavior
-
2
S. Korea, Japan could consider simplified entry agreement: Seoul official
-
3
New celebrity-endorsed therapy for face contouring requires only a pair of rubber bands
-
4
[Weekender] How DDP emerged as an icon of Seoul
-
5
Tensions heighten ahead of first president-opposition chief meeting
-
6
Doctor group's incoming head renews call for govt. to scrap medical school quota hike for dialogue
-
7
'The Roundup: Punishment' becomes fastest 2024 film to top 2 mln admissions
-
8
[Music in drama] An ode to childhood trauma
-
9
Seoul to provide housing subsidy to married couples with newborns
-
10
New head of doctors' association vows war in case of disadvantage to medical professors
-
Korea inks MOU with AfDB on 2018 annual meeting in Busan
The South Korean government said Monday that it signed a memorandum of understanding with the African Development Bank on preparations for the institutions’ annual meeting to be held in a city of Busan next year.The memorandum addresses the sharing of role and cost for the 53rd annual meeting of the AfDB that is expected to draw more than 4,000 finance ministers, governors of central banks, heads of international organizations and business leaders from nearly 80 member states, according to
Sept. 19, 2017
-
Korea's export growth fastest among top 10 exporters
South Korea's exports grew at the fastest pace among the world's top 10 exporters, data by the World Trade Organization showed Tuesday, thanks to brisk sales of semiconductors and petrochemical products. Outbound shipments amounted to $328 billion in the first seven months of this year, making South Korea the world's sixth-largest exporter, up 16.3 percent from a year earlier, according to the WTO's monthly merchandise trade data.Overseas sales by China, the world's No. 1 exporter, showed a 8.3
Sept. 19, 2017
-
BOK says prices of agricultural products up 14.2% in Aug.
Prices of agricultural products rose 14.2 percent in August from a month earlier as rains and a heat wave have reduced the output of agricultural products, central bank data showed Tuesday.The monthly figure marked the highest tallied since September 2010 when it stood at 18.8 percent, according to the preliminary data from the Bank of Korea.Prices of cabbage -- a key ingredient of the Korean traditional side dish of kimchi -- jumped 55.3 percent in August from a month earlier, the BOK said.&nbs
Sept. 19, 2017
-
US trade representative heralds renegotiation of Korea trade deal
WASHINGTON -- US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said Monday that a renegotiation is in order for trade agreements that lead to growing trade deficits, a remark indicative of his stance on the US free trade deal with South Korea."We are looking at all of our trade agreements to determine if they are working to our benefit," he told a forum here. "The basic notion in a free trade agreement is that one grants preferential treatment to a trading partner in return for an approx
Sept. 19, 2017
-
Banks urged to tighten home loan screening to slow household debt
The nation's top financial regulator on Tuesday urged banks to tighten their screening of home loan applications to help slow the growth of household debt. South Korea tightened lending rules for mortgages last month, but critics say loopholes give some people room for borrowing money in excess of the lending limits to buy homes. Kim Yong-beom, vice chairman of the Financial Services Commission, told representatives from banks that the growth of household debt could pick up during the second hal
Sept. 19, 2017
-
[Monitor] SMEs anticipate financial problems during Chuseok
Nearly half of surveyed small and medium-sized enterprises anticipate financial problems during the 10-day holiday that includes Chuseok in early October, according to the Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business.Of the 1,147 SMEs, 46 percent said they anticipate facing financial problems mainly due to a drop in sales (69.1 percent), delayed collection of payments (37.7 percent) and a rise in raw material prices (23.1 percent).
Sept. 18, 2017
-
Household debt tops W1,400tr in July: lawmaker
South Korea's household debt jumped 9 percent in July from a year earlier, a lawmaker said Tuesday, despite the government's tightened lending rules.The country's overall household debt came to 1,439 trillion won ($1.27 trillion) as of end-July, said Chae Yi-bai, a lawmaker of the opposition People's Party, citing the Korea Credit Information Services, the public agency responsible for managing the country's credit information. He said household loans extended by credit card firms and other
Sept. 18, 2017
-
Income-led growth policy put to test
The relevance of President Moon Jae-in’s income-led growth policy is being put to an early test by the worsening unemployment problem.Data released by Statistics Korea last week showed the on-year increase in the number of newly employed people in August fell to the lowest in four and a half years. The unemployment rate for young people aged 15-29 stood at 9.4 percent last month, the highest for August since 1999, when the Korean economy was struggling with the aftermath of a foreign
Sept. 18, 2017
-
State-run financial institutions moving to hire temps as regular workers: FSC
South Korea's financial watchdog said Monday it will present comprehensive measures later this month to give permanent jobs to temporary workers currently employed at state-run institutions.The move comes as the Moon Jae-in government is pushing ahead with the implementation of his presidential campaign pledge to reduce the number of nonregular workers and increase employment of regular workers.Officials at the Financial Services Commission said guidelines will be set for the full-time employmen
Sept. 18, 2017
-
Weak employment conditions adversely affects sex life among women: survey
South Korean women in their 20s and 30s had sex less in 2014 compared with a decade ago, a survey showed Monday, amid high youth unemployment that has led to late marriage and less dating.South Korea's overall unemployment rate stood at 3.8 percent in June, up 0.2 percentage point from the same month last year. The unemployment rate for young people aged between 15 and 29 was much higher at 10.1 percent, up from 9.4 percent a year earlier. Jobless numbers have consistently outpaced those of the
Sept. 18, 2017
-
Financial regulator vows greater role on job creation
The head of the nation's top financial regulator said Monday he will put more emphasis on helping the government to create jobs and offer financial incentives for startups. In a report to the National Assembly, Choi Jong-ku, chairman of the Financial Services Commission, said the FSC will eliminate entry barriers for financial firms to make inroads into new businesses. Job creation is one of the top priorities of President Moon Jae-in, who has embraced income-led economic growth as his main econ
Sept. 18, 2017
-
[Monitor] Losses from drop in Chinese tourists amount to W81.6tr
A report from Hyundai Research Institute showed over the weekend that losses incurred by a radical decline in Chinese tourists amount to 81.6 trillion won ($71.94 billion) yearly.The number of incoming Chinese visitors dropped by 40 percent from March and July this year compared to the same period last year. The report estimated that some 3.33 million Chinese decided not to visit Korea in light of the Chinese government‘s purported group travel ban in a retaliation to Seoul’s deploym
Sept. 17, 2017
-
Long Chuseok holiday poses dilemma for SMEs
Planned to encourage consumer spending and revitalize the domestic market, the government’s designation of Oct. 2 as a temporary holiday to fill the chain of holidays in early October comes amid discouraging indices and dilemmas faced by smaller merchants. “We still haven’t decided whether to keep our store closed throughout the holiday season or to partially open,” said Kim Rae-won, an owner of a small restaurant in central Seoul. “It is hard to figure out whether
Sept. 17, 2017
-
North Korea's fresh missile launch has limited impact on local market
South Korea’s financial market on Friday remained relatively unperturbed by North Korea’s launch of another ballistic missile, despite aggravated geopolitical tension on the Korean Peninsula.Financial decision makers nevertheless vowed for a full readiness posture, lest the continuing military threats from the North dampen investor sentiment in the long-term. The nation’s benchmark Kospi on Friday closed at 2,386.07, up 8.41 points from the previous day. The secondary Kosdaq cl
Sept. 15, 2017
-
PM Lee, Wisconsin governor discuss economy, FTA
Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon met with the governor of the US state of Wisconsin on Friday and discussed trade and economic cooperation, including the free trade pact between the two countries, Lee's office said.Gov. Scott Walker has been on a four-day visit to South Korea since Wednesday, leading an economic mission of about 20 people that includes government officials and business leaders in the state. It is his first visit to Korea. During the meeting, Lee noted the steady development of co
Sept. 15, 2017
-
THAAD row with China costs Korea dear: report
South Korea's tourism industry has been hit hard by a diplomatic row with China over the deployment of a US missile shield here that has sent the number of Chinese visitors tumbling, a report said Friday.In mid-March, China banned the sale of group tours to Seoul in retaliation against the installation of a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense battery in southeastern South Korea. Seoul and Washington insist it is purely designed to counter North Korea's missile threats, but Beijing argues the sys
Sept. 15, 2017
-
Korean economy remains calm despite NK missile provocation: finance minister
South Korea's top economic policymaker said Friday that the local financial market seems to remain calm despite the latest North Korean missile firing, but the government will take immediate action, if necessary."The market condition looks steady," Finance Minister Kim Dong-yeon said. "It does not seem likely that there will be sudden fluctuation in the market. But if we experience it, actions will be taken swiftly and resolutely."The North fired a ballistic missile over Japa
Sept. 15, 2017
-
Korea boosting efforts to attract more visitors for PyeongChang Olympics
PYEONGCHANG -- South Korea is gearing up its efforts to attract more local and foreign visitors to the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics, officials said Friday, with the quadrennial event just five months away. The Winter Games will be held in the alpine county of PyeongChang, 180 kilometers east of Seoul, from Feb. 9-25, 2018, and will be attended by about 6,500 athletes and officials from 95 countries.The government of Gangwon Province, where PyeongChang and other venues for the upcoming
Sept. 15, 2017
-
Banks' foreign currency deposits fall in August
Foreign currency deposits at banks in South Korea fell in August from a month earlier as exporters decreased their deposits in the US dollar and Japanese yen, central bank data showed Friday.Outstanding foreign currency deposits held by banks here reached $67.14 billion at the end of August, down $1.97 billion from a month earlier, according to the data compiled by the Bank of Korea.Broken down, foreign currency deposits held by domestic banks came to $57.41 billion in August, down from $59.38 b
Sept. 15, 2017
-
Health care costs for insured foreigners double over 5 years
Health care costs for foreigners covered by South Korea's state health insurance have more than doubled over the past five years as more subscribe to the scheme, data showed Friday.The total medical cost for covered foreigners came to 553 billion won ($487 million) last year, up 109 percent from 2012, according to the data by the National Health Insurance Service and the Justice Ministry.The amount is much larger than the 426 billion won paid by those covered foreigners in state health insurance
Sept. 15, 2017