Most Popular
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Marine Corps commander summoned by CIO for questioning on alleged influence-peddling case
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Debate rages over ‘overly fatty’ samgyeopsal
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[Weekender] Korean psyche untangled: Musok
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40 flights canceled on Jeju Island due to bad weather
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N. Korea slams US, other countries for seeking alternative to UN sanctions monitoring panel
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Pandemic left Korea more depressed than before: report
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[Eye Interview] 'If you live to 100, you might as well be happy,' says 88-year-old bestselling essayist
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Gov't appears to shelve punitive measures against mass walkout by doctors
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From fake prostitution ring to nonexistent robber, prank calls hamper police
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Missing S. Korean traveler in Paris found safe after 2 weeks
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[NEWS ANALYSIS] Market expects near end of key rate hike cycle
After Korea’s central bank delivered yet another rate hike, market participants have begun to anticipate the end of the monetary tightening cycle is near. Seeking to fight inflation, the Bank of Korea continued a streak of seven consecutive rate hikes, jacking up the key rate by another 25 basis points on Friday. With the latest hike, the base rate has reached 3.5 percent, the highest figure in more than 14 years, since the rate stood at 4 percent in November 2008. The rate hike will lea
Jan. 15, 2023
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BOK raises rate for 7th consecutive time to 3.5 percent
The Bank of Korea continued a streak of seven consecutive rate hikes, making the base rate stand at 3.5 percent. The central bank announced Friday it has raised the benchmark rate by 25 basis points, deeming that inflation has yet cooled down. With the hike, the base rate has reached 3.5 percent, the highest figure in more than 14 years, since the rate stood at 4 percent in November 2008. Prior to the bank’s aggressive policy cycle, the benchmark rate stood at 0.5 percent in July 2021. &ld
Jan. 13, 2023
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Concerns loom for S. Korean economy on weak consumption, exports: Green Book
The South Korean economy is feared to face a bumpy road ahead on high inflation, slowing domestic consumption as well as sluggish exports, the finance ministry said Friday. "Recently, the South Korean economy's inflation continued to stay at a high plateau, and the recovery of domestic consumption has slowed. The weak economic sentiment has continued on weak exports as well, leading to concerns over an economic slowdown," the Ministry of Economy and Finance said. It was the eighth
Jan. 13, 2023
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S. Korea's fiscal deficit widens through November
South Korea's fiscal deficit widened 21 trillion won ($16.8 billion) in the first 11 months of last year due to increased expenditures amid the pandemic. The managed fiscal balance, a key gauge of fiscal health calculated on a stricter term, posted a deficit of 98 trillion won in the January-November period, larger than a shortfall of 77 trillion won a year earlier, the finance ministry's Monthly Public Finance report showed. The country's tax revenue came to 373.6 trillion won du
Jan. 12, 2023
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'Economy will go down the rabbit hole,' survey finds
Concerns over deepening economic slowdown and a bleak outlook for global business conditions, experts predicted that this year the country’s economy would fall deep into a dark and chaotic situation as if it "goes down the rabbit hole." Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry summarized the opinions of some 85 economics and management experts including university professors as "falling down the rabbit hole." The KCCI survey respondents said an unprecedented economic en
Jan. 11, 2023
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BOK likely to continue rate hikes
With the Bank of Korea set to hold the first rate-setting meeting of the year Friday, the market is expecting it to raise the base interest rate 25 basis points to 3.5 percent. In the latest Monetary Policy Committee meeting held in November, the Bank of Korea raised its benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points, signaling a slowdown in its rate hikes following a twofold raise of 50 basis points. It is likely that the bank will announce another interest rate hike as inflation is yet to be tamed
Jan. 9, 2023
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Imported car sales rise 24% in December despite chip shortage
Sales of imported vehicles in South Korea rose 24 percent last month from a year earlier despite the extended chip shortage, an industry association said Wednesday. The number of newly registered foreign vehicles stood at 29,640 units last month, up from 23,904 units a year ago, the Korea Automobile Importers & Distributors Association said in a statement. The three bestselling models last month were Mercedes-Benz's E 250 sedan and E 350 4MATIC sedan, and BMW's 520 sedan, the state
Jan. 4, 2023
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S. Korea to expand food supply, offer discounts ahead of holiday
South Korea's finance ministry said Wednesday it plans to use around 30 billion won ($23.5 million) to offer discounts on major food products in line with efforts to stabilize their prices ahead of the Lunar New Year. The government also plans to increase the supply of 16 food items with high demand ahead of the four-day holiday that starts Jan. 21, according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance. In detail, the amount of popular agricultural products, including apples and pears, released
Jan. 4, 2023
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S. Korea to spend at least 60% of budget in H1 amid economic fears
South Korea's finance ministry said Wednesday it aims to spend at least 60 percent of the annual budget in the first half of 2023 amid the slowdown in exports and employment. "Of the expenditure plan of 638.7 trillion won ($500 billion), we will seek to spend at least 60 percent, or 383.2 trillion won, in the first half," the Ministry of Economy and Finance said in a statement. In late December, the National Assembly passed the government budget for 2023. The final package was down 314
Jan. 4, 2023
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[Photo News] IBK's new chairman
Industrial Bank of Korea Chairman Kim Sung-tae took office on Tuesday to lead the state-run bank after a recent approval from President Yoon Suk-yeol. A veteran insider, Kim has worked for IBK for over three decades since joining in 1989. At the inauguration ceremony held earlier in the day, the new chairman pledged to put his priority on supporting small- and medium-sized businesses.
Jan. 3, 2023
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S. Korea's power use hits new high in December on cold wave
South Korea's electricity consumption touched a record monthly high in December as the country was gripped by a nationwide cold wave and heavy snow, the power operator said Tuesday. The country's average maximum power consumption stood at 82,716 megawatts last month, up 5.1 percent from a year earlier, according to the Korea Power Exchange. It was higher than the previous monthly record of 82,007 MW set in July last year. The December tally also marks the first time that the country
Jan. 3, 2023
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Aging population to slow down economy, central bank warns
The Bank of Korea warned Monday that the aging population could drive down the macroeconomic benefits of fiscal expenditure. According to the central bank's monthly research report, studies show that one percentage point in an increased aging population leads to a 5.9 percent drop in the fiscal growth of gross domestic product. The bank announced the figures based on overseas research which showed that the change in the population structure weakens the growth effect of fiscal expenditures.
Jan. 2, 2023
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[Newsmaker] Chip supremacy gives South Korea more geopolitical freedom: lawmaker
Rep. Yang Hyang-ja, a former executive at Samsung Electronics’ semiconductor business division, called securing a competitive edge in chips a “matter of life and death” amid the ever-evolving geopolitical landscape and an escalating US-China rivalry. “The winner of the global chip battle will control the economic security order, while the loser will end up becoming a technological colony,” Yang, who heads the ruling People Power Party’s special panel on chips,
Jan. 2, 2023
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2022 in numbers
1. Tough living conditions ① COVID cases The number of COVID-19 cases grew by 28.2 million this year due to the highly transmissible omicron subvariant. The figure was 635,253 on Jan. 1 but surged to 28.7 million at the end of this year. ② Inflation Fried chicken: 9.2% Gas: 36.2% Ramen: 12.6% Cooking oil: 43.3% (Nov. 2022, Year-on-year increase) South Korea has been no exception to global inflation, with “everything has risen except my salary” becoming a popular catchphrase. 2. U
Dec. 31, 2022
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Yoon orders finance ministry to consider bigger tax break for chip sector
President Yoon Suk-yeol on Friday ordered ministries to actively consider measures further expanding tax incentives for the semiconductor sector and other national strategic industries. Yoon requested the Ministry of Economy and Finance to come up with ways to further expand tax benefits for national strategic technologies such as semiconductors as they are "our security assets and core technologies," a president office’s deputy spokesperson said. His remark came after the ruling
Dec. 30, 2022
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Tax revenue up W50.2t bthrough November
South Korea's tax revenue grew 50.2 trillion won ($39.7 billion) in the first 11 months of 2022 from a year earlier, data showed Friday, on the back of improved corporate earnings. Tax revenue amounted to 373.6 trillion won in the January-November period, compared with 323.4 trillion won tallied the previous year, according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance. In November, the government collected 18 trillion won in taxes, up 2 trillion won from a year earlier. The ministry attributed th
Dec. 30, 2022
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Consumer price growth hits 24-year high in 2022
South Korea's consumer prices grew at the fastest pace in more than two decades in 2022, government data showed Friday, as the country felt the pinch of soaring prices of raw materials and energy sources following the Russia-Ukraine war. Consumer prices rose 5.1 percent on-year in 2022, accelerating from a 2.5 percent gain in 2021, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. It marked the steepest on-year rise since 1998, when consumer inflation spiked 7.5 percent in the wake of the
Dec. 30, 2022
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BOK's reserve management team expects dollar to bounce back amid recession woes
The US dollar's recent downward move will likely continue for the time being, but its value could bounce back next year when global recession woes arise, the foreign reserve management team of South Korea's central bank said Tuesday. The dollar has recently been under downward pressure after gaining marked ground against major currencies thanks to aggressive monetary tightening in the United States. The Korean won has also rebounded recently after tumbling through the 1,400 mark in Sep
Dec. 27, 2022
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Korean companies suffer from weakening stability, fiscal health
South Korean companies have seen revenue growth this year, but their fiscal health has deteriorated due to increased debt and lowered profitability, according to a report from a major business lobby group Monday. Despite their growing revenue, the slowdown in the growth rate, inventory piling up and soaring borrowing costs draw concerns as the country’s economy is largely expected to see headwinds next year, with sluggish exports and uncertainties in the global market. “Companies h
Dec. 26, 2022
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Customs agency allows imports of full-body sex dolls
South Korea's customs agency said Monday it has started permitting imports of full-body sex dolls, three years after the country's top court ruled they are not "obscene materials." The Korea Customs Service had been allowing imports of sex dolls that depict particular human body parts, but not life-size dolls, since July. The agency, however, said dolls depicting minors -- based on height, weight, and face -- will still not be permitted. Those resembling a specific person wil
Dec. 26, 2022