The volatility in the dollar-won exchange rates slightly eased in the April-June period from a quarter earlier as global financial markets stabilized, the central bank said Wednesday. The average daily variation, showing the change from the previous session's closing price, came to 4.2 won in the second quarter, down from 5.7 won in the previous quarter, according to data from the Bank of Korea....

The number of South Koreans who are economically inactive due to reasons related to child care has dropped to a record low this year amid the country‘s chronic low birthrate, data by Statistics Korea showed Tuesday. The total number of economically inactive people aged over 15 stood at 15.83 million last month. Of them, about 1.24 million people, or 7.8 percent, were categorized as people not lo...

South Korea's antitrust regulator announced a set of measures meant to strengthen rights of franchisees Tuesday, a sign that underscores the government's commitment to ending unfair business practices across the board. The measures call for, among other things, food franchisers to release information on profit margins of essential goods that franchisees need to buy from their corporate parents, ...

A Seoul appellate court on Tuesday commuted the sentence on a former head of a now debt-ridden shipyard convicted of massive accounting fraud that culminated in state-led fund injections. The Seoul High Court reduced the sentence for Ko Jae-ho, former chief executive of Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co., to nine years in jail. He was handed down a 10-year term by a lower court in Janu...

One in five workers said that they will not be able to take time off work this summer, citing a sluggish economy and excessive workload as the main reasons, according to a survey by workers education company Hunet on Tuesday. Hunet’s survey of 934 employees found that 21.6 percent of the respondents said they are not planning on taking summer vacations this year. The results are slightly lower ...

The US Congress has called on the United States Trade Representative to arrange for a consultation meeting in regards to any amendments to the free trade pact with South Korea, Seoul's trade promotion agency said Tuesday. Four leaders of the Senate and House of Representatives sent a letter to the US Trade Representative Robert E. Lighthizer, urging the office to "consult closely with Congress b...

The approved minimum wage increase next year will incur 1.75 trillion won ($1.55 billion) in additional pay for small and medium-sized enterprises that hire foreign workers, a local business association said Tuesday. Some 269,000 foreigners were working an average of 209 hours per month at local companies as of May this year. The hike in minimum wage will raise their monthly pay by 332,891 won, ...

The number of child rearing-related economically inactive South Koreans fell to a record low level this year amid the country's chronic low birthrate, government data showed Tuesday. Economically inactive people refer to those who are unemployed and not looking for jobs. They include those who have intentionally given up seeking jobs or are engaged in educational pursuits. According to the data...

Bank of Korea’s upward revision last week of its 2017 growth forecast for the Korean economy was overshadowed by its gloomier estimate of the growth potential of Asia’s fourth-largest economy. The central bank revised up its growth outlook for this year to 2.8 percent from the 2.6 percent estimate in April. It cited a rise in exports and facility investment, which is expected to be coupled with ...

According to a report on the new government’s new energy supply plan submitted to Rep. Choi Yeon-hye of the Liberty Korea Party, Korea’s target is similar to those of major countries and regions. But careful consideration of the effectiveness of the plan is needed considering the limited land space, a key factor in expanding sunlight and wind power generation, and the nation’s high reliance on en...

Korea’s export price index of semiconductors hit 48.79 last month, reaching the highest in more than two years, according to the Bank of Korea on Monday. Last month’s price index of semiconductors was a 14.2 percent increase compared to December last year and marked the highest since December 2014 when it stood at 49.05. According to the BOK, the price hike is attributed to global rising demand...

It takes the average Korean worker more than 100 minutes to commute to and from work every day, according to data from Job Korea, an internet employment site, on Monday. For Seoul residents, the average daily commute was 2 hours and 15 minutes. Job Korea surveyed 820 men and women and found that the average worker spent 101.1 minutes commuting to and from work. Those surveyed said their commut...

South Korea's car exports to the United States have declined, rather than increased, after the two countries abolished import taxes last year as part of their free trade agreement, data showed Sunday. The Korea Automobile Manufacturers Association published the analysis that rebuts a widespread belief in the US that lower tariffs increased Korean car sales in the country. It underlies the recent...