Articles by Choi Si-young
Choi Si-young
siyoungchoi@heraldcorp.com-
Bank of Korea warns against worsening wage-price spiral
The higher people expect prices to soar, the worse a wage spiral becomes as rising living costs prompt bigger wages, with persistent inflation on the rise, the Bank of Korea said Monday in a report. “Prices and wages look like they have nothing to do with each other, but in the long run, data consistently shows they do,” the report said, referring to surging prices in Korea. Inflation hit a 24-year high of six percent in June, prompting the central bank to back its first-t
Economy July 25, 2022
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DSME creditor warns of bankruptcy over shipyard strike
Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering may face a court-ordered rehabilitation process unless action is taken on a monthlong strike there, the company’s main creditor Korea Development Bank said Friday. “It would be more difficult for DSME to repay its debts as the strike drags on … we’re not going to help the builder unless it gets back to work,” an executive at the state-run bank said, suggesting that the country’s third-largest shipbuilder would hav
Industry July 22, 2022
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Home prices drive household wealth
South Korean household wealth jumped 8 percent on-year, with net worth per household estimated at 544.7 million won ($415,593) thanks to a surge in house prices, a Bank of Korea report showed Thursday. Real estate made up 75 percent of household wealth. The net worth of households, nonprofit organizations, financial and nonfinancial companies and the government came to 19,000 trillion won, up 2,030 trillion won, or 11.4 percent, from the previous year. That is the biggest annual increase since
Economy July 21, 2022
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Work-life balance key to women leadership: Yellen
US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said work-life balance plays a key role in shaping a work environment that is appealing to women, who she described as still underrepresented in workplaces, at a meeting with the Bank of Korea’s female workers held Tuesday in Seoul. “Work-life balance is a tremendous problem. I guess it’s a huge problem here, too,” Yellen said, describing having a family while working in challenging jobs as a hurdle for women pursuing a career. The meet
Economy July 19, 2022
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Regulator holds firm on debt relief plan
South Korea’s top financial regulator said Monday that its plan to help low-income earners reduce their debt burdens does not encourage reckless investments in stocks or real estate, amid criticism that young Koreans who have made losses from such investments could repay debts with taxpayers’ money. “We’re not helping those who have had to cut their losses on stocks and cryptocurrencies to pay for loans (taken out for investment),” Kim Joo-hyun, chairman of the Fin
Economy July 18, 2022
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Weak won set to persist with US intent on more rate hikes
The South Korean won could further depreciate against the US dollar in months to come as long as the US backs aggressive monetary tightening to fight raging inflation, analysts said, as the Korean currency weakened to a 13-year low of 1,326.1 won per US dollar Friday. The breach of the 1,300 won psychological threshold -- prompted by rising US rates luring investors and soaring demand for the safe-haven asset amid global economic uncertainty -- is the latest indication that policymakers in Seou
Market July 17, 2022
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Yoon vows debt relief for low earners after rate hike
President Yoon Suk-yeol pledged Thursday to help low-income earners with their mounting debt burdens, a day after the central bank made its biggest single rate hike to tame persistent inflation, at a weekly meeting he convened for the second time. The meetings deal with pressing economic issues affecting what they call a “vulnerable group” of self-employed people, small business owners and those fresh out of college. Policymakers discussed inflation last week. This week, they unveil
Economy July 14, 2022
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[Market Eye] Short selling ban back in focus as stocks slide
South Korea’s top financial policymaker on Monday hinted at banning short selling again to prevent a jumpy stock market, but some market analysts say the plan should be reexamined since its effect on long-term market stability is still debatable. The ban -- which was temporarily put on the benchmark Kospi and junior Kosdaq in March 2020 over pandemic-induced volatility -- was partially lifted in May 2021, when the bearish investment practice was allowed on the Kospi 200 and the Kosdaq 15
Market July 13, 2022
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BOK backs historic rate hike amid growing recession fears
The Bank of Korea delivered a half-point interest rate hike Wednesday, the biggest increase since 1999, to tame unruly inflation, despite growing concerns the move could trigger soaring debt burden and an abrupt economic slowdown. The hike, which comes after inflation hit a 24-year high of six percent in June and takes the current policy rate to 2.25 percent, adds strain to the world’s highest household debt that amounts to a little over 104 percent of Korea’s gross domestic product
Economy July 13, 2022
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Seoul housing prices show signs of slowdown
South Korea’s overheated housing market is showing signs of cooling down, as Seoul housing prices have inched down in recent months with persistent inflation and soaring interest rates squeezing household budgets. According to the Land Ministry on Monday, apartment prices in Apgujeong-dong, a wealthy neighborhood in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, dropped by as much as 300 million won ($230,000) in June from the previous month. A price slowdown was palpable in other affluent Seoul districts like Son
Economy July 11, 2022
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New FSC chief vows to stabilize markets, ease rules
Kim Joo-hyun, the new chief of the Financial Services Commission, said Monday that he would use all resources and cooperate with authorities for market stability at his inauguration, which took place after a divided National Assembly failed to hold a confirmation hearing. Kim underscored mounting concerns that aggressive rate hikes by the US Federal Reserve would further dampen investor optimism here. “Rapid inflation is eating into the economy. Economic and political factors,
Market July 11, 2022
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6 in 10 Koreans believe house prices will fall
Six in 10 South Koreans planning to buy homes believe house prices will start to fall in the second half of this year, as rising interest rates will worsen repayment burdens, according to a survey by local property technology firm and listing platform Zigbang. In a survey conducted on 1,727 Zigbang app users from June 20 to July 4, 1,069 respondents (61.9 percent) said they expect the prices of houses in their neighborhood to fall, amid speculation over a sharper-than-expected rate hike the cen
Economy July 11, 2022
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KRX to unveil rules for corporate sustainability disclosures
Korea Exchange CEO Sohn Byung-doo said Thursday that the bourse operator will set out guidelines on the way listed companies should report their progress on environmental, social and governance issues. The sustainability disclosures become mandatory as early as 2025. “The ESG initiative is one of the four goals we plan to see take place. We will refer to the global guidelines,” Sohn said at a forum, held to discuss the ways Korean companies can better navigate the low-carbon transit
Market July 8, 2022
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Korea’s current account surplus drops on soaring energy prices
South Korea’s current account swung back into the black in May from a deficit the previous month that snapped 23 months of surplus booked since May 2020, but the latest surplus of $3.86 million marked a fall from a year earlier, preliminary data from the Bank of Korea showed Thursday. Soaring coal, oil and gas import costs was the reason Asia’s fourth-largest economy, which heavily relies on imports for energy, posted the annual drop. The surplus in goods trade also declined to $6.6
Economy July 7, 2022
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Hana Bank, Kyung Hee Univ. start philanthropic campaign
Hana Bank, one of the five biggest banks in South Korea, and Kyung Hee University launched a philanthropic campaign Wednesday to ask people to bequeath their fortunes to charity, amid growing awareness of charity pledges leaving behind positive social impact. The bank will help those seeking to put money into philanthropic causes draw up a financial plan in advance while the university will look for potential candidates by offering them programs that show how charitable donations have served th
Industry July 6, 2022
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