S. Korea logs trade surplus for 39th month in April

South Korea posted a trade surplus for the 39th month in a row in April as imports dropped at a faster pace than exports, customs data showed Friday.According to the data by the Korea Customs Service (KCS), the country's trade surplus reached $8.5 billion last month, up marginally from $8.4 billion in March and significantly higher than $4.4 billion a year earlier.Exports dropped 8 percent on-year to a little over $46.2 billion in April, while imports nosedived 17.8 percent to $37.7 billion, it

May 15, 2015

Biz leaders of S. Korea, Japan urge efforts for economic bloc

Business leaders of South Korea and Japan called for joint efforts to boost economic cooperation between their countries Thursday, while vowing support for ongoing negotiations to form a regional economic bloc through free trade pacts.   The call came at the end of an annual meeting of businesspeople from the two countries, hosted by the Korea-Japan Economic Association.   This year's meeting, held in Seoul from Wednesday, was attended by some 300 business leaders from both countries. The two-da

May 14, 2015

S. Korea seeks to begin FTA talks with Central America

South Korea will call on Central American nations this week to begin negotiations for a free trade agreement (FTA), the foreign ministry said Thursday.First Vice Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yong will deliver the call during a meeting with member nations of the Central American Integration System in Guatemala City on Friday, the ministry said in a press release.SICA, which was launched in 1991 to promote political and economic integration in the region, is made up of Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras

May 14, 2015

Chinese firms urged to remain confident in N. Korea

China has encouraged its companies doing business in North Korea to remain confident, despite strained political ties between the two neighbors.The Chinese ambassador to North Korea, Li Jinjun, made the remarks at a meeting on Wednesday with a group of Chinese businessmen in North Korea, the Chinese Embassy in Pyongyang said in a statement. Li told the Chinese businessmen that he has briefed North Korean officials on China's ambitious Silk Road project aimed at reviving the ancient trade route b

May 14, 2015

S. Korea's economy entering expansionary phase: OECD data

An index of South Korea's leading economic indicators hit a near four-year high in March, signaling the economy is entering an expansionary phase, data by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development showed Thursday.The Paris-based organization said the composite leading indicator for South Korea reached 102.0 in March, up 0.2 point from February and the highest since the 102.1 tallied in April 2010. March marked the ninth straight month of increase.A reading above 100 means a count

May 14, 2015

IMF cuts S. Korea's growth forecast this year to 3.1 percent

The International Monetary Fund lowered its forecast for South Korea's economic growth this year to 3.1 percent Wednesday, saying growth momentum has stalled since last year's Sewol ferry disaster.The latest forecast is down from the 3.3 percent growth the agency forecast in last month's World Economic Outlook report. The IMF has been cutting its forecast for South Korea's gross domestic product growth since October when it predicted 4 percent growth."Growth momentum that had been building since

May 14, 2015

S. Korea plans to keep fiscal expansion for economic growth

South Korea will maintain its expansionary fiscal policy stance for the time being to prop up economic growth, while taking steps to reduce unnecessary outlays, the government said Wednesday.The plan comes amid lingering concern over the economy's performance. Seoul originally set this year's growth target at 3.8 percent, up from 3.3 percent in 2014, but private economists are skeptical of the goal, citing still flaccid private consumption and slumping exports. Reporting the plan to the 2015 nat

May 13, 2015

S. Korea's jobless rate dips to 3.9 pct in April

South Korea's jobless rate edged down in April from a month earlier as more people were hired in the manufacturing and service sectors, a government report said Wednesday.According to the report by Statistics Korea, the jobless rate stood at 3.9 percent last month, down from 4 percent in March. The number remained unchanged from a year earlier.The seasonally adjusted jobless rate for April also stood pat compared with the 3.7 percent in March.The number of employed people reached 25.90 million l

May 13, 2015

S. Korea's import prices fall in April

Import prices in South Korea continued to decline on-year in April in tandem with weaker global oil prices compared with a year earlier, data showed Wednesday.In local currency terms, import prices dropped 17.1 percent on-year last month, compared with a 17.1 percent fall in March, according to the preliminary data from the Bank of Korea. It marks the 32nd straight month in which import prices declined.From a month earlier, import prices fell 2.4 percent, a turnaround from a 0.3 percent gain in

May 13, 2015

Government upbeat about economy despite weak growth potential

South Korean policymakers have painted a rosy picture on the economy for the fifth consecutive month, but a number of think tanks have raised concerns about weakness in core growth engines.In its latest monthly report published on Tuesday, the Finance Ministry said the positive signals for an economic recovery are expanding despite external uncertainties, such as the Korean won’s record strength against the Japanese yen and the protracted slowdown in the global economy.It also stressed that “the

May 12, 2015

Seoul shares inch down on Greek risks

South Korean stocks closed marginally lower Tuesday as investor sentiment was dented by renewed fears over Greece's inability to pay back debts, analysts said. The local currency fell against the U.S. dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 0.61 points, or 0.03 percent, to finish at 2,096.77. Trading volume was moderate at 387.3 million shares worth 4.93 trillion won ($4.5 billion) with decliners outpacing gainers 443 to 356. Analysts said although European finance ministers

May 12, 2015

Economy showing signs of slow recovery: gov't

South Korea's major economic indicators are showing signs of slow improvement, signaling the economy is pulling out of a funk during the fourth quarter of last year, the finance ministry said Tuesday.The ministry, however, cautioned that Asia's fourth-largest economy remains gripped by such external uncertainties as a weak Japanese currency and a delay in the recovery of major economies."Overall, economic indicators such as industrial output, consumption and construction investment are improving

May 12, 2015

Intellectual property trade deficit narrows in 2014

South Korea's trade balance from intellectual property remained in the red in 2014, but the deficit narrowed from a year ago, buoyed by improved trade of copyrights of music, video and computer programs, data showed Tuesday.Asia's fourth-largest economy logged a trade deficit of $6.2 billion in the intellectual property sector last year, compared with a $8.1 billion deficit in 2013, according to the data by the Bank of Korea and the Korean Intellectual Property Office.The biggest deficit was see

May 12, 2015

Seoul shares gain 0.57 pct on China's rate cut

South Korean stocks closed 0.57 percent higher Monday, as another rate cut in China and a strong U.S. job market whetted investor appetite, analysts said. The local currency lost ground against the U.S. dollar. The Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 11.86 points to finish at 2,097.38, snapping a three-day losing streak. Trading volume was moderate at 326.9 million shares worth 4.97 trillion won ($4.57 billion) with gainers far outstripping decliners 564 to 232. Analysts said the additional r

May 11, 2015

S. Korea to use big data for business opportunities

South Korean President Park Geun-hye announced a plan Monday to take advantage of big data to create new business opportunities as she launched a new innovation center."Big data is a new capital of the creative economy," Park said in the opening ceremony of the latest innovation center in Chuncheon, some 85 kilometers east of Seoul, in Gangwon Province.Park's signature creative economy vision calls for boosting the economy and creating jobs by turning creative ideas into real businesses through

May 11, 2015

S. Korean banks' Q1 profit jumps 61.7 pct

South Korean banks' first-quarter earnings jumped 61.7 percent from a year earlier on increased non-interest income, the financial watchdog said Monday.The combined net profit of 18 local lenders stood at 2.1 trillion won ($1.9 billion) in the January-March period, compared with 1.3 trillion won the previous year, according to the Financial Supervisory Service.The strong bottom line came as their non-interest income more than tripled to 1.8 trillion won in the first quarter from 500 billion won

May 11, 2015

BOK expected to hold key rate in May: poll

South Korea's central bank is expected to freeze its benchmark interest rate for a second month in May as it continues to monitor major indicators of Asia's fourth-largest economy, a poll showed Monday.A whopping 12 out of 13 analysts and economists surveyed by Yonhap Infomax, the financial news arm of Yonhap News Agency, forecast the Bank of Korea will hold the base rate steady at a record low of 1.75 percent at its policy meeting on Friday.Last month, the central bank left the key rate unchang

May 11, 2015

S. Korea, China and Japan to hold new round of 3-way FTA talks

South Korea, Japan and China will hold a fresh round of negotiations this week for a three-way free trade agreement with the countries seeking a breakthrough for a high-level trade pact, the South Korean government said Monday.The talks, to be held in Seoul from Tuesday to Wednesday, will be the seventh of their kind since the three countries launched the negotiations in November 2012, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.However, the upcoming round will be the first of its ki

May 11, 2015