Female subscribers to state pension increasing rapidly

The number of female subscribers to South Korea's state pension fund jumped remarkably in the past five years, data showed Thursday, indicating that more women are joining the workforce to guarantee they can financially support themselves in their later years.According to the data by the National Pension Service, the number of female subscribers increased from 7.66 million in 2010 to 9.41 million in 2015.As of May 2016, the total number of female subscribers came to 9.48 million, or 43.9 percent

Aug. 11, 2016

Korea's exports jump 16.4% in first 10 days of Aug.

South Korea's exports expanded more than 16 percent in the first 10 days of the month from a year earlier on the back of increased business days and rising demand for chips and auto parts, customs data showed Thursday.Outbound shipments totaled US$9.7 billion from Aug. 1-10, up 16.4 percent from the same period last year, according to the Korea Customs Service.Exports of semiconductors jumped 18.8 percent on-year and those of automobile components soared 41.3 percent over the cited period.The on

Aug. 11, 2016

Gov't program helps 3,100 SMEs turn into exporters this year

Over 3,100 local firms benefited from the government's offshore marketing support program and achieved their first export this year, the trade ministry here said Thursday.Cases of successful overseas inroads were reported at a government meeting chaired by Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn to examine its support measures announced throughout the year to promote the export sector.The ministry also reported at the meeting that the number of smart factories intended to revamp the manufacturing sector ha

Aug. 11, 2016

BOK holds key rate at 1.25% in Aug.

South Korea's central bank held its policy rate in place for August on Thursday, extending its wait-and-see mode for a second straight month after sending the key rate to a record low level to bolster growth here.In a widely expected move, the monetary policy board of the Bank of Korea voted to keep the key rate at 1.25 percent in August.In June, the central bank made a surprise rate cut, citing a need to support the economy.The country's exports have fallen every single month since the start of

Aug. 11, 2016

Economic recovery, not FTA, led to increase in U.S. imports from Korea: official

U.S. imports from South Korea have risen in recent years mainly because the U.S. economy has picked up, a senior Korean official said Wednesday, rejecting Donald Trump's claims that the free trade deal between the two countries is to blame for U.S. trade deficits with South Korea.In an attempt to rally support from voters struggling with economic woes, the Republican presidential nominee has slammed free trade deals as a source of American economic problems. He has denounced the agreement with S

Aug. 11, 2016

Fewer people change jobs amid economic slowdown

The number of workers who voluntarily left jobs for new opportunities decreased in the first half amid the economic slowdown, while those who were laid off were on a steady rise, industry data showed Wednesday. The number of Koreans who remain unemployed after leaving their previous jobs three months earlier fell 221,200 in the January-June period from a year ago, according to the Korea Labor Institute. The labor institute attributed the drop in employees changing workplaces to the tight job mar

Aug. 10, 2016

Seoul stocks start higher on Wall Street gains

South Korean shares opened higher Tuesday, extending gains after hitting a nine-month high a day earlier, on the back of overnight gains on Wall Street.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 2.43 points, or 0.12 percent, to 2,046.21 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Large caps traded mixed with market kingpin Samsung Electronics gaining 0.32 percent. Major chipmaker SK hynix fell 0.57 percent. Naver, the country's biggest Internet portal, rose 1.32 percent. Top automaker Hyundai M

Aug. 10, 2016

[Monitor] China-related Korean firms suffer from THAAD plan

The market capitalization of the top 10 Korean companies related to consumption in China, such as cosmetics, travel and food, contracted from 61.8 trillion won on July 7 to 50.6 trillion won on Aug. 5, showed a report by Samsung Securities on Monday. Their stock prices continued to drop after South Korea and the U.S. announced on July 8 a plan to deploy the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system here. 　

Aug. 10, 2016

Korea's jobless rate drops to 3.5% in July

South Korea's jobless rate dropped slightly in July from a year earlier, with the unemployment rate for young adults also declining, a government report showed Wednesday.The unemployment rate in Asia's fourth-largest economy stood at 3.5 percent last month, compared with 3.6 percent tallied in June, according to the report compiled by Statistics Korea.The number of employed people stood at 26.6 million in July, up 298,000 from a year earlier, with the monthly gain contracting from the previous m

Aug. 10, 2016

[Graphic News] Korea shows heavy industrial use of electricity

South Korea showed a much higher share of business electricity consumption in total power spending than other member countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.In the ministry’s report Monday, power consumption for industrial use in Korea accounted for 56.6 percent of total electricity use in 2015, with just 13.6 percent for household use. But according to the International Energy Association, OECD member countr

Aug. 9, 2016

Korea to manage national debt-GDP ratio at under 45%

The South Korean government will keep the ratio of national debt against the gross domestic product at 45 percent or lower from next year as part of its long-term plan to maintain sound fiscal status, the finance ministry here said Tuesday.It will also control the balance of government income and expenditures at a ratio of 3 percent or lower to the GDP, according to the Ministry of Strategy and Finance.The ministry said it has drawn up the new state budget management act in order to deal with th

Aug. 9, 2016

Korea vulnerable to Japan-style recession: IMF director

South Korea may face a protracted recession like that in Japan partly due to demographics, a Korea-born economist with the International Monetary Fund warned Tuesday."There is a possibility that South Korea will be exposed to a lengthy (economic) slump, just as Japan (did), for structural problems in population," Rhee Chang-yong, director of the IMF's Asia and Pacific department, told reporters here after a forum hosted by the Korean Economic Association.He pointed to the decline in the populati

Aug. 9, 2016

Strengthening won worsens woes of Korean exporters

Economic policymakers here are keeping a watchful eye on the recent rise in the value of the won against the dollar, which they worry will be a further drag on the country’s declining exports.Vice Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok suggested last week that if necessary, the government would take market-stabilizing measures against sharp currency swings.“We are concerned that the won is appreciating at a particularly fast pace, while the U.S. dollar has been weakening for weeks,” he said.The Korean c

Aug. 9, 2016

Mobile banking use up 6.3% in Q2: BOK data

South Korea's mobile banking, mostly based on smartphones, continued to grow quickly in the second quarter of 2016, with the daily average transaction volume exceeding 3 trillion won ($2.7 billion), central bank data showed Tuesday.The daily transaction volume rose 6.3 percent on-quarter to 3.78 trillion won during the April-June period, according to the Bank of Korea.It topped 2 trillion won just one and a half years ago, indicating that mobile banking is rapidly expanding in the tech-savvy nat

Aug. 9, 2016

Reunification of 2 Koreas may sharply cut South Korea's per capita income: report

South Korea's per capita income could plunge by up to 30 percent if the divided two Koreas are unified, a report showed Tuesday.In the report to assess a unified peninsula's economic potential, the Korea Development Institute estimated that South Korea's per capita gross national income could decrease by between 15 and 30 percent in the first decade following the reunification."The size of Pyongyang's economy would become about 90 percent of Seoul's if Seoul continues to give support for about 3

Aug. 9, 2016

Gov't report cites mix of upbeat domestic demand, export slump

The South Korean economy has hardly shown clear signs of recovery in recent months, as an apparent uptick in private consumption was offset by a slump in exports and industrial production, a government report said Tuesday."The economy has been experiencing improved domestic demand led by rising consumption, but the production front has remained in the doldrums due to faltering exports," the finance ministry said in its monthly economy assessment report called the "Green Book."The report is based

Aug. 9, 2016

GDP to shrink 8% by 2026 due to population aging: KERI

South Korea's gross domestic product may shrink by nearly 8 percent from that of 2014 in just 12 years should the ratio of its aged population continue to increase at the current pace, a report showed Tuesday.According to the report from the Korea Economic Research Institute, the country's GDP is expected to shrink 7.95 percent from that of 2014 by 2026, simply due to the lack of people eligible to work.The country continues to struggle with one of the world's lowest birth rates, while fast impr

Aug. 9, 2016

[Graphic News] 32 cash-strapped firms facing restructuring: FSS

Thirty-two South Korean businesses are in need of corporate rehabilitation, according to the Financial Supervisory Service on Sunday. The financially troubled companies were chosen among 602 companies scrutinized by the FSS on their credit risks out of 1,973 local firms with over 50 billion won ($45 million) debt. The FSS rated the 602 firms from A to D, with A and B considered financially healthy while C and D are ill. Among the selected 32 this year, 13 received a C, while the remaining 19 got

Aug. 8, 2016

S&P raises Korea’s sovereign rating to ‘AA’

S&P Global Ratings announced on Monday it raised South Korea’s sovereign rating to “AA” from “AA-” with a “stable” long-term outlook, citing steady growth of the economy, improving external financial conditions and sufficient fiscal and monetary policy efforts. “The upgrade reflects our assessment that Korea‘s strong record of steady growth has generated a prosperous economy, greater fiscal and monetary flexibility, and continual improvements in external metrics,” S&P said in its report. “Althou

Aug. 8, 2016

South Korea opens center to support trade, investment in Iran

South Korea opened a business center on Monday to help local firms expand trade and investment in Iran as part of its efforts to tap deeper into the Middle East country following the lifting of international sanctions, the trade ministry here said.Located in southern Seoul, the center will provide information and consulting services on trade and investment with Iran, backed by related government agencies including the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency, state-run Woori Bank and the Industri

Aug. 8, 2016