[Graphic News] Quality of life in Korea lowest in five years : OECD

South Korea ranked 28th out of 38 surveyed countries in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development’s 2016 Better Life Index. Korea scored above average in areas such as civic engagement, education and jobs, but fell below average in measures that are more subjective such as life satisfaction and work-life balance.This year’s ranking is the lowest since 2012 when Korea came in 24th in the index. The area in which Koreans showed the least satisfaction was community relations, in whi

June 6, 2016

Korea pushed to balance trade with U.S.

Concerns are rising here over what is deemed as increasing U.S. pressure on Korea to do more to alter its trade practices and business environment.The pressure, which is expected to escalate further in the lead-up to and beyond the U.S. presidential election in November, seems related mainly to the growing trade imbalance between the two sides. Korea’s trade surplus with the U.S. jumped to $28.3 billion last year from $15.2 billion in 2012, when a bilateral free trade agreement came into force,

June 6, 2016

Korea’s negative exports to weigh down growth

With the global economy in a low-growth trap, Korean exports are expected to remain in negative territory, affecting the growth prospect of Asia’s fourth-largest economy this year.Data by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development showed that the growth of Korean exports, which the country relied mostly on to expand on account of weak domestic consumption, has dropped since last year.(Yonhap)Although Korea ranked fourth in the OECD after Japan, Ireland and Mexico in January last y

June 6, 2016

Households' overseas spending jumps 12.9 pct in Q1

South Korean households' overseas spending jumped 12.9 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier on increased outbound travel to neighboring countries, the central bank said Monday.    Korean households spent 6.95 trillion won (US$5.9 billion) overseas in the January-March quarter, up from 6.16 trillion a year ago, showed data from the Bank of Korea (BOK).    The quarterly data does not include local households' purchases through "direct buying" channels such as Aamazon.com and their expe

June 6, 2016

Weak exports set to hurt country's growth: forecast

South Korea's weakening export growth may hurt the country's growth by 0.2 percentage point this year as global demand remains sluggish and uncertainties involving a possible U.S. rate hike this month remain high, a parliamentary agency said Monday. The country's weak export growth will continue to weigh on its gross domestic product growth for two consecutive years. Last year, declining exports cut into the country's growth by 1.1 percentage points, according to the National Assembly Budget Off

June 6, 2016

Korean, Chinese project managers expand ties

The Korean unit of the International Project Management Association said Friday that it has agreed with the China Project Management Education Union to promote project management research between the two sides.The agreement calls for the establishment of the Global Project Institute as a platform for joint research and academic exchanges in cross-border project management. The GPI will invite universities that have partnerships with IPMA Korea and CPMEU as its initial members, and plans to expan

June 3, 2016

Korean senior employment rate near top of OECD rankings

The employment rate for South Korean senior citizens ranks near the top of global rankings as more have to work after retirement due to an inadequate pension system and a lack of preparation for old age, a report showed Friday.The employment-to-population ratio for South Koreans aged 65 and older came to 31.3 percent in 2014, the second highest among members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, showed the report by the Paris-based club of rich economies.South Korea's fig

June 3, 2016

Korea's foreign exchange reserves shrink in May

South Korea's foreign exchange reserves fell slightly from a month earlier in May due partly to a cut in the value of non U.S. dollar assets, central bank data showed Friday.As of the end of May, the country's foreign exchange reserves came to US$370.9 billion, down $1.58 billion from the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea.Foreign exchange reserves consist of securities and deposits denominated in overseas currencies, as well as International Monetary Fund reserve positions, special

June 3, 2016

Park vows to boost startups by young people from Korea, France

South Korean President Park Geun-hye pledged Thursday to further facilitate startups by young people from South Korea and France as Seoul seeks to expand trade and investments with the European country.She said the two countries are set to sign a cooperation deal on creative economy following her summit with French counterpart Francois Hollande on Friday. President Park Geun-hye arrives in Paris Orly airport on June 1 (Yonhap)Park has been pushing for a creative economy by viewing it as the only

June 3, 2016

[News Focus] Korean economy on downward spiral

Drastic times call for drastic measures. As the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development suggested, it is time for the global economy to take a “comprehensive and collective action” to tackle and overcome the low-growth trap.South Korea is no exception to this global downward spiral, as over the last couple of weeks a series of statistics have clearly showed its key economic data, such as employment, production, consumption, inflation and now growth, pointing south. The Bank of Kore

June 2, 2016

Korea's online sales expand 11.3% in April

Online shopping sales in South Korea grew at the lowest clip in more than two years in April from a year earlier on decreased demand for tour packages and reservations, a government report showed Thursday.Total online transactions reached 4.76 trillion won ($3.99 billion) in the fourth month of 2016, up 11.3 percent from 4.28 trillion won a year earlier, according to the report compiled by Statistics Korea.The on-year growth is the slowest since January 2014 when it expanded 11 percent.But the A

June 2, 2016

Subscribers to state pension to start falling in 2017: report

The number of subscribers to South Korea's state pension fund is expected to start to drop from 2017 in the wake of the country's falling birthrate, a report said Thursday.The National Pension Service is likely to see the number of subscribers reach 21.67 million next year, down 100,000 from this year, according to the report by the National Pension Research Institute.The figure is forecast to reach 21.77 million people at the end of this year, up from 21.56 million a year earlier. The number of

June 2, 2016

Korea's economic growth slows in Q1: BOK

South Korea's economic growth slowed in the first quarter from three months earlier due to still sluggish demand at home and abroad, central bank data showed Thursday.In the January-March period, the country's gross domestic product expanded 0.5 percent from the previous quarter, slowing from a 0.7 percent on-quarter expansion three months earlier, according to preliminary data from the Bank of Korea. (Yonhap)The latest reading marks a slight increase from an earlier estimate of 0.4 percent on-q

June 2, 2016

Builders' sentiment hits 16-month low in May

Business sentiment for South Korea's construction industry fell to the lowest level in 16 months in May due to a weak housing market, a poll showed Wednesday.The construction business survey index came to 78.5 last month, down 7.1 points from the previous month and 16.1 points from a year earlier, according to the survey by the Construction and Economy Research Institute of Korea.This is the lowest mark in 16 months, except for the offseason of January this year.A reading hovering above 100 indi

June 1, 2016

GDP credibility questioned amid sluggish growth

Finance Minister Yoo Il-ho suggested last week the government would no longer adhere to its projection that the country’s economy would grow by 3.1 percent this year.Yoo, who doubles as deputy prime minister for economic affairs, said the government would be “cool-headed” in adjusting the growth target when it announces in late June the economic policy directions to be pursued in the latter half of the year.Finance Minister Yoo Il-ho (Yonhap)His remarks came a day after the Korea Development Ins

June 1, 2016

Korea's exports decline slows in May

South Korea's exports continued to dwindle from a year earlier in May but the rate of drop slowed significantly, the government said Wednesday.Outbound shipments came to $39.78 billion last month, down 6 percent from the same month last year, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.The 6-percent on-year decline marked the slowest rate of drop since the start of the year. In January, exports plunged 18.5 percent, marking the fastest rate of drop since August 2009.Imports, on the o

June 1, 2016

Korea's consumer prices rise 0.8% on-year in May

South Korea's consumer prices grew by less than 1 percent in May for the first time in four months, government data showed Wednesday.The country's consumer price index rose 0.8 percent last month from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea.The index had stayed above the 1 percent level for three straight months since February for the first time in 17 months.From a month earlier, the May figure stayed flat.Core inflation, which excludes volatile oil and food prices, in

June 1, 2016

Current account surplus sinks to 27-month low in April

South Korea's current account surplus dropped significantly from a month earlier in April as its surplus in the goods account narrowed, while the deficit in the service sector widened, central bank data showed Wednesday.The country's current account surplus came to $3.37 billion in April, plunging from a $10.09 billion surplus in the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea.April marked the 50th consecutive month of surplus.However, the April tally marked the lowest level since January 201

June 1, 2016

Korean firms sign deals worth more than $41 mln with African partners

Several dozen South Korean companies have signed deals worth more than $41 million with African partners, mostly Kenyan firms, the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae said Wednesday.The deals were reached in a meeting between executives of 41 South Korean companies and more than 140 Kenyan firms and other firms from other African countries, including Nigeria and Mozambique in Nairobi on Tuesday.The business meetings were arranged on the occasion of South Korean President Park Geun-hye’s African to

June 1, 2016

Biz lobby group urges growth-friendly legislation

South Korea's business community appealed to the country's new parliament Tuesday to focus on easing regulations and facilitating a shift in the industrial structure."The term of the 20th National Assembly is when the formula of South Korea's economic growth is changing," Park Yong-maan, president of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said as the business lobby group issued a list of suggestions for lawmakers. National Assembly (Yonhap)The new National Assembly began its four-year term

May 31, 2016