S. Korea to boost product competiveness in overseas markets: minister

The government will roll out a set of measures aimed at boosting the competitiveness of Korean-made goods in overseas markets to overcome a slowdown in Asia's fourth-largest economy, currently reeling from feeble domestic demand and sluggish exports, the country's top economic policymaker said Thursday. "There is a need to diversify export products and find new overseas markets," Finance Minister Choi Kyung-hwan said at a meeting of economy-related ministers.  He said the government plans to giv

July 2, 2015

Online shopping sales jump in May

Online shopping sales in South Korea surged 19 percent in May, fueled by brisk demand for clothing, foodstuffs and cosmetics, a government report showed Thursday. Total transactions reached just under 4.24 trillion won($3.77 billion) in the cited month, compared with 3.56 trillion won a year earlier, according to the report by Statistics Korea.  But the May tally was down 1.1 percent from the previous month's 4.28 trillion won.  Purchases made through smartphones, tablets and other mobile device

July 2, 2015

S. Korea's current account surplus widens in May

South Korea's current account surplus widened in May, extending its surplus streak to a record 39th straight month, data showed Thursday.  The current account surplus reached US$8.65 billion in May, up from a revised $8.14 billion surplus in April, according to the provisional data released by the Bank of Korea. The current account is the biggest measure of cross-border trade.  With the latest data, South Korea broke its previous 38-month record streak set between June 1986 and July 1989.  The o

July 2, 2015

Park vows to strengthen employment insurance

President Park Geun-hye pledged Wednesday to strengthen a state-administered insurance program for workers as part of efforts to stabilize the labor market.  Still, she did not give details on how to boost the role of employment insurance designed to provide unemployment insurance benefits up to eight months to eligible unemployed workers.She made the comments in a video message to participants at a ceremony marking the 20th anniversary of the establishment of the insurance program.  Park also r

July 1, 2015

Govt, ruling party agree on 15tln won extra budget amid MERS fallout

The government and the ruling Saenuri Party agreed Wednesday to draw up an extra budget worth around 15 trillion won ($13.4 billion) as Asia's fourth-largest economy, already reeling from slackened domestic demand and falling exports, is feared to further lose recovery momentum amid the MERS fallout.   The supplementary budget plan will be submitted to the parliament for approval on Monday, ruling party officials said. The two sides also agreed to pass it by July 20.   The extra money will come

July 1, 2015

S. Korea's exports shrink for 6th straight month in June

South Korea's outbound shipments continued to shrink in June, although its trade surplus widened as imports dropped with greater speed, the government said Wednesday.  In June, the country's overall exports came to $46.95 billion, down 1.8 percent from the same month last year, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.  June marked the sixth consecutive month the country has posted an on-year drop in its exports. In May, the country's exports tumbled 10.9 percent on-year to $42.39

July 1, 2015

Hotel Shilla CEO asks China to encourage tours to S. Korea

The CEO of South Korea's Hotel Shilla Co., Lee Boo-jin, has asked Chinese officials to encourage citizens to make trips to South Korea, the company said Tuesday, as the MERS outbreak shows signs of easing in the country.   Lee has been on a visit to Beijing and Shanghai this week during which she met with top executives of state-run travel firms, including CTS and CYTS, as well as officials from China's foreign ministry, Hotel Shilla said in a statement.   During the meetings, Lee "explained the

June 30, 2015

Tourism sector's slump to last into summer season: poll

The South Korean tourism industry has been hit hardest by the outbreak of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome over the past month, but the slump may continue into the summer season from mass cancellations for hotels and tour packages, a poll showed Tuesday.   The tourism and hotel industries were pummeled by the contagious virus as more than 135,000 foreigners, mostly from China, canceled their trips to Korea over the past month, according to the state-run Korea Tourism Organization. MERS has claim

June 30, 2015

Desperation, anger in Greek bailout protests

　ATHENS -- While financial leaders of the eurozone sought to agree to terms with Greece on another bailout program, people were torn over Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, who they elected to oppose the creditors’ demands. 　Greece risks default if a bailout is not secured, but, unwilling to agree to creditors’ demands, Tsipras announced that the bailout offer would be put to a referendum.　On the streets of the country’s capital, the pressure to refuse the terms was high.　On Thursday evening, the tr

June 29, 2015

Park calls for drastic measures to boost consumption

President Park Geun-hye called Monday for drastic measures to stimulate consumption to help revive economic growth as South Korea's economy was hit hard by the spread of the MERS virus.  The outbreak of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome has hurt consumption and the service sector as many people have been staying at home to avoid any risk of being infected with the disease.  The virus has so far killed 32 people since May 20, when the country's first infection was confirmed.   South Korea reported

June 29, 2015

S. Korea beefing up market monitoring amid Greek default woes

South Korea is beefing up market monitoring over concerns that Greece may default on its debt, and is ready to take appropriate measures to reduce fallout, a senior government official said Monday.   At the macroeconomic and financial policy meeting, Vice Finance Minister Joo Hyung-hwan said the government has various contingency plans to cope with any trouble that may arise if a settlement is not reached between Athens and its international creditors. He said the government has been following G

June 29, 2015

S. Korea's growth in last 10 years 6th highest among OECD members

South Korea's economic growth rate in the last 10 years was the sixth highest among Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development members, official data showed Monday.  According to numbers released by the Paris-based organization of developed market economies with high income, Asia's fourth-largest economy grew at an average of 3.7 percent annually from 2005 to 2014. This is about 2.5 times higher than the average for the 34-member OECD that stood at just 1.5 percent.   Chile ranked No.

June 29, 2015

S. Korean firms expand recruitment in Q1

South Korean companies hired more full-time workers in the first quarter this year from a year earlier, data showed Sunday, reflecting an improvement in the country's job market.According to the data compiled by the Ministry of Employment and Labor, local companies hired 726,000 people over the January-March period, up 5.3 percent from a year earlier. The study was conducted over 30,000 local firms with five or more employees.By sectors, the education and service segment hired 150,000, followed

June 28, 2015

S. Korean banks' loan delinquency rate rises in May

A South Korean think tank downgraded the country's economic growth forecast for 2015, citing weak exports coupled with the outbreak of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome, which has claimed 32 lives.The Korea Economic Research Institute said it has slashed the economic growth forecast to 2.7 percent for 2015, compared with the 3.4 percent in March.The figure is lower than the 3.1 percent estimated by the South Korean government last week, on par with a forecast made by the Bank of Korea in April. T

June 28, 2015

Sales at S. Korea's discount outlets, department stores rise in May

Sales at both discount outlet chains and department stores here rose from a year earlier last month, continuing their positive growth for a second straight month, the government said Sunday.The combined sales of three major department store chains grew 3.1 percent from the same month last year in April, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.The rise followed a 1.3 percent on-year gain in April. The three department store chains are Hyundai, Lotte and Shinsegae.The increase was

June 28, 2015

S. Korea cuts 2015 growth outlook to 3.1 pct

South Korea lowered its 2015 economic growth outlook to 3.1 percent Thursday, citing slumping exports and the negative impact of the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome outbreak on Asia's fourth-largest economy.The revised estimate represents a drop from the 3.8 percent gain predicted late last year and is lower than the 3.3 percent growth reached in 2014. For 2016, the finance ministry predicted the economy will grow 3.5 percent.The latest prediction is on par with a forecast made by the Bank of K

June 25, 2015

Over 60 pct of S. Korean firms back joining in U.S.-led trade

More than three out of five companies in South Korea have expressed support for the country's participation in a U.S.-led regional free trade deal, known as the Trans-Pacific Partnership, citing a possible hike in exports, a survey showed Thursday.The TPP is a multilateral free trade pact over which negotiation currently involves 12 countries including the U.S., Japan, Australia and Canada, which accounted for about 40 percent of the global economy.South Korea expressed interest in participating

June 25, 2015

S. Korean consumer sentiment hits over 2-year low on MERS scare

Consumer sentiment in South Korea took a hard blow from Middle East Respiratory Syndrome in June, plunging to its lowest level in more than two years, amid growing concerns the outbreak will put a dent in Asia's fourth-largest economy, data showed Thursday.South Korea is struggling to contain the outbreak of the acute respiratory illness that is the second-largest infection outside of Saudi Arabia. Since the first case was reported here on May 20, the death toll has climbed to 27.The overall con

June 25, 2015

Value of apartments in S. Korea up 2.4 pct in H1

The market value of all apartments in South Korea grew more than 2 percent over the past six months, apparently helped by the government's stimulus efforts and record-low interest rates, industry data showed Wednesday.The value of 7,066,644 apartments across the country totaled around 2,072 trillion won ($1.9 trillion) as of June, up 2.4 percent from 2,022 trillion won six months earlier, according to data by Real Estate 114, a real estate information provider.Apartments in Seoul enjoyed the lar

June 24, 2015