China continues blocking Korean imports in Dec.

China continued to block massive amounts of South Korean cosmetics and other imports in December in what was earlier believed to be a move to retaliate against South Korea's planned installation of a US missile defense system, market sources in Beijing said.According to the sources, China's General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine blocked shipments of 19 cosmetics products from South Korea in December. (Yonhap)The number accounted for about 28 percent of the total

Feb. 7, 2017

Households benefit less from economic growth

South Korean households benefited less from the country's economic growth in 2015 than a year earlier, data showed Tuesday, as their income stagnated amid corporate reluctance to invest.According to the data by the Bank of Korea, households and nonprofit organizations serving them recorded a combined income of 970.4 trillion won ($853 billion) in 2015, or 62 percent of the country's gross national income at 1,565.8 trillion won. Park Seung, former chief of the Bank of Korea, speaks during an eco

Feb. 7, 2017

Population aging may crimp Korea's monetary policy

South Korea's rapid population aging may make the country's monetary policy virtually ineffective down the road by neutralizing its ripple effect on the real economy, a report said Tuesday.According to the report based on the data of 25 members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development between 1995 and 2014, an interest rate hike led to the conventional ripple effects of dwindling household consumption, a fall in stock prices and declining household debt in countries, with the

Feb. 7, 2017

Cafeterias boom as people settle for cheaper meals

Business for office cafeterias boomed to its highest point in nearly two years in the last quarter as people looked for cheaper places to eat, statistics showed Monday.As expected, the restaurant business logged its worst output in more than four years in the same quarter, the most recent numbers from Statistics Korea showed. This photo, taken on Feb. 6, 2017, shows a cafeteria at a downtown office building. Statistics Korea said cafeterias logged their best business in nearly two years in the f

Feb. 6, 2017

Faltering consumption drags down recovering economic momentum

Faltering private consumption is dragging down the recovering momentum of the South Korean economy, with the country's production side remaining in the doldrums, a state-run think tank said Monday."The Korean economy exhibited a modest recovery in investment, but faltering private consumption is limiting the recovery of economic activities," the Korea Development Institute said in its monthly evaluation of the country's economic conditions. (Yonhap)"Private consumption growth slowed on deteriora

Feb. 6, 2017

Korean consumers expect higher prices this year

South Koreans expect consumer prices will rise further this year due to possible increases in utility and raw materials costs, the central bank said Monday.Consumers' perceptions of increases in consumer prices in the past year came to 2.7 percent in January, the highest level in 26 months, according to data from the Bank of Korea.  (Yonhap)Meanwhile, the consumers' expected inflation rate for the next 12 months came to 2.8 percent in January, the highest level in 28 months, the BOK data showed.

Feb. 6, 2017

Korean motorists pay high oil taxes

South Korean motorists pay much higher oil taxes than their counterparts in the United States and Japan, a report said Monday, sparking calls for the government to lower them.According to the report by online crude price provider Opinet, gasoline prices in South Korea averaged 1,455 won ($1.28) per liter in December last year, with taxes accounting for 62.3 percent of the price, or 905.75 won. Customers look at oil prices listed at a gas station in Seoul on Jan. 8, 2017. (Yonhap)South Korea impo

Feb. 6, 2017

Alarm grows over Korea's chronic household debt woes

With many of South Korea's households piling on debt, concern has grown about potential risks facing Asia's key economy already in the doldrums.Some economists warn that private household debt in the country may increase to as much as 1,500 trillion won ($1,310 billion) at the end of this year, close to four-fold of South Korea's yearly budgets set at around 400 trillion won. A sign of the mortage loan service department at a South Korean bank in a file photo. (Yonhap)Simply calculated, it means

Feb. 6, 2017

Self-sufficiency rate of grain, beef, seafood sharply falls

South Korea‘s self-sufficiency rate of grain, beef and seafood sharply fell last year as imported food items appealed to consumer tastes with their lower prices and variety of flavors, according to government data on Sunday.The nation’s self-sufficiency rate of grain, excluding feed for animals, dropped to 48.4 percent in 2016, from 55.6 percent in 2010, showed the data by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs.  (Yonhap)South Korea imports most of its animal feed. Including animal

Feb. 5, 2017

Korea’s current account surplus narrows in 2016

South Korea’s current-account surplus narrowed in 2016 from a year ago, central data showed on Friday. The country‘s current account surplus stood at $98.68 billion in 2016, down from a surplus of $105.94 billion a year earlier.  The surplus was the second-largest since the government started to compile the data, but came as a decline in imports is greater than a decrease in exports, an official at the central bank said. “The exports declined last year but imports fel

Feb. 3, 2017

Govt. under fire for losing policy control

The government is facing criticism for losing control of major policies amid a political maelstrom stemming from the impeachment of President Park Geun-hye over a corruption scandal in December, analysts said Friday.As if defying a government vow to rein in inflation, businesses are scrambling to jack up product prices. Also, the government has irked small merchants and self-employed people by requiring them to stick to stricter rules on the safety of electric appliances and daily goods. People

Feb. 3, 2017

Watchdog to release info on price-fixing cases

South Korea's antitrust watchdog will make public a set of data on price comparison regarding price-fixing cases to help customers take legal action, government officials said Friday.The information contains data on prices before and after suspected companies engage in price collusion collected by the Fair Trade Commission, according to the officials. (Yonhap)Customers who seek compensation from the price-rigging practices can submit the price comparison data as powerful evidence to the court, t

Feb. 3, 2017

Korea's FX reserves up in January

South Korea's foreign exchange reserves rose slightly in January from a month earlier due to increased gains from investment in foreign assets and an increase in the dollar-converted value of non-dollar currencies, central bank data showed Friday.As of the end of January, the country's foreign exchange reserves came to $374.04 billion, up $2.94 billion from the previous month, the Bank of Korea said in a statement. (Yonhap)Foreign exchange reserves consist of securities and deposits denominated

Feb. 3, 2017

Slowing economy lures young Koreans to claw machines

In one corner of a bustling street in Seoul's Hongdae district popular with young people, 30-something office worker Lee Choon-han's face is glued to the glass of a coin-operated claw machine. For about $1, Lee can drop the claw twice to try to grab prizes such as plush toys, key chains or cheap watches. After three failed attempts, his skill pays off and he captures a Pokemon doll.  (Yonhap)"Every time I go past this street, I play it. If I win, I feel as though it awards a small fortune to me,

Feb. 3, 2017

Trump pledges to speed up NAFTA renegotiation

US President Donald Trump said Thursday he will speed up renegotiation of the North America Free Trade Agreement, slamming the deal as a "catastrophe" for the US."I have very serious concerns about NAFTA. NAFTA has been a catastrophe for our country. It's been a catastrophe for our workers and our jobs and our companies. They're leaving our country. I want to change it," Trump said at the start of a meeting with some members of Congress. (Yonhap)Trump said the letter F in NAFTA should mean not o

Feb. 3, 2017

Koreans turn to value brands amid economic slump

More South Koreans choose to go for cheap but quality brands at places like dollar-shop chain Daiso and second-hand shops in search of good deals amid a prolonged economic slump, industry officials said Thursday.Japan-based Daiso, which sells products priced from 2,000 and 5,000 won ($4.36), operates over 1,000 outlets across the country, a jump from 850 in 2012, the company said. (Daiso)"More consumers choose Daiso as the company has a team of officials who strictly maintain the product's quali

Feb. 2, 2017

Consumer prices rise fastest in over four years in Jan.

South Korea’s consumer prices rose at the fastest pace in over four years in January, driven up by sharp price hikes in fresh food and oil, government data showed Thursday.The consumer price index gained 2 percent in January from a year earlier, the highest level since 2.1 percent in October 2012, according to Statistics Korea. The on-year growth of the index had stayed just above zero percent since May last year and started to increase from September in the 1 percent range, hitting 2 percent la

Feb. 2, 2017

Koreans consume more foreign beef over expensive local hanwoo

South Koreans consumed more American and other foreign beef than expensive local beef last year, a move that has lowered the country's self-sufficiency rate for beef to below 40 percent over 13 years, a state-run think tank said Thursday.Last year, South Koreans consumed 362,000 tons of foreign beef, accounting for 62.3 percent of the total beef consumption in the country, according to the Korea Rural Economic Institute.(Yonhap)Australian beef came to 178,000 tons, making up 49 percent of total

Feb. 2, 2017

Lone diners drive Dec. consumption growth

Despite a fall in shipments of durable goods, South Korea's retail sales posted moderate growth in December on increased spending by people who dine or drink alone, government data showed Thursday.The country's retail sales index expanded 1.6 percent in December from the same month a year earlier, according to the data by Statistics Korea. (Yonhap)The gain was bolstered by a 4.9 percent on-year increase in sales of nondurable consumer goods, though shipments of cars and other durable goods shran

Feb. 2, 2017

Korea’s exports grow for three straight months

Korea’s exports grew for a third consecutive month in January to show the first double-digit growth in four years, preliminary data showed on Wednesday, offering hope to the country’s ailing economy. In January, the country’s exports jumped 11.2 percent on-year, the first double-digit growth since January 2013, by logging $40.3 billion, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. Increase in semiconductors and petrochemicals shipments boosted the exports. Outb

Feb. 1, 2017