Conglomerates to invest W132.9tr in R&D, facilities in 2014

South Korea’s leading companies plan to invest 132.9 trillion ($124 billion) won in research and development and facility upgrades in 2014, a poll showed Thursday.The total represents a 6.1 percent increase from 125.3 trillion won in 2013, said the Federation of Korean Industries, an association for big businesses. The survey was conducted on the 600 largest companies in terms of sales as of late 2012, with 450 companies responding. The FKI said that of those that replied, 225 said they planned

March 6, 2014

Card spending growth hits 14-month high in January

Credit card spending grew at the fastest pace in 14 months in January, data showed on Tuesday, amid signs that the local economy is on a recovery track. Purchases made with credit cards reached 46.9 trillion won ($43.8 billion) in January, growing 9 percent from a year earlier, the largest gain since November 2012, according to data compiled by the Credit Finance Association.The data includes transactions on credit, debit and prepaid cards. Cash advances, overseas spending and card loans were no

March 4, 2014

Korea’s bio industry grows more than 50% in 5 years

South Korea’s bio industry has grown over 50 percent in just five years, largely on exports that grew at an equally fast rate, the trade ministry said Tuesday. The overall output of the country’s bio industry amounted to nearly 7.13 trillion won ($6.65 billion) in 2012, up 58 percent from 4.51 trillion won in 2008, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.The 2012 figure also marks an 11.5 percent surge from 6.39 trillion won in the previous year. The ministry attributed the growt

March 4, 2014

Fourth round of FTA talks with Japan, China begins in Seoul

A fresh round of negotiations for a three-way free trade agreement with Japan and China began in Seoul on Tuesday with the countries expected to focus on setting the overall level of market liberalization.The fourth round of negotiations, to continue until Friday, comes a little over two months after the last session in Tokyo, in which the three countries made what South Korean officials have called minor but significant progress in setting the overall guidelines for negotiations, especially in

March 4, 2014

S. Korea's consumer prices grow 1% on-year in Feb.

South Korea's consumer prices grew at a slower pace on-year in February, a government report showed Tuesday, indicating that prices remained subdued thanks in part to stabilized costs of farming goods.The country's consumer price index rose 1 percent in February from a year earlier, a slight decline from the 1.1 percent gain tallied in January, according to the report by Statistics Korea. This marked the fourth straight month that the growth has stayed in the 1 percent range.The core inflation,

March 4, 2014

Minister hints at possible opening of rice market

South Korea will soon decide whether to open its rice market to foreign suppliers, the agriculture minister said Monday, a move that has been postponed for the past 20 years in exchange for a large import quota.   "The country must give its decision on whether to open its rice market to the World Trade Organization (WTO) by September," Lee Dong-phil said in an exclusive interview with Yonhap. "The government will make its decision by June."   Under a 1993 agreement with the WTO, the country was

March 3, 2014

Marriage leading cause of S. Korean women quitting jobs: poll

Marriage, not child rearing, is the leading cause of South Korean women quitting their jobs, a survey released by an association of the country's largest conglomerates said Sunday.According to the findings by the Federation of Korean Industries based on a poll of 5,887 women nationwide in 2010, the likelihood of a woman giving up work after getting married was 37.8 percent higher than those who remained single.Among women in their 20s, their chances of leaving work after marriage shot up 58.2 pe

March 2, 2014

S. Korea dominates Chinese import market, beats Japan

South Korea beat Japan to become the biggest player in the Chinese import market last year on the back of growing demand for Korean-made machinery and electronics parts, data showed Sunday.According to the Korea International Trade Association, the share of Korean-made products rose to 9.24 percent in 2013 from 9.17 percent a year ago in the Chinese import market, taking the No. 1 spot for the first time.Japan's market share fell to 8.19 percent from 9.78 percent during the same period, the KITA

March 2, 2014

Seoul shares likely to rise on Europe, China stimulus

The South Korean stock market is expected to gather ground next week on expectations of economic stimulus moves in Europe and China, analysts said Saturday.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) gained 1.13 percent from the previous week to close at 1,979.99 Friday, supported by Seoul's economic plan announced early in the week. The three-year blueprint envisions broad deregulations, stimulating domestic demand and boosting the country's potential growth.While the market growth

March 1, 2014

S. Korea's trade surplus narrows on increased imports in Feb.

South Korea's trade surplus shrank significantly from a year earlier last month as imports grew at a faster rate than exports, the government said Saturday.The country's overall outbound shipments rose 1.6 percent on-year to US$42.98 billion in February with its imports gaining 4 percent to $42.06 billion, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.The country's trade balance stayed in the black for the 25th consecutive month with a surplus of $926 million in February. The figure, h

March 1, 2014

Korea, UAE sign agreement to cooperate in energy sector

South Korea and the United Arab Emirates agreed Friday to cooperate in nurturing energy-related experts and jointly making inroads into energy markets in third countries, Seoul officials said.Both countries signed a memorandum of understanding in Seoul on cooperation in the energy sector, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.Under the deal, they promised to work together to nurture experts in nuclear, oil, natural gas and other energy sectors, while jointly pushing to advance

Feb. 28, 2014

Korea eyes 350,000 Russian tourists annually by 2017

South Korea aims to attract 350,000 tourists from Russia annually by 2017 by developing tourism programs including medical services tailored to Russian customers, the finance minister said Thursday.“We will develop tourism programs appealing to Russian travelers, secure expert tourism workers and make efforts to minimize language inconveniences,” Finance Minister Hyun Oh-seok told a meeting of policymakers.“Through such efforts, we will push to attract more than 350,000 Russians to South Korea b

Feb. 27, 2014

Korean American village to be built in Songdo

The first foreign residential complex in Songdo is under construction to be completed in early 2017, developers said.The “Korean American Village,” including a 49-story landmark building and a multifunctional complex on 385,733 square meters, will be established in the M-2 block of Songdo International City Business District, they said.The KAV will be located between Campus Town Station of Incheon Metro Line 1 and Yonsei Songdo Global Campus. The complex will also house 830 residential apartment

Feb. 26, 2014