Korea heading toward economic storm with no remedy in sight

South Korea may be heading toward the worst economic turbulence in its history that will require much more than increased fiscal spending as currently planned by the Seoul government, the head of a South Korean think tank said.Kwon Tae-shin, chief of the Korea Economic Research Institute, said the country may soon face what he called a "perfect storm" where all three pillars of growth, including investment, will shrink."The crisis currently facing the country is a perfect storm where consumption

Jan. 9, 2017

Health ministry to do all it can to tackle low birthrate in 2017

South Korea's health ministry said Monday that it will make all-out efforts this year to tackle the nation's chronically low birthrate, as the issue has arisen as a major social problem here.In a briefing to Prime Minister and Acting President Hwang Kyo-ahn on its policy direction for 2017, the Ministry of Health and Welfare announced various measures in an aim to increase the number of births.South Korea has one of the lowest birthrates among the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Develo

Jan. 9, 2017

Eyes on interest rate, growth target

As the monetary policy committee of the country’s central bank is set to have its first meeting of the year on Friday, eyes are fixed on their decisions on benchmark interest rates and economic growth projection. At the meeting, the committee will unveil its revised growth target and decide on the interest rate.  The meeting is likely to cut the forecast for economic growth. In the previous projection in October, the Bank of Korea had set its gross domestic product forecast at a 2.8

Jan. 8, 2017

US beef resumes top place in imports

US beef recently became the most popular imported beef in South Korea, outranking Australian beef for the first time in 13 years, a tally showed Sunday.The Korea Customs Service said 13,921 tons of US beef were imported here in November, compared to 10,310 tons from Australia. They include frozen and refrigerated beef that have passed customs.While the amount of beef imported from the US had surpassed those from Australia prior to clearing the customs process, it is the first time in 13 years th

Jan. 8, 2017

Seoul shares forecast to trade in narrow range this week

South Korean shares are likely to remain in a tight range this week as the US dollar is showing signs of continued strength against the Korean won, analysts said Saturday.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index closed at 2.049.12 points on Friday, up 1.2 percent from a week ago. Foreign investors remained net buyers of local stocks for an eighth consecutive session.The country‘s foreign exchange market saw increase in volatility this week, after the minutes of the Federal Reserve’s Decem

Jan. 8, 2017

Samsung unveils Bluetooth speaker, mobile printer at US tech fair

Samsung Electronics Co. showcased a Bluetooth speaker and mobile printer at an annual technology fair in Las Vegas, saying they would provide an easier way to stay connected with smartphones. The "Level Box Slim" Bluetooth speaker and the "Image Stamp" mobile printer "add new levels of convenience and fun to users' smartphone interactions, making it easier to enjoy a favorite song, moment or memory with those they care about," Samsung said in a statement.  Level Box Slim (Samsung)The two mobile

Jan. 8, 2017

Discount store chains raise egg prices again amid bird flu outbreak

South Korea‘s major discount store chains have again raised the prices of eggs as the nation is struggling to contain its worst outbreak of bird flu, according to company officials on Saturday. Eggs have been in short supply after the country culled a record 30 million poultry following the first confirmation on Nov. 18 last year. Starting Saturday, Homeplus raised the retail price of 30 eggs by 9.6 percent to 7,990 won ($6.67) at its 142 stores. Homeplus has increased the egg prices five times

Jan. 8, 2017

Brokerages cut price targets on Korean Air‘s stock over rights issue

Brokerages have cut their price targets on shares of Korean Air after the airline announced its plan to sell new shares worth 450 billion won ($376.1 million). Korean Air said this week that the new stocks will be sold at 20,450 won each. After the stock offering, the amount of stocks traded on the local stock market will rise to 95.95 million from the current 73.95 million, it said. Analysts said the debt-to-equity ratio of Korean Air would jump on losses related to foreign exchange rates, desp

Jan. 8, 2017

Hanwha chief‘s son arrested for violence

The youngest son of Hanwha Group Chairman Kim Seung-youn was arrested on Saturday for assaulting bar employees while under the influence of alcohol.A Seoul court earlier issued a warrant for the police to arrest Kim Dong-seon, 27, the youngest of Chairman Kim’s three sons.  Kim Dong-seon, the third son of Hanwha Group Chairman Kim Seung-youn, is interrogated at Gangnam Police Station in Seoul on Jan. 5, 2017, after allegedly assaulting two bar employees and destroying a patrol car while being es

Jan. 8, 2017

Foreign firms account for 14% of corporate taxes in Korea

Foreign companies operating in South Korea accounted for nearly 14 percent of the country‘s overall corporate tax income in 2015, the national tax agency said Sunday.Multinational firms, reaching only 1.5 percent of the country’s 673,374 companies at the end of 2015, earned a combined 664 trillion won ($555 billion) and paid a total of 5.3 trillion won in corporate tax that year, data from the National Tax Service showed.  In this photo taken on Oct. 17, 2016, jobseekers are in consultations wit

Jan. 8, 2017

Single-earner families suffer decline in income amid slowdown

South Korea's single-earner families suffered declines in their income for the first three quarters of last year as companies cut wages and jobs amid a prolonged economic slowdown, government data showed Sunday. Single-income families earned an average of 3.71 million won ($3,100) in the third quarter ended Sept. 30, down 1.6 percent from 3.77 million won a year earlier. In the first and second quarter, their on-year income fell 2.6 percent and 0.1 percent, respectively, according to data from S

Jan. 8, 2017

Korean gov't to boost content industry to overcome THAAD fallout

South Korean government plans to assist the country's entertainment industry that has been dealt a blow amid China's anger over Seoul's decision last year to deploy a U.S. missile defense system.China has openly criticized the Korean government's plan to set up the U.S. missile defense system called THAAD on the peninsula, citing the move would harm its strategic interests in the region. In this Associated Press photo taken on July 22, 2016, Chinese fans cheer during a concert by the South Korea

Jan. 6, 2017

Korea to take swift action to deal with fluctuating global situations

South Korea will take swift action against any challenges from the global economy amid rising uncertainties sparked by the scheduled US government change and volatile Chinese financial market, the finance ministry here said Friday.In a meeting presided over by Finance Minister Yoo Il-ho in Seoul, the economic policymakers reviewed the current global economic situations and discussed ways to deal with the current headwinds, according to the Ministry of Strategy and Finance.South Korea's Finance M

Jan. 6, 2017

Child care support budget picked as best policy by finance ministry

South Koreans picked the child care support budget as the best policy enacted by the finance ministry last year, the ministry said Friday.The policy was one of the 25 candidates put to a vote on Dec. 21-30 by ordinary citizens, policy experts and journalists. The ministry said 3,402 people voted and selected the policy as the best of the year.  The government started child care support for children aged between three and five, providing free education and day care services. The policy became a p

Jan. 6, 2017

Seoul regrets Tokyo’s suspension of talks on currency swap deal

South Korea’s Finance Ministry said Friday it regrets Japan’s decision to suspend bilateral talks on a currency swap deal, amid rising diplomatic tensions.“We regret that the talks on the Korea-Japan currency swap deal was suspended due to political and diplomatic issues,” the ministry said in a statement.  “It is desirable that the two countries continue bilateral economic and financial cooperation regardless of political and diplomatic relations.”Tokyo said earlier in the day that it has withd

Jan. 6, 2017

Seoul to develop new, tailored programs for Chinese tourists

The government will work to develop what it called tailor-made tour programs that will meet the various tastes of tourists from China and other countries, the tourism ministry said Friday.The new programs to be developed will target individual tourists or small groups, according to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. A group of Chinese tourists pose for a picture after arriving at South Korea's Incheon International Airport on Jan. 3, 2017. They were part of some 500 employees from a Ch

Jan. 6, 2017

Korea working on dealing with China's trade retaliation

The South Korean government is working on plans to deal with China's recent hostile actions against the Korean Wave and businesses in apparent retaliation for welcoming a US-owned missile system, the finance minister said Friday."We see that such security issues are behind the recent movements by China. There seem to be some China-style responses," Finance Minister Yoo Il-ho told reporters at a press briefing in the administrative capital. "Related ministries including the foreign ministry and t

Jan. 6, 2017

‘US could name Korea currency manipulator alongside China’

A plan to label China a currency manipulator, a pledge by US President-elect Donald Trump, might drag South Korea onto the manipulation list, according to analysis by a government-backed research center Thursday. In order to officially designate China a currency manipulator, the US needs to relax its existing standards or make new ones, the report by the Korea Institute for International Economic Policy said.  “In such a case, it is likely that South Korea will be also subject to f

Jan. 5, 2017

Korea puts jobs as top priority in 2017 economic policy

Acting President Hwang Kyo-ahn said Thursday the government should put top priority on helping companies create more jobs, particularly in support of young people and women, amid concerns of the nation’s growth furthering its slowdown this year.“In our policy directions this year, securing jobs is the most significant task,” Hwang said during the New Year’s policy briefing on economic affairs by the Ministry of Strategy and Finance, Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, Ministry of Land, Infra

Jan. 5, 2017