Korea's trade surplus hits nearly 3-year high in May

 South Korea's trade surplus surged to a nearly three-year high in May, as an economic recovery of its two largest exporting partners fueled brisk outbound shipments, the government said Saturday.South Korea chalked up a trade surplus of US$6.03 billion last month, compared with a surplus of $2.39 billion a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.Exports gained 3.2 percent on-year to $48.37 billion, while imports fell 4.8 percent to $42.34 billion over the cited per

June 1, 2013

Infrastructure budget cut a blow to builders

The government’s decision to cut its budget for infrastructure construction by 11.6 trillion won ($10.3 billion) for the next four years is prompting concerns that it would aggravate financial woes facing some builders and their creditor banks.Under the plan, the budget for road construction projects will drop the most, with a 4.5 trillion won ($4.billion) reduction, followed by railroads with a 4 trillion won ($3.6 billion) cut. The cuts for infrastructure make up about 13.8 percent of the over

May 31, 2013

Creditors may pump cash into STX shipbuilding unit

Creditor banks of troubled STX Group have almost reached an agreement to provide additional liquidity to the group’s shipbuilding unit in a bid to help it stay afloat, industry sources said Friday.Creditor banks of STX Offshore & Shipbuilding Co. are moving to offer 300 billion won ($266.4 million) to the company, smaller than the 400 billion won requested by the shipbuilder, according to sources.Previously, the shipbuilder was injected with 600 billion won in liquidity from creditors.STX Group,

May 31, 2013

Korean food authorities strengthen inspection on U.S. wheat imports

The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs said Friday it has intensified inspections and quarantines on U.S. wheat as some genetically modified wheat was recently found at a farm in Oregon. U.S. authorities said the genetically engineered wheat found in Oregon was of the type developed by Monsanto to be resistant to the herbicide Roundup. It added that the wheat was not harmful to public health, but was not approved for commercial use. “We are investigating into not only U.S. wheat imp

May 31, 2013

S. Korea intensifies inspection of U.S. wheat for genetic modification

The government said Friday that it has strengthened its inspection of U.S. wheat imports following the discovery of unapproved genetically modified wheat in Oregon.Currently, the country inspects a 1-kilogram sample from each shipment of U.S. wheat, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs.Starting Friday, the government plans to test additional samples of 1 kilogram from each container of U.S. wheat, it said.The move comes one day after the U.S. Animal and Plant Health I

May 31, 2013

S. Korea's fiscal deficit widens in Q1

South Korea's fiscal deficit widened during the first quarter of this year amid the prolonged economic slowdown, the finance ministry said Friday.The consolidated fiscal account, which reflects the central government's total income and expenditure, posted 14.8 trillion won ($13.1 billion) in deficit during the January-March period, widening by 3.5 trillion won from a year earlier, the ministry said.The growing deficit stems in part from decreased tax revenues affected by the slowing growth. The

May 31, 2013

Cross-shareholding among large biz groups strengthens: FTC

SEJONG (Yonhap News) ― Cross-shareholding among affiliates of large business groups in South Korea has been strengthened over the past year, the country’s antitrust watchdog said Thursday.Cross-shareholding refers to a tactic frequently used by conglomerates or chaebol that enables a handful of the owner’s family members to control the entire business group with small stakes through circular shareholding methods.According to a report by Fair Trade Commission, 14 business groups maintained cross-

May 30, 2013

Prosecution starts probe of fraudulent nuclear reactor parts

The prosecution on Thursday is poised to investigate suspicions that fraudulent quality certificates were issued on faulty components used in the suspended nuclear reactors.The Supreme Prosecutor’s Office launched a special task force in Busan to respond to the charge filed by the Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Corporation against the cable suppliers.The task force will not only take charge of the KHNP’s case but also look into all cases of irregularities found in nuclear reactor businesses, accord

May 30, 2013

Korea No. 22 in competitiveness: IMD

Korea’s ranking in terms of economic competitiveness remained unchanged at 22 among 60 countries in 2013 for the third straight time, according to the Switzerland-based International Institute for Management Development.Asia’s fourth largest economy earned high marks for having a high education level, skilled workforce and reliable infrastructure.However, it received poor scores in the areas of cost of living, tourism and direct investment flows.Its weaknesses also included having high tariff ba

May 30, 2013

Control cable fraud behind reactor shutdown

The root cause of the suspension of two nuclear reactors and the resulting electricity shortage was faulty control cables, which may have led to a radiation leak in the worst case scenario, according to the Nuclear Safety and Security Commission.The disputed cable is a safety feature, intended to deliver action signals to the nuclear reactor’s cooling and shut-off system when an abnormality is detected.“Should these cables fail to perform their function, the possibility of a radiation leak may n

May 29, 2013

S. Korea logs smaller current account surplus in April

South Korea's current account surplus narrowed in April from the previous month on smaller trade gains and an increase in foreign investors' dividend repatriation, the central bank said Wednesday.The current account surplus reached US$3.97 billion in April, compared with a revised surplus of $4.93 billion the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK). The current account is the broadest measure of cross-border trade.The April reading marked the 15th straight month of a surplus run and

May 29, 2013