Largest-ever incentive tour group from Japan due in Korea

Over 10,000 employees of a major Japanese funeral service company will visit South Korea between this fall and next spring, the state-run Korea Tourism Organization said Wednesday.The unprecedented group of Japanese visitors will arrive in Seoul and Busan in a period spanning six months starting from October, KTO said. The KTO and Busan Tourism Organization said they jointly attracted the largest number of travelers on the incentive tour program from Japan, with the first group scheduled to begi

Aug. 17, 2016

Korea's imports of Iranian crude more than double in Q2

South Korea's imports of Iranian crude oil more than doubled in the second quarter of the year from a year earlier following the lifting of international sanctions against the Middle East country, government data showed Wednesday.A total of 25.35 million barrels of crude oil was imported from Iran during the April-June period, soaring 123.3 percent from 11.35 million barrels tallied over the same period last year, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.Iran

Aug. 17, 2016

Exports to China drop for 13th consecutive month: data

South Korea's exports to China dropped for the 13th consecutive month in July, the longest losing streak, data showed on Wednesday, as a slowdown in the world's No. 2 economy is showing no signs of a recovery.According to the data compiled by the Korea International Trade Association, shipments to China, South Korea's largest trading partner, dropped 9.4 percent on-year to reach US$10.13 billion last month, marking the 13th straight month of decline.China, grappling with slow growth, is South Ko

Aug. 17, 2016

Korean economy climbs back to 11th on falling energy prices

South Korea has regained its title as the world’s 11th-largest economy in nine years, according to national accounts data by the World Bank and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.The latest data showed that Korea’s gross domestic product stood at $1.38 trillion in 2015, climbing back up to 11th place, based on the average dollar currency rate over the last three years.Korea’s ranking in terms of economic output has been sliding since 2006, beyond the top 10 during the Roh

Aug. 16, 2016

KEPCO has to repay W10 tln by 2018: data

State-run utility firm Korea Electric Power Corp. has to repay or roll over some 10 trillion won ($9.1 billion) worth of debts which are due by 2018, industry data showed on Tuesday.According to the data compiled by FnGuide, KEPCO's debt totaling 10.2 trillion won should be paid back or rolled over by 2018. It includes foreign currency-denominated debt, and is equivalent to some 40 percent of its outstanding corporate debts amounting to 26 trillion won in total.This year alone, the electricity s

Aug. 16, 2016

Korea ranks 11th worldwide in GDP: World Bank data

South Korea ranked 11th worldwide in gross domestic product in 2015, with its global standing rising two notches from a year earlier, data showed Tuesday.According to the data by the World Bank, South Korea's nominal GDP came to $1.38 trillion last year, up from 13th place a year earlier. But the value was down 2.4 percent from $1.42 trillion the previous year.GDP, the broadest measure of an economy's performance, is the total value of goods and services produced within the economy in a given pe

Aug. 16, 2016

Half of Korean workers exempted from paying taxes

The main opposition party fueled debate on changing the taxation system early this month by proposing to raise taxes for big corporations and high income earners.The proposal by the Minjoo Party of Korea was met with an immediate objection from Finance Ministry officials, who had left tax rates unchanged in a draft tax code revision disclosed days earlier.The party’s chief policymaker said he was ready to engage in a heated debate with the government on the direction of taxation overhaul in the

Aug. 15, 2016

IMF expects S. Korea's economy to expand 3 percent next year

The International Monetary Fund said Friday South Korea's economy is forecast to expand 3 percent next year."Growth is projected to tick up to 2.7 percent this year and 3.0 percent in 2017, with inflation remaining subdued," the agency said in a report on the conclusion of its annual consultation with South Korea."The anticipated pickup in activity is based on growing private consumption, a stronger housing market, and the impact of fiscal and monetary easing," it said.The agency said Korea's ec

Aug. 13, 2016

Major parties agree to pass extra budget plan on Aug. 22

South Korea's three major political parties agreed Friday to put the government's extra budget plan to a vote on Aug. 22 amid President Park Geun-hye's push to pass it as swiftly as possible to help reinvigorate the economy.The agreement was reached at a meeting that National Assembly Speaker Chung Sye-kyun hosted with the floor leaders of the ruling Saenuri Party, the main opposition Minjoo Party of Korea and the minor opposition People's Party.The ruling and opposition parties also agreed to o

Aug. 12, 2016

[Herald Interview] ‘From nature to history, Suncheon has them all’

Suncheon was just another city in South Jeolla Province until it became famous for its big Suncheon Bay and National Garden. Since the garden was named Korea’s first national garden in August 2013, millions of tourists have visited the city, contributing to the local economy. “We are pleased to hear that Suncheon became Korea’s most visited city last year with over 5 million visitors,” said Cho in an interview with The Korea Herald.“I am pretty sure that Suncheon is the place to wholly satisfy t

Aug. 12, 2016

IMF director advises Seoul to deregulate service sector

South Korea has to carry out sweeping reform of the service industry as a first step to transform the manufacturing-focused economy into the service sector-led economy, a Korea-born official from the International Monetary Fund said Friday."The South Korean economy has been steered by the manufacturing industry and has potential to become an economy led by the higher-level service industry," Rhee Chang-yong, director of the IMF's Asia and Pacific department, said in a lecture held in Seoul."But

Aug. 12, 2016

Export, import indices dip on falling exchange rate, oil prices

South Korea’s export and import prices fell last month for the first time in three months due to falling oil prices and the won-dollar exchange rate, according to the Bank of Korea on Friday.The export price index stood at 78.8 in July, down more than 2 percent from 80.6 in June, while the import price index came to 75.85, down about 2.8 percent from 78.03 in the same period. The decrease rate of the import price index in July reached the highest in nine months.The appreciation of the Korean won

Aug. 12, 2016

Korea's import prices fall on lower oil prices

South Korea's import prices shifted back to a decline in July, affected by falling oil prices and stronger local currency, central bank data showed Friday.The nation's import price index dropped 2.8 percent on-month to 75.85, according to the Bank of Korea. It marks the first decline in three months.The BOK attributed the decrease to external factors, such as global oil prices and currency exchange rates.The monthly average price of Dubai crude oil shed 8.1 percent to $43.52 a barrel from $46.3

Aug. 12, 2016

Electricity consumption hits fresh record high amid heat wave

South Korea's electricity use hit a new record high again on Thursday as the country has been simmering in a weeks-long heat wave, the authorities said.The maximum electricity load soared to 84.49 million kilowatts as of 3 p.m., breaking the previous record of 83.7 million kilowatts set on Monday, according to the state-run Korea Power Exchange.The electric power reserve ratio went down to 8.5 percent, or 7.19 million kilowatts, marking the fourth single-digit ratio throughout the year. If the f

Aug. 11, 2016

Gov't will soon announce plan to address criticism over electricity billing system: Park

President Park Geun-hye on Thursday said her government will announce a plan in the near future to address mounting calls to overhaul South Korea's controversial electricity billing scheme that many say exceedingly overcharges users."The government has been exploring ways to help people struggling due to unusually high temperatures this year," the chief executive said during a luncheon with the newly elected Saenuri Party leadership, referring to public concerns about high utility bills caused b

Aug. 11, 2016

Economists unimpressed by upgrade in Korea’s credit rating

Government officials were quick to describe the decision by global credit appraiser Standard & Poor’s on Monday to raise Korea’s sovereign credit rating from AA- to a record high of AA as positive recognition of the way they have handled the country’s economy.In a statement issued the same day, the Ministry of Strategy and Finance said the decision was highly surprising, given the rating agency has been downgrading sovereign debt ratings of major economies lately.Ministry officials argued it sho

Aug. 11, 2016

[Industry 4.0] ‘Korea’s R&D policy needs overhaul to spur innovation’

In the 1970s, South Korea’s industrial policy mostly focused on lifting the country out of poverty as it reeled from the aftermath of the Korean War, Japanese colonization and internal political turmoil.Its policy then concentrated on accelerating growth by handpicking key industries and developing them as rapidly as possible so that Korea could catch up with the advanced economies of the U.S., Europe and Japan.With its growth-first policy, the country encouraged those industries to research, de

Aug. 11, 2016

[Industry 4.0] Future of Korean economy now

Cars, chips and cellphones have been the dynamos of the Korean economy for the past decades, helping it leap to rank as the world’s 11th largest. This industrial model, however, may soon become outdated, as the world braces for a new, global technological revolution that will fundamentally alter the shape of every single industry.  (123rf)In its scale, scope and complexity, the coming 4th Industrial Revolution will be unlike the previous three that humankind has experienced before, says World Ec

Aug. 11, 2016