Unemployment rate in South Korea fell to 3.7% in May

[THE INVESTOR] Although the youth unemployment rate in South Korea remains high, it fell slightly in May, with a rise in employment in the health and accommodation industry, according to a government report on June 15. According to the report by Statistics Korea, the fourth-largest economy in Asia had a jobless rate of 3.7 percent last month, compared to 3.9 percent in April. The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate remained flat at 3.7 percent in May. Job creation soared compared to the previo

June 15, 2016

Seoul bourse opens lower on pending Fed decision

[THE INVESTOR] South Korean shares opened lower June 15 in light of growing “Brexit” rumors and investors adopting an uncertain attitude while waiting for the decision on rates by the U.S. Federal Reserve. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index slid down by 0.87 point, or 0.04 percent, to 1,970.16 in the first 15 minutes of trading. As decision on the U.S rate has been inching toward finalization since June 14, investors are keen on receiving more information on the matter.  123rf.Marke

June 15, 2016

Brexit to weigh down Korean financial market

[THE INVESTOR] As the vote over whether Britain should leave or remain in the European Union is drawing near, analysts are issuing a series of warnings that Britain’s EU exit, or “Brexit,” would have a severe impact on the global economy.A Brexit would also deal a blow to Korea, whose biggest free trade partners include the EU, as investors are expected to pull their funds out of Asian markets exposed to risks stemming from Britain’s EU referendum.(Yonhap)Confidence has already begun to be negat

June 14, 2016

South Korea’s national assets grew 5.7% in 2015

[THE INVESTOR] In 2015, South Korea’s total assets grew 5.7 percent from a year earlier, central bank data showed Tuesday.As of the end of 2015, the country’s national assets came to 12,359.5 trillion won ($10.54 trillion), up 5.7 percent from a year earlier, according to preliminary data from the Bank of Korea. The 2015 tally is almost eight times higher than the country’s nominal gross domestic product for the same year.The increase, however, came mostly from a rise in nonfinancial assets, ref

June 14, 2016

[INTERVIEW] Korea’s pension behemoth eyes alternative investments

[THE INVESTOR] South Korea’s public pension fund will keep increasing alternative investments and reduce local equities in the long term, as the behemoth’s snowballing assets will be too large for the domestic stock market, its chief investment officer has said.The National Pension Service, which manages about 524 trillion won ($450 billion) collected from 21 million Korean subscribers, is a significant client for leading asset managers around the world, who are hunting attractive real estate, i

June 14, 2016

Corporate tax hike shapes up as divisive issue

[THE INVESTOR] Whether to increase corporate taxes is shaping up as a key issue of contention between major political parties in the new parliament that began its inaugural session Monday.The chief policymaker of the liberal main opposition Minjoo Party of Korea last week reaffirmed the party would soon submit a tax code revision bill to raise the maximum corporate tax rate, which would be applied to companies with annual profits exceeding 50 billion won ($42.6 million), to 25 percent from the c

June 13, 2016

BOK slashes base rate to new historic low

[THE INVESTOR] The Bank of Korea on Thursday slashed the key interest rate to a new historic low in a surprise move that came one day after the government finalized measures to support corporate restructuring. The seven-day repurchase rate has been cut by 0.25 percentage point to 1.25 percent, the lowest on record. The BOK last reduced the borrowing cost in June 2015 amid the outbreak of the deadly Middle East respiratory syndrome virus here. A reduction was seen coming, but not this month. Near

June 9, 2016

Antitrust body to ease regulation on conglomerates

[THE INVESTOR] The nation’s fair trade authorities said Thursday it would ease a key regulation to ban excessive expansion of conglomerates by raising the asset ceiling for its conglomerate watch list for the first time in seven years.In an economy-related ministers meeting held in Seoul, the Fair Trade Commission said it would boost the minimum asset criteria to 10 trillion won ($8.65 billion) from 5 trillion won. Fair Trade Commission in Sejong City (Yonhap)Mobile messaging giant Kakao and bio

June 9, 2016

Korea to inject W12tr into policy banks

The Ministry of Strategy and Finance and the Bank of Korea will inject 12 trillion won ($10 billion) both directly and indirectly via a fund into policy banks to finance the restructuring of debt-laden shipping and shipbuilding companies.Finance Minister Yoo Il-ho said Wednesday that the government and the central bank have agreed to pursue restructuring through a mix of fiscal and monetary measures, adding that BOK will provide 10 trillion won as a loan to the Industrial Bank of Korea.With the

June 8, 2016

Korean economy needs to be rebalanced

Korea faces an increasing need to ensure a balance between exports and domestic demand, which is crucial for the sustainable growth of its economy, economists say.They note changes in global economic conditions make the need more urgent but government policymakers are not yet fully up to the task.The country’s outbound shipments fell for the 17th consecutive month in May, though the pace of decline decelerated from the preceding months.The National Assembly Budget Office said in a report release

June 8, 2016

Korea pushed to balance trade with U.S.

Concerns are rising here over what has been deemed as increasing U.S. pressure on Korea to do more to alter its trade practices and business environment.The pressure, which is expected to escalate further in the lead-up to and beyond the U.S. presidential election in November, seems related mainly to the growing trade imbalance between the two sides. Korea’s trade surplus with the U.S. jumped to $28.3 billion last year from $15.2 billion in 2012, when a bilateral free trade agreement came into f

June 6, 2016

Korea’s negative exports to weigh down growth

With the global economy in a low-growth trap, Korean exports are expected to remain in negative territory, affecting the growth prospect of Asia’s fourth-largest economy this year.Data by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development showed that the growth of Korean exports, which the country relied mostly on to expand on account of weak domestic consumption, has dropped since last year.(Yonhap)Although Korea ranked fourth in the OECD after Japan, Ireland and Mexico in January last y

June 6, 2016

GDP credibility questioned amid sluggish growth

Finance Minister Yoo Il-ho suggested last week the government would no longer adhere to its projection that the country’s economy would grow by 3.1 percent this year.Yoo, who doubles as deputy prime minister for economic affairs, said the government would be “cool-headed” in adjusting the growth target when it announces in late June the economic policy directions to be pursued in the latter half of the year.Finance Minister Yoo Il-ho (Yonhap)His remarks came a day after the Korea Development Ins

June 1, 2016

Employment policy worsens job market polarization

President Park Geun-hye’s administration has put top priority on increasing employment. In June 2013, it unveiled a roadmap to boost the country’s employment rate gradually to 70 percent by 2017.Finance Minister Yoo Il-ho, who also serves as deputy prime minister for economic affairs, last week acknowledged the goal might be unachievable.“To be candid, (I) think it may be a little difficult to accomplish the employment rate of 70 percent,” said Yoo during a lecture to a group of regional busines

May 30, 2016

Korea’s OECD growth ranking drops to 12th

South Korea’s annual economic growth fell out of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development top 10 for the first time in nine years in 2015.Asia’s fourth-largest economy grew 2.6 percent last year, ranking 12th, behind Eastern European economies including the Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland, according to the OECD. The Czech Republic grew 4.2 percent last year, while Hungary 2.9 percent and Poland 3.6 percent. The country’s growth was also lower than that of small economies such

May 29, 2016

Steel firms seek preemptive restructuring

In light of shipping and shipbuilding companies that are being swept up by debt after years of oversupply, Korea’s steel firms are seeking preemptive steps not to succumb to the same fate. Industry watchers say the steel makers will likely hasten restructuring moves after summer when a new law that eases regulations on small mergers, splits and asset sales takes effect. The act, dubbed the “one shot law,” would clear regulatory hurdles associated with tax codes, commercial code and fair trade la

May 27, 2016

Sales down, profitability up in Corporate Korea in 2015

Sales dropped, but profit margins edged up in Corporate Korea last year, the Bank of Korea said Friday. According to the central bank’s survey of business performance at nearly 20,000 companies in Korea, revenues were down 2.4 percent in 2015 from a year earlier, led by manufacturers, which posted an average 4.2 percent drop. Profit margins, as a ratio of operating profit to revenue, increased to 5.2 percent from 4.2 percent during the same period. This means the companies earned an operating pr

May 27, 2016

Corporate concern rising on incoming parliament

Corporate executives now seem as jittery as government officials about a controversial bill that will allow lawmakers to hold hearings more frequently.The revision to the National Assembly Act, which was passed by the outgoing parliament last week, gives parliamentary committees the right to hold hearings on all “pending” issues. Existing law stipulates that the hearings can be held if necessary for the deliberation of important matters and parliamentary audit or investigation.Speculation has be

May 25, 2016

Enhancing consumer goods, service sectors needed to boost growth

It seems only a matter of time for Korea’s economic policymakers to revise down the country’s growth target for this year below 3 percent. This downward revision may come next month when the Ministry of Strategy and Finance announces directions of policies to be pursued in the latter half of the year.The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development this week cut its 2016 growth forecast for Korea to 2.7 percent from 3.1 percent, citing sluggish global trade and a slowdown in China. It w

May 19, 2016

BOK takes stance against Korean QE

A high-ranking official at the Bank of Korea said Friday that social consensus is needed for the central bank to pump money into policy banks, voicing caution on President Park Geun-hye-backed “Korean-style quantitative easing” proposal.  “If policy banks need injection of capital to support corporate restructuring, that is primarily a fiscal policy issue, (not a monetary policy one),” said Yoon Myun-shik, assistant governor during a press briefing. “For the central bank to exercise its money-is

April 29, 2016