20 ready-mixed concrete producers fined W2.5b over price fixing

South Korea's antitrust regulator said Tuesday it has decided to fine 20 ready-mixed concrete manufacturers a combined 2.51 billion won ($2.2 million) for colluding to fix prices of construction-related material. Sanha Industry Corp. and 19 other companies colluded to fix their sales prices and supply of ready-mixed concrete between 2012 and 2017 that was used to build houses in the greater Seoul area, according to the Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC). The commission ordered them to take cor

March 16, 2021

S. Korean air exports soar amid pandemic

South Korea's airfreight exports jumped to account for 36 percent of the country's overall exports last year, industry data showed Tuesday, on higher demand for chips and biohealth products. Of the country's combined exports of $512.5 billion in 2020, air transport accounted for $183 billion, according to the data compiled by the Korea International Trade Association (KITA). While maritime transport still accounted for the majority of $325.8 billion, the portion of air cargo rose 5.4 percentag

March 16, 2021

S. Korea to help exporters further utilize FTAs with new support centers

South Korea on Tuesday said it will open new facilities overseas to help exporters better capitalize on free trade agreements (FTA) amid the coronavirus pandemic. Under the plan, the country plans to spend 11.9 billion won ($10.4 million) this year to open new FTA support centers in Southeast Asia and provide customized consulting programs, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The country currently operates 18 FTA support centers for exporters nationwide, along with 15 othe

March 16, 2021

S. Korea's export prices rise for 3rd month in February

South Korea's export prices rose in February, marking the third straight monthly gain helped by a modest recovery in exports, central bank data showed Tuesday. The country's export price index, in terms of the local currency, rose 3.1 percent in February from the previous month, according to the preliminary data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). The reading marked the third consecutive month of an on-month rise. In January, the index rose 1.8 percent on-month. From a year earlier, the index rose

March 16, 2021

More tax incentives set for high-tech foreign firms to boost FDI

South Korea plans to expand tax incentives for foreign companies in the digital and green industries sectors to attract foreign direct investments that have been shrinking over the past two years. “In order to strengthen foreign investment in high-tech industries such as digital and green, which have strengths, we plan to draw a roadmap for attracting high-tech foreign investment in the first half of the year,” Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said at a meeting with economy-related m

March 15, 2021

S. Korea to reenter list of top 10 economies by GDP in 2020

Despite the prolonged economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic, South Korea is forecast to have reentered the list of the world’s 10 largest economies by nominal gross domestic product in 2020, data showed Monday.  Asia’s fourth-largest economy’s nominal GDP for last year was estimated at $1.624 trillion, which marked the ninth highest among 14 major countries, up two notches from the previous year, according to data from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and

March 15, 2021

Tax agency cracks down on use of cryptocurrencies to hide assets

South Korea’s tax agency said Monday that it had caught more than 2,400 individuals who hid assets in virtual currencies to avoid taxation. The National Tax Service collected data from digital currency exchanges and caught 2,416 tax delinquents who had concealed assets through cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum and Ripple. The concealed assets totaled 36.6 billion won ($32.24 million), the officials said. The probe targeted people with over 10 million won in delinquent taxes, a

March 15, 2021

Auto exports jump 35% on eased pandemic jitters

South Korea's exports of automobiles advanced 35 percent on-year in February, data showed Monday, as major trading partners gradually normalized their economic activities amid the virus pandemic. The country's outbound shipments of automobiles reached 161,886 units in February, compared with 123,022 units posted a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. In terms of value, exports also soared 47 percent to reach $3.5 billion. Over the first two months of 2020, th

March 15, 2021

ICT exports up over 10% in Feb. on robust chip demand

South Korea's exports of information and communication technology (ICT) products jumped 11.5 percent on-year in February, rising for the ninth consecutive month on the back of strong overseas demand for chips and displays, data showed Monday. Outbound shipments of ICT goods stood at $15.28 billion last month, the second-highest amount ever for February on record, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Science and ICT. The country reached a record $15.68 billion in ICT exports for th

March 15, 2021

S. Korea estimated to have ranked 10th in 2020 global GDP rankings

South Korea's economy is estimated to have ranked 10th in the world in 2020 despite the coronavirus pandemic, data showed Monday. The nominal GDP of Asia's fourth-largest economy was estimated at $1.62 trillion last year, according to the data by the Organization for Economic Cooperation (OECD). The amount is larger than Russia's $1.40 trillion, Brazil's $1.39 billion and Australia's $1.33 trillion. The estimated 2020 GDP ranking is up two notches from a year earlier. South Korea's economy al

March 15, 2021

[HERALD INTERVIEW] Indonesia’s $5b infra project opportunity for S. Korean battery makers: ambassador

South Korean companies, from startups to big companies, could benefit from Indonesia’s latest infrastructure initiatives and trade deals, the country’s ambassador to South Korea told The Korea Herald in a recent interview. The ambassador was referring to Indonesia’s first sovereign wealth fund worth $5 billion, to be managed by Indonesia Investment Authority. The first phase of the fund’s investment will focus on toll roads, airports and seaports, but the focus will b

March 14, 2021

[News Focus] Weak Korean currency adds uncertainty over economy

SEJONG -- The Korean currency has lost its value against the US dollar, in another phase of the fluctuations that have occurred since COVID-19 started hitting the world a year ago. The pandemic situation has increased volatility in the won-dollar foreign exchange rates, which has become a factor aggravating difficulties, held by a large portion of local businesses. The dollar, which traded at 1,082 won during the first trading session (Jan. 4) of the year, climbed 5 percent in only two months

March 14, 2021

S. Korea's exports to US jump 26% since FTA kick-off

South Korea's exports to the United States have jumped a whopping 26 percent since the implementation of their bilateral trade agreement in 2012, data showed Sunday, expanding at a faster pace compared with other global counterparts. Asia's No. 4 economy's exports to the .S reached $74.1 billion in 2020, compared with $58.5 billion posted in 2012, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The two countries' free trade agreement (FTA) went into effect in 201

March 14, 2021

[Newsmaker] Egg prices expected to soar 68% in March-May: think tank

Prices of eggs in South Korea may jump by up to 68 percent in the March-May period this year, as the spreading avian influenza is expected to further exacerbate the supply shortage, a state-funded think tank said Sunday. In the three-month period, the supply price of a large-size 10-egg carton is estimated at 1,600 won ($1.41) to 1,800 won, considerably higher than the 1,069 won-1,158 won per carton a year ago, according to the forecast by the Korea Rural Economic Institute (KREI). As of Frida

March 14, 2021

China's imports of S. Korean goods unfazed by pandemic: data

China's imports of South Korean products last year stayed nearly the same as the previous year despite the novel coronavirus pandemic, a report showed Sunday, as the world's second-largest economy bought more consumer goods like cosmetics. China imported $173.5 billion worth of goods from South Korea in 2020, only 0.03 percent down from 2019, according to the report from the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA). South Korea was the third-largest exporter to China last year behind

March 14, 2021

S. Korea to accelerate post-virus recovery with intellectual property

South Korea’s plans to develop its digital intellectual property system this year will be the driving force behind the post-coronavirus pandemic recovery, the nation’s IP office said. In its 2021 policy plan announced Thursday, the Korean Intellectual Property Office revealed 10 tasks under four key strategies that would give impetus to South Korea’s road to a digital economy and recovery. The four strategies are: development of a new digital intellectual property system, exp

March 12, 2021

S. Korea's consumer price growth likely to pick up in Q2: official

South Korea's vice finance minister said Friday that the growth of the country's consumer prices is likely to temporarily pick up in the second quarter, affected by hikes in food and oil prices. First Vice Foreign Minister Kim Yong-beom said prices of crude oil, raw materials and grains are showing signs of rising amid a global economic recovery. "Conditions for consumer prices trends in the second quarter look tough," Kim said at a meeting with government officials on inflation. Th

March 12, 2021

Land minister says will take responsibility for LH employees' land speculation

Land Minister Byeon Chang-heum said Friday he will come up with measures to prevent employees at public developers from making speculative land purchases and could step down if his role falls behind public expectations. Byeon made the remark after a joint investigation team found that Korea Land and Housing Corp. (LH) employees allegedly bought land for speculation in two cities, south of Seoul, before it announced a major public housing development project. The minister has faced criticism as

March 12, 2021

[News Focus] Seoul area, Sejong, Jeju lead surge in unemployment benefits

SEJONG -- South Korea saw the number of recipients of unemployment benefits reach an all-time high of 1.78 million in 2020 in the wake of the novel coronavirus, data from a state-run agency showed. According to the Korea Employment Information Service, this marked an increase by 16.8 percent, 257,510 people, from 1.52 million a year earlier. By region, Greater Seoul -- including Gyeonggi Province and Incheon -- ranked top five, alongside Sejong and Jeju Province, among the nation’s 17 ma

March 11, 2021

S. Korean health care exports hit record high in 2020 amid pandemic

South Korea's health care and cosmetics exports soared more than 38 percent to an all-time high in 2020 amid the coronavirus pandemic, industry data showed Thursday. The country's overseas shipments of pharmaceuticals, cosmetics and medical devices stood at $21.70 billion last year, up 38.3 percent from the previous year and a fresh high, according to the data from the Korea Health Industry Development Institute. The new record came as the pandemic led to a surge in exports of biopharmaceutic

March 11, 2021