Financial authorities defend dividend cap on banks

The nation’s top financial regulators said Monday that their recommendation for lenders to limit dividend payouts was in line with global standards, rebutting criticism that it constituted excessive government intervention. The Financial Services Commission and the Financial Supervisory Service have urged local banks to curb their dividends, saying the prolonged pandemic could hurt local banks’ financial soundness.　 “The recommendation for a dividend reduction is a tempora

Feb. 8, 2021

Finance minister calls for efforts to activate new housing supply plan

South Korea's finance minister instructed his officials Monday to spare no effort to thoroughly implement the government's latest massive housing supply plan in a bid to stabilize rising home prices. The government said last week it will ease construction regulations and support redevelopment projects in urban areas to increase the number of new homes by up to 836,000 nationwide in the next four years. "Now the key to stabilizing the housing market is to thoroughly implement the latest ho

Feb. 8, 2021

Vietnamese apparel made with S. Korean fabric to enjoy lower tariffs in Europe

Apparel and clothing items produced in Vietnam with South Korea-made fabrics will be allowed to enjoy lower tariffs in the European Union, the trade ministry said Monday. Previously, clothes needed to be made with locally produced fabrics in order to enjoy the benefits of the Vietnam-EU free trade agreement, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. "With South Korea being the second-largest supplier of fabric in Vietnam, the latest policy will lead to stronger demand for S

Feb. 8, 2021

Manufacturers' domestic supply down for 3rd straight quarter amid pandemic

South Korean manufacturers' domestic supply fell for the third consecutive quarter in the fourth quarter of last year amid the fallout of the prolonged pandemic, data showed Monday. The manufacturing domestic supply index stood at 108.3 in the October-December period, down 1.1 percent from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the quarterly index has fallen since the second quarter of 2020, when it declined 4.5 percent on-year, the shar

Feb. 8, 2021

S. Korea's kimchi exports hit record high in 2020

South Korea's exports of kimchi reached a new all-time high in 2020 thanks to its popularity amid the coronavirus pandemic, data showed Monday. Overseas shipments of kimchi came to $144.51 million last year, up 37.6 percent from a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service and industry sources. The amount breaks the previous yearly record of $106.61 million registered in 2012. Kimchi is a traditional Korean side dish normally made of fermented cabbage, salt and hot pep

Feb. 8, 2021

[News Focus] 3 in 5 Koreans question real estate tax hikes

SEJONG -- The Moon Jae-in administration had been active in raising property taxes, claiming that the aggravated tax burden for multiple home-owners would eventually curb apartment prices. But housing prices in Seoul and some other major cities have continued to climb to record-highs. The government still maintains the policy of higher taxation on real estate, while more and more people have become skeptical about it in terms of efficacy. A recent survey suggests a dominant portion of people&

Feb. 7, 2021

Robust exports partly buffer economic slowdown amid weak domestic demand: KDI

South Korea's domestic demand is faltering amid a flare-up in new coronavirus cases, but the country's improving exports have partially buffered an economic slowdown, a state-run think tank said Sunday. As consumption and employment took a beating amid the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic activity has remained sluggish, led by domestic demand, according to a monthly economic assessment report by the Korea Development Institute (KDI). "The Korean economy saw its domestic deman

Feb. 7, 2021

S. Korea's exports set to expand up to 12% over Q1: Exim Bank

The state-run Export-Import Bank of Korea (Exim Bank) said Sunday the country's exports are expected to expand up to 12 percent on-year over the first quarter on strong demand for chips and cars. Outbound shipments over the January-March period are estimated to reach around $145 billion won, according to the estimate provided by the bank. "The economic recovery of major export destinations, including China, the United States and the European Union, is expected to lend a hand to the recove

Feb. 7, 2021

Prices of poultry products on rise amid bird flu outbreaks, total now at 87

South Korea's consumer prices of poultry goods continued to gather ground as the country destroyed more birds in a preventive measure against the highly pathogenic bird flu, data showed Sunday, with the caseload reaching 87. The average price of eggs shot up 43.8 percent over the past week from the previous year, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. Those of chicken and duck meat also increased 16.6 percent and 26.2 percent, respectively. South

Feb. 7, 2021

Current account surplus hits two-year high last year

South Korea’s current account surplus rose to a two-year high last year amid the prolonged economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic, mainly due to a sharp fall in imports and overseas trips, central bank data showed Friday.  The country’s current account surplus for 2020 amounted to $75.28 billion -- up $15.6 billion, or 26.1 percent, from the previous year -- according to preliminary figures released by the Bank of Korea.  This marked the highest current account sur

Feb. 5, 2021

Consumer price of poultry goods on rise amid bird flu outbreak

South Korea plans to inject 50,000 tons of tariff-free imported egg products through June to help stabilize the price. Meanwhile, no additional confirmed cases of the H5N8 strain of avian influenza were reported Friday, with the total caseload standing at 85. Authorities said they are currently investigating a suspected infection from a duck farm that is raising 8,000 ducks in Yeongam, 384 kilometers south of Seoul. Of the confirmed cases from farms, Gyeonggi Province that surrounds Seoul acc

Feb. 5, 2021

S. Korea's current account surplus widens in December

South Korea's current account surplus widened on-month in December last year, mainly due to a modest recovery in exports, the central bank said Friday. The current account surplus reached $11.51 billion in December, widening from a surplus of $9.18 billion the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK). The current account is the broadest measure of cross-border trade. Since the country logged a deficit of $3.33 billion in April 2020, the largest in almost a decade, on faltering expo

Feb. 5, 2021

S. Korea's exports of sauces hit all-time high in 2020

South Korea's exports of sauces reached an all-time high in 2020 as more people enjoyed cooking at home around the globe amid the new coronavirus pandemic, data showed Friday. Outbound shipments of sauces rose 25.8 percent on-year in 2020 to reach $301.7 million, according to the data compiled by the Korea International Trade Association (KITA). KITA said the growth also came as global consumers became more aware of Korean-style foods following the popularity of Korean cultural content oversea

Feb. 5, 2021

South Korea to add 830,000 housing units by 2025

South Korea plans to supply 830,000 housing units in Seoul and other big cities by 2025 through housing redevelopment projects led by state-run agencies, marking the largest-scale supply measure yet envisioned by the Moon Jae-in administration. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport on Thursday announced its real estate plan, which aims to provide affordable housing in big cities to meet the demand from young people and to tackle soaring home prices. “If this measure is imp

Feb. 4, 2021

[News Focus] 4.33 million people de facto jobless in Korea

SEJONG --The number of unemployed or underemployed people in South Korea climbed to the second-highest on record in December at 14.6 percent, according to Statistics Korea. Defined as the “extended-based” jobless rate, it refers to the percentage of the unemployed or underemployed of the economically active population under the Supplementary Index III for Employment. The Index III regards “underemployed” people -- who work less than 36 hours a week and want to work mo

Feb. 4, 2021

Korea Eximbank sells $1.5b worth of bonds

The state-run Export-Import Bank of Korea (Korea Eximbank) said Thursday that it has issued global bonds worth $1.5 billion to overseas investors. The three-tranche debt is comprised of three-year bonds worth $500 million and five-year bonds worth $700 million, with the remainder maturing in 10 years, the lender said. The three-year bonds carry an annual interest rate of the yield on three-year US Treasurys plus 0.23 percent, and the five-year debt has a rate of the return on five-year US Trea

Feb. 4, 2021

Amount of grain brought home by S. Korean agricultural firms doubles in 2020

The amount of wheat and other grains brought home by South Korean agricultural firms more than doubled in 2020 from a year earlier, data showed Thursday, in line with the country's efforts to revamp its national food security. The combined amount of grains excluding rice imported through South Korean agricultural developers reached 110,000 tons in 2020, soaring from just 44,000 tons posted the previous year, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. Wheat accounted for

Feb. 4, 2021

Rising DRAM prices bode well for S. Korean chipmakers

Spot market prices for DRAM chips are on a rising course, industry data showed Thursday, boding well for South Korean chipmakers that dominate the memory market. The spot price of 8-gigabit DDR4 DRAM, a benchmark price for the category, reached as high as $3.93 as of Wednesday, according to data from DRAMeXchange, a research division of market tracker TrendForce. Its spot price reached $2.54 on Aug. 20, 2020, but rebounded above the $3 mark in mid-December. A spot price is the price quoted in

Feb. 4, 2021

S. Korea faces record import curbs in 2020 amid protectionism

South Korea faced a record number of import restrictions from trade partners in 2020 amid growing protectionism, a trade body said Thursday. The country was subject to 228 import regulations from 26 countries as of end-December, up 18 from a year earlier, according to a report from the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA). It was also the largest-ever number of import restrictions targeting Asia's fourth-largest economy. Import restrictions cover anti-dumping duties, countervailing

Feb. 4, 2021

[Newsmaker] Ruling camp bigwigs clash over COVID-19 relief funds

Tensions flared between South Korea’s fiscal chief and the ruling party leader on Wednesday, as they publicly disagreed over the timing of an additional release of COVID-19 relief funds and who should benefit. Prime Minister and Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki struck a defiant tone against the idea pitched by the ruling Democratic Party Chairman and a leading potential contender for 2022 presidential race Lee Nak-yon to begin discussions on a fourth round of emergency handouts to all househo

Feb. 3, 2021