Over 7 in 10 S. Korean exporters eye more shipments in 2021: poll

More than seven in 10 South Korean exporting companies expect their overseas shipments to increase in 2021 from this year, a poll showed Tuesday. The survey of 801 exporters, taken by the Korea International Trade Association (KITA), showed 71.3 percent of the respondents anticipating an increase in their exports next year. The poll did not give reasons for their expectations for a hike in overseas shipments in the coming year. Exports of petroleum products are projected to climb 6 percent on

Nov. 24, 2020

Korean shipbuilders' order backlogs dip 22% through Q3

Combined order backlogs of South Korea's top five shipbuilders, led by Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., fell 22 percent in the first nine months of the year from the end of last year due to decreased new orders amid the coronavirus pandemic, industry sources said Tuesday. But their good financial health will prevent them from raking in orders at lower prices, according to Han Young-soo, an analyst at Samsung Securities Co. The shipbuilders have 38 trillion won ($34.2 billion) worth of order backl

Nov. 24, 2020

Imported commercial car sales jump 21% in October

Sales of imported commercial vehicles in South Korea jumped 21 percent last month from a year earlier on robust sales of Scania and Mercedes-Benz trucks, an industry association said Tuesday. The number of newly registered imported commercial vehicles rose to 474 units in October from 392 a year ago, the Korea Automobile Importers and Distributors Association (KAIDA) said in a statement. Imported commercial vehicles currently account for a large share of the domestic commercial vehicle market

Nov. 24, 2020

No recovery in sight for pandemic-hit S. Korean oil refiners

A recent surge in coronavirus infections at home and abroad is likely to come as a big draw on South Korean oil refiners already battered by the fallout from the pandemic, industry sources said Tuesday. Whipsawed by weak oil prices and sluggish refining margins, industry leader SK Innovation Co. and three other players posted a combined net loss of more than 5 trillion won ($4.5 billion) in the first half of the year. The situation didn't improve much in the third quarter despite rising demand

Nov. 24, 2020

S. Korea’s housing market polarization grows

The number of multiple-home owners with five or more homes hit a record high last year, while the number of nonhomeowners also grew, data showed Monday, reflecting an intensifying housing market polarization in South Korea. The data came amid growing doubts on the effectiveness of the Moon Jae-in administration’s series of real estate measures focused on levying heavier taxes on multiple-home owners and adopting stricter loan rules.  Owners of five or more homes increased 0.75 perce

Nov. 23, 2020

S. Korean brokerages rosy on 2021 stock prices

South Korean brokerage houses expect the local stock market to continue its upturn to reach a new zenith in 2021 on expectations for an economic recovery, sources said Monday. Thirteen securities companies have forecast the upper-end target band for the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) to range from 2,630 to 3,000 in the coming year. The expected range surpasses the key stock index's all-time high of 2,568.54 and an intersession record of 2,607.10. Heungkuk Securities Co. h

Nov. 23, 2020

Exports rise 11.1% in first 20 days of November

South Korea's exports rose 11.1 percent on-year in the first 20 days of November, customs data showed Monday, raising cautious hopes of an economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic. The country's outbound shipments stood at $31.3 billion in the Nov. 1-20 period, compared with $28.1 billion a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service. Per-day exports also increased 7.6 percent on-year in the Nov. 1-20 period, the data showed. Imports gained 1.3 percent on-year

Nov. 23, 2020

[Contribution] Now is time to focus on supporting companies

Under the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and ongoing trade disputes between nations, South Korea’s trade-reliant companies are going through a difficult time.  Struggling to survive in this hard time, often likened to the “barley hump,” they have made desperate efforts. The “barley hump,” is a Korean way of describing the lean season, known in some countries as the hunger gap, when the fall harvest runs out but barely anything in the fields is ready to eat

Nov. 22, 2020

[News Focus] Female discouraged workers up 30% since 2017

SEJONG -- South Korea saw its number of people aged 15 or over who have abandoned looking for jobs increase sharply over the past three years, data from a government agency showed. The data also suggested that women far outstripped men in this category during the first 41 months of President Moon Jae-in’s 60-month term. According to figures held by Statistics Korea, the number of discouraged workers was 498,000 in May 2017, when the Moon administration took office. The monthly figure,

Nov. 22, 2020

65% of manufacturers expect status quo in biz environment in Biden era: poll

Nearly two-thirds of South Korean manufacturing firms believe that the business environment will not change much under the forthcoming Joe Biden administration in the United States, a poll showed Sunday. According to a survey conducted by the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), 65.3 percent of local manufacturers answered that they expect no significant changes in the business environment with the new US government. The survey, which asked 300 firms earlier this month, showed that

Nov. 22, 2020

Eco-friendly cars make up over 3% of total vehicles registered in S. Korea

Environmentally friendly cars, such as electric vehicles (EVs) and hydrogen-powered cars, make up more than 3 percent of the total vehicles registered in South Korea, a report from the country's transport ministry showed Sunday. There were 766,464 green vehicles registered in South Korea as of end-October, accounting for 3.16 percent of the total vehicles here, according to the data from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transportation. This is the first time that the share of eco-fri

Nov. 22, 2020

BOK expected to freeze key rate at record low next week: poll

The Bank of Korea (BOK) is expected to freeze its policy rate at a record low of 0.5 percent next week, as it will likely gauge the impact of the protracted pandemic on the economy, a poll showed Friday. In a survey by Yonhap Infomax, the financial news arm of Yonhap News Agency, all 14 analysts polled predicted the BOK will freeze the base rate at its rate-setting meeting next Thursday. They also forecast the BOK to stand pat on the rate during the remainder of the year and even throughout

Nov. 20, 2020

Producer prices fall for 1st time in 5 months on farm goods

South Korea's producer prices declined for the first time in five months in October, mainly due to falling costs of agricultural, livestock and fishery goods, central bank data showed Friday. The producer price index, a barometer of future consumer inflation, fell 0.5 percent in October from the previous month, slowing from a 0.1 percent on-month gain in September, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK). It marked the first monthly decline since June. The index rose on a monthly basis for the l

Nov. 20, 2020

S. Korea turns to maximizing supply volume to address 'jeonse' shortage

South Korea’s government will supply 114,000 public rental units over the next two years in a move to alleviate the shortage of homes offered on “jeonse” leases, especially in Greater Seoul, officials said Thursday. The latest plan focuses on purchasing existing homes to convert them into public jeonse homes for the underprivileged struggling to find affordable dwellings amid skyrocketing prices. Also, policymakers will offer unoccupied public rental homes to all home seekers,

Nov. 19, 2020

Korea to allow international flights without landing

With the COVID-19 pandemic weighing on the airline industry, Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said Thursday that the government would help local airliners launch international flights without landing. “To support the ailing airline industry and fuel the mood for spending, we have decided to pursue adoption of a new type of traveling -- international flights without landing,” Hong, who doubles as deputy prime minister said in a meeting of economic-related ministers. The special flight

Nov. 19, 2020

FSC to ease regulations on 5 innovative financial services

South Korea’s top financial regulator said Thursday it has decided to relax regulations on five promising services proposed by local companies in continued efforts to spur innovation in the finance sector.  The move is part of the government‘s “regulatory sandbox” policy, which took effect in April last year. Under the regulatory program, the financial authorities suspend legal and regulatory requirements imposed on local financial companies, including both traditio

Nov. 19, 2020

S. Korea's net foreign assets touch new high in Q3

South Korea's net overseas assets hit an all-time high in the third quarter, mainly due to increased stock investments, central bank data showed Thursday. The nation's external financial assets came to $1.81 trillion at the end of September, up $66 billion from a quarter earlier, according to preliminary data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). Net international investment position came to $553.1 billion as of the end of September, down $100 million from a year earlier, the data showed. The positio

Nov. 19, 2020

Savings banks' 9-month profit grows on interest income

South Korean savings banks reported 9 percent growth in their combined net profit for the first nine months of this year, supported by a modest rise in interest income, data showed Thursday. The combined net income of the 79 savings banks stood at 1.02 trillion won ($918 million) for the January-September period, compared with a profit of 935.7 billion won a year ago, according to the data by the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). Their interest income rose 8.9 percent on-year to 4.8 trillio

Nov. 19, 2020

Households' wage income dips for 2nd quarter in Q3 amid pandemic

South Korean households saw their income earned through wages decline for the second straight quarter in the third quarter as the new coronavirus outbreak dealt a blow to the job market, data showed Thursday. The average household earned 5.31 million won ($4,774) per month in the July-September period, up 1.6 percent from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. But hit by the fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic, household income earned through wages declined 1.1 percen

Nov. 19, 2020

Seoul to supply more public homes to tackle rental home shortage

South Korea will supply 114,000 public 'jeonse' houses by 2022 to help tackle a shortage of the two-year contract-based rental homes, the transport ministry said Thursday. The government plans to purchase existing homes to convert them into public jeonse houses mainly for the underprivileged who have difficulties in finding such homes, as higher demand has pushed up jeonse prices amid low rates and a recently passed related bill, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said in a stat

Nov. 19, 2020