BOK offers additional $1.2b to banks via US currency swap

The Bank of Korea (BOK) said Monday it will deliver an additional $1.26 billion to local banks under its currency swap deal with the US Fed in a move to help stabilize the local foreign exchange market. The BOK held its fifth online auction to provide up to $4 billion. Bids undershot the target amount, possibly indicating the stabilization of the local market, the BOK noted. "Considering that bids fell short of those of last week (at $2.12 billion), the recent drop in the London Interba

April 27, 2020

4 in 10 listed firms log Q1 earnings surprises despite virus

Four in 10 major listed firms in South Korea pulled off earnings surprises in the first quarter of this year despite the coronavirus pandemic, market data said Monday. Fourteen out of the 35 companies listed on the country's main and secondary stock markets posted first-quarter operating income that were more than 10 percent higher than market consensuses, according to the data from Yonhap Infomax, the financial news arm of Yonhap News Agency. The firms covered the ones that unveiled first-qu

April 27, 2020

Korea's April exports tipped to dip 25%: poll

South Korea's exports are expected to have plunged by a whopping 25 percent in April from a year earlier, a poll showed Monday, as the new coronavirus pandemic has dealt a harsh blow to global trade and corporate activities. Outbound shipments are estimated at $36.4 billion this month, according to the poll by Yonhap Infomax, the financial news arm of Yonhap News Agency. The survey was carried out on nine local brokerage houses. The sharp decrease was also attributable to the falling global o

April 27, 2020

S. Korea to offer over $400m to emerging nations for coronavirus-related health projects

South Korea will offer more than $400 million to emerging nations this year to help them push for health projects against the novel coronavirus, Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said Monday. Hong made the remarks at a meeting with economy-related ministers earlier in the day as South Korea seeks to share coronavirus information with the world. The money will be offered through the nation's Economic Development Cooperation Fund, Hong said. South Korea will also postpone debt payments worth $110 m

April 27, 2020

Safeguarding mask supplies at border

Soon after South Korea reported the first novel coronavirus infection here, the government moved swiftly to contain its spread. Not only health authorities, but each public office had its own role to play.  The Korea Customs Service, a government agency under the Ministry of Economy and Finance, was assigned to prevent the possible outflow of masks, considered fundamental sanitary gear, to secure public safety.  To stabilize South Korea’s face mask supply, the KCS embarked on

April 26, 2020

[Herald Interview] ‘Preemptive customs actions have minimized COVID-19 impact’

South Korea has grabbed global attention for its early-stage prevention handling of the novel coronavirus pandemic with relatively little impact on the economy. Driving such innovation, along with the public health authorities, was the country’s customs agency, which promptly adjusted the clearance system to deal with the supply issues caused by the crisis. “Dedicated to safeguard the global supply chain, we have established and operated special customs clearance centers around th

April 26, 2020

[News Focus] ‘Debt-based’ stock purchases surge 34% in one month

SEJONG -- Stock investments are often likened to a zero-sum game, as winners take the money of losers. It is impossible for every participant in the capital market to see capital gains even if the market is bullish, as their buying and selling timing is various. Further, the probability of becoming losers grows when individuals use credit-based purchase, which is dubbed the “leverage” investment. This allows investors to buy more stocks beyond their cash deposit

April 26, 2020

S. Korea's economy to shrink 0.3% in 2020

South Korea's economy is expected to contract 0.3 percent this year, a private research institute said Sunday, as the coronavirus pandemic crippled economic activities worldwide. The forecast by Hyundai Research Institute, however, is higher than the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which has predicted that Korea's economy will shrink 1.2 percent this year as the global economy is expected to hit its worst year since the Great Depression of the 1930s over the pandemic. The world economy is

April 26, 2020

S. Korea offers coronavirus-related patent information in English

South Korea will provide international community its COVID-19-related technologies, ranging from the recognized test kits and “walk-thru” test booths, according to the country’s intellectual property agency. The Korean Intellectual Property Office on Friday expanded the range of the COVID-19 patent information navigation service of its webpage (https://www.kipo.go.kr/ncov) and also started to provide the English version of the uploaded information. Last month, KIPO kic

April 26, 2020

S. Korea logs trade surplus of $16.4b with FTA partners in Q1

SEJONG -- South Korea posted a trade surplus of $16.4 billion with its free trade agreement (FTA) partners in the first quarter of the year, while posting a deficit with non-FTA partners, data showed Friday. Exports to FTA partners came to $96.3 billion and imports totaled $79.9 billion in the January-March period, with the trade volume inching down 0.1 percent on-year, according to the data compiled by the Korea Customs Service. South Korea registered the largest trade surplus of $10.5 billi

April 24, 2020

S. Korea to issue state bonds for coronavirus relief payouts

The government announced Thursday it will sell additional state bonds to finance blanket payouts for all South Koreans in a proposed coronavirus relief package. The finance ministry also said those who choose not to apply for the handout -- set up to help those in dire straits due to the COVID-19 pandemic -- or who donate their share will receive tax deductions. The ministry said political parties and the government have reached a consensus on this particular measure, designed to encourage

April 24, 2020

S. Korea to face further market shock in Q2 amid COVID-19 pandemic

After marking the steepest contraction in more than a decade amid the new coronavirus fallout, South Korea’s economy is likely to confront further shocks over the upcoming months, financial authorities warned Thursday. “The production indexes for private consumption and service industries have hit their worst level since the (global) financial crisis,” Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said in a meeting of economy-related ministers in Seoul. “The

April 23, 2020

[News Focus] 1.27 million young Koreans de facto out of work

SEJONG -- The COVID-19 disaster has added to mass youth unemployment, which had already been a critical social issue over the past few years. According to the Supplementary Index for Employment III, held by Statistics Korea, de facto unemployment for those aged 15-29 reached 1.272 million among the extended-based economically active population of 4.785 million. This figure means a surge by about 225,000 people in only two months, compared to January, when the tally stood at 1.047 million. T

April 23, 2020

Listed firms' dividend payouts drop 2.9% in 2019

South Korean listed firms' dividend payouts fell nearly 2.9 percent from a year earlier in 2019 amid sluggish earnings, the bourse operator said Wednesday. Combined dividend payments by 528 out of the 761 companies closing their books in December came to 20.7 trillion won last year, down 2.88 percent from the previous year, according to the Korea Exchange (KRX). The number of companies that paid cash dividends was down from the 545 recorded the previous year. Their average payout ratio, refe

April 23, 2020

Korea's daily FX turnover hits record high in Q1

The daily foreign exchange (FX) turnover by local and foreign banks in South Korea reached an all-time high in the first quarter of the year amid the coronavirus outbreak, central bank data showed Thursday. The daily FX turnover came to an average $59.37 billion in the January-March period, up 9.2 percent from the previous quarter, according to the data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). The amount marks the highest since 2008, when the central bank began tracking related data. The central bank s

April 23, 2020

Finance minister warns coronavirus may have bigger impact on economy in Q2

Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said Thursday the coronavirus pandemic is expected to have a bigger impact on the nation's economy in the second quarter, as the virus has crippled global supply chains and consumer demand. Hong made the remarks shortly after the Bank of Korea reported that South Korea's economy shrank 1.4 percent on-quarter in the first quarter of this year, marking the sharpest quarterly contraction since the fourth quarter of 2008. The first-quarter gross domestic product (GD

April 23, 2020

S. Korean economy shrinks 1.4% in Q1 amid virus fallout, sharpest contraction since 2008

South Korea's economy shrank 1.4 percent on-quarter in the first quarter of this year, as the coronavirus pandemic crippled industrial output, consumer spending and job markets, the Bank of Korea (BOK) said Thursday. It marked the sharpest quarterly contraction since the fourth quarter of 2008, when the nation's economy sank 3.3 percent on-quarter. The first-quarter gross domestic product, however, was above market expectations. A survey conducted by Yonhap Infomax, the financial news arm of

April 23, 2020

[Economy in Pandemic] With flattened curve, what’s ahead for S. Korean economy?

The signs of a slowing COVID-19 spread on the back of a strong state drive to contain the novel coronavirus are raising expectations of an early recovery of the South Korean economy. Despite the flattened curve of infection cases, it is premature for excessive optimism on Korea posting a V-shaped recovery, considering its heavy dependence on exports for growth, experts said Wednesday. “Given that Korea is quite an export-oriented economy, the slumping global demand is expected to hit th

April 22, 2020

S. Korea to sharply increase aid package for virus-hit firms, job protection

South Korea's finance ministry said Wednesday it will sharply increase the size of the nation's aid package for coronavirus-hit companies and job protection. The aid package will rise to 135 trillion ($109 billion) won from 100 trillion won, which had been set previously, to supply more liquidity into companies hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ministry of Economy and Finance said in a statement. Of the additional 35 trillion won, 20 trillion won will be used to buy more corporate bonds and 1

April 22, 2020

S. Korea vows support for refiners amid virus fallout

South Korea said Wednesday it will spare no effort to support local petroleum firms hit hard by the new coronavirus outbreak coupled with plunging oil prices. Under the support measures, local refiners will be given discounts in rental fees at state-run reserve facilities, and they will be allowed to delay their payment of commissions for product quality tests, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy. "South Korea will continue making efforts to help the companies cushio

April 22, 2020