BOK freezes key rate at 1.75%

South Korea's central bank left its policy rate unchanged at 1.75 percent Friday amid lingering concerns over weaker economic growth. The monetary policy board of the Bank of Korea voted to leave the bellwether rate steady for the sixth straight month after raising it by a quarter percentage point in November last year. The BOK's wait-and-see stance had been widely expected as South Korea's economy shows some signs of a downturn in exports and tepid domestic demand amid protracted US-China trade

May 31, 2019

[Monitor] S. Korea’s birthrate plunges to monthly low in March

The number of births in South Korea plunged to an all-time monthly low of 27,100 in March, according to Statistics Korea, reflecting the nation’s declining marriage and fertility rates. Data showed that 27,100 babies were born in March, down 9.7 percent on-year, marking the lowest figure for March since the agency began compiling related data in 1981. This is also the first time the birthrate in March has dropped below the 30,000 level. The number of marriages also dropped to 19,600 in the

May 30, 2019

S. Korea remains on US ‘monitoring list’ for currency manipulation

The United States Treasury Department has kept South Korea on its monitoring list for currency manipulating countries, suggesting a possible removal in the next report, the Ministry of Economy and Finance said Wednesday.In a semiannual report submitted to Congress on Tuesday, the US Treasury also named eight other trading partners as those requiring attention regarding their currency practices. The list comprised China, Japan, Germany, Italy, Ireland, Singapore, Malaysia and Vietnam.Also, Korea

May 29, 2019

S. Korea drops to 28th place in global competitiveness rankings

South Korea’s global competitiveness ranking dropped one place this year, amid an economic slowdown hit by reduced exports and capital investments, an annual report by a Switzerland-based international institute showed Wednesday.The International Institute for Management Development said in its report that Korea ranked 28th in terms of world competitiveness among the 63 countries surveyed. It was ranked 27th last year.The institute, since 1997, has been ranking economies based on four cate

May 29, 2019

Seoul’s housing price hike stable among major cities: government

In an apparent move to advocate the incumbent government’s real estate measures, the Land Ministry said Tuesday that Seoul’s housing prices had grown at a stable rate for the past five years, compared to fluctuations observed in real estate transaction prices in other major cities. Seoul saw an average 18.9 percent rate fluctuation in its housing price from 2014 to 2018, according to the data, which was released as part of a seminar co-hosted by the ministry and the state-run Ko

May 28, 2019

Korea’s consumer sentiment index dips to 6-month low

South Korea’s composite consumer sentiment index fell in May for the first time in six months, due to a slowing economy, volatile stock market and concerns over the escalating trade war between the US and China.　The Bank of Korea said Tuesday that the CSI -- which measures consumers’ optimism about the economy -- came to 97.9 for May, down 3.7 points from the previous month.It marks the first decline in the index since November 2018, when it fell to 95.7. It had been on a five-month

May 28, 2019

[News Focus] Online shopping expands more than 100% in 3 years

SEJONG -- South Koreans have sharply increased their shopping through computers and smartphones in recent years, which is taking up more than 20 percent of their total consumption.The rapid growth of online shopping transactions has been backed by systematic parcel delivery services, which send products to consumers across the country in one to three days.Almost every kind of product -- from drinking water, food and cosmetics to clothing, home appliances and furniture -- are available on online

May 26, 2019

Moon meets farmers planting rice in Gyeongju

President Moon Jae-in visited a southeastern rural village Friday to encourage farmers who were busy planting rice. He briefly planted rice himself and attended the test operation of an agricultural drone and a self-driving rice-planting device in Oksan village in Gyeongju, 371 kilometers southeast of Seoul, according to his office, Cheong Wa Dae."Given the reality of rural areas suffering difficulties from the aging population and labor shortages, there's a desperate need to develop and sp

May 24, 2019

Koreans’ overseas card spending down in Q1

Overseas card spending by South Koreans fell in the first quarter, despite the rising number of outbound tourists, as a weaker Korean won discouraged them from swiping cards overseas, central bank data showed on May 23.　In the January-March period, Koreans spent $4.68 billion using cards abroad, down 3.3 percent from three months earlier, according to the data by the Bank of Korea.　Quarterly card spending peaked at a record $5.07 billion in the first three months of 2018. But it declined for two

May 23, 2019

Gender pay gap widens at large firms in Q1

The wage gap between male and female workers at large firms here widened in the first quarter from a year earlier, data showed Thursday.Women working for 202 major listed companies were paid an average 15.37 million won ($12,910) in the January-March period, or 63.5 percent of the median pay of 24.2 million won for male employees, according to the data by Yonhap Infomax, the financial news and information arm of Yonhap News Agency.It was slightly lower than the 64.6 percent ratio recorded during

May 23, 2019

OECD cuts S. Korea’s growth outlook for 2019 to 2.4%

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development has slashed its growth outlook for the South Korean economy this year to 2.4 percent, amid the prolonging impact of US-China trade frictions, the Ministry of Economy and Finance said Tuesday.The domestic economy will grow 2.4 percent this year and 2.5 percent in 2020, according to the OECD Economic Outlook report. Previous estimates suggested in March were 2.6 percent, both for this year and next year, while the nation’s actual grow

May 21, 2019

[News Focus] Manufacturers’ production capacity slides to mid-2016 levels: index

SEJONG -- The manufacturing industry has come to a standstill in output and productivity that could further weaken the nation’s already lackluster economic growth, which has suffered as a result of sagging exports and weak private consumption.According to Statistics Korea, the manufacturing production capacity index stood at 101.4 in February 2019 -- the lowest level in 33 months, since May 2016, when it posted the same figure. Though the index inched up to 101.6 in March 2019 (the la

May 21, 2019

S. Korea ups guard against US-China trade tensions

South Korea’s fiscal chief on Monday warned that the economy may have become more vulnerable to the escalating trade conflicts between the United States and China, apparently shifting from his previous optimistic tone.He also vowed to take “appropriate measures” to stabilize the financial markets when necessary, hinting at the possibility that the government might expand its involvement in foreign exchange to defend the value of the local currency. “There is a possibility

May 20, 2019

[News Focus] In efforts to curb apartment prices, rate hikes seemingly pushed aside

SEJONG -- The Moon Jae-in government has repeatedly expressed its commitment to lower housing prices in Seoul, amid an extraordinary situation in which many apartments surged in price more than 50 percent from late 2016 through 2018.Most of its anti-speculation measures have been mapped out by the Finance Ministry, the Land Ministry and the Financial Services Commission.But the presidential office has refrained from seeking to normalize apartment prices by normalizing interest rates. This is des

May 20, 2019

Moon urges more active fiscal policy for growth, welfare

President Moon Jae-in called Thursday for an aggressive fiscal policy to cope effectively with a slew of "structural" problems in South Korea.He pointed out that Asia's fourth-largest economy is ridden with such pressing concerns as a widening income gap, unemployment, aging society and low childbirth rate."It's a time when the bold role of state finance is more necessary than any other time," the president said during a government meeting on fiscal strategies in the administ

May 16, 2019

Jobless rate hits 19-year high in April, job creation slows

South Korea’s job market prolonged its downswing in April, with unemployment reaching its highest point in 19 years, government data showed Wednesday.The increasing pace of job creation also slowed further, especially in the retail and manufacturing sectors and among the economically active 30-40 age group.According to job figures released by Statistics Korea, the total number of jobless people surpassed 1.24 million as of April for the first time since the government started compiling the

May 15, 2019

Jobless rate rises to 4.4% in April

South Korea's jobless rate rose to 4.4 percent in April, government data showed Wednesday, in the latest sign of a weak job market amid an economic slowdown in Asia's fourth-largest economy.The unemployment rate increased 0.3 percentage point from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea.It also marked the highest level for any April since 2000, when the corresponding figure stood at 4.5 percent.The number of employed people reached 27.03 million in April, an increase o

May 15, 2019

S. Korea to send rice to 4 countries facing famine

South Korea will provide food aid to four countries in the Middle East and Africa currently reeling under famine, the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs announced Friday.At a ceremonial event held at a port in Mokpo, South Jeolla Province, Deputy Minister Kim Jong-hoon announced that a total of 50,000 tons of domestically grown rice will be distributed to Yemen, Ethiopia, Kenya, and Uganda. The shipments are expected to reach the countries by mid-May to June.Since Korea became a mem

May 13, 2019

[News Focus] Weak currency prompts fears of capital flight

SEJONG -- The South Korean won has lost ground against “reserve currencies” such as the euro and the Japanese yen over the past month, in addition to the US dollar.The euro was worth 1,323.25 won as of May 10, 2019, up 3.08 percent (or 39.65 won) from 1,283.60 won on April 10. That’s the euro’s strongest position in seven months, ever since it recorded 1,323.35 on Oct. 11, 2018. The Korean currency also showed weakness vis-a-vis the Asian reserve currency, the y

May 13, 2019

Buoyed by BTS, trade surplus of music-related sectors recovers to pre-2016 level

South Korea’s balance of payments surplus for industries linked to K-pop businesses has recovered to levels seen before China’s 2016 ban on domestic cultural contents over soured diplomatic relations, tracking data showed Sunday. According to the Bank of Korea Economic Statistics System, Korea recorded a BOP surplus of $114.7 million for music, video and related services in the first quarter of this year -- highest surplus for the category since $132.4 million recorded in the third q

May 12, 2019