4th industrial revolution committee to launch by mid-September: ICT minister

A state committee chaired by President Moon Jae-in and aimed at seeking ways to capitalize on changes brought on by the fourth industrial revolution will be launched by mid-September, South Korea's chief ICT policymaker said Tuesday.The so-called "Fourth Industrial Revolution committee," comprised of some 30 senior government policymakers and businesspeople, is part of the Moon administration's pledge to upgrade the country's overall competitiveness. The committee aims to form a collab

Aug. 29, 2017

Korea's finance minister discusses trade issues with US envoy

South Korea's top economic policymaker met with the acting US ambassador to Seoul on Tuesday and emphasized "friendly" consultations on issues concerning possible amendments to the bilateral free trade agreement, the finance ministry said.In a meeting with Marc Knapper, who is acting as the ambassador after Mark Lippert stepped down earlier in the year, Finance Minister Kim Dong-yeon said the South Korean government is hoping to maintain good relations as the two partners engage in fur

Aug. 29, 2017

Government sets aside record W429tr budget for 2018

The government on Tuesday released a state budget plan for 2018 worth 429 trillion won ($381 billion), marking the steepest annual rise in nine years and advocating an expansionary fiscal plan in welfare and job creation to back President Moon Jae-in’s income-led growth economic initiative.The tentative budget for 2018, endorsed by the Cabinet in the morning, is up by 7.1 percent from this year’s 400.5 trillion won, according to the Ministry of Strategy and Finance.With its approval

Aug. 29, 2017

Independent panel launches review of financial regulatory reform

South Korea's financial regulator Tuesday set up an independent panel with the aim of drawing up plans for financial regulatory reform.Asia's fourth-largest economy has sought to strengthen its financial industry by easing regulations, but the government has been reluctant to give up its grip in the sector. The 13-member panel, headed by Yoon Suk-heun, a business professor at Seoul National University, will map out the plans for regulatory reform by the end of October, the Financial Service

Aug. 29, 2017

More than 580,000 new homes supplied in July

More than 58,000 new homes were completed throughout the country in July, an increase of 62.3 percent from the month's average over the past five years, data from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport showed Tuesday.A total of 58,718 units of new homes were supplied in the one-month period, 26,704 of them in Seoul and surrounding metropolitan areas for an increase of 22.9 percent from the five-year average for July, according to the ministry. It said 32,014 homes were built in regio

Aug. 29, 2017

National health insurance rate to go up 2.04% in 2018

South Korea will increase its national health insurance rate by 2.04 percent next year, in line with the new Moon Jae-in administration's policy to strengthen the state's welfare infrastructure, the health ministry said Tuesday.The increase will push up insurance rates set at 6.12 percent of the monthly salary or income in 2017 to 6.24 percent in 2018, the Ministry of Health and Welfare said. Accordingly, salaried workers will pay an average of 102,242 won ($90.83) a month next year, up 1,966 wo

Aug. 29, 2017

Health authorities order inspection of 4 imported food products

South Korean health authorities said Tuesday that they have ordered an indepth inspection into four imported foods that may pose potential health risks starting later this week.The products --Taiwanese mango, processed blowfish, Indian whilteleg shrimp, and moringa from drumstick tree -- will undergo the mandatory inspection starting on Wednesday, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety said. The measure is part of the authorities' effort to secure safety of the food that may pose health risks, the

Aug. 29, 2017

Accounting firms see sales gain 8.5% in fiscal 2016

Accounting firms in South Korea saw their combined sales rise 8.5 percent annually in the 2016 fiscal year, helped by a modest gain in revenues from their audits and consulting businesses, data showed Tuesday. The combined sales of 165 accounting firms stood at 2.67 trillion won ($2.37 billion) in fiscal 2016 that ended March of this year, compared with 2.46 trillion won a year earlier, according to the data by the Financial Supervisory Service.The nation's top four accounting firms -- Samil PwC

Aug. 29, 2017

Rates for household loans inch up in July

Bank lending rates on new household loans inched up in July and interest rates paid by banks on new deposits slightly fell, central bank data showed Tuesday.The average interest rates on fresh household loans extended by local banks came to 3.46 percent in July, up 0.05 percentage point from the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea. The BOK data came amid South Korea's efforts to tackle rising household debt.  South Korea's overall household debt came to 1,388.3 trillion won

Aug. 29, 2017

Korea to curb hefty bonuses for financial executives

South Korea's financial regulator said Tuesday it will curb existing bonus policies for senior executives at financial firms from December. Starting Dec. 4, a financial executive will be given an annual bonus equal to 60 percent of the total with the rest to be paid over the next three years, the Financial Services Commission said in a statement.  If the financial executive incurs a loss during the three-year period, the rest of the executive's annual bonus will be cut. If the loss is huge,

Aug. 29, 2017

Korea vows to take steps over financial volatility

South Korea said Tuesday it will take measures to stabilize the financial market, if needed following the latest North Korean missile launch that has further spiked tensions in the region.The Finance Ministry said it is monitoring financial markets at home and abroad and the South Korea's economy around-the-clock to effectively cope with risks posed by Pyongyang.The government "will take necessary steps in a timely manner" in case of financial volatility, the ministry said after a join

Aug. 29, 2017

Korea to hold annual consultation meeting with Moody's

The South Korean government will hold an annual consultation with Moody's this week on the country's credit valuation, the finance ministry said Tuesday.Led by Steffen Dyck, senior credit officer at Moody's, the delegation will be in South Korea for three days through Thursday for meetings with officials from the Ministry of Strategy and Finance, the Bank of Korea and the state-run Korea Development Institute. They will look into South Korea's macroeconomic policies of the new Moon Jae-in govern

Aug. 29, 2017

Korea to spend W19.6tr on R&D in 2018

South Korea's government will inject some 19.6 trillion won ($17.8 billion) in research and development next year, with the majority of the budget earmarked for the science and technology sectors critical for fostering new growth engines, the ICT ministry said Tuesday. The Ministry of Science, ICT, and Future Planning said next year's science and technology budget, which is subject to parliamentary endorsement later this year, has been set to gain 1.9 percent on-year from 2017.Of the total, 6.5

Aug. 29, 2017

Govt. recoups W709.1b of public funds in Q2

The South Korean government said Monday it recovered 709.1 billion won ($633 million) of bailout funds in the second quarter, mostly used to help financial institutions hit by the 1997 Asian financial crisis. The retrieval of taxpayers' money mainly derived from dividends from stake investments, the sale of shares in Woori Bank, and interest income, the Financial Services Commission said in a statement. The government has spent a total of 168.7 trillion won since November 1997 to purchase non-pe

Aug. 28, 2017

Apartment management fees jump 24% over five years

Amid soaring apartment prices, data showed Monday that management fees for apartment residents in South Korea have risen roughly 24 percent over the past five years. 　According to data from the Bank of Korea and Statistics Korea, the housing price index for apartment living increased to 108.68 in the second quarter, a 24.3 percent increase from 87.4 in 2012. The jump is about quadruple the 6.3 percent consumer price index inflation rate. 　By the end of July, housing management fees rose 3.8 perc

Aug. 28, 2017

BOK to issue commemorative paper money for PyeongChang Olympics

The central bank said Monday it will issue 2,000 won ($1.77) denominated paper notes to commemorate South Korea's hosting of its first Winter Olympics.The Bank of Korea will issue 2.3 million notes of the bill on Nov. 17, according to officials. While big events have often been celebrated with commemorative coins, this is the first time that paper money will be issued. Officials said the PyeongChang Olympics organizing committee had requested paper bills. PyeongChang, a mountainous resort city e

Aug. 28, 2017

[Monitor] Seoul‘s housing price lower than Beijing, Tokyo, Singapore

Seoul’s price to income ratio for housing this year was ranked 23rd among 267 major cities in the world, according to Numbeo, a global database of user contributed data on cities and countries. This was visibly lower than the figure in the Great China Region such as Shenzhen, Beijing, Shanghai, and Hong Kong.The PIR value for South Korea’s capital was 19.17, which means that it would take an average citizen the corresponding number of years save up to purchase a house.The most expens

Aug. 27, 2017

NK risk, jittery economic indicators to nudge BOK to freeze rates

Concerns over North Korean provocations and jittery economic indicators is expected nudge South Korea's central bank to freeze key rates for the foreseeable future, market watchers said Sunday.The predictions come as the Bank of Korea is set to convene a Monetary Policy Committee this week to deliberate the country's key rates.Initially, there was speculation that some members of the committee will express views of marking up rates in the future to reflect improvements in the overall economy fue

Aug. 27, 2017

ILO chief to visit Korea next month for forum on job creation

Guy Ryder, director-general of the International Labor Organization, plans to visit South Korea next month to attend a forum on labor, the Seoul city government said Sunday.It said Ryder plans to deliver a keynote speech at the forum on job-creation strategy and labor policy to be hosted by the Seoul Metropolitan Government on Sept. 5-6. The forum will bring together officials from 10 cities including New York and London and representatives from eight international organizations, it said.Ryder t

Aug. 27, 2017

China's consumer goods market promising for Korean firms: report

South Korean companies should find business opportunities in China's fast-growing consumer goods market that so far has been tapped mostly by cosmetic firms, an economic think tank said Sunday.A report from the Hyundai Research Institute estimated China's high-end consumer goods imports market to grow to $37 billion by 2020 as the population surpasses 1.4 billion and the per capita gross domestic product hops over $20,000 by then. The market already ranked 10th globally last year with $26.6 bill

Aug. 27, 2017