Import prices grow in January on higher crude oil costs

South Korea's import prices rose for the first time in three months in January as the costs of bringing in crude and other raw materials became more expensive, central bank data showed Tuesday. The import price index gained 4.1 percent in January from a month earlier, according to the preliminary data from the Bank of Korea. The rise followed 1 percent and 2 percent on-month declines in November and December, respectively. The January uptick came mostly from increased crude oil and raw materia

Feb. 15, 2022

January ICT exports hit record high

SEJONG -- The nation’s exports of information and communication technology products enjoyed their best January on record last month, state data showed Monday. 　 The record was driven by growths in exports to five major destinations for ICT products -- China, Vietnam, the US, EU, and Japan. According to the Ministry of Science and ICT, Korea’s outbound shipments of ICT products recorded $19.6 billion last month, up 20.7 percent from $16.2 billion in January 2021 amid robust export p

Feb. 14, 2022

Watchdog to intensify oversight of foreign currency liquidity, real estate lending

South Korea's financial watchdog vowed Monday to keep closer tabs on financial institutions' management of foreign currency liquidity and real estate lending this year in a move to better respond to potential risks amid growing market uncertainties. The Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) made the plan for the new year amid major countries' monetary tightening to rein in inflation pressure, the prolonged pandemic and concerns over the instability of the Chinese property market. According to the

Feb. 14, 2022

Bank holding firms' interest income soars 15% in 2021 amid rising rates

Four financial holding firms in South Korea saw their interest income surge nearly 15 percent in 2021 thanks to rising lending rates, industry data showed Monday. The combined interest income of the four holding companies -- KB Financial Group Inc., Shinhan Financial Group Co., Hana Financial Group Inc. and Woori Financial Group Inc. -- came to some 32.3 trillion won ($26.9 billion) last year, up 14.9 percent from a year earlier. KB Financial led the pack with an interest income of slightly over

Feb. 14, 2022

Banking giants set to deliver record dividends

South Korea’s four major bank holding firms are expected to hand out record-high dividends for their highest net profits made last year thanks to a pandemic recovery, officials said Sunday. Total dividends from the four companies -- KB Financial Group, Hana Financial Group, Shinhan Financial Group and Woori Financial Group -- are estimated to be 3.8 trillion won ($3.1 billion), about 26 percent of the combined net profit of 14.5 trillion won. “We have enough capital flowing in to c

Feb. 13, 2022

Debt rollover likely be offered to self-employed

SEJONG -- Economic and financial policymakers are considering allowing self-employed people to roll over their debt as part of efforts to minimize insolvency amid the ongoing pandemic. The action comes during the meeting of chiefs from the Ministry of Economy and Finance, the Financial Services Commission, the Financial Supervisory Service and the Bank of Korea on Friday. They will finalize their decision by next month whether to offer a debt rollover to the self-employed and microbusiness own

Feb. 11, 2022

S. Korea's tax revenue up W58.5tr last year amid economic recovery

South Korea's tax revenue rose 58.5 trillion won ($48.7 billion) in 2021 from a year earlier amid the economic recovery and rises in housing prices, the finance ministry said Friday. The government collected 344.1 trillion won in taxes last year, compared with 285.5 trillion won the previous year, according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance. The country's tax revenue increased last year after the second consecutive year of decline. In 2020, the tax revenue fell 7.9 trillion won due to the

Feb. 11, 2022

Exports fall 12.6% in first 10 days of Feb.

South Korea's exports fell 12.6 percent on-year in the first 10 days of February due to fewer working days over the Lunar New Year holiday, customs data showed Friday. The country's outbound shipments stood at $15.7 billion in the Feb. 1-10 period, compared with $17.97 billion the previous year, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service. The decline came as an extended Lunar New Year holiday reduced the number of working days during the cited period by two days compared with last ye

Feb. 11, 2022

S. Korean economy faces heightened external economic risks: finance minister

The South Korean economy faces heightened external economic risks amid soaring energy costs, global inflation risks, and geopolitical tensions between Russia and Ukraine, Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said Friday. Hong made the remark in a meeting with the central bank chief and the top financial regulators to discuss policy coordination, market volatility and financial imbalances, and ways to stabilize consumer inflation. The minister said the Korean economy has extended its recovery momentum, b

Feb. 11, 2022

Finance Minister warns against cartels in food prices

SEJONG -- The Finance Ministry will look into food prices in the market later this month to uncover whether there were irregular hikes in price tags via cartels, the nation’s top policymaker said Thursday. The action comes amid continuous growth, over 3 percent on-year, in consumer prices for several months. Sharp price increases in agricultural and livestock products, alongside rising fuel prices, are putting a heavier burden on households. In a meeting for economic policies in Seoul, D

Feb. 10, 2022

Banks' household loans down for 2nd month in Jan. amid rate hikes, tighter rules

Loans extended by banks to households declined for the second straight month in January due to a hike in lending rates and tightened rules, central bank data showed Thursday. Outstanding bank loans to households came to 1,060.2 trillion won ($887.6 billion) as of the end of January, down 400 billion won from the previous month, according to the data from the Bank of Korean (BOK). This marked the second straight month that the banks' household loans have declined following a 200 billion won fall

Feb. 10, 2022

Q4 service output in all 16 provinces, cities rises for 3rd straight quarter

Service output rose in all 16 provinces and major cities for the third straight quarter in the fourth quarter of last year amid the vaccine rollout and the economic recovery, data showed Thursday. Service output grew 5.4 percent in the October-December period from a year earlier, accelerating from a 3.9 percent on-year gain in the third quarter, according to the data from Statistics Korea. It marked the third consecutive quarter of gains since the second quarter of 2021, when service output incr

Feb. 10, 2022

Foreigners continue net stock purchases in S. Korea for 3rd month in January

Foreign investors continued to purchase more shares than they sold in South Korea's stock markets for the third straight month in January, central bank data showed Thursday. Foreigners picked up a net $1.81 billion worth of local stocks last month, according to the data provided by the Bank of Korea. The amount, however, was halved from their net purchases in December of $3.69 billion, the data showed. Foreigners' net stock purchases here came despite the increased risk-averse tendency amid expe

Feb. 10, 2022

Bond issuance in S. Korea jumps in Jan.

Bond issuance in South Korea rose sharply in January from the previous month in the wake of rising interest rates, industry data showed Thursday. The value of bonds sold in Asia's fourth-largest economy stood at 66.6 trillion won ($55.7 billion) last month, up 21.6 trillion won from a month earlier, according to the data from the Korea Financial Investment Association. Sales of government bonds jumped by 10.8 trillion won, and corporate bond sales expanded by 8.8 trillion won. The issuance of fi

Feb. 10, 2022

S. Korean ad market soars 20.4% in 2021 amid pandemic

South Korea's advertising market grew at the fastest-ever pace in 2021 on a surge in digital advertisements amid the coronavirus pandemic, a report showed Thursday. Advertising expenses in Asia's fourth-largest economy amounted to 13.99 trillion won ($11.7 billion) last year, up 20.4 percent from a year earlier, according to the report from Cheil Worldwide Inc. It represented the largest on-year increase rate since data tracking began in 1973. The country's top advertising agency said last year'

Feb. 10, 2022

Policymakers to meet over economic risk factors, market volatility

Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said Thursday he will meet with the central bank chief and the top financial regulator this week to discuss policy coordination, volatility in the financial market and economic risk factors. Hong plans to hold a meeting Friday with Bank of Korea (BOK) Gov. Lee Ju-yeol; Koh Seung-beom, chairman of the Financial Services Commission; and Jeong Eun-bo, chief of the Financial Supervisory Service. The finance minister said the main agenda will include how to coordinate fis

Feb. 10, 2022

S. Korea's current account surplus halved on-year in December amid soaring imports

South Korea's current account surplus was halved in December from a year earlier as imports grew at a much faster pace than exports amid higher energy and raw material prices, central bank data showed Thursday. The current account surplus amounted to $6.06 billion in December, compared with a surplus of $12.06 billion a year earlier, according to the preliminary data by the Bank of Korea (BOK). The current account is the broadest measure of cross-border trade. The December figure was also smal

Feb. 10, 2022

Asset value rise leads to early retirement of senior citizens: BOK report

An increase in the value of assets owned by senior citizens results in a rise in the possibility of their early retirement, causing a decline in labor supply to the economy, a central bank report showed Wednesday. According to the report by the Bank of Korea, a 10 percent increase in the value of assets such as homes owned by senior people leads to a 1.8 percentage point fall in their economic participation rate and a 6.1 percent decline in hours they worked. Such asset value increase also raise

Feb. 9, 2022

S. Korean economy faces heightened external economic risks: KDI

The South Korean economy is on a recovery track, but external economic uncertainty remains high amid soaring energy costs and monetary policy shifts by the US Federal Reserve, a state-run think tank said Wednesday. The manufacturing industry has extended solid growth and the latest spike in COVID-19 cases appears to have had limited impacts on the service sector, compared with previous waves of the pandemic, the Korea Development Institute (KDI) said in a monthly economic assessment report. &quo

Feb. 9, 2022

S. Korea asks OECD chief for more discussions on digital tax deal

South Korea on Wednesday asked the chief of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) to have additional discussions on its global tax deal to prevent exporters from shouldering an excessive burden, Seoul's industry ministry said. South Korea's Industry Minister Moon Sung-wook made the request during a meeting with the organization's Secretary-General Mathias Cormann held in Seoul. In October, the OECD announced that 136 nations had agreed upon a sweeping reform of the int

Feb. 9, 2022