NPS to widen domestic equity allocation range

South Korea’s National Pension Service has adjusted its rules to raise the strategic asset distribution limit for domestic stock holdings by 1 percentage point, Minister of Health and Welfare Kwon Deok-cheol said Friday. “The proportion of strategic asset allocation limit for domestic equities has been increased from the current 2 percent to 3 percent,” said Kwon, who also heads the state pension’s asset management committee. Under the revision, the portion of its inves

April 9, 2021

Foreigners stay net sellers of S. Korean stocks in March

Foreign investors remained net sellers of South Korean stocks for a fourth month in March on profit-taking and rising US long-term interest rates, central bank data showed Friday. Foreigners' stock investment funds recorded a net outflow of $2.58 billion, the second-largest monthly outflow after February's $2.86 billion, according to the data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). Offshore investors have remained net sellers of South Korean stocks since December. The central bank said foreign investor

April 9, 2021

S. Korea's bond issuance falls in March

Bond issuance in South Korea shrank in March from the previous month due mainly to a tumble in corporate debt sales, industry data showed Friday. The value of bonds sold in Asia's fourth-largest economy stood at slightly over 74 trillion won ($66.4 billion) last month, nearly 720 billion won smaller than a month earlier, according to the data from the Korea Financial Investment Association. Sales of corporate bonds declined by about 4.1 trillion won, and the issuance of currency stabilization

April 9, 2021

S. Korea needs preemptive anti-inflation steps: senior official

South Korea needs to take preemptive measures to cope with escalating concerns over inflation, a senior government official said Friday. The remark by First Vice Finance Minister Lee Eog-weon comes as Asia's fourth-largest economy faces growing inflationary pressure amid signs of an economic recovery. "It is necessary to take preemptive steps to prevent inflationary pressure from constraining an economic rebound and inflicting burdens on ordinary people," Lee told a government policy

April 9, 2021

S. Korean households’ stock investment hits record-high

South Korean households spent a record-high net 83.3 trillion (74.5 billion) won in stock investment last year, central bank data showed Thursday, but their borrowing also surged to an unprecedented level, indicating where their money for investment came from. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, local households and nonprofit agencies serving households invested a total 63.2 trillion won in Korean stocks and 20.1 trillion won in overseas shares in 2020, according to the preliminary data by the Ba

April 8, 2021

Exports tipped to expand 18.1% in 2021: think tank

South Korea's exports are expected to expand 18.1 percent on-year in 2021 to set a fresh record high on the back of global economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, a think tank said Thursday. Outbound shipments for the year are estimated at $605.3 billion, rising sharply from the previous estimate of a 10 percent gain in October last year, according to a report by Hyundai Research Institute released by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The amount would beat the previous record o

April 8, 2021

State pension operator cuts number of big-stake firms in Q1

South Korea's state pension operator reduced the number of listed firms in which it has a stake of 5 percent or more in the first quarter of the year, a financial information provider said Thursday. The National Pension Service (NPS) owned 5 percent or more of 261 listed companies as of Wednesday, down 12 firms from three months earlier, according to FnGuide. The combined market value of the NPS stakes in those corporations stood at 167.6 trillion won ($150 billion), up 4.4 percent from the en

April 8, 2021

Short-term bond sales dip 7.2% in Q1

Sales of short-term corporate bonds in South Korea sank more than 7 percent in the first quarter of the year amid the coronavirus pandemic, data showed Thursday. Local companies issued 257.2 trillion won ($230 billion) worth of bonds maturing within one year in the January-March period, down 7.2 percent from three months earlier, according to the data from the Korea Securities Depository (KSD). Compared with a year earlier, the amount was also down 12.4 percent. Sales of general short-term bo

April 8, 2021

Households' excess funds more than double in 2020 amid pandemic

Excess funds held by South Korean households and nonprofit agencies more than doubled in 2020 from a year earlier due mainly to an extended slump in private consumption amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the central bank said Thursday. Net financial funds -- the value of financial assets minus financial liabilities -- held by local households and nonprofit organizations serving households amounted to 192.1 trillion won ($172 billion) last year, sharply up from 92.2 trillion won a year earlier, accord

April 8, 2021

Average monthly household spending down 2.3% in 2020 amid pandemic

SEJONG -- Average monthly household spending fell 2.3 percent on year in 2020 as the COVID-19 pandemic hurt private consumption, data showed Thursday. South Korean households spent an average of 2.4 million won ($2,144) per month last year, compared with 2.45 million won per month in 2019, according to the data released by Statistics Korea. Average monthly expenditures on food and nonalcoholic beverages came to 381,000 won last year, up 14.6 percent from a year ago, the data showed. The da

April 8, 2021

Online food delivery transactions hit over W20tr in 2020

Transactions on online food delivery apps in South Korea last year soared to over 20 trillion won ($17.9 billion), data showed Thursday, as stay-at-home practices amid the pandemic propelled demand for online services. Total transactions on food delivery apps, such as Baedal Minjok, stood at 20.1 trillion won last year, up 43.5 percent from the previous year, according to the data from the Ministry of Science and ICT. The latest data from the ministry's survey on the broader online-to-offline

April 8, 2021

S. Korea to further nurture insects industry

South Korea's agricultural ministry said Thursday it plans to expand the size of the insects market to 140 billion won ($124 million) by 2025 and foster the segment as a new growth engine for the country's food industry. The targeted market value marks 55 percent growth from 2019, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. "We plan to further speed up the growth of the industry and develop new environment-friendly protein sources using insects, which can contribute

April 8, 2021

Fitch raises outlook on Hyundai, Kia to stable

Fitch Ratings has raised the rating outlooks on Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Corp. to stable from negative due to improved product mix and profitability, the ratings firm said Thursday. The revision reflects the companies' "resilient" 2020 performance and their improved profitability, as shown in recent quarters, helped by a better product mix and rebound in global auto demand after a yearlong COVID-19 pandemic, Fitch said in a statement. The ratings firm said the carmakers' "large

April 8, 2021

Anti-speculation measures to ramp up: finance minister

SEJONG -- The government will make efforts to revise a set of laws this year to help root out real estate speculation, Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said Thursday, amid growing public criticism over allegations of property speculation by officials at the state-run housing corporation. Hong said the government will have close consultations with the National Assembly to submit 19 revision bills this month that eventually ban public officials from doing illegal property speculation. Of the 19 bil

April 8, 2021

Fiscal chief warns of protectionism in guise of climate change policies

South Korea’s Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki on Tuesday told global fiscal policymakers that they should refrain from using climate change policies as a tool of trade protectionism. “Climate change policies, such as the carbon border adjustment mechanism, should be prevented from being abused as trade protectionism,” Hong said during a virtual meeting of the Coalition of Finance Ministers for Climate Action. The European Commission is expected to announce a proposal for a c

April 7, 2021

Economic slump easing on improving manufacturing sector: KDI

The South Korean economy sees its slumps easing as the manufacturing sector has continued to improve on the back of robust exports, a state-run think tank said Wednesday. The service sector is still suffering from setbacks amid the pandemic, but its sluggishness somewhat moderated as the country relaxed tougher social distancing rules in February, according to a monthly economic assessment report by the Korea Development Institute (KDI). "The Korean economy is exhibiting a moderating slow

April 7, 2021

S. Korea to temporarily lift import duties on corn to stabilize prices

South Korea plans to temporarily remove tariffs on some imported grains including corn in an effort to help rein in rising food prices, the finance minister said Wednesday. The country plans to import edible corn and some grains without tariffs until the end of this year under the quota tariff system, according to Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki. Currently, duties of 3 percent are levied on imported corn. "There is a limited chance that annual inflation will exceed (the central bank's target

April 7, 2021

Tax revenue up W8.7tr in February

South Korea's tax revenue rose 8.7 trillion won ($7.8 billion) in February from a year earlier due largely to an increase in the collection of income taxes, the finance ministry said Wednesday. The country collected 19 trillion won in taxes in February, compared with 10.3 trillion won the previous year, according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance. The tally came as capital gains tax income rose amid increased housing transactions and the payment of deferred taxes. In February, the govern

April 7, 2021

Current account surplus widens in February

South Korea's current account surplus widened in February as exports showed signs of a gradual recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, the central bank said Wednesday. The current account surplus reached $8.03 billion last month, widening from a surplus of $7.06 billion the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK). The current account is the broadest measure of cross-border trade. Since the country logged a deficit of $3.33 billion in April last year, the largest in almost a decade,

April 7, 2021

Credit unions' 2020 net up due to brisk non-banking biz

South Korea's credit unions, or member-owned financial cooperatives, saw their combined net profit edge up 0.2 percent in 2020 from a year earlier due to higher sales of non-banking businesses, data showed Wednesday. The combined net profit of 2,225 credit unions, including the National Agricultural Cooperative Federation known as Nonghyup, stood at 2.2 trillion won ($1.95 billion) in 2020, up 4.5 billion won from 2019, according to the data by the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). Nonghyup

April 7, 2021