Foreign IBs raise S. Korea's 2021 growth outlook

Several foreign investment banks (IBs) have revised up their forecasts for South Korea's 2021 economic growth following the economy's relatively good performance last year, a report showed Wednesday. Out of six foreign IBs and one research institute that published reports on Asia's fourth-largest economy Tuesday, three upgraded their growth outlooks by 0.1 to 0.3 percentage point, according to the report by the Korea Center for International Finance. These institutions predict the South Korean

Jan. 27, 2021

Corporate direct financing gains 10.8% in 2020 amid pandemic

South Korea's corporate direct financing gained 10.8 percent on year in 2020 as the coronavirus pandemic prompted more companies to tap the bond market to raise funds, data showed Wednesday. Local companies raised a combined 194.4 trillion won ($175.6 billion) by selling stocks and bonds last year, up 18.9 trillion won from 2019, according to the data from the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). Corporate stock sales more than doubled to 10.9 trillion won, with the value of initial public off

Jan. 27, 2021

S. Korea's consumer sentiment improves in January

South Korea's consumer sentiment improved in January as a third wave of coronavirus infections showed signs of slowing down amid hopes for vaccine rollouts, central bank data showed Wednesday. The composite consumer sentiment index (CCSI) came in at 95.4 for January, up 4.2 points from the previous month, according to the data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). A reading below 100 means pessimists outnumber optimists. The latest reading marks the first on-month gain following a drop in December, w

Jan. 27, 2021

IMF raises growth outlook for S. Korea to 3.1% this year

The International Monetary Fund has raised its growth outlook for South Korea this year to 3.1 percent from the earlier figure of 2.9 percent estimated in October last year, the Ministry of Economy and Finance said Tuesday. The nation’s economic growth projection improved largely thanks to the government’s aggressive policy responses to the COVID-19 crisis, including economic stimulus packages as well as strict quarantine measures, according to a report released by the ministry on

Jan. 26, 2021

Korea’s economy shrinks 1% in 2020

South Korea’s economy shrank 1 percent in 2020 from the previous year, due to blows dealt by the COVID-19 pandemic, marking its first contraction since it was hit by the devastating 1997 Asian financial crisis more than two decades ago, the central bank said Tuesday. The 1 percent contraction in the country’s gross domestic product was slightly better than the Bank of Korea’s earlier projection of minus 1.1 percent in November, its advanced data showed. Yet, it was one of its

Jan. 26, 2021

Population mobility at 5-year high in 2020 amid rising housing transactions

The number of South Koreans who moved to different parts of the country hit a five-year high last year as housing transactions increased amid rising home prices, data showed Tuesday. The number of people who changed their residences gained 8.9 percent on-year to 7.74 million in 2020, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. It marked the largest since 2015, when the number of such people came to 7.76 million. It also represented the fastest on-year increase since 1999. The populati

Jan. 26, 2021

Imported commercial car sales fall 6.9% in 2020

Sales of imported commercial vehicles in South Korea fell 6.9 percent in 2020 from a year earlier on lower demand amid the coronavirus pandemic, an industry association said Tuesday. The number of newly registered imported commercial vehicles fell to 4,482 units last year from 4,812 a year ago, the Korea Automobile Importers and Distributors Association (KAIDA) said in a statement. KAIDA expects the COVID-19 pandemic to continue to weigh on consumer sentiment this year. Imported commercial ca

Jan. 26, 2021

S. Korea logs trade surplus of over $60b with FTA partners in 2020

South Korea posted a trade surplus of more than $60 billion with its free trade agreement (FTA) partners last year amid the pandemic, data showed Tuesday. The country's exports to FTA partners fell 3.9 percent on-year to $383.1 billion and imports declined 1.3 percent to $323 billion, according to the data compiled by the Korea Customs Service. This resulted in a trade surplus of $60.3 billion last year, down 15.7 percent from a year earlier. In contrast, South Korea posted a trade deficit of

Jan. 26, 2021

S. Korea to remove import duties on eggs this week amid supply shortage

South Korea said Tuesday it will temporarily remove tariffs on imported egg products this week in an effort to ease a supply shortage caused by the outbreak of bird flu here. The Cabinet approved a revised regulation that will allow local firms to import a total of 50,000 tons of fresh eggs and seven other types of egg products without tariffs until June 30. The move will be effective starting Wednesday. Currently, duties of 8-30 percent are levied on imported egg products. The move came as t

Jan. 26, 2021

Foreigners' property transactions hit new high in 2020

Foreigners' building transactions in South Korea reached an all-time high in 2020, with deals soaring in the Seoul metropolitan area, data showed Tuesday. Foreigners' transactions of housing and commercial buildings in Asia's fourth-largest economy came to 21,048 last year, up 18.5 percent from a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Real Estate Board. It marked the first time that the number of foreign property transactions exceeded the 20,000 mark. It was also the largest annua

Jan. 26, 2021

S. Korea's economy contracts 1% in 2020 amid pandemic, set to get back on growth track

The South Korean economy's performance was the worst in over two decades last year, bearing the brunt of the pandemic, but it appears to have gotten back on a growth track on the back of a mild recovery in exports, according to the central bank Tuesday. The country's gross domestic product (GDP) shrank 1 percent in 2020 from a year earlier, according to advance data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). The figure marks the worst on-year growth since 1998, when the nation's economy contracted 5.1 perc

Jan. 26, 2021

Moon calls for institutionalized financial support for self-employed

President Moon Jae-in on Monday called for his administration to seek institutionalized measures that could financially aid small businesses and the self-employed hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. “I hope the government and the ruling Democratic Party will jointly discuss measures to institutionalize compensation for the losses of small business owners and the self-employed within a range that the state budget can afford,” he said to pool reporters in a meeting tied to briefings from l

Jan. 25, 2021

Demand for homes in greater Seoul hits record high

Despite the South Korean government’s relentless efforts to curb soaring apartment prices, there seems to be no sign of demand letting up in Seoul and its surrounding cities, according to the Korea Appraisal Board on Monday. The state-run property appraisal agency’s recent report showed the home-buying sentiment stood at 117.2, a record high since the relevant data started compilation in July 2012. The index, based on a survey of the organization’s member realtors and analysi

Jan. 25, 2021

Kakao Bank to recruit over 100 workers in H1

Kakao Bank, South Korea’s leading Internet-only bank, said on Monday that it is hiring more than 100 employees in its push to ramp up digital innovation.  The lender said it plans to hire experienced talent in eight areas -- financial IT development, risk management, business development, service plan, compliance, audit, and customer services -- in the first half of the year. After the latest talent hunting, the company’s headcount, which currently stands at 937, will exceed 1

Jan. 25, 2021

No. of fake banknotes dips to record low in 2020 amid pandemic

The number of counterfeit South Korean banknotes fell to a record low in 2020, the Bank of Korea (BOK) said Monday, as the coronavirus pandemic caused a decline in cash usage. Last year, the number of fake banknotes found in South Korea came to 272, down 6.8 percent from a year earlier and marking the lowest since the BOK began releasing such data in 1998. The decline was mainly due to a "drop in in-person cash usage as COVID-19 spreads," the BOK said. By denomination, 5,000-won cou

Jan. 25, 2021

Exports of red pepper paste surge 35.2% in 2020 on Korean Wave

South Korean exports of red pepper paste jumped more than 35 percent in 2020 from a year earlier thanks to the global popularity of Korean pop culture, known as the Korean Wave, data showed Monday. Overseas shipments of red pepper paste, called "gochujang" in Korean, came to $50.93 million last year, up 35.2 percent from a year earlier, according to the data by the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corp. South Korean exports had been on the rise since 2016, when the figure stood

Jan. 25, 2021

[Herald Interview] Meet ant investors' YouTube guru

Kim Dong-hwan, the founder of a market and economic YouTube show “Three Pros” had never imagined that his channel would have 1 million subscribers, a tenfold increase, just within a year. “Three Pros: With Economic God” provides daily market updates and analysis of industries and economy and is hosted by three “pros” in the field: Kim, Lee Jin-woo and Jung Young-jin. The channel has recorded more than 200 million views so far and attracts as many as 60,000

Jan. 24, 2021

Korean excavator makers likely to enjoy another boom in China this year

South Korea's two excavator makers are expected to see a steady rise in their shipments to China this year thanks to a boom in the neighbor's construction market, according to industry watchers Sunday. "The Chinese government's policy to boost the economy is forecast to expand the volume of the civil engineering and construction market in 2021, which has an impact on the sales of excavators," said Kim Hong-gyun, an analyst at DB Financial Investment, in his recent report. Exports of

Jan. 24, 2021

S. Korea sets official tariff on rice at 513%

South Korea said Friday it has officially set its tariff on imported rice exceeding a quota at 513 percent, ending its yearslong tariffication process for the nation's key staple grain. Under the measure, South Korea will slap a 513 percent tariff on imported rice for quantities outside a designated quota, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. Quantities below the quota of 408,700 tons will be imposed with a tariff of 5 percent. The measure is aimed at providing on

Jan. 22, 2021

WTO rules in favor of S. Korea in lawsuit against US

South Korea's trade ministry said Friday that the World Trade Organization (WTO) has ruled in favor of Seoul in its lawsuit against the United States centering on high tariffs imposed on local steel and power transformer products. Washington has been levying high tariffs on some South Korean products by applying the "adverse facts available" (AFA) provision since May 2016, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The provision allows extremely high anti-dumping and co

Jan. 22, 2021