Job losses extend into June, unemployment rate up at 4.3%

SEJONG -- South Korea lost about 352,000 jobs in June, marking the fourth consecutive monthly decline in the number of employed people as the coronavirus pandemic hammers job markets, data showed Wednesday. The country's jobless rate rose by 0.3 percentage point on-year to 4.3 percent in June, and the number of employed people fell to 27.05 million, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. It was the first time since October 2009 that the nation lost jobs for the fourth straight mo

July 15, 2020

Korea’s W160tr ‘New Deal’ project aims to create 1.9m jobs by 2025

President Moon Jae-in on Tuesday unveiled the road map of a “Korean New Deal” stimulus package that seeks to invest over 160 trillion won ($132.67 billion) and create 1.9 million jobs over the next five years. Asia’s fourth-largest economy came up with the extensive midterm fiscal package to recover from the persisting COVID-19 fallout, as well as prolonged slow growth across the globe. “The Korean New Deal is our new centennial blueprint, as well as a paradigm shift to

July 14, 2020

Land minister refutes criticism of housing supply shortage

South Korea’s Land Minister Kim Hyun-mee on Tuesday refuted growing criticism over the government’s focus on raising taxes rather than dealing with housing supply shortage. In its latest effort to curb the heated real estate market, the Moon Jae-in administration rolled out its 22nd set of policy actions dubbed the “July 10 measures” last week, which centers on increasing taxes for multiple-home owners. But it was immediately hit with waves of criticisms from both

July 14, 2020

S. Korea’s ‘economic uncertainty’ soars in May amid pandemic

South Korea’s “economic uncertainty” is precarious amid clear signs of a downturn triggered by the coronavirus pandemic, data showed Tuesday. The latest index of think tank Economic Policy Uncertainty indicates South Korea’s rate reached 428.82 in May, up sharply from 239.36 estimated in November 2019.  This marked the highest level since August last year, when the figure surged to 538.18 as tensions between the US and China escalated over trade issues. The index

July 14, 2020

Most bond experts eye BOK rate freeze in July: poll

An absolute majority of bond mavens in South Korea expect the central bank to hold its key interest steady for July despite the economic fallout of the coronavirus outbreak, a poll showed Tuesday. According to the survey of 200 bond experts by the Korea Financial Investment Association, 99 percent of respondents said the Bank of Korea (BOK) will likely freeze its policy rate at a rate-setting meeting slated for Thursday. The remaining 1 percent projected the BOK Monetary Policy Committee to c

July 14, 2020

Gold shines on virus-fueled haven appeal

South Korean investors in gold have posted sky-high returns this year amid strong safe-haven demand caused by the coronavirus pandemic, data showed Tuesday. Gold changed hands at 261,423 won ($217) per 3.75 grams on the Korea Exchange as of Friday, up a whopping 23.3 percent from the start of the year, according to the data from Daishin Securities Co. Gold marks the highest-yielding investment vehicle over the cited period, far outperforming time deposits, bonds, the US dollar and stocks. Su

July 14, 2020

ADB annual meeting in Korea canceled due to COVID-19

The Asian Development Bank’s 53rd annual meeting, which was slated to be hosted in Incheon’s Songdo in September, has been canceled due to the persisting COVID-19 situation, Seoul’s government said Friday. South Korea will seek to take its hosting turn in 2023, instead. The event, originally set for May, had already been delayed once in March amid hopes that the epidemic situation may improve. The Ministry of Economy and Finance made an official request to the ADB headqu

July 13, 2020

[Market Close-up] How is S. Korea’s market taking the govt’s housing policy blitz?

Reflecting the Moon Jae-in administration’s stubborn efforts to steady the bubble-prone real estate market, the 22nd set of policy actions were rolled out last week to curb prices. The “July 10 measures” focused on increasing the tax burden for multiple-home owners, but was also seen as part of its series of flustered responses to underperforming measures. Despite a series of restraint measures, housing prices in Seoul and major cities across the country have been on a ste

July 13, 2020

Banks likely to tighten loans on heightened risk: poll

Banks in South Korea will likely reduce their lending to local businesses and households in the third quarter due to the sluggish economy prompted by the new coronavirus pandemic, a central bank poll showed Monday. In the quarterly survey conducted by the Bank of Korea, the index measuring the banks’ attitude toward fresh loans came to negative 11 for the July-September period, marking a sharp turnaround from 1 for the second quarter and 11 for the first three months of the year. Such a

July 13, 2020

Korea's ICT exports rebound on solid demand for computers

South Korean exports of information and communication technology (ICT) products rebounded in June, data showed Monday, as robust shipments of computers cushioned weak demand for displays and mobile devices. Outbound shipments of ICT products moved up 1 percent on-year to $14.9 billion last month, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Science and ICT. It marked a sharp improvement from 15.3-percent on-year drop posted in April, which was followed by a 2.7-percent decline in May. Th

July 13, 2020

S. Korea's exports fall 1.7% in first 10 days of July

SEJONG -- South Korea's exports fell 1.7 percent on-year in the first 10 days of July, but a slower pace of contraction signaled a recovery in shipments as more nations lifted coronavirus lockdown measures, customs data showed Monday. The nation's outbound shipments stood at $13.3 billion in the July 1-10 period, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service. The daily average exports during the 10-day period also declined 1.7 percent. In the first 10 days of June, exports jumped 20

July 13, 2020

BOK likely to keep rate frozen due to heated housing market: experts

South Korea’s central bank is expected to keep its base rate frozen near-zero at its regular monetary policy meeting scheduled Thursday, to avoid further aggravation of the local housing market, experts said Sunday. According to experts, the Bank of Korea will maintain its policy rate at the current record-low of 0.5 percent for the time being, despite rate cut pressures stemming from economic downturns due to the coronavirus pandemic coupled with the trend of low inflation. This is main

July 12, 2020

S. Korean economy to shrink 2.3% this year due to virus: private think tank

The South Korean economy is expected to contract 2.3 percent on-year in 2020, hit by the fallout of the new coronavirus outbreak, a local private think tank said Sunday. Asia's fourth-largest economy is forecast to have fallen 1.7 percent in the first half and to contract 2.9 percent in the second half, according to the Korea Economic Research Institute (KERI). The yearly projection is the same as its earlier estimate made in March. It would mark the South Korean economy's first contraction

July 12, 2020

Banks' loan delinquency dips in June on sharp rise in lending

The delinquency rate for South Korean banks' loans inched down in June from a month earlier, but the fall was mainly attributed to a sharp rise in lending amid the new coronavirus outbreak, industry data showed Sunday. The rate for bank loans more than 30 days overdue against total lending by five major banks preliminarily stood at 0.21-0.33 percent as of end-June, down from 0.25-0.4 percent the month earlier, according to industry data. But industry watchers cautioned against reading too muc

July 12, 2020

S. Korea to impose heavier taxes on multiple home owners

The government on Friday unveiled a set of new real estate regulations centered on raising taxes on owners of multiple homes, as part of a move to rein in soaring housing prices.  According to the latest version, marking the 22nd of its kind since the Moon Jae-in administration took office in May 2017, those who either own three houses or more and homeowners with two houses located in some speculative areas, including Seoul and surrounding cities, will face a comprehensive real estate t

July 10, 2020

[News Focus] Seoul’s dream of becoming financial hub fades away

The goal of turning Seoul, South Korea’s capital city for more than 600 years, into Asia’s premier financial hub has long been a dream. Recent reports on the exit of financiers from Hong Kong might point to a chance for Seoul to achieve its ambition of more than 15 years. But it is rarely mentioned in lists of potential Asian financial hubs. What is worse, authorities seem to have no concrete plan to join the already fierce competition among major cities in the region all wanting

July 9, 2020

S. Korea calls for stronger global financial safety net

South Korea urged the Group of 20 countries to establish a stronger global financial safety net to overcome both ongoing and upcoming risks stemming from the latest coronavirus pandemic, the Ministry of Economy and Finance said Thursday. “(Establishment) of a global financial network is a strong measure that could help stop the spread of the crisis by supporting developing countries dealing with liquidity issues,” Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said at an o

July 9, 2020

S. Korea, Cambodia agree to launch official FTA talks

South Korea and Cambodia agreed Thursday to launch official negotiations for a bilateral free trade agreement (FTA), paving the way for Asia's No. 4 economy to penetrate deeper into the Southeast Asian market and boost its virus-hit exports. The announcement came more than a year after Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen proposed to make preparations for a free trade deal during his summit with South Korean President Moon Jae-in in Phnom Penh in March 2019. The two countries have carried out a

July 9, 2020

S. Korea to spend W5tr on R&D in new growth-engine sectors

South Korea plans to invest 5 trillion won ($4.2 billion) in research and development for new growth-engine sectors, including semiconductor and biotechnology, the trade ministry said Thursday. The industry ministry also expanded a list of materials, parts and equipment to 338 to reduce the country's reliance on Japanese imports and cope with a change in global supply chains after the coronavirus pandemic. Previously, South Korea had listed 100 local materials, parts and equipment that it a

July 9, 2020

[News Focus] Gasoline prices climb to 3-month high in Korea

SEJONG -- The V-shape rebound in gasoline prices in the local market is emerging as a factor that could restrict the recovery of the sagging economy. Gasoline prices have bounced back rapidly in South Korea over the past two months, in keeping with the normalization of international crude prices. As of July 8, gasoline prices reached 1,359.67 won ($1.16) per liter, which is the highest since 1,362.90 won on April 6. The prices -- which dipped to 1,247.53 won on May 15 amid the COVID-19 pande

July 9, 2020