Korea’s consumption slowdown decelerates, but exports keep sliding: KDI

South Korea’s consumption has recovered slightly on the back of the government’s emergency cash handout, but its economic activity and exports remain sluggish, still weighed down by risks stemming from the coronavirus pandemic, a state-run think tank said Wednesday. “The slowdown in Korea‘s consumption has decelerated, but economic activity remains sluggish due to falling external demand on the global spread of COVID-19,” the Korea Development Institute said in it

July 8, 2020

S. Korea to push for conclusion of Asia-Pacific trade deal this year

South Korea said Wednesday it will push for the conclusion of a mega Asia-Pacific trade deal this year to help boost ailing exports and cope with the growing protectionism around the globe in the face of the new coronavirus pandemic. The country plans to participate in another round of online talks with members of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) on Thursday to address remaining agenda items, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. ASEAN and its dialogue

July 8, 2020

Value of Japan's exports to S. Korea hits 11-year low in May

The value of Japan's exports to South Korea sank to a near 11-year low in May due to the coronavirus pandemic and Tokyo's export controls, data showed Wednesday. Japan shipped 329.3 billion yen ($3 billion) worth of goods to its neighboring country in May, down 18 percent from a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea International Trade Association (KITA) and the Japan Tariff Association. The value of Japan's exports to Seoul rose to 415 billion yen in February from 371.6 billion

July 8, 2020

Korea's energy demand predicted to dip 1.4% this year

South Korea's energy demand is expected to drop for a second year in 2020 due to the fallout from the coronavirus outbreak, a report said Wednesday. The country's annual energy consumption is likely to contract 1.4 percent on-year this year, according to the report from the Korea Energy Economics Institute. Last year, overall energy consumption in Asia's fourth-largest economy fell 1.3 percent on-year to 303.5 million tons of oil equivalent (TOE), the first decline since the country's foreign

July 8, 2020

S. Korea loses footholds in Chinese market amid tightened competition: KIEP

South Korea accounted for the biggest share of imports to China in 2019, but its slice has been shrinking in recent years due to intensifying competition with other Asian players, a think tank said Tuesday. While South Korea accounted for 8.42 percent, the largest share, of China's overall imports in 2019, the portion marked a slight drop from 9.65 percent posted a year earlier, according to the Korea Institute for International Economic Policy (KIEP). Instead, Association of Southeast Asian

July 7, 2020

Tax revenue continues to decline in May

South Korea collected 31.9 trillion won ($26.6 billion) in taxes in May, down 13.2 trillion won from a year earlier, the finance ministry said Tuesday. Income tax revenue amounted to 7.8 trillion won in May, down 3.5 trillion won from a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance. Dues collected from companies reached 4.4 trillion won in the month, down 10.8 trillion won from a year earlier. Value-added tax revenue reached 2 trillion won in May, up 1 trillion won from a

July 7, 2020

S. Korea posts $2.29b current account surplus in May

South Korea posted a current account surplus in May, central bank data showed Tuesday, although its surplus more than halved from a year earlier on a sharp decline in exports caused by the new coronavirus pandemic. The country's current account surplus came to $2.29 billion in the month, according to preliminary data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). The reading marks a turnaround from a $3.33 billion deficit posted the previous month, the largest deficit since January 2011. However, it also mar

July 7, 2020

Finance minister sees worse Q2 contraction, but vows positive growth in Q3

SEJONG -- Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said Monday he expects South Korea's second-quarter economic contraction to be worse than the first quarter due to the coronavirus pandemic, but the government aims to achieve economic growth in the third quarter. The nation's economy shrank 1.3 percent in the first quarter as the pandemic hit exports and consumption. The Bank of Korea predicted that the economy would contract 0.2 percent this year. "I think that the second-quarter growth rate will

July 6, 2020

Korea's economy to rebound by 3% in 2021: IMF economist

South Korea's economy will likely rebound to grow 3 percent in 2021 after contracting 2.1 percent this year in the face of the coronavirus pandemic, an IMF economist said Monday. Asian countries are expected to post 1.6 percent negative growth for the first time in history as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to weigh on demand and exports, but they will rebound to growth of 6.6 percent next year, Angana Banerji, senior economist at the International Monetary Fund, said in a webinar hosted by t

July 6, 2020

S. Korea to execute largest-ever extra budget to battle pandemic

South Korea will execute its third supplementary budget of 35.1 trillion won ($29.3 billion) on Monday as part of a move to minimize the economic impact of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the Ministry of Economy and Finance said Sunday. The latest COVID-19 response budget, the single biggest spending in the country’s history, was approved by the National Assembly late Friday, surpassing the extra budget of 28.4 trillion won passed amid the 2009 global financial crisis.  Earlier i

July 5, 2020

S. Korea's gold bourse turnover hits new record high amid virus pandemic

South Korea's gold turnover reached an all-time high in the first half of 2020 as investors flocked to safer assets amid the coronavirus pandemic around the globe, data showed Sunday. The combined turnover on the gold bourse stood at 710 billion won ($591 million) over the January-June period, exceeding the 591.9 billion won posted for all of 2019, according to the data compiled by the Korea Exchange (KRX). The gold bourse was launched on March 24, 2014, as the country tried to bring more tra

July 5, 2020

S. Korean economy tipped to contract this year, but positive growth still possible: report

South Korea's economy is widely expected to suffer its first annual contraction in over a decade this year but may expand, depending on how swiftly and effectively the government implements its budget spending and how quickly the COVID-19 pandemic is brought under control, a think tank said Sunday. "Considering that economic indicators are worsening to levels seen during the Asian financial crisis when the country posted a negative growth, the possibility of the country posting a negative

July 5, 2020

S. Korean parliament likely to pass largest-ever extra budget in history

S. Korean lawmakers on Friday are set to pass a bill for the third extra budget of up to 35.3 trillion won ($29.5 billion) in the afternoon, marking the passage of the largest-ever supplementary budget, in an effort to cushion the economy from the blows of the coronavirus pandemic. In a press briefing held earlier in the day, ruling Democratic Party of Korea Rep. Park Hong-keun set the time for the National Assembly’s plenary session vote at 7 p.m., saying that related Special Comm

July 3, 2020

S. Korea’s forex reserves hit record-high of $410.75b

South Korea’s foreign exchange reserves hit a fresh record high of $410.75 billion last month, having gained $3.44 billion on-month due to a weak dollar trend, the nation’s central bank said Friday. “Profits and investment returns from foreign assets coupled with the weak dollar trend translating into a higher dollar-converted value of other currencies contributed to the gain,” A Bank of Korea official said. Korea’s forex reserves have increased for three conse

July 3, 2020

NPS logs record high annual return in 2019

South Korea’s public pension fund National Pension Service has posted a return rate of 11.34 percent last year, hitting a 10-year record high, Minister of Health and Welfare Park Neung-hoo said Friday. “After recording a return rate of minus 0.89 percent in 2018, last year’s figure rebounded within just a year. It is the highest return rate since establishing the NPS Investment Management Committee in 1999,” said Park, who also heads the state pension’s asset mana

July 3, 2020

S. Korea to expand IP financial investment market to W1.3tr by 2024

South Korea aims to foster its intellectual property financial investment market to 1.3 trillion won ($1.08 billion) by 2024 to help firms deal with liquidity issues triggered by the coronavirus pandemic, the nation’s IP office said Thursday. The Korean Intellectual Property Office announced 14 specific tasks under four pillars that would establish platforms for individuals and firms to directly invest in IP and profit from royalties, sales and even lawsuits. This is expected to boost th

July 2, 2020

Fiscal chief urges Japan to move on export curbs

South Korea’s top fiscal policymaker on Thursday urged Japan to show sincere efforts to lift export curbs and resolve a yearlong trade dispute between the Asian neighbors. “(South Korea) calls on the Japanese government to make efforts with a sincere attitude to normalize its export regulations targeting the nation,” said Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki during an economy-related ministerial meeting held at Seoul Government Complex. “The Korean government has stepped up ef

July 2, 2020

Number of Chinese tourists to S. Korea dips 30% over THAAD row

The number of Chinese tourists to South Korea fell by more than 30 percent in the 2017-2020 period from three years earlier due to a bilateral diplomatic row, data showed Thursday. The monthly average number of Chinese tourists in South Korea reached 380,000 during the three-year period starting in April 2017, down 33.1 percent compared with the three-year span beginning in February 2014, according to data by the Korea Tourism Organization (KTO). The fall came as China -- South Korea's larges

July 2, 2020

S. Korea's exports of agricultural goods up 4.4% in H1

South Korea said Thursday its exports of agricultural goods and foodstuffs advanced 4.4 percent on-year in the first six months of 2020 as the global new coronavirus pandemic has sparked higher demand for processed products. The country's outbound shipments of agricultural products and foodstuffs reached $3.6 billion in the January-June period, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. Exports of fresh produce advanced 1.2 percent over the period t

July 2, 2020

Seoul urges Tokyo to show 'sincere attitude' to resolve trade row

SEJONG -- South Korea's finance minister on Thursday called for Japan to adopt a "sincere attitude" in talks to resolve a trade row between the two Asian neighbors. Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said South Korea "calls on the Japanese government to show a stance of progress with a sincere attitude to lift its export curbs." Seoul and Tokyo have been at loggerheads since July last year, after Japan abruptly rolled out restrictions on exports of key industrial materials to S

July 2, 2020