S. Korea seeks to ease factory regulations for more reshoring

South Korea is reviewing an option to ease regulations on the establishment of factories in the country's metropolitan area as part of efforts to woo more firms with overseas plants return home, the finance ministry said Sunday. Currently, strict regulations are in place on the construction of new plants and their expansion in the metropolitan area, which the business community has cited as a hurdle. The ministry said it is reviewing measures to finance the cost of reshoring, provide tax ince

May 17, 2020

Finance ministry set to slash economic outlook amid coronavirus pandemic

South Korea's finance ministry is working to sharply cut this year's economic growth outlook due to growing fallout from the coronavirus pandemic, sources familiar with the matter said Sunday. Late last year, the ministry predicted a 2.4 percent on-year expansion for Asia's fourth-largest economy this year, but given the toll of the coronavirus outbreak on the economy, it may drastically cut this year's growth estimate. South Korea's economy shrank 1.4 percent on-quarter in the first quarte

May 17, 2020

Firms to cut workforce if virus fallout continues: poll

One in three companies in South Korea may trim workers in the future if the economy does not show signs of a significant recovery from the new coronavirus pandemic, a poll showed Sunday. In the poll conducted by the Korea Economic Research Institute, about 30 percent of the surveyed 120 companies said that they will not be able to maintain the current level of employment if the COVID-19 pandemic not mitigate over the next six months. To batten down the hatches for the economic fallout from t

May 17, 2020

Moon gearing up for key projects on economy, peace process in June

For President Moon Jae-in, June will be a crucial month in preparations for the post-coronavirus era and efforts to jump-start inter-Korean ties. He is setting his sights on a string of major projects in the coming month related to the economy and inter-Korean cooperation, while quarantine authorities here are struggling to contain COVID-19 amid concerns about new cluster infections in Seoul's nightlife district of Itaewon. Moon and his aides hope that the number of daily confirmed cases will

May 16, 2020

Korea's export prices down for 2nd straight month in April

South Korea's export prices dropped for a second consecutive month in April, central bank data showed Friday, apparently adding to woes over a slump in outbound shipments by Asia's fourth-largest economy amid the new coronavirus pandemic. The export prices index, in terms of local currency, came to 94.54 in the month, down 1.6 percent from the revised 96.08 the previous month, according to preliminary data from the Bank of Korea. From a year earlier, the reading marks a 5.9 percent drop. Apri

May 15, 2020

G-20 members vow to sustain global supply chains amid virus pandemic

South Korea said Friday it has adopted an action plan with other Group of 20 members that centers on maintaining the global supply chains and refraining from implementing new trade barriers as the new coronavirus pandemic continues to put great strains on business activities. South Korean Trade Minister Yoo Myung-hee discussed with her counterparts from the group of 20 advanced and emerging economies on late Thursday how to expand global cooperation in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, accord

May 15, 2020

S. Korea to add 1.56 million new jobs in public sector

South Korea’s government aims to create 1.56 million jobs mostly in the public sector, hoping it will eventually trigger the private sector to follow suit and hire more, according to the nation’s fiscal chief Thursday. “The ongoing pandemic has triggered not only immediate job losses but also long-term quantitative and qualitative shocks to the employment market,” Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said in an economic policy headquarters meeting he

May 14, 2020

OECD convention to end MNCs’ tax evasion to take effect in Sept.

A multilateral convention of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development to combat multinational corporations’ tax avoidance strategies, which exploit gaps and mismatches in tax rules, is slated to take effect here in September, Korea’s Finance Ministry said Thursday. The government has recently deposited its instrument of ratification in the OECD, which would allow South Korea to more smoothly deal with the corporations’ base erosion and profit shifting through

May 14, 2020

Vice finance minister lends support to presidential aide’s call for telemedicine

A top-level official on Thursday expressed support for a plan to nurture the telemedicine industry in response to escalating demand for non-face-to-face health care services amid the COVID-19 pandemic. “The Ministry of Economy and Finance is sticking to the stance that the government needs to review the implementation of telemedicine,” Vice Finance Minister Kim Yong-beom said Thursday. “As the number of related phone calls have neared 170,000 so far, under the temporarily al

May 14, 2020

Regulator says 16 fintech firms attract over W136b in investment

South Korea's financial regulator said Thursday that 16 fintech firms and startups have attracted a combined 136.4 billion won ($111 million) in investment over the past year as the country is pushing to promote the fintech industry. The investments came a year after South Korea introduced a regulatory sandbox meant to allow fintech firms using new technologies, such as blockchain and big data, to develop new financial services without regulatory hurdles. The move came as South Korea is count

May 14, 2020

S. Korea aims to create 1.56m jobs in public sector

South Korea aims to create 1.56 million jobs in the public sector, Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said Thursday, as the nation's economy suffered its sharpest job losses in 21 years over the coronavirus pandemic. Hong said the government will soon draw up plans to mitigate the impact of the coronavirus on the job market. About 1 million jobs in the public sector have not been opened due to social distancing rules, but the government will soon open such jobs by easing some rules, Hong said. T

May 14, 2020

Jobs disappear at sharpest pace since 1999

Recalling the nightmares of the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis, the number of employed in South Korea last month fell dramatically and at its fastest pace in two decades, data showed Wednesday. The number of employed here stood at 26.6 million in April, shedding 476,000 on-year, data released by Statistics Korea showed. This was shy of the corresponding figure for February 1999, when 658,000 jobs vanished and the nation’s economy was reeling from the financial crisis. The unemployment

May 13, 2020

Protectionism to put more strain on exports in post-virus era: report

South Korea's exports, which have been hit hard by the new coronavirus that has halted global supply chains, are not likely to rebound immediately in the post-pandemic era, as its key trade partners are raising their guard to protect their own industries, a report showed Wednesday. "Major countries, including the United States, are already intervening deeper into the market, disbursing large sums of subsidies to protect their industries," the Korea International Trade Association (KI

May 13, 2020

BOK to offer additional W5tr in special loans to coronavirus-hit firms

The Bank of Korea (BOK) on Wednesday said it plans to provide an additional 5 trillion won ($4.08 billion) in special, low-interest loans to local businesses hit by the new coronavirus outbreak. The additional amount will bring to 35 trillion won the amount the central bank will provide to local lenders, which in turn will offer low-interest loans to firms. "The move is expected to help expand the financial access of self-employed businesses and small and medium-sized firms that are faci

May 13, 2020

S. Korea's drop in jobs sharpest since 1999 amid virus pandemic

SEJONG -- South Korea reported the sharpest drop in its April employment since 1999 as the coronavirus pandemic hammered job markets, data showed Wednesday. The number of employed people in South Korea stood at 26.56 million in April, 476,000 people fewer than a year ago, marking the biggest on-year decline since February 1999. The labor force participation rate, which refers to the percentage of those who are aged 15 or older and remain in the labor force by either being employed or activel

May 13, 2020

Economic contraction accelerates as COVID-19 battle continues

Despite hopes building on a return to normal life around the world, the speed of economic contraction globally and in South Korea has been accelerating due to the pandemic over decreased spending, investment and production, casting a dark cloud over all-out efforts to contain the damages, figures by think tanks and central bank showed Tuesday.　 Korea’s economic contraction has been gaining momentum in recent months due to lackluster consumer spending and exports following risks stemming

May 12, 2020

Finance minister to donate relief handout

SEJONG -- Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said Tuesday he will donate his coronavirus relief handout, joining other senior officials in donating their handouts to benefit others. South Korea has begin providing relief handouts to every household to ease the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic. For a household with four or more people, 1 million won ($815) will be given. In a Facebook posting, Hong said such a donation will become an "asset of hope" as the world is fighting

May 12, 2020

Oil refiners face dim outlook after record Q1 losses

South Korean oil refiners' earnings are unlikely to bounce back in the second quarter of the year following record losses three months earlier, industry sources said Tuesday. Pounded by the triple whammy of the coronavirus pandemic, tumbling oil prices and sluggish refining margins, industry leader SK Innovation Co. and three other players posted a combined operating loss of 4.38 trillion won ($3.57 billion) in the January-March period. The first-quarter red ink represented their worst quarte

May 12, 2020

Korea’s outstanding sovereign, state-backed bonds near W1,100tr

The outstanding amount of government and state-backed bonds increased by a combined 78.3 trillion won from the end of last year to a record high of 1,098.4 trillion won ($900 billion), data showed Monday, with the accelerating growth rate spurring concerns. Outstanding sovereign bonds increased by 65.7 trillion won to 753.5 trillion won and special bonds gained 12.6 trillion won to 344.9 trillion won, respectively, from the end of last year to Friday, data from the Korea Financial Investment

May 11, 2020

Korea’s spending for unemployment allowances approaches W1tr in April

South Korea’s monthly spending for supporting unemployed workers hit another all-time high in April, as the fallout from the novel coronavirus is hampering efforts to remedy the damage done to the job market, data showed Monday. In April, when Korea’s virus spread peaked, the amount of unemployment benefits came to 993.3 billion won ($814.3 million), up 35 percent on-year, according to preliminary data from the Labor Ministry. This extended the record streak for the third consecuti

May 11, 2020