Seoul to offer tax benefits to SMEs with virus losses

The South Korean government said Wednesday that it will offer special tax benefits to owner-operators and small businesses, in an effort to minimize the economic impact of the new coronavirus outbreak. It also vowed to prevent mass outbound shipments of face masks and hand sanitizers, of which supplies are running low amid the increasing number of confirmed cases here. “(The government) will prescreen the mass outbound shipments by changing export procedures for masks and hand sanitiz

Feb. 5, 2020

S. Korea unveils aid package worth W820b for new ships

South Korea on Wednesday unveiled a financial package worth 820 billion won ($690 million) to help modernize aging passenger boats and cargo vessels. The package is meant to help smaller shipping companies build 59 new ships -- 21 passenger boats and 38 cargo vessels, the Financial Services Commission said. Under a plan, a shipping company can receive financial help, up to 60 percent of costs needed for building a ship, from banks, and South Korea's state-run Korea Ocean Business Corp. guaran

Feb. 5, 2020

S. Korea’s forex reserves hit record high in Jan.

South Korea’s foreign exchange reserves surged to a record high of $409.6 billion in January, surpassing its previous record from December, the nation’s central bank data showed Wednesday. The increase in reserves came despite a strong US dollar trend, which weakened the dollar value of other foreign currencies held by Korea, the Bank of Korea said. But a rise in profits and investment returns of other foreign assets under the country’s management contributed to the la

Feb. 5, 2020

S. Korea eyes further economic cooperation with Russia, Azerbaijan

South Korea said Wednesday it will hold a series of meetings with counterparts in Russia and Azerbaijan this week as part of the country's drive to forge deeper ties with emerging countries of Eastern Europe and Central Asia. A South Korean delegation of trade officials plans to discuss ways to promote exchanges of goods and services, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy. South Korea has been seeking to expand cooperation with Russia, especially in materials, parts, and eq

Feb. 5, 2020

Concerns grow over S. Korean exports amid coronavirus crisis

Concerns are escalating over South Korea's export performance down the road amid the new coronavirus crisis, but officials say no serious fallout has been reported yet. It is widely feared that the outbreak and spread of the novel coronavirus, which is believed to have originated in the Chinese city of Wuhan, will dampen China's economic growth in the first quarter. China is South Korea's leading export market, with slightly over 25 percent of its overseas shipments going to the world's secon

Feb. 5, 2020

Big firms sharply cut performance pay, dividends on dismal earnings

Major South Korean companies sharply cut payments of performance-based pay and dividends for 2019 due to abysmal earnings, industry sources said Wednesday. Top-cap Samsung Electronics Co. recently decided to lower the maximum amount of performance pay for workers at its semiconductor division to 29 percent of their annual salary from 50 percent in 2018. Samsung's operating income tumbled 53 percent on-year to 27.7 trillion won ($23.4 billion) last year due mainly to a protracted slump in chip

Feb. 5, 2020

BOK board members see slow but clear signs of improvement: minutes

A majority of South Korea's monetary policy board members apparently see gradual but definite signs of improvements in economic conditions surrounding the country, minutes from their latest rate-setting meeting showed Tuesday, possibly indicating the board may stand pat on rate cuts for some time. "The local economy continues to face an overall slump but is showing signs of improvement in certain sectors," one of the board's seven members told the meeting held Jan. 17, according to t

Feb. 4, 2020

S. Korea set to approve tougher penalties against hoarding of protective masks

South Korea is set to approve tougher penalties Tuesday against those who engage in hoarding of protective masks, as China's coronavirus outbreak has sparked a sharp rise in demand for such masks, officials said.  Under the tougher penalties, a person who engages in hoarding of protective masks will face a prison sentence of a maximum two years or a maximum fine of 50 million won ($42,108), the Ministry of Economy and Finance said in a statement. Such penalties will go into effect Wedne

Feb. 4, 2020

Authorities to provide liquidity to coronavirus-hit firms

South Korea's financial authorities said Tuesday that they are working on a plan to provide emergency liquidity to smaller firms and self-employed people hit hard by a new coronavirus. The plan includes extension the maturity of debts and provision of fresh loans to eligible smaller firms and self-employed people, officials said. Businesses that could be eligible for the financial assistance are likely to include restaurants, lodging facilities and others in the tourism sector. The authoriti

Feb. 4, 2020

Korea's consumer price growth hits 14-month high in January

SEJONG --South Korea's consumer prices rose 1.5 percent on-year in January, marking their fastest gain in 14 months, the statistics agency said Tuesday. The country's inflation also rose 0.6 percent on-month in January on the back of increased prices of agricultural and industrial products, according to Statistics Korea. Core inflation, which excludes agricultural and petroleum products, increased 0.9 percent from a year earlier. Utility prices were unchanged on-year in January, while prices

Feb. 4, 2020

New coronavirus to strain Korean economy: finance minister

The accelerating spread of the novel coronavirus, unless terminated swiftly, is likely to weigh down on South Korea’s economy, the nation’s chief fiscal policymaker said Monday. With this latest stance, Seoul’s government tightened its guard from its earlier suggestion that the economic impact of the epidemic would remain limited. “Unless terminated in its early stage, the novel coronavirus will act as downside pressure on the economy” Deputy Prime Minister an

Feb. 3, 2020

Government intervention helps quell exchange rate volatility in short term: BOK

The South Korean government’s intervention in the foreign exchange market, including the buying and selling of US dollars, has so far helped stabilize volatile exchange rates, a report released by the nation’s central bank showed Monday. According to the Bank of Korea’s recent report on the local foreign exchange industry, the government’s decision to purchase around $100 million from 2005 to 2018 helped rein in currency volatility by 0.003 percentage point in terms of

Feb. 3, 2020

S. Korea to allocate W400b for exporters amid new coronavirus

South Korea said Monday it will chip in 400 billion won ($334 million) to support exporters potentially facing troubles due to the outbreak of the new coronavirus in China. "Concerns over South Korea's exports have been rising due mainly to the geopolitical tension in the Middle East and the latest spread of the novel virus," Industry Minister Sung Yun-mo said during a meeting with trade-related organizations in Seoul. "Although the new coronavirus has not yet had any impact on

Feb. 3, 2020

Retailers in S. Korea close outlets due to new coronavirus

A string of major retailers, including duty-free shops and hypermarket chains, across the have temporarily shut down some of their stores, industry sources said Monday, stoking concerns that China coronavirus outbreak could affect consumer confidence in the sector. Shilla Duty Free, one of the country's leading duty-free operator, on Sunday closed its two outlets in central Seoul and on the southern resort island of Jeju after two coronavirus-infected people had each visited the shops. The co

Feb. 3, 2020

S. Korea's debt-GDP ratio increases at 2nd-fastest pace worldwide

South Korea's ratio of private debt to gross domestic product grew at the second-fastest click among major economies in the third quarter of 2019, data showed Monday.  Household debt in Asia's fourth-largest economy accounted for 95.1 percent of the country's GDP as of end-September last year, up 3.9 percentage points from a year earlier, according to the data by the Institute of International Finance.  The growth rate was the second highest among 34 major countries in the world,

Feb. 3, 2020

Novel coronavirus expected to weigh on S. Korea's economy: finance minister

The rapid spread of the novel coronavirus is expected to weigh on South Korea's economy unless the epidemic is contained swiftly, Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said Monday. The coronavirus epidemic has had a limited impact on the Korean economy so far, but it is difficult to determine how the virus will affect the nation's economy, Hong told a meeting with economy-related ministers earlier in the day. "There is a high possibility that this situation could slow China's economy," Hong

Feb. 3, 2020

[News Focus] Korea’s payouts for jobless people soar 103% in 5 years

SEJONG -- In the early and mid-2010s, the government’s yearly payouts for jobless people ranged between 3.3 trillion won ($2.7 billion) and 4.5 trillion won. Amid moderate growth in the volume of unemployment benefits, the figure recorded 4.67 trillion won in 2016 during the previous administration, according to the Korea Employment Information Service. But the situation began to change in 2017 in the aftermath of en masse business closures by self-employed people, who account

Feb. 2, 2020

S. Korea joins efforts to conclude RCEP negotiations this year

South Korea said Sunday it will attend a high-level meeting on a mega Asia-Pacific trade pact this week as part of its efforts to expand its trade network around the globe. During the two-day meeting that kicks off in Bali, Indonesia, on Monday, the participants will set a detailed timeline of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and seek to hold the final signing ceremony later in 2020, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. It will be the first gathering

Feb. 2, 2020

Korea's exports down for 14th straight month on extended chip slump

South Korea's exports fell at a slower-than-expected pace in January but extended the slump to a 14th consecutive month due to fewer working days and still weak demand for chips, data showed Saturday. Outbound shipments came to $43.35 billion last month, down 6.1 percent from $46.17 billion a year earlier, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The declining pace was slower than the median forecast of a 7.5 percent on-year drop as a fall in chip exports

Feb. 1, 2020

S. Korea eases rules on extended work hours

South Korea introduced a new regulation Friday allowing an exemption from the 52-hour workweek restriction for institutes involved in crucial research projects or companies that see workloads unexpectedly surge.  The Ministry of Employment and Labor proclaimed the revised enforcement rule of the Labor Standards Act, which loosened the requirements for granting special extended work hours. The rule went into effect immediately.  The extended work hours system, which temporarily all

Jan. 31, 2020