NTS collects record penalty taxes in 2016

South Korea's national tax office collected a record amount of penalty taxes in 2016 in close cooperation with the intelligence unit of the financial regulator, a lawmaker said Wednesday.Citing data from the National Tax Service, Rep. Park Myung-jae of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party said the tax service collected 2.5 trillion won ($2.2 billion) in back taxes on tips from the Financial Intelligence Unit.The amount was up slightly from the 2.4 trillion won collected the previous year and

Sept. 27, 2017

Korea, Japan discuss ways to boost business ties

Business leaders of South Korea and Japan gathered in Seoul on Tuesday to discuss ways to step up collaboration in the technology and energy sectors, as well as in facilitating multilateral free trade with other Asian nations. About 300 businessmen from major companies attended the meeting hosted by the Korea-Japan Economic Association in downtown Seoul to share views on the next technological revolution and other industrial issues. The Korea-Japan Economic Association held its first meetin

Sept. 26, 2017

Moon directs officials to develop 'innovation-led' growth strategy

President Moon Jae-in called Tuesday for efforts to craft a new growth strategy based on industrial innovation as one of his administration's key economic policy pillars along with income-led growth and fairness. The new innovation-led growth strategy was first introduced when the president met with US investors and business leaders on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York last week."There, I explained that our people-oriented economic policy consisted of three pi

Sept. 26, 2017

State insurance to cover more dementia, fertility treatments

South Korea's national health insurance will provide greater coverage for the treatment of infertility and serious dementia starting in October, the health ministry said Tuesday, which is in line with the government's effort to reduce financial burdens on patients.The Ministry of Health and Welfare said the revision to the relevant law was passed during a Cabinet meeting.Under the revision, patients suffering from serious dementia will only be required to pay 10 percent of medical expenses and t

Sept. 26, 2017

Korea to ease regulations to make better use of state-owned property

South Korea will ease regulations on leasing state-owned properties to make better use of neglected public assets, the finance ministry said Tuesday.The Cabinet approved a revised law that allows the government to cut rents on its buildings and land that have not been fully utilized for a long time and to extend leasing contracts by up to 20 years, according to the Ministry of Strategy and Finance. Also, the government will be allowed to impose higher fines on those who occupy state-owned l

Sept. 26, 2017

S. Korea's commerce minister allays fear over N. Korea

South Korea's commerce minister said Tuesday the nation's economic fundamentals remain sound despite North Korea's provocations, and called on foreign enterprises doing business here to increase their investments. Paik Un-gyu, the chief of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, said in a meeting with local directors of international companies, including Boeing, 3M, IKEA, BMW and Oracle, that there is no need to be overly worried about Pyongyang's latest provocations. The policymaker then ex

Sept. 26, 2017

Consumer sentiment drops in Sept. on geopolitical risks

South Korea's consumer confidence fell for the second month in a row in September on the North Korea risk and Seoul's row with Beijing over a missile defense system, a central bank poll showed Tuesday.The composite consumer sentiment index for September stood at 107.7, down 2.2 points from the previous month, according to the survey by the Bank of Korea. In August, the index fell 1.3 points from July. A reading above 100 means optimists outnumber pessimists."The issue of North Korea's nucle

Sept. 26, 2017

Anti-graft law has limited impact on domestic economy: data

The Improper Solicitation and Graft Act has continuously been questioned over the crippling effect it allegedly holds over domestic consumption, but after a year in implementation, its impact on most sectors of the economy turned out to have been limited, according to the latest data.The anti-graft law, often dubbed the Kim Young-ran law after its initiator, did weigh down on upmarket restaurants, floricultural industries and liquor shops but key economic indexes displayed little fluctuation, th

Sept. 25, 2017

Additional stimulus mulled to bolster weakening economy

The growing signs of the Korean economy weakening amid deteriorating conditions at home and abroad are prompting the government to work on additional stimulus measures.Economic indicators have taken a steep downturn in recent months.The on-year increase in the number of employees remained at 212,000 in August, the lowest in four and a half years, according to Statistics Korea.Output in the sector of restaurants and accommodating facilities fell 4.3 percent from a year earlier in July, reflecting

Sept. 25, 2017

[Monitor] Youth unemployment worse than during financial crisis

While the world economy is on a recovering trend, South Korea continues to suffer from aggravating unemployment, particularly among the youth, data showed Monday.The average unemployment rate among the member countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development has steadily declined over the past six months. However, that of South Korea has continued to surge for the past four years.South Korea’s youth unemployment rate is 0.9 percentage points higher than the 9.8 percent

Sept. 25, 2017

BOK says half of manufacturing firms to hire recruits next year

About half of South Korea's manufacturing firms have hiring plans next year, the central bank said in a report Monday.The Bank of Korea said 52 percent of 279 firms across the country said they plan to hire new recruits next year and among them, 38.9 percent said they will increase the number of recruits in 2018 compared with this year.By sector, 52.6 percent of information technology firms said they could hire more people in the new year vis-a-vis 2017. On the other hand, 10.5 percent of IT com

Sept. 25, 2017

Korea's exports healthcare products rise in H1

South Korea's exports of health care and cosmetics goods continued to grow in the first half of this year on the back of strong global demand, government data showed Monday.Outbound shipments of locally produced drugs, medical equipment and cosmetics were valued at $5.41 billion in the January-June period, up 13.4 percent from a year earlier, according to the latest data from the Ministry of Health and Welfare. Exports of cosmetics products surged 20 percent on-year, the data showed, follow

Sept. 25, 2017

Income polarization deepened for decades due to unequal opportunity: report

Income polarization has deepened in South Korea during the past decades amid a growing number of high income earners coming from already rich and well-educated parents, a report said Monday.The report written by professor Ju Byeong-ki of Seoul National University said income has been set not only by the efforts of individuals but also the economic clout and education of their parents. The report, which analyzed the disposable income of selected households between 1998 and 2014, showed inequ

Sept. 25, 2017

[Monitor] Household debt burden surges to highest

A quarterly report by the Bank for International Settlements showed that the debt-service ratio for the households in South Korea reached 12.5 percent, up 0.7 percentage points from a year ago in the first quarter this year.This is the highest level since the first quarter in 1999 when the relevant data started to be collected.

Sept. 24, 2017

Korea slaps more than W1.3tr in taxes on offshore tax evaders

South Korea's tax authorities have imposed 1.307 trillion won ($1.15 billion) in taxes on offshore tax evaders last year, an opposition lawmaker said Sunday.The National Tax Service has collected only 1.067 trillion won in taxes as some people filed complaints with the country's Tax Tribunal against its decisions to slap taxes on offshore tax evaders, said Park Myung-jae, a lawmaker of the Liberty Korea Party, citing data provided by the tax agency. Offshore tax evasions have been on the ri

Sept. 24, 2017

Korea's jobless rate rises steadily amid dip in OECD average

South Korea's unemployment rate has risen steadily in the past few years, while jobless numbers among Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development members as a whole have fallen, official data showed Sunday. Data by Statistics Korea and the OECD showed that Asia's fourth-largest economy has entered a recovery stage, albeit a weak one, but growth has not led to more positions being created. This is in contrast to most other OECD member states that reported improvements in the job market

Sept. 24, 2017

Korea's top trade negotiator to leave for US ahead of talks

South Korea's top trade negotiator left for the United States on Sunday ahead of the second round of talks on possible amendments to their free trade pact, an official said.Trade Minister Kim Hyun-chong is set to meet with US politicians and business executives in an apparent move to assess the US atmosphere ahead of the special session meeting of a joint committee scheduled for Oct. 4 in Washington.Kim is scheduled to attend a roundtable to be hosted by the US Chamber of Commerce on Monday. The

Sept. 24, 2017

Household's debt burden hits new high in Q1: report

South Korean households' debt service burden reached an all-time high in the first quarter of the year with the pace of its growth ranking first worldwide, an international report said Sunday.According to the report by the Bank for International Settlements, the debt service ratio of the local household sector came to 12.5 percent in the January-March period.It was up 0.7 percentage point from a year earlier and marked the highest level since the first quarter of 1999, when BIS started to compil

Sept. 24, 2017

Korea's E-Mart exits China market with sale of remaining stores

South Korea's hypermarket chain E-Mart has reached a deal to sell off five of its six remaining stores in China effectively ending its 20-year presence in the market, industry sources said Sunday.Sources in the retail investment banking sector said E-Mart inked an agreement with Thailand's CP Group to hand over the stores in Shanghai pending approval from Chinese regulators. They said that the company is in the process of selling off its one outlet in Xishan by the end of the year. Exact details

Sept. 24, 2017

Korea calls for united voice against rising protectionism

South Korea's trade minister issued a call Friday for a united front from leading Asian and European economies against protectionist trends and for the promotion of open trade and investment to benefit all sides.Paik Un-gyu, the minister of trade, industry and energy, made the request at the Asia-Europe Meeting, which is being attended by 250 trade ministers and senior officials from 51 nations to discuss trade and industrial issues. "Today, the global economy faces new challenges. Protecti

Sept. 22, 2017