[Monitor] Consumer prices continue to surge

Last month‘s consumer prices surged by 2 percent compared to the same month in the previous year, with livestock products showing the biggest increase at 11.6 percent, data by Statistics Korea showed Thursday.Consumer prices have been hovering around 2 percent since the first month of this year due to a sharp gain in oil prices. The latest upward trend in prices is also largely driven by higher meat and egg prices, with eggs surging 67.9 percent in the aftermath of an outbreak of avian inf

June 1, 2017

US report predicts continued uncertainties in Korea

As political and economic woes continue to unfold regarding the deployment of an anti-missile system here and US President Donald Trump’s pending renegotiation of the Korea-US free trade agreement, the US Congressional Research Service predicted continued uncertainty for the future economic and political bilateral alliance. “Between 2009 and the end of 2016, relations between the two countries arguably reached their most robust state in decades. Political changes in both countries in

June 1, 2017

UN ESCAP, Statistics Korea promote sustainable development using big data

In an effort to explore methods to utilize big data to achieve sustainable development, the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific and Statistics Korea have organized a forum on innovative data approaches from Wednesday to Friday in Songdo, Incheon.  “In the information age, data is our most valuable currency,” said Kilaparti Ramakrishna, director and head of the ESCAP East and North-East Asia Office, in a press release by ESCAP on Wednesday. &ldq

June 1, 2017

Korea’s global competitiveness sapped by political scandal, fine dust

South Korea’s global competitiveness ranking remained low at 29 among 63 countries in 2017, hit by a political scandal that rocked the nation last year, weak exports and fine dust, a report by an international institute showed Thursday.According to the International Institute for Management Development, a Switzerland-based private business school, Korea’s global competitiveness ranked at No. 29 in 2017, the lowest since 2008 when the economy was 31st. Among 14 countries in the Asia-P

June 1, 2017

US may raise interest rate four times this year: Fed official

The US Federal Reserve could raise its interest rate four times this year if the economy strengthens, a senior Fed official said Thursday.John C. Williams, President and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, said that three rate increases this year is a reasonable baseline view, but there is potential for upside occurrences in the economy. "I could imagine if the economy strengthens, four rate increases this year would be appropriate," Williams said in a news conference in

June 1, 2017

Korea seeks to woo more foreign capital: regulator

South Korea aims to attract more foreign capital as part of its efforts to promote globalization of its financial industry, the top financial watchdog said Thursday. Zhin Woong-seob, governor of the Financial Supervisory Service, made the remarks earlier in the day at an international conference of finance in the southern port city of Busan. South Korea is working to promote the derivative financial sector, although challenges remain, Zhin said.  "The financial authorities have recentl

June 1, 2017

Fewer than 4 in 10 temps benefit from state pension

Fewer than 4 in 10 irregular workers in South Korea benefit from the country's state pension program, a much lower percentage than full-time employees, a report said Thursday.Slightly over 36 percent of temporary workers had state pension subscriptions as of 2016, compared to 83 percent for regulars, according to the report by the Korea Labor Institute. Roughly 68 percent of all workers in the country had subscriptions to the pension scheme that was introduced in 1988 to guarantee income for the

June 1, 2017

Possible US rate hike tipped to impact Korean bourse little

A potential US interest rate hike in June is likely to have an insignificant impact on the South Korean stock market as it is widely expected, analysts said Thursday.The Federal Reserve is slated to hold its monetary policy meeting on June 14-15 amid widespread expectations the US central bank will jack up its benchmark lending rate for the second time this year. The Fed raised rates in March on economic optimism. "As a recent survey shows, all watchers expect a rate increase in June, it wo

June 1, 2017

BOK chief calls for measures for population aging

The head of South Korea's central bank called Thursday for measures to cope with population aging that could undermine growth in Asia's fourth-largest economy.Bank of Korea Gov. Lee Ju-yeol said South Korea is not well-prepared for its rapidly increasing older population. Experts have expressed concerns that the aging population, coupled with a low birthrate, poses a serious threat to Asia's fourth-largest economy, as it could lead to fewer working people and increased spending on health and wel

June 1, 2017

Korea's exports up 13.4% on-year in May

South Korea's exports jumped 13.4 percent last month from a year earlier to extend their winning streak to seven months on the back of brisk overseas sales of computer chips and displays, the trade ministry said Thursday.Outbound shipments came to $45 billion last month, up from $39.7 billion tallied a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The country's exports have been on a steady rise since November led by an upturn in oil prices and recovering global trade. I

June 1, 2017

Korea's Q1 growth ranks high among OECD

South Korea ranked high in first-quarter economic growth among major advanced and emerging economies as its economy got a boost from recovering exports and investment, data showed Thursday.Asia's fourth-largest economy expanded 0.9 percent on-quarter in the January-March period from three months earlier, a quarterly increase of 0.4 percentage point in the fourth quarter of last year, according to the data by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. It was the sixth-highest quar

June 1, 2017

Korea's consumer prices up 2% in May

South Korea's consumer prices continued their upbeat mode to touch the 2 percent level in May on high-flying oil and livestock prices, government data showed Thursday.The country's consumer price index gained 2 percent last month from a year earlier, slightly up from the previous month's 1.9 percent rise, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. Consumer prices have been hovering around 2 percent since the first month of 2017 due to a sharp gain in oil prices, following a 1.3 percent

June 1, 2017

[Herald Interview] ECCK chairman calls for deregulation

Following the ouster of former President Park Geun-hye and the election of President Moon Jae-in, some foreign investors in Korea have heaved a sigh of relief in anticipation that the country’s economic instability during the turbulent political times will finally begin to normalize. Foreign-invested firms make up 20.9 percent of the nation’s total exports and 5.7 percent of jobs. Of these firms, roughly 2,500 are European companies operating in Korea. Dimitris Psillakis, president a

May 31, 2017

Manufacturing sentiment edges down

South Korea’s manufacturing sentiment inched down in May from the previous month, the first decline in nine months, as producers were psychologically pressured from reduced business days with more holidays in May, the Bank of Korea said Wednesday.The business survey index in the manufacturing sector dropped to 82 in May from 81 in April. The index remained low at 71-72 from August to December but began to rise in earnest from 75 in January to 83 in April with robust exports. The manufactur

May 31, 2017

Merit pay system destined to be derailed

Confusion is growing over the implementation of a merit pay system at public organizations in the country, as President Moon Jae-in and his aides are pushing to repeal the measure introduced under previous administrations.During his campaign for the May 9 presidential election, Moon pledged to immediately abolish the performance-based wage system if he became president.Kim Jin-pyo, head of a commission functioning as the de facto transition team of the new administration, said last week that wor

May 31, 2017

Korea's exports to ASEAN more than double thanks to FTA

South Korea's exports to the group of Southeast Asian countries more than doubled over the last decade as commerce and investment increased following the implementation of a free trade deal, government data showed Wednesday.Outbound shipments to the 10 member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations reached US$74.52 billion in 2016, compared with $32.1 billion in 2006, according to the data by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. With the South Korea-ASEAN free trade deal t

May 31, 2017

[Monitor] Professional women still paid less than men

While the number of women professionals increased significantly in the past seven years, their average wage compared to men remained low, a report by the Korea Institute for Industrial Economics & Trade showed.The KIET surveyed the number and structure of the female professional workforce aged 20-59 between 2008 and 2015.Out of all female workers, 26.6 percent were those with professional jobs in 2015, up from 22.0 percent in 2008.Comparatively, out of all male workers, 22.8 percent were in

May 30, 2017

Regulator to ease capital rules for insurers ahead of global accounting change

South Korea's financial regulator said Tuesday it will relax some capital rules and other technical standards for insurance firms to help them better cope with changes in global accounting rules. South Korea is one of more than 100 nations that will adopt the new global bookkeeping standard or the International Financial Reporting Standards 17, starting in January 2021.  When adopted, some insurers in South Korea will face capitalization pressure, analysts said. To help insurers alleviate p

May 30, 2017

Public agencies‘ Q1 hiring undershoots target

South Korean public agencies' employment fell just short of their target in the first quarter of the year, data showed Tuesday, but they are expected to expand hiring for the rest of the year in line with the new government's jobs push.The country's public institutions hired 5,046 new workers in the January-March period, some 100 shy of their combined goal unveiled at the start of the year, according to the government portal All Public Information in One. In January, the finance ministry said it

May 30, 2017

New home permits tumble 27% in April

New home permits in South Korea plunged nearly 30 percent in April from a year earlier, the government said Monday, amid its move to limit housing sales as a way of curing household debt and rising interest rates.Construction permits issued for new homes came to 43,568 last month, down 27 percent from the same month a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. April marked the fifth consecutive month of decline. In the first four months of the year, new home p

May 29, 2017