AMCHAM to promote benefits of Seoul-Washington FTA in US

US businesses based in South Korea said Sunday they will send a delegation to the White House this month to promote the benefits of the free trade agreement between Seoul and Washington as the Donald Trump administration is reviewing the five-year deal for a possible renegotiation. The delegation of the American Chamber of Commerce in Korea will visit Washington from Monday to Thursday and meet high-ranking officials at the White House.  The visit came as US President Donald Trump has been

May 14, 2017

More Korean women economically active in 2017: data

The rate of South Korean women either working or actively searching for jobs reached a record high in 2017, data showed Saturday, thanks to a rising number of married women returned to the job market.According to the data compiled by the Statistics Korea, 53 percent of women were found to be economically active this year, up 0.8 percentage points from a year earlier.This year's number is the highest since the agency started compiling data from June 1999. The figure refers to the portion of econo

May 13, 2017

Korea's sovereign fund earns $4b last year

Korea Investment Corp., South Korea's sovereign wealth fund, said Friday it posted $4 billion in investment gains last year. The sovereign fund -- which handles $110.8 billion in assets under management -- reported a return ratio of 4.35 percent from its investments in overseas stocks and bonds for the whole of 2016, the KIC said in a statement.  The fund's accumulated investment gains reached $15.8 billion last year.Last year, equities accounted for 41.2 percent of the KIC's overseas inves

May 12, 2017

[Herald Interview] ‘Uncertainty Korea’s biggest economic challenge’

Export-reliant Korea’s overall economic growth in past years has been clouded by a prolonged weakness in global trade, a report by the United Nations Economic and Social Survey of Asia and the Pacific stated earlier this month.While the economies of the Asia Pacific region are expected to achieve a 1.2 percentage point lower economic growth on average this year, uncertainty will be the biggest challenge for South Korea, an expert from a UN panel said Friday.According to Kilaparti Ramakrish

May 12, 2017

[Moon in Office] Sharp rise in housing prices unlikely: experts

The Korea Herald is publishing a series of articles delving into the economic policies and tasks expected of the new Moon Jae-in administration. This is the third installment -- Ed.South Korea’s housing market is unlikely to see sharp rises under liberal President Moon Jae-in, who is more focused on market stabilization, real estate experts said Friday.　As opposed to the former Park Geun-hye government’s deregulatory moves, the new Moon Jae-in government is expected to tighten some r

May 12, 2017

President vows to remove all non-regular jobs in public sector

President Moon Jae-in on Friday reaffirmed his pledge to create hundreds of thousands of quality jobs in the public sector, vowing to turn all non-regular job openings in the public sector to regular, full-time employment within his term."I will open an era of zero irregular jobs in the public sector within my term," Moon said in a meeting with workers and citizens at Incheon International Airport Corp., a key public enterprise. The meeting marked the new president's first public event

May 12, 2017

China invites Korea to economic development forum

China has invited South Korea to join a forum on Beijing's regional economic development plan in what appears to be a move to mend the bilateral relationship following the inauguration of new President Moon Jae-in in Seoul, a government official said Friday.The delegation to be led by Rep. Park Byeong-seug of the Democratic Party will leave for Beijing on Saturday to attend the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation that will kick off on Sunday for a two-day run, according to the offi

May 12, 2017

Govt. to set aside supplementary budget for job creation

The finance ministry said Friday that it will set aside a supplementary budget to help create jobs, a key campaign pledge of Presidential Moon Jae-in."We will create jobs through aggressive macroeconomic policies, including a supplementary budget," the ministry said in its monthly economy assessment report called the "Green Book." The ministry also vowed to revitalize Asia's fourth-largest economy, which is showing signs of a recovery on increased exports.It marked the first

May 12, 2017

[Monitor] Korea’s tourism deficit hits 10-year high

South Korea’s tourism industry recorded a deficit of $3.74 billion as of the end of March, marking a nearly decadelong record high, due largely to drop in Chinese visitors following the ban of Korea-bound trip sales by Beijing this year.The Bank of Korea said the deficit is the largest since $3.76 billion recorded in the fourth quarter of 2007.The deficit reached $1.35 billion in March alone, the biggest figure in nearly two years, after Korea saw $1.47 billion in travel deficit for July 2

May 11, 2017

Unemployment hits 17-year high

Despite the number of employed individuals increasing last month, South Korea’s unemployment rate hit a 17-year high in April, according to data compiled by Statistics Korea on Thursday. The jobless number reached approximately 1.17 million, up by 99,000. This is the largest number for the month of April and the highest after February’s 1.35 million. The jobless rate also reached 4.2 percent, up 0.3 percentage point from the same month last year. It is the highest rate after the 4.5

May 11, 2017

Korea's exports rise 4.5% in first 10 days of May

South Korea's exports increased 4.5 percent in the first 10 days of May from a year earlier on brisk overseas sales of petroleum products and semiconductors, latest customs data showed Thursday.Total outbound shipments reached $9.7 billion during the cited period, up from $9.3 billion tallied over the same period last year, according to the data compiled by the Korea Customs Service. The increase was led by a 117.8-percent on-year gain in exports of petroleum goods and a 43-percent surge for chi

May 11, 2017

Hanwha chairman talks US relations with Heritage Foundation president

Hanwha Group Chairman Kim Seung-youn sat down with Edwin J. Feulner Jr., president of the Heritage Foundation, in Seoul on Tuesday to discuss the future of Korea-US relations, according to Hanwha officials Wednesday. The Heritage Foundation is a representative conservative think tank in the US and focuses on policy development in the areas of politics, economy, diplomacy and security. Feulner, who also served as an assistant political adviser to US President Donald Trump, is considered a le

May 10, 2017

[Moon in Office] Corporate governance to improve: analysts

The election of Moon Jae-in as the new president of South Korea is likely to improve corporate governance, along with Moon’s promise to reform chaebol, analysts at global investment banks said Wednesday.Goldman Sachs economist Kwon Goo-hoon said he expected corporate government to improve, along with the National Assembly’s broad support for better governance as a sound business strategy. “A more likely step toward better governance would be the adoption of the stewardship code

May 10, 2017

[Moon in Office] Who will be finance minister to lead recovery?

As soon as President Moon Jae-in picked South Jeolla Province Gov. Lee Nak-yon to be prime minister, attention moved to who would become the concurrent deputy prime minister and finance minister to lift the sagging economy to recovery.The new top economic policymaker will face daunting tasks, such as making sure the recent rebound of exports and consumer sentiment lead to a recovery of domestic demand and jobs. External risks include dealing with the US over a possible renegotiation of a bilater

May 10, 2017

Hyundai Asan hopes to resume inter-Korean tour program

Officials at Hyundai Asan, the operator of a halted inter-Korean tour program and developer of the closed Kaesong industrial park, announced its anticipation Wednesday for Korea’s new President Moon Jae-in to ease tension with North Korea so the company can resume its tour program and operations at the industrial park. “Hyundai Asan will by fully prepared for the moment that the two Koreas resume dialogue that could lead to a reopening of the Mount Kumgang tour. We hope that it won&r

May 10, 2017

[Moon in Office] Moon needs best policy mix on economy

The Korea Herald publishes a series of articles delving into the economic policies and tasks expected of the new Moon Jae-in administration. This is the first installment -- Ed.On the economic front, President Moon Jae-in faces the immediate task of putting the country’s economy on the path to full recovery by boosting domestic demand in tandem with a recent rebound in exports.At the same time, he should set a firm framework for structural reforms needed to bolster the sagging growth poten

May 10, 2017

[Monitor] Korean parents feel compelled to support children for longer

More South Koreans feel that as parents, they should financially support their children until they get a job, a survey by the Korea Institute of Child Care and Education showed Tuesday.Eight years ago, more respondents believed they should support the children until they enter or graduate from college, while in the latest survey, more thought the support should be provided until the children become employed.The researchers said they compared the responses from the same surveys conducted in 2008

May 9, 2017

THAAD fallout most imminent economic task faced by new president: officials

Most Ministry of Strategy and Finance officials view the economic fallout from the hosting of the controversial US missile defense system here as the most imminent economic challenge for the new president, a survey showed Tuesday.In a survey conducted by local news media eDaily on 41 high-ranking officials from the Ministry of Strategy and Finance, most picked the risk posed from the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system as the No. 1 risk to the economy.  An official was quoted as sayi

May 9, 2017

IMF keeps Korea's 2017 growth rate unchanged at 2.7%

The International Monetary Fund kept its forecast for South Korea's economic growth for this year on hold at 2.7 percent, despite signs of a recovery in the country's exports.The projection by the IMF is slightly higher than a 2.6 percent growth forecast by the Bank of Korea. South Korea's economy grew 2.8 percent last year.  In a report, the IMF cited "political uncertainty" stemming from the ouster of former President Park Geun-hye over a corruption and influence-peddling scanda

May 9, 2017

Number of 'early state pension' recipients down

The number of South Korean recipients of "early state pension" decreased in 2016, data showed Monday, as more senior citizens opted for the regular benefit program to ensure they get a meaningful income later on in life.According to the data by the National Pension Service, the number of people receiving the early pension came to 36,614 in 2016, compared to 43,447 in 2015. The early state pension program was introduced to guarantee income for senior citizens up to five years earlier th

May 8, 2017