Korea lags behind OECD states in sustainable growth index: report

South Korea ranked 24th among 28 Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) member countries in terms of the state growth sustainability index, a local think tank said Sunday.The Hyundai Research Institute has developed its own index to measure each state's sustainable growth levels. South Korea scored 0.443, or 81.7 percent of the average of 0.542 for the 28 OECD member states, the institute said in its weekly report released Friday. "For sustainable growth, South Korea b

April 16, 2017

Transactions of expensive houses surge sevenfold

The transaction volume of houses valued at 3 billion ($2.63 million) or more surged by seven times in just three years, data showed Sunday.Last year, 229 deals involving high-end real estate were posted on Onnara, a state-run web portal devoted to the real estate market, according to data compiled by the private market watcher Budongsan Info. The figure stood at 30 in 2013 and 123 in 2015. Out of the 229 deals, which all took place in Seoul, more than half of them, or 117, were in Yongsan-g

April 16, 2017

Tax revenue grew faster than GDP in Korea last year

The South Korean government’s tax revenue grew faster than the gross domestic product’s annual increase in the country last year, data showed Sunday.The annual tax revenue amounted to 318.1 trillion won ($278.5 billion) last year, of which 242.6 trillion won was collected by the central government and the remaining 75.5 trillion won by the local governments, according to data from the Finance Ministry, the Interior Ministry and the Bank of Korea.Tax income at the central government s

April 16, 2017

Mini gold bar trade quadruples amid security threats

The average daily sales volume of mini gold bars, which weigh between 10 to 100 grams, skyrocketed fourfold in April, amid escalating geopolitical uncertainties that turned investors’ attention to safe haven assets.Some 400 mini bars were traded a day, 300 more than usual, data by Korea Gold Exchange showed Sunday.“Starting early last week, we have been seeing a growing demand for mini gold bars, especially among investors in their 50s and 60s.” Song Jong-gil of Korea Gold Exch

April 16, 2017

Korea's export prices fall 1.4% last month on strong won

South Korea's export prices fell 1.4 percent in March from a month earlier due mainly to the strengthening won, central bank data showed Friday.The dollar came to an average of 1,134.77 won in March, down 0.9 percent from a month earlier, the Bank of Korea said in a statement.For exporters, the won's gain means decreased income as dollar-denominated earnings from their overseas businesses fall in value when repatriated into the local currency.Import prices also declined 2 percent last month from

April 14, 2017

Central bank slightly raises Korea’s growth forecast

South Korea’s central bank on Thursday revised up the nation’s economic growth forecast to 2.6 percent from the previous January projection of 2.5 percent, citing improved exports and a turnaround in facility investment.It is the first time that the Bank of Korea has raised the nation’s growth forecast in three years since April 2014, when it revised it up to 4 percent from 3.8 percent.In an updated quarterly economic outlook report, the BOK said a recovery in the global econom

April 13, 2017

[Election 2017] How will presidential candidates reform chaebol?

The following is the first in a series of articles breaking down the presidential candidates’ major economic pledges in a simulated question-and-answer format by gathering their answers from official websites, media interviews, public speeches, books and more. The first installment delves into proposals on chaebol reform. -- Ed.The upcoming May 9 presidential election is unusual in the sense that it has been brought forward seven months due to the impeachment of former President Park Geun-

April 13, 2017

Korea's jobless rate falls to 4.2% in March

South Korea's jobless rate fell slightly last month on the back of increased employment in the construction and retail sectors, government data showed Wednesday.The unemployment rate in Asia's fourth-largest economy stood at 4.2 percent last month, edging down 0.1 percentage point from the same month last year, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea.From a month earlier, the rate fell 0.8 percentage point from a seven-year high of 5 percent.The number of employed people reached 25.27

April 12, 2017

Korea vows to rein in household debt

The South Korean government said Wednesday that it will deal with mounting household debt in a stable way through strengthening risk management capabilities, as the debt delivers a blow to Asia's fourth-largest economy amid higher interest rates."The issue of household debt is closely linked with the finance sector and the real economy," said Acting President Hwang Kyo-ahn in a meeting in Seoul with the heads of government agencies including the Ministry of Strategy and Finance and the

April 12, 2017

Job growth hits 15-month high in March

The on-year job growth in South Korea hit a 15-month high in March on the back of more hiring in the construction and retail sectors, government data showed Wednesday.According to Statistics Korea, the number of employed people increased by 466,000 in March from a year ago to reach 25.27 million. The on-year growth was the fastest since December 2015.The unemployment rate in Asia’s fourth-largest economy fell to 4.2 percent in March from a seven-year high of 5 percent in the previous month

April 12, 2017

Household loans up 10% in March

South Korea's household loans extended by local banks rose 10 percent in March from a year earlier due to increased mortgages, central bank data showed Wednesday.Outstanding household loans from local lenders came to 713.9 trillion won ($621 billion) as of end-March, compared with 649 trillion won from a year earlier, according to the data from the Bank of Korea. Compared with February, the amount rose by 2.9 trillion won. Mortgages climbed 2.6 trillion won on-month to 538.5 trillion won in Marc

April 12, 2017

Dollar-won exchange volatility widens in March

The won's movement against the dollar widened slightly in March from a month earlier, central bank data showed Wednesday.The session-over-session changes in the dollar-won exchange rate averaged 0.47 percent last month, compared to 0.39 in February, the Bank of Korea said. "The won rose against the dollar in March due to increased exports and inflows of foreign capital into local stock markets," the BOK said in a monthly report on international finance.Meanwhile, the South Korean curre

April 12, 2017

N. Korean risks have limited impact on S. Korean economy

The South Korean financial and foreign exchange markets have remained stable for days despite escalating tensions over North Korea's missile and nuclear threats, the finance ministry here said Wednesday."As the recent US attack against Syria sparked volatility in the local financial market, some raised concerns over the geopolitical risks stemming from North Korean issues," the finance ministry said in a release. "But the impact of such possible risks has been limited, given that

April 12, 2017

Reducing exemptions holds key to tax reform

A recent report on tax policy designed to reduce income inequality, released by the parliamentary finance committee, has rekindled debate on how to reform the country’s taxation system.Authored by two professors at the University of Seoul at the request of the committee, the report proposed raising corporate tax rates and eliminating tax breaks for wage earners. The previous conservative governments led by President Park Geun-hye and her predecessor Lee Myung-bak did not consider a tax inc

April 12, 2017

Businesses encouraging workers to use holidays for extended vacations

A number of big companies are encouraging their employees to use their vacation days in early May to connect with holidays, which would give them up to nine days off, corporate officials said Wednesday.Hanwha Group officials said the conglomerate has made May 2 and 4 collective vacation days at most of the affiliates. With two weekends and three holidays amid the two days, employees will be free from work for nine days. May 1 (Monday) is Labor Day, and May 3 is Buddha's Birthday. May 5 is celebr

April 12, 2017

Korean shares open higher on tech, steel

South Korean stocks opened higher Wednesday on the back of robust gains by tech firms and steelmakers.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index climbed 0.23 percent to 2,128.81 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Market behemoth Samsung Electronics added 0.67 percent, and No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix moved up 0.61 percent. LG Electronics advanced 0.43 percent.Steelmakers also continued to gain ground, with POSCO rising 0.37 percent and Korea Zinc adding 2.2 percent. Hyundai Steel moved up 0.18

April 12, 2017

US increase antidumping tariffs on OCTG imports from Korea

WASHINGTON -- The US Commerce Department decided Tuesday to impose antidumping tariffs up to nearly 25 percent on oil country tubular goods imported from South Korean steelmakers.The department announced that it will levy 24.92 percent tariffs on OCTG imports from Nexteel, 2.76 percent on SeAH Steel and 13.84 percent on Hyundai Steel and other South Korean steelmakers. The final rates to be be applied to product are higher than the preliminary tariffs determined in October and are roughly on par

April 12, 2017

[Monitor] Korea faces increasing import controls

South Korean companies are increasingly being subject to import restrictions, the Korea International Trade Association said Tuesday.Import control measures include antidumping duties, countervailing duties, safeguards and double imposition of antidumping and countervailing duties.Compared to the end of last year, the number of restriction cases increased by three, meaning Korea faced an average of one new case each month this year.KITA advised firms to thoroughly monitor the situations and to a

April 11, 2017

Exports rosy but domestic demand remains weak

Despite optimism growing over South Korea’s exports outlook, buoyed by strong outbound shipments of auto and chip products, domestic demand continued to remain low this month, further weakening business confidence among local manufacturers, data and reports showed Tuesday.According to data compiled by the Korea Customs Service, total outbound shipments reached $11.2 billion in the first 10 days of April, a 6.1 percent increase from a year ago.Led by strong overseas sales of semiconductors

April 11, 2017

Korean manufacturers optimistic about Q2 biz

A majority of South Korean manufacturing companies expect their business conditions to improve in the second quarter of the year amid signs of a recovery in exports, a poll showed Tuesday.According to the survey of 645 manufacturers conducted by the Korea Institute for Industrial Economics and Trade, the manufacturing sector business survey index stood at 100 for the April-June period, coming in lockstep with the median figure of 100.A BSI reading below 100 means pessimists outnumber optimists.T

April 11, 2017