Major changes in the inheritance tax, one of President Yoon Suk Yeol's key campaign promises, have been postponed until next year's general election, as the reform could intensify criticism over tax cuts for the wealthy. On July 27, the government unveiled the tax code revision plan to be submitted to the National Assembly. Providing a tax reduction on the inheritance of family business for large conglomerates was not included in the proposal, as the government has been cautious on

Market Aug. 3, 2023

BOK predicts inflation to rebound from August, coming in at 3 percent by year-end Korea's consumer prices showed slowed growth, rising by 2.3 percent in July on-year, mainly due to the decline in international oil prices and base effect from last year, data showed Wednesday. According to Statistics Korea, consumer price growth, a key gauge of inflation, stood last month at 2.3 percent more than a year earlier. It is the lowest increase in 25 months since June 2021. Inflation has been showin

Economy Aug. 2, 2023

Korea narrowly avoided a trade deficit in July as falling prices of energy and raw materials pulled imports down faster than exports. Outbound shipments fell 16.5 percent on-year to $50.33 billion last month, while inbound shipments fell 25.4 percent to $48.7 billion, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and Korea Customs Service released Tuesday. Accordingly, Korea logged a trade surplus of $1.63 billion in July, marking a $500 million increase from a mon

Economy Aug. 1, 2023

Korean investment firms are at the risk of painful losses in their commercial real estate investments with high interest rates and a shift to teleworking. With major economies tightening monetary policies, and the post-pandemic trend of working from home pushing up office vacancy rates, commercial office buildings -- once perceived as a reliable investment -- have become a liability. Igis Asset Management’s 370 billion won ($290 million) investment in the Trianon office building in Frankfu

Market July 31, 2023

The fluctuating stock prices of firms in the secondary battery sector sent the local stock market on a rollercoaster ride over the last week. Battery materials stocks achieved gains on Friday afternoon after suffering losses in the morning, raising alarms for retail investors who belatedly joined in on a buying spree for EcoPro and Posco shares. Shares of EcoPro closed at 1.10 million won ($863.85) on Friday. It spiked to a record high of 1.53 million won during trading hours on Wednesday, bu

Market July 30, 2023

Mastern America, the US arm of Mastern Investment Management, said Wednesday it has joined hands with real estate platform operator BuildBlock to expand its presence in the US commercial development market. The two firms recently signed a memorandum of understanding to bolster their ties and cooperate on diverse investment projects. BuildBlock is a real estate platform operating in major cities and regions in the US, including Silicon Valley, Los Angeles, Hawaii, New York and Texas. The plat

Market July 26, 2023

Expectation for end of interest hikes and IPO market reform to boost slowed listing activities The initial public offering pipeline for the second half of the year appears to be strong, with high-profile companies, including a fabless chip startup and a battery material maker, pushing for their listings on the Korean stock market to raise equity capital amid relaxed IPO rules. The IPO market here remained sluggish in the first half of the year due to deteriorating investor sentiment on the

Market July 26, 2023

South Korea’s economy has managed to avoid negative growth by expanding 0.6 percent in the April-June period from the previous quarter, the Bank of Korea said Tuesday, chiefly due to imports that fell even more sharply than the country‘s weak exports. According to preliminary data from the BOK, the country’s gross domestic product, a key measure of economic growth which refers to the value of all goods and services created, showed a 0.6 percent on-quarter increase. The growth

Economy July 25, 2023

Shares of firms under Korean steel giant Posco Group are skyrocketing, hitting new highs as the group is expected to excel amid high prospects for the battery industry, Posco Holdings, the holding firm and leading stock of Posco Group, closed at 551,000 won ($428) Friday, more than double its closing price of 272,000 won on Jan. 2. Posco Future M, the group's battery material maker, is also under the spotlight. Its shares closed at 495,000 won on the day, marking a significant increase from

Economy July 23, 2023

South Korean battery materials company EcoPro, the red-hot stock in the nation’s secondary tech-laden Kosdaq, is highly likely to be included in the MSCI Korea Index in August, Samsung Securities wrote in a recent report published Friday. EcoPro is a holdings firm with units EcoPro BM and EcoPro HN under its wings. Running high on the recent electric vehicle boom, the cathode materials maker saw its shares soar to a record high of 1.14 million ($890.28) Wednesday, almost a 10-fold jump fro

Market July 21, 2023

Korea has set its minimum wage level for 2024 at 9,860 won ($7.80) per hour, up 2.5 percent from this year’s 9,620 won. The raise would translate to a monthly income of 2.06 million won, based on a 40-hour workweek. The decision was made early Wednesday following a 15-hour meeting of the Minimum Wage Commission, composed of members spanning labor, business and the general public. Though eyes were on whether the minimum wage for next year would surpass the 10,000 won barrier, considering so

Economy July 19, 2023

In his meeting with Yellen, Choo delivered his gratitude for the US' efforts to communicate with Korea regarding the Inflation Reduction Act and the CHIPS and Science Act, while requesting the US government’s attention to Korean companies with business in the country. The IRA gives a tax credit to buyers of electric or fuel cell vehicles assembled in North America. To qualify for the tax credit, EVs must have batteries that contain at least 40 percent critical materials extracted or p

Economy July 18, 2023

Korea’s household debt is rising at an alarming pace, coming in second in terms of size and growth rate among major economies, data showed Monday. According to a report issued by the Bank of International Settlements, a financial institution based in Basel, Switzerland, the debt service ratio for households in Korea stood at 13.6 percent last year, the second highest among 17 major countries in the world, just behind Australia at 14.7 percent. The DSR gauges how much a borrower has to pay

Economy July 17, 2023

South Korean financial giant KB Financial Group hopes to become a company that can have a good influence on the community, its chairman said Friday. “We will all make efforts to become a purpose-driven firm that has a positive influence on the community,” Chairman Yoon Jong-kyoo said at the group’s strategy meeting held at a Seoul hotel under the title "Toward the Future.” The meeting was held to discuss management strategies for the latter half of 2023 to seek cha

Market July 16, 2023

South Korean financial giant Woori Financial Group plans to expand its corporate financing, according to its chairman Friday. "During the first half of 2023, we prioritized risk management such as controlling financial soundness and capital adequacy as the uncertainty in financial markets both in and out of Korea escalated,” Woori Financial Group Chairman Yim Jong-yong said at a workshop held at the group’s headquarters in central Seoul. "It was a meaningful time when bold

Market July 16, 2023