SEJONG -- The chief of the International Monetary Fund on Friday dismissed the possibility that South Korea would face a financial crisis, seemingly suggesting that the current economic situation of the nation is different from the 1997 or 2008 crises. According to the Ministry of Economy and Finance, the remarks of IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva came during a meeting with Korea’s Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Choo Kyung-ho in Washington. Georgieva picked the nat

Economy Oct. 14, 2022

SEJONG -- South Korea’s top economic policymaker on Thursday called for close collaboration between the Korean government and the World Bank Group to address major global issues, such as tackling climate change. In his meeting with WB Group President David Malpass in Washington, DC, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Choo Kyung-ho stressed the role of World Bank's local liaison office at the Free Economic Zone in Incheon’s Songdo-dong, to bolster the bilateral coordination.

Economy Oct. 13, 2022

SEJONG -- South Korea’s economic policymakers said the government will allow foreign-based financial firms to “directly” participate in the local foreign exchange market during a meeting with global investment bank executives. Saying that the policy is a part of the government’s effort to provide a foreign investor-friendly environment, the officials reiterated that Korea is mapping out details on the upcoming extension of the foreign exchange market’s opening hour

Economy Oct. 12, 2022

SEJONG -- The International Monetary Fund on Tuesday suggested a gloomy prediction for the 2023 economy of the world as well as South Korea, citing protracted downside risks such as high inflation and cheap currencies against the US dollar. In its World Economic Outlook, the US-based organization revised its forecast on the 2023 gross domestic product growth of global economy down to 2.7 percent, from its earlier suggestion of 2.9 percent. It also slashed its outlook on Korea by 0.1 percentage

Economy Oct. 11, 2022

SEJONG -- More than 80 percent of all apartment purchases by foreigners over the past seven years were made by US and Chinese nationals, an opposition party lawmaker said on Monday. According to relevant documents, which were handed over to Rep. Yang Kyung-sook of the Democratic Party of Korea from both the Land Ministry and the Korea Real Estate Board, foreigners bought 29,792 apartments in the local property market between January 2015 and August 2022. Of them, Chinese nationals bought

Economy Oct. 10, 2022

SEJONG -- The nation’s rice output is projected to decrease by 78,000 tons in 2022 on-year in the wake of a curtailed rice paddy size as well as shortage in rainfalls, Statistics Korea said Friday. According to the state-run agency, rice production nationwide will likely decline by 2 percent on-year from 3.88 million tons in 2021 to 3.8 million tons in 2022. The size of rice paddies is estimated to have contracted by 0.7 percent from 7,320 square kilometers (732,000 hectare) to 7,270 squ

Industry Oct. 7, 2022

SEJONG -- South Korea’s economic policymakers are likely to adopt another round of contingency plans to minimize possible instability in consumer prices, as the OPEC+ has decided to curb oil production. The oil cartel’s decision comes after some local policymakers and market insiders claimed that Korea’s inflation was considered to have peaked in July, when consumer price growth posted 6.3 percent. At a meeting in Vienna on Wednesday, the OPEC+ publicized its plan to reduce c

Economy Oct. 6, 2022

US President Joe Biden sent a letter to President Yoon Suk-yeol in which he addressed Seoul’s concerns over the Inflation Reduction Act, the presidential office said Wednesday, adding that it sees Washington as demonstrating a “clear will to be considerate to Korean businesses.” A presidential official said Biden’s letter was written based on the two leaders’ discussions on the IRA during their multiple meetings in New York and London last month. Biden has promised

Industry Oct. 5, 2022

SEJONG -- The nation’s top economic policymaker on Friday welcomed South Korea’s potential entry to the World Government Bond Index, predicting that if attained, it would foster a better environment for attracting foreign investment. The remarks from Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Choo Kyung-ho came a day after London-based stock index provider FTSE Russell included Korea on the watch list for the WGBI -- a step that comes before a country’s endorsement as a regula

Economy Sept. 30, 2022

SEJONG -- South Korea's top 100 multiple home owners hold more than 20,000 housing units collectively, worth more than 2.5 trillion won ($1.7 billion) combined, an opposition party lawmaker said Thursday, citing state data. This indicates that an individual was owning 206 units, worth 25.2 billion won, on the average, according to Rep. Kim Hoi-jae of the Democratic Party of Korea, quoting Statistics Korea data. The number of homes owned by the top 100 individuals increased by 20 percent in fou

Economy Sept. 29, 2022

SEJONG -- South Korea’s policymakers on Wednesday unveiled their goal of taking up 12 percent of the global auto market and expanding the country's capacity in manufacturing electric vehicles with 3.3 million units a year, expressing its confidence in tackling concerns over US' inflation reduction bill. Setting a target of becoming the world's third-largest automaker, the government will “resolve regulatory barriers” and “offer tax benefits" to help local carmakers

Industry Sept. 28, 2022

Posco said Tuesday it is making an all-out effort to stabilize the supply chains for stainless steel products after production at its steel mills in Pohang, North Gyeongsang Province, was hit by a recent flood. In particular, the company plans to covert export-oriented products into those for the domestic market in an effort to prevent a glitch in local supply chains. Stainless steel products were among those hit hard by a recent typhoon, but the company predicted a limited impact, saying they

Industry Sept. 27, 2022

SEJONG -- The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development forecast Monday that South Korea will rank 12th among members of the Group of 20 for 2022 gross domestic product growth, hinting that the nation will see weakened momentum for economic growth. In its Interim Economic Outlook, the France-based OECD predicted that Korea will post a 2.8 percent growth this year. This is lower than the organization’s forecast for other G-20 members, including 4.1 percent growth in Australia,

Economy Sept. 26, 2022

SEJONG -- North America-based businesses have proposed to invest $1.15 billion (1.62 trillion won) in South Korea's manufacturing sector during President Yoon Suk-yeol’s visit to the US, the Industry Ministry said Friday. Investment proposals were made at an investors' roundtable held in Manhattan on Thursday, local time, attended by President Yoon and Industry Minister Lee Chang-yang, officials said. Most of the investors were from the fields of semiconductors, electric vehicles, seconda

Industry Sept. 23, 2022

SEJONG -- The Korean currency dropped to the 1,400 won range per dollar on Thursday in the wake of another “giant step” rate hike of 75 basis points from the US Federal Reserve. In addition, foreign and institutional investors turned to net sellers on the nation’s main bourse, pulling down the Kospi. The local currency, which started at 1,398 won per US dollar during the Thursday trading session, closed at 1,409.7 won. The Korean currency became cheaper by more than

Market Sept. 22, 2022