South Korea's money supply continued to grow in March, as loans to households and firms increased amid the COVID-19 pandemic, central bank data showed Thursday. The country's M2 stood at 3,313.1 trillion won ($2.9 trillion) as of end-March, up 1.2 percent from a month earlier, according to preliminary data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). From a year earlier, M2 jumped 11 percent, the BOK said. A key economic indicator closely monitored by authorities, M2 is a measure of the money supply that co

Economy May 13, 2021

South Korea's customs office said Thursday it has seized around 1.79 million trafficked cigarette packs worth 7.2 billion won ($6.3 million) and arrested 41 smugglers and local distributors. The Korea Customs Service said the number of smuggled cigarettes more than doubled from about 754,000 packs a year earlier as it carried out a sweeping crackdown on tobacco trafficking in the first quarter. In particular, the number of cigarettes smuggled from China reached 890,000 packs, the largest-ever

Economy May 13, 2021

South Korean power plant builder Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction Co. said Thursday that it has signed a deal with Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co. (KHNP) to cooperate on hydrogen-related business. Under the deal, Doosan Heavy and nuclear power plant operator KHNP will develop technologies to produce and store hydrogen by using small- and mid-sized nuclear reactors and water power systems. Doosan Heavy also said its fuel cell manufacturing affiliate Doosan Fuel Cell Co., which has

Industry May 13, 2021

SK Innovation Co., South Korea's refinery-to-battery company, said Thursday it continued to suffer losses in the first quarter despite its strong earnings from its petrochemical business as it reflected hefty settlement costs for a battery suit with its bigger rival LG Energy Solution Ltd. SK Innovation booked a net loss of 368.1 billion won ($325.3 million) in the January-March period, narrowing from 1.5 trillion won of loss from the pandemic-driven slump a year earlier. Its operating profit

Industry May 13, 2021

South Korea plans to take measures to stabilize the financial market if needed, as it has been suffering increased volatility on fears that the Federal Reserve may hike a key rate sooner than expected on inflation woes, a senior government official said Thursday. First Vice Finance Minister Lee Eog-weon said there is no need for market players to sensitively react to US inflation data as its consumer prices are judged to have temporarily risen amid an economic recovery and a low base effect. &

Economy May 13, 2021

In a vintage performance backed up by late run support, Toronto Blue Jays' ace Ryu Hyun-jin has picked up his third win of the season. Ryu threw seven strong innings against the Atlanta Braves in Atlanta on Wednesday (local time), allowing just a run on five hits while striking out six in a 4-1 victory. Ryu improved to 3-2 and lowered his ERA from 3.31 to 2.95. His 94 pitches were one shy of his season high. Ryu is the only Blue Jays starter to go at least seven innings this year, and he has

Baseball May 13, 2021

South Korea is expected to take part in an annual US-led multinational air force exercise for the first time in three years next month, with Japan also set to participate, officials said Thursday. The Red Flag-Alaska 21-2 exercise is scheduled to take place in Alaska from June 10-25 involving around 1,500 service members and 100 aircraft, according to the US Seventh Air Force. In addition to the US troops, the South Korean Air Force and the Japanese self-defense air force are scheduled to part

Foreign Affairs May 13, 2021

K-pop boy band Enhypen has topped Japan's key monthly music chart with its latest album after ranking No. 1 on the weekly and daily album charts, its management agency said Thursday. The group's second EP, "Border: Carnival," sat atop Oricon's monthly album chart for April, which was released Wednesday, according to Belift Lab. Previously, the EP ranked No. 1 on the Japanese music tracker's daily album chart on April 30, four days after its release. It also stayed atop Oricon's week

K-pop May 13, 2021

North Korea's official newspaper called Thursday for efforts to prevent capitalistic culture from seeping into the country, warning that otherwise, the country could fall "like a damp wall" The Rodong Sinmun, an organ of the North's ruling Worker's Party, made the appeal, saying that attempts to establish socialism in other countries failed due to the "invasion of capitalistic lifestyle." "History teaches us a crucial lesson that a country can become vulnerable and eve

North Korea May 13, 2021

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases rebounded to over 700 Thursday as the country's vaccination campaign nearly stalled over tight vaccine supply amid spreading variant cases. The country reported 715 more COVID-19 cases, including 692 local infections, raising the total caseload to 129,633, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. Thursday's daily caseload jumped from 635 cases Wednesday, 511 Tuesday, 463 Monday and 564 Sunday, and marks the highest since April 28 wh

Social Affairs May 13, 2021

WANJU -- A 2.0 magnitude earthquake struck South Korea's southwestern region Thursday morning, with no damage reported, the weather agency said. The quake occurred about 15 kilometers east of Wanju, a county in southwestern North Jeolla Province, at around 6:05 a.m., according to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA). The epicenter was at 35.89 degrees north latitude and 127.33 degrees east longitude at a depth of 10 kilometers. The quake was recorded at up to Level 3 on the seismic

Social Affairs May 13, 2021

South Korean stocks opened lower Thursday, taking a cue from heavy losses on Wall Street that stemmed from quick inflation concerns. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) fell 37.33 points, or 1.18 percent, to 3,124.33 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite fell 2.67 percent as the US consumer prices expanded in April by the most since 2009, increasing investor worries that the US Federal Reserve's tapering may come sooner than e

Market May 13, 2021

WASHINGTON -- Two lawmakers from South Korea's main opposition People Power Party arrived in the United States on Wednesday for talks on possible US assistance to help relieve South Korea's COVID-19 vaccine shortage. Rep. Park Jin stressed the need to quickly secure vaccines for his country, calling his trip a bipartisan effort. "There is a need to strengthen the South Korea-US alliance and enhance their relations in various areas including vaccine cooperation," he said. "We wil

Politics May 13, 2021

Park Sam-koo, former chairman of Kumho Asiana Group, was arrested Thursday on charges of masterminding unfair financial transactions among group affiliates that allegedly resulted in huge gains for him and his family. The Seoul Central District Court approved the prosecution's request for a warrant to put Park under pre-trial detention after questioning him in the morning and examining all relevant documents presented by prosecutors for hours. The 76-year-old Park resigned as chairman of Kumho

Social Affairs May 13, 2021

South Korean e-commerce giant Coupang Inc. said Wednesday its first-quarter sales hit a new high, but operating losses widened sharply due to increased costs and investment. Sales stood at $4.21 billion in the January-March period, up 74 percent from a year earlier, Coupang said in a regulatory filing. The figure was the largest top line for the first quarter, the New York-listed company said. Yet Coupang registered an operating loss of $295 million for the last quarter, up a whopping 180 per

Consumer May 13, 2021