The number of unemployed people aged 65 or older hit a record high in recent months, government data showed Thursday, amid the lack of proper job openings for senior citizens,m whose number has been growing rapidly in recent years. The number of jobless people aged 65 or older rose to 123,000 for the first quarter this year, up 31,000 from a year earlier, according to the Statistics Korea data.The figure is the highest since Statistics Korea began compiling related numbers in 1999. The comparabl

Economy April 27, 2017

Korean Air Lines Inc. on Thursday received its second B787-9 aircraft that will allow it to strengthen its customer service starting next month.Korean Air, South Korea's biggest carrier by sales, will put the 269-seat dreamliner jet initially on its Gimpo-Jeju Island route from May 2 and then international routes from June, the company said in a statement.  (Yonhap)The national flag carrier plans to operate three flights a day on the Gimpo-Jeju route and then begin service on long-range routes t

Industry April 27, 2017

South Korean stocks traded lower early Thursday morning, slipping from their six-year highs, with top market cap Samsung Electronics hitting a fresh record high.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) shed 3.85 points, or 0.17 percent, to 2,203.99 as of 11:15 a.m.Market kingpin Samsung Electronics was 1.73 percent up after reporting the biggest quarterly earnings in three years aided by robust chip sales.The world's largest manufacturer of smartphones also said it would buy back

Market April 27, 2017

South Korea's industrial electricity consumption rose for five straight quarters in the first three months of the year on a sharp upturn in the chipmaking and chemical sectors, the government said Thursday.The amount of electricity consumed by the country's industrial sector reached 71.06 billion kilowatt-hours in the January-March period, up 2.4 percent from the same period last year, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.The quarterly figure has been on a steady rise since th

Economy April 27, 2017

Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., a major shipyard here, said Thursday that its first-quarter earnings almost doubled from a year earlier on cost-cutting efforts and the delivery of high-priced ships.Net profit reached 462 billion won ($409 million) in the January-March period, compared with a profit of 245 billion won a year earlier, the company said in a regulatory filing. (Yonhap)Operating income also surged 90 percent on-year to reach 619 billion won, while sales dipped 1.9 percent to 10.08 tril

Industry April 27, 2017

K-Bank, South Korea's first Internet-only bank, has achieved more than half of its full-year target of attracting deposits just 24 days after launching operations, the nation's financial regulator said Thursday. The pace of growth in K-Bank's deposits is much faster than expected and the Internet-only bank is fueling increased competition with traditional banks, the Financial Services Commission said in a statement. K-Bank, formed by a consortium of KT Corp., Woori Bank and 19 other compani

Market April 27, 2017

Kia Motors Corp., South Korea's second-largest carmaker by sales, posted a 19 percent on-year drop in its first-quarter net profit due to weak demand in China and the United States, the company said Thursday.Net profit for the three months that ended on March 31 plunged to 765.4 billion won ($678 million) from 944.5 billion won a year earlier, Kia said in a regulatory filing.(Yonhap)"Vehicle sales in China fell sharply due to worsening consumer sentiment in the wake of Seoul's decision to deploy

Mobility April 27, 2017

South Korean companies operating overseas have low domestic dividend payment rates compared to other international firms, and one way to fix the problem is to change the taxation rule, a think tank said Thursday.South Korea's foreign direct investment increased 3.7-fold over the past decade, and net profits at its offshore companies have been above $10 billion since 2010, according to the Korea Economic Research Institute. Their domestic dividend payment rate over the five past years, however, a

Industry April 27, 2017

Sales of air conditioners and electric fans rose sharply this month from a year earlier, industry sources said Thursday, amid above-average temperatures that can be a sign of a hot summer to come.Lotte HiMart, a consumer electronics retailer, witnessed a whopping 180 percent increase in the sales of air conditioners for the first 25 days in April from the same period last year. (Yonhap)Sales of electric fans also jumped 40 percent during the time span.E-Mart, South Korea's largest discount store

Technology April 27, 2017

South Korean stocks got off to a weak start on Thursday, led by losses in Samsung Electronics and its affiliates and automakers.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 4.74 points, or 0.21 percent, to 2,203.10 in the first 15 minutes of trading.On Wednesday, the Kospi closed at a fresh six-year high, driven by continued foreign buying.Investors also seem to be tempted to cash in gains.Market kingpin Samsung Electronics was 0.47 percent down and Samsung C&T, the de facto holding

Market April 27, 2017

Four male South Korean cross-country skiers have been suspended from the national team after they were caught drinking during the Asian Winter Games, the sport's national governing body said Thursday. The Korea Ski Association said the cross-country skiers who drank beer during the Asian Winter Games in Sapporo, Japan, received six-month suspensions and were immediately dropped from the national team. Among the cross-country skiers who represented South Korea at the Asian Games in February, only

More Sports April 27, 2017

South Korea's economy grew at a faster pace in the first quarter than three months earlier due to increased construction investment and exports, central bank data showed Thursday.In the January-March period, the country's gross domestic product increased 0.9 percent from the previous quarter, improving from a 0.5 percent on-quarter expansion three months earlier, according to preliminary data from the Bank of Korea.The on-quarter growth is the fastest since the second quarter of last year.From a

Economy April 27, 2017

WASHINGTON -- The United States should make clear to China that it will suffer "penalties" in its relations with Washington if it does not rein in North Korea, Sen. John McCain said Wednesday."Frankly, over the years, we've seen nothing from China. They have propped up North Korea. They could shut down their economy in a week or two if they wanted to, and they've had it both ways. And to think that a united Korea would somehow be a threat to China is just ridiculous and outrageous," the chairman

North Korea April 27, 2017

WASHINGTON -- For many years, one of the most frequently cited explanations for North Korea's bad behavior and saber-rattling, such as weapons tests and bellicose rhetoric, was that the communist nation was trying to grab US attention.The point was that the US was so preoccupied with Iran, Syria and other Middle Eastern problems that it could hardly afford to pay enough attention to the North and therefore Pyongyang was trying to use "shock therapy" to get Washington into negotiations where it c

North Korea April 27, 2017

WASHINGTON -- A US THAAD missile defense battery being installed in South Korea will become operational "in the coming days," the US Pacific commander said Wednesday.Adm. Harry Harris, commander of the US Pacific Command, made the remark during a House Armed Services Committee hearing after the US military brought the radar and other equipment to the deployment site in southeastern South Korea earlier in the day.(Yonhap)"The ROK-US alliance decided last July to deploy THAAD, that's a Terminal Hi

Diplomatic Circuit April 27, 2017