South Korea's central bank on Thursday held its key rate steady in May as the new government is pushing to expand fiscal spending to help revive Asia's fourth-largest economy.In a widely expected move, the monetary policy board of the Bank of Korea unanimously voted to keep the key rate at 1.25 percent, extending its wait-and-see approach for the 11th consecutive month. In June last year, South Korea's central bank made a surprise rate cut, citing a need to stimulate the lackluster economy amid

Economy May 25, 2017

South Korea's dependency ratio is expected to spike over the next 60 years in line with its fast aging population, becoming the highest among major advanced economies, a report said Thursday.Asia's fourth-largest economy is forecast to have a dependency ratio of some 80 people in 2075, the highest among members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, according to the report by the National Assembly Research Service. That means that 1.25 working-age people should support the

Economy May 25, 2017

South Korean stocks opened higher Thursday, taking a cue from overnight gains on Wall Street.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 6.71 points, or 0.29 percent, to 2,324.05 in the first 15 minutes of trading.On Wednesday, US stocks rose to post a five-day winning streak on tech gains. The Dow Jones industrial average was up 0.4 percent to 21,012.42, and the Nasdaq Composite Index gained 0.4 percent to 6,163.02.  Large caps on the Seoul bourse were mostly bullish, with teleco

Market May 25, 2017

More than 200 listed companies in South Korea are unable to service their debt with earnings in what is widely seen as a time bomb for Asia's fourth-largest economy, a report showed Thursday.South Korea had 3,278 marginal companies as of 2015, of which 232 were listed corporations, according to the report from the office of Rep. Kim Jong-min of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea.  (Yonhap)The report was based on data from the Financial Supervisory Service. A company failing to earn enough oper

Industry May 25, 2017

Environment-friendly energy policies pledged by the Moon Jae-in administration are raising concerns among local builders, which fear power plant construction projects may take a hit, industry officials said Thursday.The chief executive said during his campaign that he will stop all new construction of coal-fired power plants and review from scratch those that are less than 10 percent complete. He also promised to cease and cancel nuclear power plant construction and shut down older reactors, whi

Social Affairs May 25, 2017

North Korea said Thursday that no one can deter Pyongyang from bolstering its nuclear force, claiming that the United States' talk of its intent not to seek a regime change in the North is a sheer deceptive scheme.Rex Tillerson, the top US diplomat, said last week that Washington wants North Korea to trust its promise of no hostility and to not conduct any more nuclear or missile tests before Washington can consider opening talks with the communist nation. (Yonhap)The Korea Asia-Pacific Peace Co

North Korea May 25, 2017

The number of subscribers to the fifth-generation network  services may reach 400 million by 2022, a report showed Thursday, a development that can change the landscape of the global telecommunication industry.According to the report released by industry tracker Ovum, the 5G network services are anticipated to hit the market in 2019, and gradually expand around the globe to reach 45 countries and 120 mobile carriers by end-2021.(Yonhap)The 5G network technology allows data transmission speed tha

Technology May 25, 2017

Seven foreign carmakers have been ordered to recall more than 40,000 vehicles in South Korea for faulty parts, the transport ministry said Thursday. This is the latest in a series of recall orders issued by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport against both domestic and foreign carmakers.  (Yonhap)The carmakers plan to recall 28 different models totaling 40,222 units. These include Toyota Motor Corp.'s Sienna van and its luxury brand Lexus EX350 sedan, Ford Motor Co.'s Focus sedan a

Mobility May 25, 2017

INCHEON -- President Moon Jae-in's nominee for the country's top diplomat said Thursday that humanitarian aid to the North should be provided regardless of political considerations.Kang Kyung-wha, recently tapped to lead the foreign ministry, still emphasized that it is necessary to seek "more powerful" sanctions against North Korea in case the regime carries out additional provocations."It is a universal value to provide humanitarian aid to where human beings are suffering. It is also the princ

Foreign Affairs May 25, 2017

A key figure in a political corruption scandal that led to the ousting of former South Korean President Park Geun-hye on Wednesday dropped the appeal of her extradition case from Denmark to Seoul.Danish prosecutors confirmed on Twitter that Chung Yoo-ra will be extradited to South Korea after she dropped her appeal to the High Court of Western Denmark pertaining to her lower court ruling of extradition to Seoul.(Yonhap)Chung is accused of receiving inappropriate academic and financial favors bas

Social Affairs May 25, 2017

South Korean shares extended their winning streak to a fourth day to end at a fresh record high Wednesday, taking a cue from overnight gains on Wall Street, analysts said. The Korean won fell against the US dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 5.66 points, or 0.24 percent, to reach an all-time high of 2,317.34. Trade volume was slim at 380.45 million shares worth 5.35 trillion won ($4.8 billion), with advancers outnumbering losers 483 to 323.Institutions bought a net 75.1

Market May 24, 2017

Tottenham Hotspur players said Wednesday they were excited to see how popular their teammate Son Heung-min is in his homeland as they met with South Korean fans.Kyle Walker, Kevin Wimmer and Ben Davies arrived in South Korea with Son on Tuesday for fan events organized by Tottenham's main sponsor AIA. In Seoul, they had a football clinic with patients from Seoul Rehabilitation Center for Cerebral Palsied, before meeting with students at Paiwha Girls' High School to promote football.Son Heung-min

Soccer May 24, 2017

South Korea's health ministry said Wednesday it will suspend providing benefits for nine variations of two drug types manufactured by the local unit of Novartis after the Swiss pharmaceutical giant was found to have been engaged in illegal kickbacks.For six months starting in August, local customers will have to pay the full price of the nine Novartis items, including dementia drug Exelon, the Ministry of Health and Welfare said. The ministry provides a subsidy for prescription drugs to lower pa

Industry May 24, 2017

Samsung Electronics Co. is the 10th most valuable brand in the world, up one notch from last year, with its archrival Apple Inc. standing at the top of the list, US-based business magazine Forbes said on Wednesday.Samsung's brand value was estimated at $38.2 billion this year. Apple maintained No. 1 in terms of brand value with an estimate of $170 billion, up 10 percent, the magazine said. (Yonhap)Google came in second at $101.8 billion, followed by Microsoft with $87 billion, Facebook with $73.

Industry May 24, 2017

Chey Tae-won, the head of South Korea's No. 3 conglomerate SK, departed for Beijing on Wednesday, with the aim of meeting government and business leaders to help the group normalize operations in the world's second-largest economy.The trip comes as SK and other South Korean companies are facing difficulties operating in China due to diplomatic tensions between the Northeast Asian neighbors over the deployment of the US missile defense system here. SK Group head Chey Tae-won speaks to reporters a

Industry May 24, 2017