South Korea's tax office said Monday it will take steps to reduce burden on ordinary taxpayers and small and medium enterprises (SMEs) while encouraging accurate income reporting in order to boost state revenue this year.The National Tax Service (NTS) in the past few years had collected less money than planned, with the deficit for last year estimated at around 10 trillion (US$9.2 billion) to 15 trillion won. For 2015, the National Assembly Budget Office estimated the shortfall would likely reac

Oil prices edged lower in Asia on Monday as a rally late last week fizzled out, owing to lingering concerns about weak demand and a global supply glut, analysts said.US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for delivery in February eased 37 cents to $48.32 in afternoon trade and Brent crude for March fell 37 cents to $49.80.Prices rebounded Friday after the International Energy Agency said there were signs "the tide will turn" in the battered market after a recent plunge to near six-year lows.

The sharp rise in meat, dairy and public utility prices pushed up inflation perceived by ordinary people last year to more than the marginal gains tallied by the government, statistics agency said Monday.Data by Statistics Korea showed that while inflation rose 1.3 percent last year compared to 2013, prices of certain key commodities that directly impact people's everyday lives rose at a faster clip, offsetting some of the advantages of lower costs for consumers.Last year's inflation gain is unc

South Korean stocks opened higher Monday amid the rising hopes for an additional stimulus by the European Central Bank (ECB), analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) gained 21.03 points, or 1.11 percent, to 1,909.16 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Shares gathered ground across the board, with Samsung Electronics rising 1.6 percent, and top chipmaker SJ hynix advancing 0.53 percent. Samsung SDI added 1.83 percent, and LG Electronics climbed 1.32 percent.Builders a

The turnover ratio of Korean stocks decreased last year as the local equity market remained sluggish despite ample liquidity under low interest rates, the main bourse operator said Monday. The turnover ratio of stocks listed on the main KOSPI market was 198.38 percent in 2014, down 37.76 percent from a year ago, the Korea Exchange (KRX) said. Stocks changed hands twice on average last year. The corresponding ratio for shares on the tech-laden KOSDAQ market was tallied at 390.51 percent, 72.71 pe

Global investment banks (IBs) see a mid-3 percent growth rate for South Korea's economy this year, which is higher than an estimate by the country's central bank, industry data showed Monday.Average projections from 10 major IBs, led by BNP Paribas and Citibank, show South Korea's gross domestic product (GDP), the broadest measure of economic performance, growing 3.6 percent this year, according to the data. The figure is 0.1 percentage point higher than a month ago.Last year, the Korean economy

The local market for mobile advertisements is anticipated to top the 1-trillion won (US$928 million) mark in 2015, a report showed Monday, as people spend more time on smartphones compared to traditional PCs.South Korea's market for mobile advertisements is estimated to rise 27 ercent on-year to reach 1.06 trillion won this year, according to the report released by market researcher DMC Media.The market expanded 74.1 percent on-year to reach 832.9 billion won in 2014.The researcher said the grow

South Korea's producer prices posted a fifth month of decline in December as global oil prices continued to slide, falling to the lowest level in four years, central bank data showed Monday.The producer price index, a barometer of future consumer inflation, reached 103.23 in December, slumping 2 percent from the previous year, according to the preliminary data from the Bank of Korea (BOK).It marks the lowest level since 102.71 in December 2010. It also marks the fastest on-year decline since May

The interest rate for home-backed loans at South Korean lenders fell below the 3 percent threshold, industry data showed Sunday, raising concerns the trend will further stoke the country's already sizable household debt.The fixed interest rate for mortgage loans at Korea Exchange Bank, which are due to shift to a floating rate scheme three years later, sank to 2.85 percent as of Friday. The interest rate for loans due to shift five years later also dropped to 2.98 percent."Many customers can now

South Korean stocks ended 1.36 percent lower Friday as foreigners continued to offload local equities on global financial uncertainties and plunging oil prices, analysts said. The local currency gained ground against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) failed to recover to the 1,900 mark it surrendered in the morning session and closed at 1,888.13 after plummeting 26.01 points. Trading volume was low at 289 million shares worth 3.9 trillion won (US$3.62 billio