The increase rate of “jeonse” prices for apartments in Seoul was threefold higher than the consumer price growth rate of 27.2 percent over the past 10 years, according to the Seoul Metropolitan Government Tuesday.As of the end of October this year, the average price to lease an apartment in Seoul (paid in the form of a lump sum with a two-year guarantee) reached 377.7 million won ($331,046). The average monthly lease was 136 million won in down payment, followed by monthly payments of 896,000 wo

Finance Minister Yoo Il-ho (second from left) talks with US Ambassador to Japan Caroline Kennedy (left), US Ambassador to China Max Baucus (third from left) and US Ambassador to South Korea Mark Lippert at the government complex in Seoul on Tuesday. The meeting was arranged to discuss business cooperation between Korea and the US in the region, the ministry said. (Ministry of Strategy and Finance)

The Korea Herald is publishing a series of articles on the alarming state of the country’s economy and the challenges to be addressed. This is the fourth installment. -- Ed.

The number of unemployed South Koreans without jobs for at least six months surged by 62,000 on-year to reach 182,000 as of August, the Korea Employment Information Service said Monday.The largest share, 44 percent, were aged between 15 and 29, reflecting the widening mismatch between demands of companies and young jobseekers, the agency said.

The corporate restructuring of shipbuilders is hurting the overall number of jobs in the Korean economy, with its repercussions spreading into other industries such as electronics and information technology, government data showed Monday.According to data from the Ministry of Employment and Labor, the economy added only 292,000 jobs, or 2.4 percent of the total jobs of 12.65 million, in October from a year earlier, the slowest pace in six years since September 2010.  (123rf)The employment data i

The nominee for Deputy Prime Minister for Economy Yim Jong-yong on Monday declared a state of emergency for South Korea’s economy, and ordered the implementation of contingency measures for the financial and foreign exchange markets to guard against risks. Presiding over an emergency meeting on financial market conditions, Yim, who is designated to double as the strategy and finance minister, decried the current status of the Korean economy and financial market as being “in a crisis.”“The econom

Looming US protectionism, rate hike, China’s ‘retaliatory’ measures pose risk to debt-ridden households and exports

The uncertain future of the Korean government’s economic team is adding downside risks to the country, which is bracing for imminent headwinds.President Park Geun-hye on Wednesday hurriedly named Chairman of the Financial Services Commission Yim Jong-yong as the new deputy prime minister and finance minister, along with the appointment of a new prime minister, in an attempt to divert public anger over the Choi Soon-sil scandal. While Finance Minister Yoo Il-ho (left) presides over an economy-rel

South Koreans' overseas spending reached an all-time high in the third quarter of the year, driven by a large increase in the number of people traveling abroad, data from the central bank showed on Sunday.South Koreans spent a total of $6.59 billion in the July-September period in overseas countries, up 21.7 percent from the previous quarter and 24 percent from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by the Bank of Korea.The figure did not include spending for studying overseas.The sharp

The number of workers with irregular job status in South Korea has exceeded 6.4 million, with the income gap between them and regular employees widening, government data showed Thursday.There were a total of 19.62 million paid workers in the country as of August, up 1.6 percent from a year earlier, according to Statistics Korea.The number of irregular workers rose 2.8 percent on-year to 6.44 million, while that of regular ones climbed 1.1 percent to 13.18 million.The ratio of irregular workers i

To curb the excessive rise of real estate prices, the South Korean government Thursday released a set of anti-speculation plans that include an extended ban on the transfer of home purchasing rights in affluent areas. “The government will limit the transfer of home purchasing rights and enhance monitoring when giving prior purchasing rights to new home buyers, as well as root out illegal activities to curb speculative demand,” Finance Minister Yoo Il-ho said in an economy-related ministers’ meet

The deepening plight of many small and medium-sized companies is poised to exacerbate South Korea’s economic woes as the country’s large corporations have been struggling with slumping demand both at home and abroad.Industrial output by Asia’s fourth-largest economy fell by 2 percent from a year earlier in September, government data showed this week. A report released by the Bank of Korea on Sunday showed sales of about 574,000 local firms that close their books in the July-December period rose

The Bank of Korea warned that the country’s domestic credit is fast rising at a rate of 5.9 percent (comparative price level considered) compared to other countries. Domestic credit compared to nominal gross domestic product has continued to set new records each quarter and reached 195.7 percent as of June this year.

The snowballing scandal of Choi Soon-sil, President Park Geun-hye’s confidante, is seen spilling over to the financial industry, as eight banks submitted banking records of Choi and her aides amid allegations preferential loans might have been given to Choi and her associates. Eight commercials banks handed over transaction records and other information regarding Choi and other individuals involved in the massive corruption and manipulation of the government affairs scandal as requested by prose