[THE INVESTOR] South Koreans have declared a record amount of inheritance, gift tax last year, the National Tax Service said on July 5. According to the NTS’ report, Korean people filed a total of 2.189 trillion won (US$ 1.9 billion) in inheritance tax in 2015, a 32.5 percent increase from the previous year. A total of 5,452 people received inheritance, an increase of 13.8 percent on-year.The gift tax stood at 2.362 trillion won last year, up 25.8 percent from the previous year. A total of 98,04

With a history of 105 years, Woori Bank is the oldest among South Korea’s largest 500 companies by sales, according to CEO Score, a website devoted to monitoring local conglomerates.Among the 500, almost half were found to be more than 40 years old, while another 12 percent are over 60 years old. Combined, those aged 20 years or older accounted for 82 percent of the firms.Woori BankIn contrast, just 18 percent were “younger” companies aged 20 years or less. On average, the top 500 companies were

[THE INVESTOR] The government will intervene should external risks facing the South Korean economy be realized, Deputy Prime Minister Yoo Il-ho said on July 6.Speaking at the conference on government finances held in Seoul, Yoo said that the government will intervene if the Korean economy is hit by external factors. Finance Minister Yoo Il-ho“If external risks are realized, state finances (will be used) to overcome the crisis as it was in the past,” Yoo said. He added that concerned ministries m