Seoul stocks opened lower Wednesday following an overnight fall on Wall Street as investors remain wary of a global recession. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index declined 10.98 points, or 0.49 percent, to 2,207.7 points as of 9:15 a.m. Overnight, major indexes on Wall Street closed lower, dragged down by declines in heavyweights, such as Apple and Tesla. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 0.03 percent, the S&P 500 inched down 0.4 percent, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite r

South Korea's finance ministry said Wednesday it plans to use around 30 billion won ($23.5 million) to offer discounts on major food products in line with efforts to stabilize their prices ahead of the Lunar New Year. The government also plans to increase the supply of 16 food items with high demand ahead of the four-day holiday that starts Jan. 21, according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance. In detail, the amount of popular agricultural products, including apples and pears, released

South Korea's finance ministry said Wednesday it aims to spend at least 60 percent of the annual budget in the first half of 2023 amid the slowdown in exports and employment. "Of the expenditure plan of 638.7 trillion won ($500 billion), we will seek to spend at least 60 percent, or 383.2 trillion won, in the first half," the Ministry of Economy and Finance said in a statement. In late December, the National Assembly passed the government budget for 2023. The final package was down 314

South Korea's foreign reserves continued to expand for the second straight month in December as the weakening dollar resulted in a rise in the converted value of holdings denominated in other currencies, central bank data showed Wednesday. The country's foreign reserves came to $423.16 billion as of end-December, up $7.06 billion from the previous month, according to the data provided by the Bank of Korea. The increase came as the dollar-converted value of other currency-based assets i

Seoul stocks extended their losses to a fourth day on Tuesday on a slump in tech stocks as investors still remained wary of rate hikes in major economies and an economic slump. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. After choppy trading, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index inched down 6.99 points, or 0.31 percent, to close at 2,218.68 points. Trading volume was moderate at 403.6 million shares worth 6.03 trillion won ($4.7 billion). Losers outnumbered gainers 523 to 343. Institut

Industrial Bank of Korea Chairman Kim Sung-tae took office on Tuesday to lead the state-run bank after a recent approval from President Yoon Suk-yeol. A veteran insider, Kim has worked for IBK for over three decades since joining in 1989. At the inauguration ceremony held earlier in the day, the new chairman pledged to put his priority on supporting small- and medium-sized businesses.

Seoul stocks opened sharply lower on Tuesday as investors took to the sidelines amid growing recession woes. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index dropped 20.58 points, or 0.92 percent, to 2,205.09 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Wall Street was closed for the New Year's holiday, while major European stock markets closed more than 1 percent higher overnight on relatively sound manufacturing data. In Seoul, most heavyweights got off to a weak start. Market top cap Samsun

South Korea's electricity consumption touched a record monthly high in December as the country was gripped by a nationwide cold wave and heavy snow, the power operator said Tuesday. The country's average maximum power consumption stood at 82,716 megawatts last month, up 5.1 percent from a year earlier, according to the Korea Power Exchange. It was higher than the previous monthly record of 82,007 MW set in July last year. The December tally also marks the first time that the country�

Seoul stocks closed slightly lower in the first trading session of 2023 on institutional selling. The Korean won declined against the US dollar. After choppy trading, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index slid down 10.73 points, or 0.48 percent, to close at 2,225.67 points. Trading volume was light at about 335.7 million shares worth some 5.1 trillion won ($4.01 billion). Losers outnumbered gainers 712 to 178. After a strong start, the Kospi surrendered earlier gains as institutional i

The Bank of Korea warned Monday that the aging population could drive down the macroeconomic benefits of fiscal expenditure. According to the central bank's monthly research report, studies show that one percentage point in an increased aging population leads to a 5.9 percent drop in the fiscal growth of gross domestic product. The bank announced the figures based on overseas research which showed that the change in the population structure weakens the growth effect of fiscal expenditures.

'Half-baked' chips act needs revising, says Samsung executive-turned-lawmaker, calling it a big step back from her original proposal

Seoul stocks opened higher Monday during the first session of 2023 on retail and institutional buying. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 15.87 points, or 0.71 percent, to 2,252.27 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Major stock indices closed lower on Wall Street on Friday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 0.22 percent, the S&P 500 shed 0.35 percent, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq dipped 0.11 percent. Analysts expect the local stock market to trend lower this month amid th

1. Tough living conditions ① COVID cases The number of COVID-19 cases grew by 28.2 million this year due to the highly transmissible omicron subvariant. The figure was 635,253 on Jan. 1 but surged to 28.7 million at the end of this year. ② Inflation Fried chicken: 9.2% Gas: 36.2% Ramen: 12.6% Cooking oil: 43.3% (Nov. 2022, Year-on-year increase) South Korea has been no exception to global inflation, with “everything has risen except my salary” becoming a popular catchphrase. 2. U

The new CEO of Shinhan Bank, one of South Korea's top four lenders by net profit, vowed to put customer-centric service and digital innovation first during his tenure. “Shinhan will manage its soundness through precise data analysis and protect customer value through timely support measures,” said Han Yong-gu, former deputy president in charge of sales management at the lender, who was inaugurated as CEO on Friday. Offering supportive measures for vulnerable debtors such as ow

President Yoon Suk-yeol on Friday ordered ministries to actively consider measures further expanding tax incentives for the semiconductor sector and other national strategic industries. Yoon requested the Ministry of Economy and Finance to come up with ways to further expand tax benefits for national strategic technologies such as semiconductors as they are "our security assets and core technologies," a president office’s deputy spokesperson said. His remark came after the ruling