South Korea will continue to look into suspicious real estate transactions by foreigners as a recent investigation found increasing illegalities involving foreigners' home purchases, the land ministry said Friday. The portion of suspicious home purchases by foreigners rose to 1.21 percent, or 6,772 cases, out of the country's total 560,000 suspicious cases this year through September, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said in a statement. The portion is already higher

The Bank of Korea will hold its rate-setting meeting a total of eight times in 2023, with the year's first gathering of monetary policymakers set for Jan. 13, the central bank said Friday. The meeting will also be held Feb. 23, April 13, May 25, July 13, Aug. 24, Oct. 19 and Nov. 30, according to the schedule uploaded on the website of the BOK. The BOK's rate-setting meeting draws keen attention as it determines the level of its key policy rate that serves as a benchmark for market rat

South Korean stocks opened lower Friday, weighed by lackluster earnings and forecasts from major US tech companies, with uncertainties hanging over the Federal Reserve's next move for monetary policy. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index slipped 3.7 points, or 0.16 percent, to 2,285.08 in the first 15 minutes of trading. US stocks ended mixed Thursday amid mixed economic data and earnings reports that included downbeat forecasts by big tech companies, including Meta Platforms, Fa

The South Korean economy grew at its slowest pace in a year in the third quarter despite beating market expectations, as poor net exports offset consumption and investment, the Bank of Korea’s advance estimate showed Thursday. The country’s gross domestic product -- the value of all goods and services created -- grew 0.3 percent in July-September from the previous quarter, slowing from a 0.7 percent gain in April-June. Annually, the economic output posted a 3.1 percent increase in Ju

SEJONG -- Negative growth in the nation’s home prices expanded during the third quarter, compared to the previous quarter, in the wake of rapid rate hikes, the Korea Development Institute said Thursday. The state-run think tank, in its recent report, predicted the decline in home prices will continue through the first half of next year. But it raised a possibility of a different phase starting from the second half of 2023. It said the average trading price of homes in the Greater Seoul a

South Korean stocks got off to a strong start Thursday, buoyed by gains in blue chip battery and automakers, bucking overnight drops on Wall Street. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 22.38 points, or 0.99 percent, to 2,271.94 in the first 20 minutes of trading. The US S&P and Nasdaq finished lower Wednesday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average closing a tad higher, largely dampened by weaker earnings reports by major tech firms, including Microsoft and Alphabet. In Seoul

Annual ADB meeting to kick off in Songdo in May

South Korea is well positioned to fight off any economic shock because it maintains “strong economic fundamentals and ample buffers,” a senior official at the International Monetary Fund said Tuesday, amid growing recession worries prompted by surging borrowing costs seen globally to corral inflation. Krishna Srinivasan, director of the Washington-based lender’s Asia and Pacific department, said that the country’s current account surplus and net foreign assets -- which ac

South Korean stocks opened nearly unchanged on Wednesday amid expectations that the US Federal Reserve may ease up on its hawkish interest rate hikes. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 1.14 points, or 0.05 percent, to 2,236.21 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Softer data on home price growth and consumer confidence, released Tuesday, renewed speculation that the Fed could start scaling down the rate hikes after its November monetary policy meeting set for next week. In Seou

When stock and crypto markets were hot and borrowing costs were cheap, many younger South Koreans, who typically had strong risk appetite but little capital to invest, dabbled in leveraged investing, known as “bittoo” in Korean. Many of these young investors had dreamed of getting rich quick and retiring young to become a new member of “FIRE tribe” -- the acronym standing for financially independent, retire early. But many are now suffering, as markets have tanked and int

South Korean stocks closed little changed Tuesday from the previous session, as investors took a breather ahead of earnings reports to be released by major companies later this week, amid worries over global inflation and US monetary tightening. After bobbing in and out of positive territory, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index slipped 1.09 points, or 0.05 percent, to 2,235.07. Trading volume was moderate at 448.8 million shares worth 6.92 trillion won ($4.82 billion) with decliners

South Korean authorities are trying to contain a possible liquidity crunch from an overheated real estate project financing market, with Legoland Korea’s debt payment default rising adding to perceived risk levels. The total value of loans extended for the purpose of real estate project financing has rapidly grown, but the central bank’s aggressive rate hikes have increased borrowers’ debt repayment burdens. The rising costs of raw materials added to the worries. Finance Mini

The Export-Import Bank of Korea (Eximbank) kicked off its 26th Economic Development Cooperation Fund Annual Workshop on Tuesday, in which 14 government officials from 14 different developing countries are participating. The EDCF Annual Workshop is hosted by Eximbank to introduce development officers from developing countries to Korea’s Economic Development Cooperation Fund. The fund was created in 1987 as part of the South Korean government’s official development assistance initiativ

South Korean stocks opened higher Tuesday, as investors await quarterly earnings reports from major companies this week, including tech giant Samsung Electronics Co., amid worries over global inflation and monetary tightening. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 7.74 points, or 0.35 percent, to 2,243.90 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Top companies are set to release their third-quarter earnings later this week. The results will likely offer investors a clue as to how they a

South Korea's inflation expectations edged up on-month in October amid the Bank of Korea's aggressive rate hikes to bring price growth under control, a central bank survey showed Tuesday. Ordinary people expected consumer prices will grow 4.3 percent over the next one year, up 0.1 percentage point from 4.2 percent polled the previous month, according to the poll conducted by the BOK. This represented the first on-month rise in three months. Those polled cited possibly rising public fee