South Korea's consumer prices rose at the fastest clip in nearly 24 years in June due mainly to soaring energy costs, data showed Tuesday, fanning expectations of a sharp rate hike this month. Consumer prices soared 6 percent last month from a year earlier, accelerating from a 5.4 percent on-year spike in May, according to the data from Statistics Korea. It marked the sharpest inflation rate since a 6.8 percent jump in November 1998, when South Korea was in the midst of the 1997-98 Asian fi

South Korean stocks dipped for a fourth consecutive day to hit a fresh 20-month low Monday as investors worry the US Federal Reserve's move to curb inflation may trigger a deeper-than-expected economic recession. The local currency inched up against the US dollar. After choppy trading, the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 5.08 points, or 0.22 percent, to close at 2,300.34, the lowest since 2,300.16 on Nov. 2, 2020. The index dipped to an intraday low of 2,276.63 points. Tradin

SEJONG -- The Yoon Suk-yeol administration is considering revising the law on foreign exchange transactions for the first time since it was legislated 23 years ago, officials said Monday, drawing market eyes to whether the government would be granted the authority to impose financial sanctions on overseas traders “independently.” Under the current law, the Korean government is only entitled to apply sanctions in accordance with the international community’s joint moves toward

South Korea’s key stock index plummeted to a fresh low for the year in morning trade on Monday as recession fears grew ahead of the Bank of Korea’s rate-setting meeting scheduled next week. The benchmark Kospi opened 0.23 percent higher from the previous closing at 2,310.73, but soon fell below the 2,300-mark to hit a new low of 2,288.92 in morning trade. Kospi has plummeted some 22 percent since end-2021 -- when the index stood at 2,977.65 – as of end-June, weighed down by

The Finance Ministry said Monday that the government would respond to any signs of economic weakness before it turns into a crisis by closely tracking indicators pointing to a worsening outlook, like inflation or recession, ahead of the Bank of Korea’s rate hike next week. The country’s five economic chiefs -- the finance minister, President Yoon Suk-yeol’s economic adviser and three separate chiefs from the central bank, top financial policymaker and financial watchdog -

South Korea's sole icebreaker kicked off its 13th Arctic mission Monday to conduct research on clues about climate change in the North Pole, a local polar research institute said. The Araon left the western port of Incheon for a 92-day mission to study the causes of abnormal weather conditions there and the impact of global warming on its ecosystem, the Korea Polar Research Institute said. It is the Araon's first Arctic mission in three years, which had been delayed in the wake of the

South Korea's electricity demand touched a fresh all-time high in June as the country was struck by an early heat wave, data showed Monday. The country's maximum power demand averaged 71,805 megawatts (MW) last month, up 4.3 percent from a year earlier and marking the highest tally for any June, according to the data from the Korea Power Exchange. June also represented the first time the figure has surpassed the 70,000-MW level for the month. The power exchange said unusually hot weath

South Korean stocks opened marginally higher Monday, tracking a US rebound last week as investors closely watch the US Federal Reserve's next move to curb inflation. The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 9.92 points, or 0.43 percent, to 2,315.34 in the first 15 minutes of choppy trading. Major US indexes on Friday (US time) reversed their earlier losses to end higher, as investors speculated whether weaker-than-expected economic indicators would prod the Fed to slow down on its

Business leaders of South Korea and Japan called Monday for the leaders of the two countries to hold a summit at an early date to address pending bilateral issues and help restore economic ties. The Federation of Korean Industries (FKI) and the Japan Business Federation, or Keidanren -- major business lobbies in the two countries -- made the joint call during their annual meeting that was resumed after a nearly three-year hiatus caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. "We must upgrade the declara

South Korea's finance minister, the central bank chief and financial regulators said Monday they will step up policy coordination to minimize fallout from rising interest rates at home and abroad. In a meeting presided over by Finance Minister Choo Kyung-ho, they discussed economic and financial situations amid heightened external economic uncertainty from the prolonged war between Russia and Ukraine, and the Federal Reserve's aggressive monetary policy tightening. The meeting brought

Finance Minister Choo Kyung-ho said Sunday that he would help Korean companies sell more goods overseas by offering more loans at a time when Korea’s exports snapped 15 months of double-digit growth in June, stocking recession worries. The trade deficit in January-June this year reached $10.3 billion, the highest level ever recorded in the first six months of a year, despite record-high exports in the same period, as soaring energy prices offset the export gains. “I am not quite su

The average daily trading volume of retail investors on the main board Kospi in June dropped to its lowest level since February 2020, data from the Korea Exchange showed Sunday. The fall comes as investors are bracing for a growth slowdown from the US Federal Reserve’s rate hikes. The value of shares investors bought and sold in a day on average on the benchmark index reached 4.3 trillion won ($3.3 billion) last month. That is a little more than 3.7 trillion won recorded in February 2020

Financial authorities said Friday they will take a series of measures from next week to ease volatility in stock markets, as the nation's benchmark stock index sank to a 20-month low due to fears of an economic recession.    From next Monday, brokerage firms will be exempted from an obligation to hold at least 140 percent of the value of each stock purchase, to provide credit to their customers, the Financial Services Commission (FSC) said in a statement.    The exemption

SEJONG -- South Korea posted a record-high trade deficit during the first half of 2022 in the wake of a spike in import prices of raw materials, state data showed Friday. According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the nation’s exports recorded $350.3 billion during the January-June period, up 15.6 percent compared to the corresponding period of 2021. Imports increased by 26.2 percent on-year to post $360.6 billion. This brought about a trade deficit of $10.3 billion, which

South Korea’s three internet-only banks so far amassed 30 million combined users