South Korea's consumer prices grew more than 3 percent for the fifth straight month in February as energy costs spiked amid the Ukraine crisis, data showed Friday. The consumer prices rose 3.7 percent on-year last month, compared with a 3.6 percent on-year gain in January, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. The country's consumer inflation has grown more than 3 percent since October last year. Inflation growth stayed above 2 percent -- the central bank's inflation target over

South Korea's foreign reserves expanded for the first time in four months in February thanks to a rise in dollar-converted value of holdings and other investment profits, central bank data showed Friday. The country's foreign reserves stood at $461.8 billion as of end-February, up $240 million from the previous month, according to the data provided by the Bank of Korea (BOK). This marked the first on-month growth following three previous months of declines in foreign reserves. The February rise

South Korean stocks extended their winning streak to a fourth straight session Thursday, as US Federal Reserve chairman signaled a rate hike within market expectations amid soaring global commodity prices. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) added 43.56 points, or 1.61 percent, to close at 2,747.08 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 607 million shares worth some 10.5 trillion won ($8.7 billion), with gainers outnumbering lo

SEJONG -- Vice Finance Minister Lee Eog-weon said Thursday the Ukraine-Russia conflict could have a “long-term” negative effect on the South Korean economy, and that the extent of coming impacts is unpredictable at the current stage. During a task force meeting in Seoul, Lee said the uncertainty from the geopolitical risk has expanded in the wake of the Russian invasion of Ukraine and as the international community continues to pile on sanctions against Russia. “It has gradua

The number of regulatory disclosure rule violations by firms in South Korea more than halved in 2021 from a year earlier amid stepped-up efforts to protect investors from misleading or false information, data showed Thursday. According to the data from the Financial Supervisory Service, there were 87 cases of regulatory filing rule violations last year, which involved a total of 73 listed and unlisted firms. The figure was sharply down from 193 violations a year earlier and marked the lowest sin

Online shopping in South Korea rose 11.5 percent in January from a year earlier, with the proportion of transactions via mobile devices reaching a record high, amid the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic, data showed Thursday. The value of online shopping transactions stood at 16.54 trillion won ($13.74 billion) in January, compared with 14.84 trillion won recorded a year earlier, according to the data from Statistics Korea. But the figure marked a 7.1 percent fall from the previous month when the figu

South Korean banks' mortgage rates hit the highest level in about 10 years in January amid rising borrowing costs, central bank data showed Thursday. Banks' mortgage loan rate averaged 3.85 percent per year in January, 0.22 percentage point higher from a month earlier, according to the data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). It also marked the eighth consecutive month of on-month increase and the highest since April 2013. Mortgage rates have been on the rise as the BOK has hiked its policy rate in re

Nearly seven in 10 South Koreans saw their income fall in the wake of COVID-19, a survey showed Thursday. In the online survey of 2,016 people aged 18 or above by the Korea Institute of Public Administration from Nov. 15-22, 68 percent said their average monthly income was lower in 2021 than in 2019 before the pandemic struck. Only 30 percent said their income rose, while the remaining 2 percent said it remains unchanged. Those who earned less lost 1.25 million won ($1,038) per month on average,

Mobile phones, cars and other consumer goods are not subject to the United States' sweeping restrictions on exports to Russia, South Korea's trade ministry said Thursday. Last week, the US government announced the Foreign Direct Product Rule (FDPR) for "all of Russia" as part of its export controls to block Russia's access to global high-tech products and other major items, such as semiconductors, over the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The measure calls on companies to receive a license

South Korean stocks opened steeply higher Thursday, as US Federal Reserve chairman signaled a rate hike within market expectations amid soaring global commodity prices. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) rose 25.41 points, or 0.94 percent, to trade at 2,728.93 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Stocks rose after the overnight Wall Street stock rallies, after Fed Chair Jerome Powell on Wednesday said rates would likely be hiked by only 25 basis points this month, although he

South Korea's central bank maintained its earlier 2021 economic growth estimate Thursday but slightly increased its estimate for the fourth quarter, citing larger-than-expected exports. South Korea's economy grew 4 percent in 2021 after expanding 1.2 percent in the October-December period, according to preliminary data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). The 2021 growth rate remained unchanged from the BOK's earlier estimate on Jan. 25, but the fourth quarter figure was slightly higher than a projec

Exports to Russia obliged to undergo approval from US

South Korean stocks advanced for a third consecutive session Wednesday amid continued military tensions in Ukraine and hopes a full-scale war may be avoided. The Korean won rose against the U.S. dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) edged up 4.34 points, or 0.16 percent, to close at 2,703.52 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 519 million shares worth some 10.8 trillion won ($8.9 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 645 to 228. Foreigners offloaded a net

South Korean asset managers have started suspending the issue and redemption of shares on their Russia-exposed funds as the US and its allies continued to ramp up economic sanctions against Moscow. According to market tracker FnGuide on Wednesday, nine Russia-exposed equity funds, including an exchange-traded fund, with a combined asset of 158.7 billion won ($131.6 million), are being sold by Korean financial institutions. The nine funds have already disappointed investors since the beginning o

South Koreans' use of internet banking services soared 18 percent on-year in 2021 as customers preferred non-contact services amid the coronavirus pandemic, central bank data showed Monday. The daily use of online banking services, including mobile banking, reached 17.32 million cases last year, up from 14.68 million a year earlier, according to the data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). Mobile banking use came to 14.36 million instances per day, up 22.9 percent from a year earlier and accounting fo