South Korean banks are likely to tighten their grip on fresh loans in the third quarter of the year amid tougher lending rules and rising household credit risks due to the coronavirus pandemic, a central bank poll showed Monday. The Bank of Korea said its index measuring the banks' attitude toward fresh lending stood at minus 3 for the July-September period, compared with 7 for the previous quarter. The lower the reading, the more likely banks will tighten their restrictions on lending. A read

SsangYong Motor Co. said Monday its employees began to take unpaid leave in rotation as part of self-help measures. Last month, SsangYong workers agreed to the company's offer of two-year rotational unpaid leave for 4,700 employees, an extension of a cut in wages and suspended welfare benefits until June 2023. In the first year through June 2022, 50 percent of assembly line workers in the Pyeongtaek plant, 70 kilometers south of Seoul, and 30 percent of office workers will take turns going on

South Korea's exports rose 14.1 percent on-year in the first 10 days of July on the back of robust demand for chips, autos and petroleum products, customs data showed Monday. The country's outbound shipments stood at $15.1 billion in the July 1-10 period, compared with $13.2 billion a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service. The country's exports are set to extend their gains to the ninth straight month in July if the current pace continues. Overseas shipments, which

South Korean stocks opened higher Monday as investors sought to buy oversold stocks after the benchmark index took a breather the previous session. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) rose 22.86 points, or 0.71 percent, to 3,240.81 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Stocks came to a strong start after the Kospi retreated 2.64 percent in the past three sessions amid rising concerns over the fourth wave of the pandemic in the country. Market kingpin Samsung Electroni

Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki has said it is not easy for the government to increase the size of an extra budget currently under review at parliament as politicians made the request amid the fourth wave of the pandemic. In late June, the government proposed an extra budget of 33 trillion won ($28.7 billion) to fund another round of COVID-19 aid packages for people in the bottom 80 percent income bracket and small merchants hit hard by the pandemic. But politicians raised the need to increase th

Imported electric vehicle sales jumped 65 percent in the first half compared with a year earlier despite an extended COVID-19 pandemic, industry data showed Monday. From January to June, the number of imported EV registrations jumped to 14,295 units from 8,681 in the year-ago period, according to the Korea Automobile Importers and Distributors Association and Carisyou Data Lab. Imported EVs accounted for 54 percent of the country's overall EV sales of 26,632 units in the first six months, the

Foreign investors unloaded about 500 billion won ($436 million) worth of South Korean stocks in June to remain net sellers for the second consecutive month, data showed Monday. Offshore investors' net selling of local stocks came to 499 billion won last month, according to the data from the Financial Supervisory Service. As of end-June, foreign investors held 842.3 trillion won worth of local listed stocks, accounting for 29.9 percent of the stock market capitalization. The data also showed f

Korean fresh food delivery platform Market Kurly has changed the venue for its planned public debut from the US to the Korean market, as recently relaxed listing regulations and market conditions now give them firm reasons to stay home. After exploring options of floating its shares in the US or at home, Market Kurly decided to go for the Korean stock market, it said Friday. “We appreciate domestic customers, producers and suppliers and would like to share the success of the company,&

Early retirement without later life preparation, saturated job market push post-Korean War generation to brink of elderly poverty

South Korea’s finance chief said Sunday he had proposed to set tax rates on excess profits of big multinationals at 20 percent in a discussion with his G-20 counterparts over the latest global tax reform. 　 Global financial leaders have reached a consensus on imposing taxes on companies with rates between 20 percent and 30 percent of the profit they generate in different countries beyond a 10 percent baseline. Finance Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Hong Nam-ki pitched the lowest 20 p

President Moon Jae-in has invested 50 million won ($43,700) into major funds intended to support the government’s New Deal project since January this year. About six months later, the funds have drawn more than a 5 percent average return combined, data showed Sunday. According to financial market tracker FN Guide, the five New Deal funds operated by local asset management firms have generated a 5.26 percent return on average as of Thursday. The president, who made his investment on Jan. 1

New orders won by South Korean shipbuilders hit a 13-year high in the first half of the year amid signs of a modest recovery in global trade from the COVID-19 pandemic, data showed Sunday. Korean shipbuilders led by Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. won new orders worth $26.7 billion that amounted to 10.88 million compensated gross tons (CGTs) in the January-June, according to the data provided by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. Compared with a year ago, new orders skyrocketed 724 per

South Korean manufacturers' business sentiment soared to a two-year high, largely buoyed by optimism about a fast rebound of the tech industry, data showed Sunday. The business survey index (BSI), compiled based on a survey of 1,034 manufacturers, showed an overall market forecast of 97 for the April-June period, the Korea Institute for Industrial Economics and Trade (KIET) said. The corresponding number for sales stood at 100. A BSI larger than 100 means that optimists outnumber pessimists.

Top economic policymakers of South Korea and the United States have held talks over bilateral economic cooperation and global issues, the finance ministry said Saturday.    Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen held the meeting in Venice, Italy, on Friday (local time) on the sidelines of the Group of 20 (G-20) meeting of top finance and economic officials, according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance.    They shared the need for efforts to sw

South Korean stocks are likely to face increased volatility next week as hopes for strong corporate earnings square off against escalating virus woes.    The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) closed at 3,217.95 points on Friday, down 1.94 percent from a week ago.    The key stock index started this week with gains, thanks to upbeat outlook for corporate earnings in the April-June period.    But stock prices plunged in the last three sessions,