Amid growing concerns over worsening profits, insurance companies in South Korea said Monday they plan to roll out new services, incorporating new technologies such as big data and artificial intelligence. They also pledged more investments for the emerging technologies and startups.“Korean insurance firms will utilize new technologies, including AI, in different areas from risk assessment, to have a competitive edge in the face of the looming ‘fourth industrial revolution,’&rd

More than 30 Kospi 200 firms still have no whistleblowing policy for transparent management of their accounting control system, according to the latest report released by Samjong KPMG on Monday. The accountancy firm’s report shows that 34 of the top 200 Kospi firms, have no whistleblowing policy within their account rule books, while three others did not publicly disclose their policies through the regulatory filing. The Kospi 200 is the index tracking a basket of 200 blue chip firms liste

Spot market prices for DRAM chips are surely on a rising course as they went up for 11 straight days, industry data showed Monday, boding well for South Korean chipmakers. The spot price of 8-gigabit DDR4 DRAM, a benchmark price for the category, reached $3.34 as of last Friday, according to data from market tracker DRAMeXchange, marking the 11th consecutive day of a rise. This is the first time since October 2017 that the spot price of DRAM went up for 11 consecutive days.  The latest DRAM

The Export-Import Bank of Korea said Monday that it will extend 69 trillion won ($59.5 billion) in loans to South Korean companies this year to help boost the economy.The figures represent a 16 percent hike from 2019, according to the South Korean state-run policy lender.Under the plan, the Export-Import Bank of Korea set aside 20 trillion won for companies that make industrial materials, parts and equipment in 2020, compared with 19 trillion won in 2019.The move is the latest in a series of Sou

South Korea's exports to Canada have shot up 14 percent since the implementation of their free trade deal, data showed Monday, despite increased protectionism and the slowing economy around the globe.Outbound shipments to Canada stood at $5.6 billion in 2019, compared to $4.9 billion posted in 2014, according to the data from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The two countries implemented the bilateral FTA in January 2015 after decadelong negotiations.The combined trade between South K

South Korea said Monday it seeks to expand its outbound shipments of agricultural goods by 6.7 percent to hit $7.5 billion in 2020 by diversifying its product portfolio and penetrating deeper into emerging markets including Southeast Asia.In 2019, exports of agricultural goods reached $7 billion, compared to $6.9 billion posted a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. Last year, South Korea's overall exports slipped 10.3 percent amid growing protectionism

South Korea's exports of information and communications technology products nosedived nearly 20 percent on-year in 2019, data showed Monday, due mainly to a lengthy trade row between the United States and China and a drop in chip prices.Outbound ICT shipments totaled $176.9 billion last year, falling sharply from $220.4 billion in 2018, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The decrease was also caused by a base effect, as the country posted record-high exports in 2018.ICT exp

South Korea's finance ministry has been considering imposing a 20 percent tax on income from cryptocurrency transactions, officials said Monday. The Ministry of Economy and Finance has recently ordered its office of income tax to review a taxation plan for cryptocurrencies, according to officials. Previously, the ministry's office of property tax had reviewed the plan. The move raised speculation that the government may categorize gains from cryptocurrency trading as other income, not capital ga

The South Korean economy is expected to have fallen far short of its growth target last year, marking the slowest growth in a decade, a poll showed Monday.In a survey conducted by Yonhap Infomax, the financial news arm of Yonhap News Agency, seven local experts polled estimated Asia's fourth-largest economy to have expanded 1.89 percent from a year earlier in 2019.The Bank of Korea earlier predicted a 2 percent on-year expansion in Asia's fourth-largest economy, which would have still marked the

South Korea will focus on promoting economic cooperation this year with Russia, Mongolia and other countries located north of the Korean Peninsula in line with the diplomatic initiative of its New Northern Policy, Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said Monday. Hong made the remarks at a meeting with economy-related ministers earlier in the day. South Korea "will bolster economic cooperation with northern countries to pull off accomplishments from the New Northern Policy," Hong told the meet

South Korea ranked No. 2 on the Bloomberg Innovation Index this year, putting an abrupt halt to its six-year winning streak, government data showed Sunday.According to the Ministry of Economy and Finance, Korea scored 88.16 points this year, slipping a notch from last year, but has remained in the top three for nine consecutive years. Germany took the crown this year with a score of 88.21 points, switching places with Korea. Singapore was next, rebounding to No. 3. The annual Bloomberg Inno

D.Camp, a leading South Korean startup accelerator, said Sunday that augmented reality solution startup Qrio and health tech startup 9to6 topped its first pitching competition of 2020, held last week in Seoul. The event was organized together with InvestHK, an agency responsible for foreign direct investment in Hong Kong, and the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, a state-run trade organization.Qrio has developed a mobile AR application that helps users create their own virtual action figures

Samsung Group is expected to replace most of the chief executives at its financial units, including Samsung Life Insurance and Samsung Card, according to news reports on Sunday.According to local business daily the Korea Economic Daily, the conglomerate is scheduled to carry out its annual reshuffle of C-level executives this week, starting with its flagship Samsung Electronics and other IT affiliates on Monday.Financial units, including Samsung Securities and Samsung Card, will follow suit on T

South Korea’s stock market was tepid in 2019 and continues to face uncertainties, rankling many investors who are complaining that technology firms are being preferred for listing on the secondary Kosdaq bourse.While the stock market operator has highlighted the system as a vital foothold for new promising and innovative business players, skeptics also suggest that it provides excessive benefits to underqualified rookies.The number of companies listed on Kosdaq through the preferential pro

Fate of Shinhan, Woori, Hana chiefs to be decided Wednesday