Targets adding 100,000 foreign nationals to workforce with eased visa rules

South Korea's industry ministry on Thursday asked shipping firms to consider delivering freights through alternative routes amid lingering tensions in the Red Sea. The remark came after Iran-backed Houthi militants in Yemen have been attacking commercial vessels in one of the world's most important waterways. "Amid the continued geopolitical risks in the Red Sea, we have requested shippers to proactively consider detouring, as the safety of our vessels and export products come as

Seoul shares opened lower Thursday, following an overnight slump in US stocks, after the latest Fed minutes indicated interest rates will remain at high levels for some time. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 10.97 points, or 0.42 percent, to 2,596.34 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.8 percent to 37,430.19, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq declined 1.2 percent to 14,592.21. Fed minutes from its December meeting indicated rates cou

The total amount in year-end tax settlements submitted by employees of foreign nationality in South Korea reached a record high of 1.19 trillion won ($910 million) last year, the National Tax Service said Wednesday. All wage-earning workers of foreign nationality here, except for day laborers, are required to file their year-end tax settlements, as are those of Korean nationality. Foreign national taxpayers who submitted year-end tax settlements for income attributable to the year 2022 totaled 5

South Korean stocks dropped by more than 2 percent Wednesday as investors sought to cash in recent gains ahead of the release of the Federal Reserve's latest minutes. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index lost 62.50 points, or 2.34 percent, to close at 2,607.31, ending its four-day winning streak. Trade volume was moderate at 455.9 million shares worth 9.99 trillion won ($7.65 billion), with losers outpacing winners 610 to 279. Foreigners

Seoul shares opened lower Wednesday after a mixed close on Wall Street as investors await the release of the Federal Reserve's minutes for clues on the US central bank's future rate plans. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 31.05 points, or 1.2 percent, to 2,638.76 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average inched up 0.07 percent to 37,715.04, but the tech-heavy Nasdaq fell 1.6 percent to 14,765.94. The Fed's latest minutes ar

Seoul shares closed higher Tuesday, the first trading day of the year, helped by tech gains and an improving global appetite for risky assets. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 14.53 points, or 0.55 percent, to close at 2,669.8, extending its winning streak to a fourth day. Trade volume was moderate at 404.2 million shares worth 9.5 trillion won ($7.3 billion), with decliners outpacing gainers 449 to 436. Institutions and foreigners b

President Yoon Suk Yeol (center) attends the opening ceremony of the nation’s first stock trading day of the year at the Korean Stock Exchange in Seoul on Tuesday, becoming the first Korean president to do so. From left are Seo Yoo-seok, chairman of the Korea Financial Investment Association; Rep. Yu Eui-dong from the ruling People Power Party; Sohn Byung-doo, chairman of the Korea Exchange; Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok; Financial Services Commission Chairman Kim Joo-hyun; and Lee Bok-

Korean Air Co. said Tuesday its flights connecting Incheon and Japan's western prefecture of Ishikawa have been delayed after a major earthquake struck off Japan's west coast the previous day. According to the company, flight KE775 from Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul, to Komatsu Airport in Ishikawa was delayed by around 2 1/2 hours in the morning following the previous day's 7.6 magnitude quake. The returning KE776 flight was also subsequently delayed by two hours to

Foreign investors snapped up investments in Samsung Electronics last year, net buying more than 16 trillion won ($12.31 billion) worth of shares, buoyed by the expectations of a recovery of the global chip industry. In 2023, foreign investors scooped up a net 16.73 trillion won of shares in Samsung Electronics, the largest amount since related data was compiled from 1999, according to the nation’s sole bourse operator Korea Exchange. It also marked a turnaround from their net selling stanc

South Korea's exports decreased 7.4 percent on-year in 2023 amid the sluggish performance of chips coupled with global economic uncertainties, industry ministry data showed Monday. Outbound shipments stood at US$632.6 billion last year, according to data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. Imports decreased 12.1 percent on-year to $642.7 billion in 2023, resulting in a trade deficit of $9.97 billion. The industry ministry attributed the sluggish exports in 2023 to the gl

South Korea's economy is forecast to grow an average 2 percent next year, as it is expected to struggle with weak domestic demand in spite of a gradual recovery in exports, according to reports Sunday. The average outlooks by 20 local and international think tanks are largely in line with the 2.1 percent growth forecast recently announced by the Bank of Korea but lower than the government's 2.4 percent projection announced in July. The state-run Korea Development Institute and the Kore

South Korea is set to implement a minimum 15 percent corporate tax scheme for multinational firms next year, in line with a global deal to reduce tax competition between countries and prevent large multilateral businesses from dodging taxes, according to Seoul's finance ministry Sunday. The planned implementation came as South Korea enacted the new rules through the passage by the National Assembly, which call for the minimum corporate tax rate for multinational corporations with more than

The Bank of Korea said Friday it sold a net $3.5 billion in the third-quarter of this year to help ease the decline of the local currency against the US dollar. The third-quarter dollar selling marks the ninth straight quarter of dollar selling for market-smoothing operations since the third quarter of 2021, according to the central bank. The third-quarter dollar selling marks a fall from the previous quarter's $5.97 billion. (Yonhap)

The cost of ordering food by delivery in December rose by about 4 percent on-year, higher than the on-year rise in the cost of daily necessities at 3.9 percent, data showed Friday. According to a report released by Statistics Korea, this month’s delivery cost showed a 4.3 percent increase from the figure in November 2022. The figure also marks an increase of 0.4 percent from November this year. The report was based on a monthly survey of eateries across the country from November 2022 thr