The Korea M&A Center said Thursday it has launched a patented financial service aimed to protect investors of initial coin offerings.The system named “ESC Lock” combines the escrow system used in financial markets such as e-commerce, together with ICOs, to create a model that “locks” the investments of investors and the cryptocurrency issued by ICO companies, the center explained.Recently in Vietnam, the largest ICO scam in history was recorded as some 32,000 investor

SEJONG -- South Korea's finance ministry said Thursday it has decided to levy anti-dumping duties on polyethylene terephthalate film imported from Taiwan, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates for the next three years.In January, the country's trade commission recommended the government levy stiff duties on the product, citing substantial damage to the local industry.Starting April 30, duties ranging from 3.67 percent to 60.95 percent will be slapped on synthetic resin imported from the three co

South Korea's economy rebounded 1.1 percent in the first quarter from three months earlier thanks to increased investment and exports, central bank data showed Thursday.In the January-March period, the country's gross domestic product increased 1.1 percent from the previous quarter, turning around from a 0.2 percent drop three months earlier, according to preliminary data from the Bank of Korea.From a year earlier, Asia's fourth-largest economy expanded 2.8 percent over the three-month period.&q

Korea’s unemployment problem has continued to worsen in recent years, with all other major economies seeing their job markets tightening in keeping with robust growth.According to data from Statistics Korea and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the country’s unemployment rate rose from 3.5 percent in 2014 to 3.7 percent in 2017, while the average jobless rate of 34 OECD members dropped from 7.4 percent to 5.8 percent over the same period.What should be noted

South Korea's consumer confidence dropped for five months in a row to hit a one-year low in April due mainly to a possible US-China trade row and a strengthening local currency, a central bank poll showed Wednesday.The composite consumer sentiment index for this month stood at 107.1, down 1 point from the previous month, according to the survey by the Bank of Korea.The index has been on a steady decline since touching a seven-year high of 112 in November and has reached the lowest level since Ap

Standard Chartered Bank Korea’s newly-released airline miles credit card with efficient options that can reward a user free flight tickets to destinations like Southeast Asian nations, in return for spending at least 2 million won ($1,900) each month for a year.Launched in March, the new credit card dubbed “Plus Mile” offers at most bonus 3.5 miles to fly Asiana Airlines or bonus 3 miles with Korean Air, both per 1,000 won spending.  This means those spending 2 million won

SEJONG -- Shipyard cities and surrounding areas suffered steep job losses over a one-year period from ongoing restructuring efforts, state data indicated Tuesday.Employment and job sector figures from Statistics Korea showed the number of workers in Geoje, a city in the southeastern South Gyeongsang Province that is home to major shipbuilding facilities, dropped 12,900 to 123,400 as of October 2017 from a year before. The number of workers in mining and manufacturing sectors was down 6,900 to 58

SEJONG -- A large number of female workers in South Korea worked at restaurants and food catering businesses in the second half of last year while the retail sector hired mostly male workers, a report said Tuesday.A total of 1.35 million women were hired by various eateries in the last six months of 2017, slightly more than the 1.32 million female workers in the country's retail sector, according to the report by Statistics Korea.Some 1.27 million were in the educational service business and 886

WASHINGTON -- South Korea and the United States have made progress on the final details of a revised free trade agreement before a formal signing after they agreed in principle on major issues last month, Seoul's commerce minister said Monday (local time).Paik Un-gyu, minister of trade, industry and energy, made the remark during his weeklong visit to the US, where he met with senior American policymakers and business people, including Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross and US Trade Representative R

AIA GROUP HEAD MEETS FSC CHAIRMAN -- Visiting AIA Group Chief Executive Ng Keng Hooi (left) and South Korea‘s Financial Services Commission Chairman Choi Jong-ku hold a meeting at the FSC headquarters in Seoul on Monday. The two discussed current issues regarding the life insurance industry in Korea, according to AIA Korea. (AIA Korea)

Concerns over the possibility of capital outflow amid a widening gap between interest rates in Korea and the US are being eased by the strengthening of the won against the dollar.Earlier this month, the Bank of Korea held steady its key rate at 1.5 percent despite a decision by the US Federal Reserve in March to raise its policy rate by a quarter percentage point to a range of 1.5 percent to 1.75 percent.A weakening increase in consumer prices, growing household debt and worsening conditions for

South Korea will bring together the world’s 46 manufacturers of coins, medals and banknotes this week to discuss the future of the minting industry amid the emergence of new technologies across the globe. The state-run coin and bank note manufacturer, Korea Minting and Security Printing & ID Card Operating Corp. (Komsco), will host the biannual Mint Directors Conference from Monday to Thursday, the organizers said Sunday. The upcoming event will mark the 30th of its kind and the second

The top financial regulator has called on financial affiliates of family-run business conglomerates, or chaebol, to map out plans to sell their stocks in non-financial affiliates. The remarks by Financial Services Commission Chairman Choi Jong-ku on Friday were seen as a veiled warning to Samsung Life Insurance Co., which holds an 8.27 percent stake in Samsung Electronics Co.Lawmakers proposed a bill that bans insurers from holding a more than 3 percent stake in non-financial affiliates. If the

South Korean washer exports to the United States plunged 45.4 percent on-year as safeguard measures took effect, an international traders organization here said Sunday.The data released by the Korea International Trade Association  showed outbound shipments standing at around $30 million in the first three months of 2018 compared to $55 million a year earlier.Under the safeguard measure that took effect on Feb. 7, 20 percent tariff have been slapped on the first 1.2 million imported washers