Writers, consultants and public speakers, among others, will have to pay more taxes for their work starting from April, according to revised tax laws.Currently, a 4.4 percent withholding tax is applied to fees for speeches, consulting and contribution articles. The rate will rise to 6.6 percent starting from April 1, and further go up to 8.8 percent in 2019. In addition, only 70 percent of fees derived from paid speeches, books and consulting will be deemed as expenses starting from April. The p

Trade Ministry seeks to augment trade negotiating organization, Finance Ministry remains cautious citing budget

South Korea's central bank is expected to raise its key interest rate in May or July in an effort to cope with rising US rates, analysts said Wednesday.In a widely expected move, the monetary policy board of the Bank of Korea held the base rate steady at 1.5 percent, maintaining its wait-and-see stance. In November last year, the bank jacked up the borrowing cost for the first time in more than six years, citing signs of economic recovery.The decision to freeze the rate had been widely expected

A global automaker’s move that could potentially lead to a withdrawal of business here, key rates pressures, and increasing trade pressure from the United States -- these are the three major US-related hurdles weighing upon South Korea’s economy this year.In the industrial sector, GM Korea’s decision to shut down its Gunsan plant after 22 years of operation is increasingly imposing strain upon the local economy and Seoul’s government. Macroscopically, Asia’s fourth-

´South Korean brokerages’ combined yearly net profit in 2017 hit a 10-year high, mainly on the back of a stock market boom that led to an upshot in revenue from brokerage fees and trades of shares and derivatives, data showed Tuesday.The total net profit for the 55 securities firms came to 3.83 trillion won ($3.57 billion) in 2017, up 79.6 percent from a year prior, according to a preliminary set of data by the Financial Supervisory Service. The figure was the highest since 2007, whe

South Korea's central bank on Tuesday kept its key rate unchanged for the second month in a row as Asia's fourth-largest economy experiences slow growth momentum.In a widely expected move, the monetary policy board of the Bank of Korea voted to hold the key rate steady at 1.50 percent, maintaining its wait-and-see stance.In November last year, South Korea's central bank adjusted up the key rate for the first time in more than six years, citing signs of economic recovery.The decision to freeze th

Questions are being raised about the relevance of the government’s move to draw up a supplementary budget this year to cope with the country’s deteriorating unemployment problem.Critics note President Moon Jae-in’s administration is looking for an easy way to tap into taxpayers’ money to bolster employment at the risk of neutralizing fiscal disciplines.Finance Minister Kim Dong-yeon, who doubles as deputy prime minister for economic affairs, said last week that the govern

Korea's financial regulator has briefed a global anti-money laundering body on its obligations related to cryptocurrency transactions to tackle money laundering, officials said Monday.Korea's anti-money laundering guidelines for cryptocurrency trading were the first to be drawn up among members of the Financial Action Task Force, the Financial Services Commission said in a statement.At its regular meeting of 37 members in Paris last week, member states also urged the global body to improve the u

South Korean financial firms’ assets under management hit a record high of 950 trillion won ($880.9 billion) in 2017, up 4.7 percent from the previous year, data showed Sunday.The hike in the volume of professionally managed assets was driven by a surge in private funds’ increase in property investment, as well as increased capital for discretionary investment in domestic shares and overseas bonds, according to preliminary data from the Financial Supervisory Service.Despite the recor

Distributed ledgers like the blockchain system are increasingly setting a new standard for paperwork-free global banking in various financial areas, such as the management of a cash pool for currency exchanges or payments, as well as trade finance. Spearheading the trend to minimize and possibly eliminate the manual business process in interbank transactions is a technology called “smart contract,” through which records of direct transactions between parties can be protected on a dec

South Korea saw its real household income rise in the fourth quarter last year from a year ago, ending eight consecutive quarters of decline, data by Statistics Korea showed.An average monthly income of a household reached 4.45 million won ($4,130) in the fourth quarter, up a nominal 3.1 percent from the previous year.The inflation-adjusted real income also surged 1.6 percent on-year. The real income had been on a decline since the last quarter of 2015.Households’ income through wages rose

South Korea's economy needs critical growth momentum to mount a sustainable expansion going forward, the country's chief economic policymaker said Wednesday, stressing that innovative growth is crucial in that context.In a speech to businessmen, Finance Minister Kim Dong-yeon said Asia's fourth-largest economy is at a crossroads. "Last year, our economy achieved 3 percent economic growth, and what should be done at the moment is to create critical momentum (for our economy)," Kim said.

After enjoying a prosperous 2017, South Korea’s financial players are now facing a challenging year ahead, amid escalating competition in the digital financing sector, government pressure on household debt control and incoming financial consumer law.Hana Financial Group, the nation’s third-largest banking group in assets, is determined to hold ground and prolong its uptrend by maximizing the synergy between its banking and non-banking businesses.It is also planning to expand financia

Korea Inc. is being squeezed between growing risks from its two largest trading partners and a raft of anti-business policies pushed by President Moon Jae-in’s administration.The country’s manufacturing exporters have faced mounting protectionism in the US and intensifying competition with their Chinese rivals both in traditional and high-tech sectors.Under recommendations made last week by the US Department of Commerce to President Donald Trump, steelmakers from Korea and 11 other c

South Korea's commerce minister on Wednesday called on General Motors Co. to submit a feasible long-term investment plan and improve its opaque management style to restructure its operations here following its decision to shutter one of its car production plants.The Detroit-based automaker said last week that its Gunsan factory in the southwest will be closed by May, citing its low output. The decision unnerved policymakers because such a step could lead to massive layoffs that would not be in t