South Korea's antitrust watchdog said Tuesday that it has decided to reopen its probe into local humidifier sterilizer firms as its task force found some procedural loopholes in the previous investigation regarding their failure to inform consumers of possible health hazards.In 2016, the Fair Trade Commission closed an inspection of two local humidifier sterilizer manufacturers, citing a lack of evidence, amid a ballooning toxic disinfectant scandal that has resulted in numerous deaths and illne

South Korea’s Trade Ministry said Monday that it will seek to start talks with the United States on amending the bilateral free trade deal as early as within a month, and take guard against Washington’s anticipated pressure in the auto and steel sectors.The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy submitted its Korea-US Free Trade Agreement road map to the National Assembly, wrapping up the domestic procedure that precede the actual renegotiation of the trade deal.“There is a pos

The government will set up a 1 trillion-won ($918 million) fund to restructure struggling small and medium-sized enterprises as part of its drive for "market-oriented" corporate restructuring, officials said Monday. Under the scheme, eight state-run and retail banks, including Korea Development Bank, will raise 500 billion won by the end of next February as a "mother" fund, the Financial Services Commission said in a statement.  The remaining 500 billion won will be rais

South Korea's trade ministry said Monday it will push to start talks to amend the free trade agreement with the United States within a month or so and expected Washington to engage in hardball tactics, especially in autos.The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy reported its FTA plan to the National Assembly, wrapping up the domestic procedures required for beginning the renegotiation of the five-year-old trade deal. The latest move comes as Seoul accepted US President Donald Trump's demand to

More than 1 out of 10 South Korean workers were paid below the minimum wage in 2016, with many being teenagers, elderly or female workers, government data showed Sunday. Out of 19.62 million workers, 2.66 million, or 13.6 percent, were paid below the minimum wage as of August 2016, up from 1.89 million in 2007, Statistics Korea said.The ratio of the underpaid workers stood at 4.9 percent in 2003, but the level has steadily risen to over 10 percent over the past decade, the national statistics of

South Korea's commercial banks are set to raise floating rates for mortgage loans this week in line with a benchmark money market rate hike, industry officials said Sunday.The top five banks -- KB Kookmin, Shinhan, Woori, KEB Hana and NH Nonghyup -- will reflect a rise in the Cost of Funds Index, a benchmark for variable-rate mortgages, starting from Monday.The COFIX, which is decided by the Korea Federation of Banks, has increased for three consecutive months since September on expectations of

A growing number of South Koreans were holding excessive amounts of loans compared with their income levels, raising concerns over their debt service capability, central bank data showed Sunday. One out of 10 borrowers held loans of more than their five-year income at the end of September, which means their loan-to-income ratio exceeded 500 percent, according to the data compiled by the Bank of Korea. The LTI ratio refers to the portion of outstanding loans to annual income. An increase in the r

outh Korean shares could rise next week on eased market uncertainties, analysts said Saturday.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) is expected to test 2,520 next week. The main index rose 0.73 percent for the whole of this week. The U.S. Federal Reserve marked up its key rates for the third time this year to 1.5 percent on Wednesday, although, having been expected, the move had little impact on the overall market.Political tensions between Seoul and Beijing over a U.S. mi

Moody's Investors Service has upgraded the South Korean banking system's outlook to "stable" from "negative," citing stronger economic growth and stabilizing asset quality in Asia's fourth-largest economy."The outlook change reflects our assessment that the overall creditworthiness of Korean banks will be stable over the next 12-18 months," the global ratings agency said in a report released on Friday. "Stronger economic growth in Korea has resulted in an impro

Co-founder of cryptocurrency-turned-venture capitalist urges Korea to study blockchain to remain tech leader

A Korea Customs Service official was found to have leaked a government press release announcing a package of measures aimed at curbing cryptocurrency speculation earlier this week, officials said Friday.The government launched an investigation after a draft of the press release was leaked online hours before the official announcement of regulatory measures Wednesday. The leak is believed to have impacted cryptocurrency trading. According to the Office for Government Policy Coordination, the draf

South Korea‘s cryptocurrency exchanges said Friday they will adopt self-regulatory measures to boost transparency in the highly speculative market.The Korea Blockchain Association, consisting of 14 virtual currency exchanges here, announced plans to raise the market entry barrier for operators as part of ongoing efforts to protect investors in the fluctuating market. Starting in January, the exchanges will bear responsibility to force traders to store at least 70 percent of cryptocurrency

South Korean gold prices are at their lowest in almost a year while bitcoin prices rise exponentially, but a Korean analyst on Friday rebutted claims that gold’s decline was down to the bitcoin craze.Gold was trading at 44,180 won ($40.60) per gram 10 minutes ahead of closing at 44,200 won Friday, according to an estimate by the Korea Exchange. On Wednesday, the price dipped below 44,000 won for the first time since Dec. 23, 2016. By contrast, bitcoin has skyrocketed past 20 million won, w

The trading volume of South Korea's derivatives market expanded nearly 9 percent in the first half of the year on the back of a bullish stock market, the financial regulator said Friday.The combined turnover of derivatives, such as stock options and futures, reached 20,047 trillion won ($18.4 trillion) in the January-June period, up 8.6 percent from a year earlier, according to the Financial Supervisory Service.Exchange trading jumped 11.4 percent on-year to 13,267 trillion won, while the turnov

A senior foreign ministry official will protest the European Union's recent blacklisting of South Korea as a tax haven country during a meeting in Brussels Friday, a government source said.Deputy Foreign Minister for Economic Affairs Yun Kang-hyeon left for Brussels on Thursday to attend a regular Korea-EU meeting, a ministry official told Yonhap on the condition of anonymity."It is an annual gathering that marks the 14th of its kind. But as it comes after the blacklisting decision, the iss