South Korea has been subjected to 187 cases of import restrictions or related investigations by foreign authorities as of end of last month, the heaviest penalty imposed by India, a local trade group said Tuesday.The restrictive measures come from 30 countries in the form of anti-dumping duties, countervailing duties, safeguards or a combination of them.Anti-dumping probes and regulations accounted for in 138 of 187 cases, with 41 safeguards and seven cases where the punitive measures were combi

South Korea's economy is showing some signs of a recovery led by a steady rise in exports, investment and an upturn in private consumption, a government report said Tuesday."As exports-led momentum boosted production and investment and private consumption bottomed out in recent months, the South Korean economy seems to present some signs of a turnaround," the finance ministry said in its monthly economy assessment report called the "Green Book."The report is based on the late

South Korea's exports increased 6.1 percent in the first 10 days of April from a year earlier on the back of brisk overseas sales of semiconductors and vehicles, customs data showed Tuesday.Total outbound shipments reached $11.2 billion during the cited period, up from $10.5 billion tallied over the same period last year, according to the data compiled by the Korea Customs Service.The increase was led by a 51.8 percent on-year gain in exports of semiconductors and a 23.2 percent surge in passeng

South Korean stocks opened nearly flat Tuesday as investors remained concerned over the rising speculation that Pyongyang may stage another nuclear test in the near future.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 1.82 points, or 0.09 percent, to 2,131.50 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Carmakers were major losers, with Hyundai Motor decreasing 1.37 percent and its autoparts arm moving down 0.9 percent. Kia Motors plunged 0.84 percent.Steelmakers, on the other hand, gained ground,

South Korea's national tax revenue continued to rise in the first two months of the year on increased value added taxes and income taxes, the finance ministry said Tuesday.The government collected a total of 46.2 trillion won ($40.4 billion) in taxes in the January-February period, up 3.6 trillion won from a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Strategy and Finance.It marked 19.1 percent of the tax revenue of 235.1 trillion won earmarked for 2017, up 0.8 percentage point higher than the sa

South Korean businesses’ profits made from intermediate trade surged significantly last year. The total net profit reached $9.46 billion, up 18.9 percent from the previous year.Net profits from intermediate trade have been increasing since several years ago, as businesses started investing heavily overseas, and had reached a record high of $14.6 billion in 2014.Popular goods for intermediate trade are smartphones, computers, television and other high value-added electronics. By 2012, overs

South Korea’s local currency fell 0.55 percent to close at 1142.2 won against the US dollar Monday, amid growing security tension on the Korean Peninsula.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index also shed 18.41 points, or 0.86 percent, to close at 2,133.32 with key blue chip losses. LG Electronics moved down 4.23 percent. Major chipmaker SK hynix shed 1.61 percent to close at 49,000 won.North Korea launched an extended range Scud on Tuesday, which US officials said exploded in the a

Foreign banks operating business in South Korea saw their net profits plummet by 39 percent in 2016 from a year earlier, with several of them leaving the country due to mounting losses, government data showed Monday.According to data from the Financial Supervisory Service, the combined net profits of 43 foreign banks here stood at 689.3 billion won ($603.5 million) last year, a 39.1 percent on-year decrease from 1.13 trillion won in 2015. Foreign banks’ net profits grew 16.6 percent on-yea

South Korea’s imports of US goods have increased sharply this year in an apparent reflection of Seoul’s efforts to reduce the trade imbalance between the two countries ahead of the release of the US Treasury Department’s latest currency report this week. According to data from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the country’s imports from the US rose 18.8 percent from a year earlier to $12.09 billion during the first quarter of the year. As a result, Korea saw its

The gap in real income and purchasing power by the higher income class and the lower income one in South Korea has further expanded due largely to a sharp growth gap in their nominal income, a report showed Monday.According to the report by the state-run Korea Development Institute, the real income of those in the lowest income bracket, or the first quintile, has grown an average 1.2 percent from 2003 to 2016, while the richest people saw their real income gain 1.9 percent on average over the sa

South Korea's bourse operator said Monday that it has toughened its penalties for tech-laden KOSDAQ firms that falsely disclose information, in a move to try to regain investor confidence. A company listed on the secondary board is designated as an "unfaithful disclosure" firm when it intentionally delays a regulatory filing or reports false information twice a year.The toughened penalties require an "unfaithful disclose" firm to pay a fine of up to 10 million won ($8,769) pe

South Korean stocks traded lower late Monday morning as investors took to the sidelines amid increased geopolitical risks.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index lost 17.98 points, or 0.84 percent, to 2,133.75 as of 11:20 a.m.Tech shares traded mixed, with Samsung Electronics rising 0.34 percent, while its smaller rival LG Electronics moved down 2.96 percent. Major chipmaker SK hynix shed 0.8 percent. Chemical firms were also losers, with industry leader LG Chem decreasing 0.88 percent.

South Korea's net exports of goods through merchanting trade jumped 18.9 percent in 2016 from a year earlier due to brisk sales of smartphones, central bank data showed Monday.The country's net exports of goods under a merchanting arrangement came to $9.46 billion in 2016, up $1.5 billion, according to data compiled by the Bank of Korea.The increase is mostly driven by brisk sales of South Korea's smartphones built in overseas plants.Profits from smartphone sales pushed up South Korea's net expo

Foreign investors remained net buyers of South Korean stocks for the fourth straight month in March, led by investors from the United States and Canada, data showed Monday. Offshore investors snapped up a net 3.29 trillion won ($2.88 billion) worth of South Korean stocks last month, according to the data by the Financial Supervisory Service.Massive foreign capital inflows into the local stock market were in part attributed to expectations about solid earnings by big companies in South Korea, wit

South Korean stocks opened lower Monday as key blue chips lost ground.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 10.96 points, or 0.51 percent, to 2,140.77 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Tech shares mostly fell, with South Korea's No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix moving down 1 percent, and LG Electronics sliding 2.12 percent. Market behemoth Samsung Electronics, on the other hand, managed to climb 0.38 percent.Mobile carriers also gave up ground, with industry leader SK Telecom down 0.59 p