South Korea's exports rose 30.7 percent on-year in the first 10 days of September on the back of robust demand for petroleum products and autos, customs data showed Monday. The country's outbound shipments stood at $19.5 billion in the Sept. 1-10 period, compared with $14.9 billion a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service. Imports soared 60.6 percent on-year to $21 billion, resulting in a trade deficit of $1.46 billion during the cited period, the data showed. By sect

Amid the climate change response actions underway in South Korea, the nation’s state-run companies dedicated to fossil fuel energy resources are barely hanging on. The Korea Resources Corp., or Kores, merged into the newly established Mine Reclamation Corp., called Mireco, under new rules that took effect Friday. The birth of Mireco was foretold in 2018, when a task force within the Energy Ministry recommended that the debt-saddled Kores be restructured. Kores, considered a major culpri

Tour product sales via internet show signs of rebound

Koh Seung-beom, the new chairman of the policymaking Financial Services Commission, met with the heads of South Korea’s five biggest banking groups on Friday to discuss whether to further put off loan repayment schedules for households and companies reeling from the fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic. No conclusion has been reached yet, but Koh and the group executives agreed on the importance of inclusive financial policies to boost “cooperation between economic players for mutual

The total loan extended to Koreans in their 20s and 30s to pay their “jeonse” rents more than doubled since President Moon Jae-in took office in 2017, data showed Thursday, reflecting the reality of young people ditching hopes to buy homes, and rent instead. Jeonse is a rental system where the tenant hands over a large lump sum to the landlord -- on average, about 65 percent of the value of the property – for usually two years and does not pay rent. The deposit is returned to

South Korea has placed an excessive tax burden on members of its top income bracket in recent years, a think tank said Wednesday, suggesting that this could cause an exodus of wealthy Koreans. The income tax rate on annual earnings exceeding 1 billion won ($858,400) rose twice in the last five years to the current 45 percent, a report from the Korea Economic Research Institute showed. In 2017, the year President Moon Jae-in took office, the rate increased to 42 percent from 40 percent. It was

The average rent for semibasement apartments in Seoul on two-year “jeonse” leases topped a record 100 million won ($85,900) this year, suggesting low-income households in the city are facing heavier financial burdens, data showed Wednesday. Jeonse, a two-year housing lease that requires a lump sum deposit, for semibasement apartments measuring 60 square meters or smaller in the capital city came in at an average of 104.4 million won as of end-August, according to the Land Ministry d

Daily card spending in South Korea rose 8.4 percent in the first half from a year earlier, supported by increased online purchases amid the pandemic, central bank data showed Wednesday. Holders of credit and debit cards spent an average 2.7 trillion won ($2.3 billion) per day in the January-June period, compared with 2.5 trillion won the previous year, according to the data by the Bank of Korea (BOK). Credit card spending rose 10.2 percent on-year to a daily average of 2.1 trillion won, led by

South Korean banks' household loans grew at a slower pace in August from the previous month due largely to slowed growth in overdrafts for stock investments, central bank data showed Wednesday. Outstanding bank loans to local households came to 1,046.3 trillion won ($898 billion) as of end-August, up 6.2 trillion won from the previous month, according to the data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). The August reading slowed from a 9.7 trillion won on-month increase in July, the data showed. The BOK

South Korea's central bank is expected to raise its interest rate in November to cope with concerns over a financial imbalance, a report said Wednesday. "The Bank of Korea is likely to raise its benchmark rate to 1 percent from 0.75 percent at its Nov. 25 policy meeting in consideration of worries about a financial imbalance related to an economic recovery, rising inflation and the hot housing market," Woori Finance Research Institute said in the report on the local financial market.

South Korea's exports of industrial materials, parts and equipment set a new record in the first seven months of 2021, data showed Wednesday, on the back of the country's efforts to beef up competitiveness of the key industrial sectors amid the prolonged trade row with Japan. Outbound shipments from the sectors came to $203.2 billion in the January-July period, up 23.3 percent on-year, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. Imports also moved up 25.5 perc

Global credit appraiser Fitch Ratings said Tuesday that it would maintain South Korea’s credit rating and keep the economic growth projection positive, citing economic resilience, despite the latest wave of the pandemic hitting the country. During a webinar on assessing regional outlooks, Jeremy Zook, director at Fitch Ratings, expected the credit rating for Asia’s fourth-largest economy to remain intact from its July projection of AA-, the fourth-highest level of the agency’s

South Korea's 10 financial holding firms saw their combined net profit jump 50.3 percent in the first half due mainly to higher interest income, data showed Tuesday. The combined net profit of KB Financial, Shinhan Financial and eight other financial holding firms stood at 11.47 trillion won ($9.9 billion) in the January-June period, compared with a profit of 7.63 trillion won for the same period last year, according to the data from the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). The FSS attributed

South Korea's economy is under pressure over growing headwinds as a recent spike in COVID-19 infections is likely to delay a recovery of domestic consumption, a state-run think tank said Tuesday. The nation's economy is on a recovery track amid robust exports, but the toughest virus curbs, in effect due to the fourth wave of the pandemic, may dampen improving domestic demand, according to a monthly economic assessment report by the Korea Development Institute (KDI). "Our economy has recen

South Korea's current account surplus slightly narrowed in July due to reduced trade surplus, although exports maintained strong growth, central bank data showed Tuesday. The current account surplus reached $8.21 billion in July, narrowing from a surplus of $8.85 billion the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK). The current account is the broadest measure of cross-border trade. Since the country logged a deficit of $3.33 billion in April last year, the largest in almost a decad