Despite early virus containment, excessive optimism on recovery of export-driven economy still dangerous, experts say

South Korea's finance ministry said Wednesday it will sharply increase the size of the nation's aid package for coronavirus-hit companies and job protection. The aid package will rise to 135 trillion ($109 billion) won from 100 trillion won, which had been set previously, to supply more liquidity into companies hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ministry of Economy and Finance said in a statement. Of the additional 35 trillion won, 20 trillion won will be used to buy more corporate bonds and 1

South Korea said Wednesday it will spare no effort to support local petroleum firms hit hard by the new coronavirus outbreak coupled with plunging oil prices. Under the support measures, local refiners will be given discounts in rental fees at state-run reserve facilities, and they will be allowed to delay their payment of commissions for product quality tests, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy. "South Korea will continue making efforts to help the companies cushio

South Korea has expressed its intention to support global efforts to maintain global food supply chains amid the new coronavirus pandemic, the agriculture ministry said Wednesday. Agricultural Minister Kim Hyeon-soo participated in a videoconference of the G-20 agricultural ministers a day earlier to discuss the global response against the COVID-19 pandemic in the food segment, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. During the meeting, South Korea called for the glo

South Korea's producer prices fell 0.8 percent from a month earlier in March due to tumbling international oil prices, central bank data showed Wednesday. The producer price index for all commodities and services came to 102.89 last month, compared with 103.74 in February, according to preliminary data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). From the same month a year earlier, the figure marked a 0.5 percent decrease. Producer prices serve as a key barometer of future inflation. South Korea's consumer

Credit card loans in South Korea surged nearly 26 percent on-year in March as cash-strapped people rushed to borrow from card firms amid a prolonged coronavirus outbreak, industry data showed Wednesday. New loans extended by seven credit card firms -- Shinhan, KB Kookmin, Woori, Hana, Samsung, Hyundai and Lotte -- came to 4.3 trillion won ($3.5 billion) last month, up 25.6 percent from a year earlier. The figure compares with annualized increases of 1.6 percent in January and 16.6 percent in

Overseas branches of South Korean insurance firms saw their combined net profit triple from a year earlier to $69.9 million in 2019, data showed Tuesday. The figure accounted for 2 percent of the combined net profit of 10 insurance firms operating in South Korea last year, according to the data by the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). The hike in net profit came on the back of life insurance firms' increased profit in the Asian region and a decrease in insurance claims from typhoons, hur

With global oil prices tanking, South Korea’s exports and its key industries are projected to face more hurdles, according to market watchers Tuesday.  The price of US crude oil plummeted from $18 a barrel to minus $38 within hours early Tuesday, as oil producers ran out of space to store the oversupply created by the ongoing pandemic. It rebounded into positive territory, above $1, around noon, but onlookers expect risks to linger for the time being. This has been spurring concer

The coronavirus pandemic could have a negative impact on births and marriages this year and is feared to accelerate population decline in South Korea, a senior finance ministry official said Tuesday. Vice Finance Minister Kim Yong-beom said in a meeting on the nation's population policy that the coronavirus outbreak has reshaped people's everyday lives, prompting people to work from home and students to take online classes. "There are worries that shocks from COVID-19 could have a negati

The Bank of Korea (BOK) delivered an additional $2.12 billion to local banks Tuesday under a currency swap deal with its US counterpart in a bid to stabilize the local foreign exchange market. The BOK held its fourth online auction to provide up to $4 billion in six-day debt and 84-day loans to commercial banks and state lenders. Bids undershot the central bank target of $3.5 billion in 84-day loans and $500 million in seven-day loans. No bids were placed for the six-day loans, the BOK said,

South Korea‘s finance ministry said Tuesday it will continue to supply sufficient foreign-exchange liquidity to exporters and importers hit by the coronavirus pandemic. Vice Finance Minister Kim Yong-beom made the remarks at a meeting with senior executives from major exporters and importers earlier in the day, the ministry said in a statement. Kim told the meeting that the global economy is expected to take a big hit by “unprecedented large-scale shocks” from the pandemic

The issuance of derivatives-linked securities (DLS) in South Korea plummeted in the first quarter of the year amid uncertainties over the new coronavirus, data showed Tuesday. In the January-March period, sales of DLS amounted to 5.3 trillion won ($4.3 billion), down 31.7 percent from the previous quarter, according to the data from the Korea Securities Depository (KSD). The reading also marks a 17.5 percent fall from a year ago. DLS tracks the performance of interest rates, currency values

Oil prices plunged below zero as demand for energy breaks down amid COVID-19 pandemic and the supply glut leads to the lack of storage for crude

South Korea's exports sank 27 percent on year in the first 20 days of April amid the shock from the coronavirus pandemic, customs data showed Tuesday. The nation's outbound shipments dropped 26.9 percent in the April 1-20 period to $21.7 billion, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service. The daily average exports during the 20-day period also slipped 16.8 percent on-year. The data came amid growing concerns that the coronavirus pandemic is denting exports by Asia's fourth-largest

Foreign currency deposits at banks in South Korea posted the biggest gain in 16 months in March on corporate preference for dollars amid the coronavirus crisis, data showed Monday. Outstanding foreign currency deposits at banks here reached $75.29 billion as of end-March, up $6.78 billion from a month before, according to the data from the Bank of Korea. It marks the largest on-month increase since the $6.94 billion rise recorded in November 2018. The figure covers deposits held by South Ko