The global TV market is expected to contract for the first time in three years in 2020 due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, a report said Wednesday. In its latest market report, Omdia, formerly IHS Markit, predicted global TV shipments to decline 8.7 percent on-year to 203.5 million units this year. The projection is down from 9.7 percent from an estimate of 225 million units made at the start of the year. Global TV shipments fell to 217 million units in 2017 from 222 million a yea

Statistics office warns of further headwinds in Q2

The Bank of Korea (BOK) may further cut its policy rate to help minimize the economic fallout from the new coronavirus pandemic, BOK minutes showed Tuesday. The central bank delivered a surprise rate cut in an emergency meeting of its monetary policy board held March 16, slashing the policy rate by a half percentage point to a new record low of 0.75 percent. "A rate cut itself may not be expected to promote consumption and investment by easing travel restrictions, but it is expected to he

Amid plunging crude oil prices, the nation’s gasoline retail prices dipped below 1,400 won ($1.15) per liter, the lowest level in a year, industry data showed Tuesday.  As of March 30, nearly 12,000 gas stations here are selling gasoline at 1,398 won per liter on average, the lowest since April last year when the South Korean government cut the fuel tax, according to the Korea National Oil Corp.’s oil information provider Opinet.  The weekly gasoline prices also continu

Lending rates on fresh loans extended by banks in South Korea continued to drop from a month earlier in February, central bank data showed Tuesday. The average interest rate on all new bank loans came to 3.08 percent in the month, down 11 basis points from 3.19 percent tallied in January, according to the data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). The rate on all outstanding loans came to 3.35 percent, down 0.03 percentage point over the cited period. The rate on fresh loans has been on a decline sin

South Korea's central bank said Tuesday that it slightly reduced the portion of US dollar-denominated assets in its overall foreign assets from a year earlier in 2019. As of end-2019, dollar-denominated holdings accounted for 69.1 percent of overall foreign assets held by the Bank of Korea (BOK), the central bank said in its annual report. The reading marks a 0.7 percentage point drop from a year earlier. "The portion of US dollar-denominated assets slightly fell due to a rise in the por

The Bank of Korea (BOK) offered $8.72 billion to banks Tuesday in its first round of dollar lending using a currency swap line with the United States Federal Reserve in a bid to stabilize the currency market. The central bank held a 30-minute online auction to provide local banks and other financial institutions with $800 million in seven-day debt and $7.92 billion in 84-day loans. Bids undershot the BOK target of $2 billion in seven-day debt and $8 billion in 84-day loans, which the central

South Korea’s regional economies have noticeably shrunk in the first quarter due to the coronavirus pandemic, with epicenters of the outbreak hit worst, a Bank of Korea report showed Monday. According to the nation’s central bank, “Regional economies of Daegu and both Gyeongsang provinces shrunk marginally in the first quarter of the year, while the Seoul metropolitan area and others also saw a contraction compared with the previous quarter.” All provinces and areas s

New home permits in South Korea fell nearly 10 percent in February from a year earlier due to a drop outside the capital region, the government said Monday. Construction permits issued for new homes stood at 37,980 units last month, down 10.1 percent from the same period a year ago, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. New home permits issued in Seoul climbed 6.5 percent on-year to 5,651 in February, and those issued in the capital area edged up 0.8 percent to 26,2

Business sentiment in South Korea plunged to an 11-year low for April, due to the growing impact of the new coronavirus outbreak on the economy, a local think tank said Monday. The business survey index (BSI) of the country's top 600 companies by sales came to 59.3 for April, the lowest since January 2009, when the index was 51, the Korea Economic Research Institute (KERI) said in a statement. A reading below 100 means pessimists outnumber optimists, while a figure above the benchmark means th

The Bank of Korea (BOK) will soon receive four new members of its seven-member monetary policy board, a change that may also lead to a shift in the central bank's future rate policies, market observers said Monday.   The four new members will replace those set to step down April 20.   The outgoing members are Koh Seung-beom, Cho Dong-chul, Shin In-seok and Lee Il-houng.   A change of more than a majority of members may signal a shift in the way the central bank operates its monet

South Korean real estate investment trusts (REITs) have been hit hard by escalating concerns over a global recession stemming from the new coronavirus outbreak, data showed Monday. Shares in Lotte Shopping Co.'s REIT, listed in October last year, finished at 4,910 won ($4.03) Friday, down 20.3 percent from the end of last year, according to the data from the Korea Exchange. NH Prime REIT, listed in December, saw its share price tumble 21.8 percent over the cited period. The trust is affiliate

South Korea's exports are expected to have edged up 1.2 percent in March from a year earlier, a poll showed Monday, but the global spread of the new coronavirus is expected to hurt outbound shipments by Asia's No. 4 economy down the road due to the global spread of the new coronavirus. The country's outbound shipments are estimated at $47.5 billion this month, according to the poll by Yonhap Infomax, the financial news arm of Yonhap News Agency. The survey was carried out on eight local brokera

SEJONG -- Government payouts for the jobless are estimated to have shot up to a historic high in March in the wake of COVID-19. The Ministry of Employment and Labor is set to make the figure public in about two weeks. A surge in the number of unemployment benefits claimants is projected for sectors including tourism, airlines, restaurants, lodging, private educational institutes and many other retail services. Among the eight major cities and nine provinces in South Korea, Daegu and Nort

South Korea announced Sunday that it will supply disaster relief funds to low-income households amid the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic. The government will send emergency aid in the form of one-time cash payments to 10 million households earning less than the median income, according to the Ministry of Finance and Economy.  The median income is the middle of the income distribution, where half the households earn more and half earn less. The median income of a four-membe