South Korea's consumer prices are projected to rise 1 percent next year before further recovering to a 1.3-percent on-year increase the following year, the Bank of Korea said Wednesday.The central bank said it will maintain its monetary easing policy, noting the estimates still fall short of its long-term inflation target of 2 percent."In the January-November period of this year, consumer prices rose 0.4 percent from the same period last year, far below the inflation target," it said i

South Korea is not facing any immediate danger of deflation, with the country's inflation rate expected to accelerate from next year, albeit at a mild pace, the head of the central bank has said."It is true that there now exist concerns of deflation as the country's consumer price increase has greatly slowed while its inflationary expectation also dropped," Bank of Korea Gov.Lee Ju-yeol said in a meeting with reporters late Tuesday."I fully understand the concerns about continued

The ratio of home transactions worth over 900 million won ($7,700) in South Korea topped 4.4 percent in 2019. It is the first time the proportion has crossed the 4 percent mark, and is the highest level since 2006, according to data by property market information provider Zigbang on Wednesday.The data includes individual houses, multiplexes, townhouses and apartments. Residences priced over 900 million won and 1.4 billion won marked 2.7 percent, while those over 1.4 billion won came to 1.7 perce

Housing prices are widely expected to soar despite the stringent regulations enforced by the South Korean government, according to market analysts Tuesday.The government in a surprise move recently unveiled new measures to curb rising home prices, which push for tighter mortgage rules.A report released by local brokerage Mirae Asset Daewoo warned local investors that if the new measures fail to rein in soaring housing prices, even stronger measures are likely to be adopted next year. It recommen

‘Latest real estate regulations are necessary for market stability in long term’

South Korea's household income rose in 2018 from a year earlier, and the income gap between the haves and have-nots narrowed, as employment situations of the low-income bracket improved amid efforts to bridge the income gap, a government report showed Tuesday. The average household earned 58.28 million won ($49,688) last year, up 2.1 percent from the previous year, according to the report by Statistics Korea.The report showed household income earned through wages rose 3.9 percent on-year to an a

South Korean companies continued to suffer heavy setbacks in their sales and profits in the third quarter, central bank data showed Tuesday, apparently due to a sharp decline in exports and slowing demand at home.The average sales of local companies plunged 2.8 percent from a year earlier in the three months that ended Sept. 30, according to the data from the Bank of Korea.It compares with a 1.1-percent on-year dip in the second quarter. The BOK did not provide any specific reason for the drop,

South Korea's annual trade volume exceeded the $1 trillion mark for a third consecutive year on Monday despite growing protectionism around the globe, the trade ministry said.Accordingly, South Korea is anticipated to remain as the ninth-largest player in terms of trade for the seventh consecutive year, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The annual trade volume first hovered above the mark in 2011, but the country failed to attain the threshold in 2015 and 2016 amid global

Finance minister says home owners should be blocked from ‘unearned income whatsoever’

Park Chong-ho, the new minister for the state-run Korea Forest Service, vowed to drive “innovative and people-centered” forest policies in his inauguration last week, the organization said Monday. During the ceremony held Friday in Daejeon, Park emphasized the importance of all people benefiting from the full value of forests.After briefly introducing the nations’ forest policies, ranging from forest welfare to tackling fine dust pollution, over the last 10 years, Park emphasiz

Although the overall jobs market is showing signs of improvement, the number of men in their 30s, 40s and 50s who have jobs has been on a constant decline, data from Statistics Korea showed. The employment ratio that has reflected the drop in population is also on a decline, it said.The number of employed men in the age groups dropped for a 28th consecutive month in November, the longest duration of the decline since the agency began collecting relevant data.The jobs situation for men aged 30-59

One-person families will likely become the most common household type in all South Korean cities and provinces in the next 30 years amid the country's low birthrate and rapidly aging population, data showed Monday. Households consisting of a single member are forecast to account for 37.3 percent of all family units in 2047, far outnumbering families of married couples with children, according to the data by Statistics Korea.The percentage of those living alone stood at 27.2 percent in 2015 and r

SEJONG -- The sluggish domestic economy and a spike in statutory minimum wage in South Korea in recent years have dealt a severe blow to the self-employed. Most have been forced to close shop or have been saddled with huge debts amid cutthroat competition, but they are getting back on their feet by starting new microbusinesses, although not very successfully.This reflects the tough job market here, as self-employment is still considered the most viable option for many people to make a living.Acc

South Korea set aside more state budget funds for next year to fight animal diseases, the agricultural ministry said Monday, after the deadly African swine fever hit local pig farms in northern areas this year.The National Assembly approved the budget proposal of 371.4 billion won ($315 million) for efforts to tackle a variety of animal diseases, which marks a 20 percent rise from 308 billion won allocated for this year, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs.The increa

About 36 percent of one-person households earn less than 2 million won per month, data from Statistics Korea showed last week.One-person households, which take up one-third of all households in South Korea, tended to show low satisfaction in their type of residence with only 23.3 percent answering they were content, compared to 30.8 percent of those in multiple-households that said the same.The Seoul Institute, a research center, said that while 1 in 3 households in the country were one-person h