South Korea's import prices grew for the second straight month in June as oil and raw material prices remained high, central bank data showed Friday. The import price index edged up 0.5 percent in June from a month earlier, according to the preliminary data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). This marked the second straight month of on-month increase following a revised rise of 3.8 percent in May. Compared with a year earlier, the index jumped 33.6 percent, the 16th consecutive month of on-year increa

Low-income borrowers to see better loan deals, extended repayment periods

South Korea's fiscal deficit rose 22.7 trillion won ($17.4 billion) in the first five months of this year from a year ago due largely to increased government spending aimed at tackling the pandemic, data showed Thursday. The managed fiscal balance, a key gauge of fiscal health calculated on a stricter term, posted a deficit of 71.2 trillion won in the January-May period, larger than a shortfall of 48.5 trillion won a year earlier, according to the finance ministry. The larger deficit came a

Bank of Korea (BOK) Gov. Rhee Chang-yong will take part in a Group of 20 (G-20) meeting of finance ministers and top central bankers this week in Indonesia, his office said Thursday. Rhee will join the G-20 meeting scheduled to be held from Friday to Saturday in Bali, and discuss key economic and financial issues with his counterparts from advanced and key emerging economies, according to the BOK. During the meeting, Rhee and other participants are expected to discuss global inflation, resilienc

  South Korea's chief economic policymaker said Wednesday that he is gravely concerned about a possible recession after soaring inflation stabilizes. His remarks came after the Bank of Korea raised its policy rate by a half percentage point, the largest-ever increase, earlier in the day to combat high-flying inflation. "(The BOK's rate hike) will help rein in rising expected inflation down the road," Finance Minister Choo Kyung-ho said in a forum held in Jeju. "In October

Central bank makes half-point rate hike amid inflation, despite debt burden, downturn

Jeju ranks 1st, Busan bottom in employment rate in June

South Korean students studying abroad and their parents are taking the brunt of the weakening Korean won, as the home currency is hovering around the lowest level against the US dollar in 13 years. After hitting a 13-year low of 1,301.8 won against the greenback on June 23, the Korean currency further extended losses to close at 1,312.1 won Tuesday amid growing global recession fears. The sharply weaker won means soaring living costs for Korean students abroad who rely on money transfers from ho

South Korea's central bank on Wednesday delivered an unprecedented 0.5 percentage-point rate hike to fight fast-growing inflation pressure pushed up by high energy and commodity prices. The monetary policy board of the Bank of Korea (BOK) held a rate-setting meeting earlier in the day and voted to increase the benchmark seven-day repo rate from 1.75 percent to 2.25 percent, according to the central bank. This marked the BOK's first "big-step" rate hike ever and the sixth rise

South Korea reported job additions for the 16th consecutive month in June, but the pace of job growth slowed amid heightened economic uncertainty, data showed Wednesday. The number of employed people came to 28.49 million last month, up 841,000 from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. The June reading marked the largest job addition in 22 years for any June. But the pace of job growth slowed compared with May, when the country added 935,000 jobs. The statistics ag

SEJONG -- South Korea will resume construction of new nuclear reactors in the country's eastern industrial city of Uljin in the next two years, speeding up its nuclear energy drive announced earlier this month, the energy minister said in a briefing to President Yoon Suk-yeol on Tuesday. The construction of the Shin-Hanul No. 3 and No. 4 reactors in North Gyeongsang Province is set to begin as early as 2024, said Minister Lee Chang-yang, adding that about 130 billion won ($99 million) worth of

South Korea’s Finance Ministry is set to announce a legal revision bill next week that includes tax deductions on movie tickets and a raise to the tax exemption for company meal plans for middle-class workers.  Under the current tax law, the government offers a 30 percent tax cut on cultural expenses for middle-class workers whose annual salary is less than 70 million won ($53,300). Eligible workers can receive up to 1 million won in tax deductions for book purchases, museum tickets,

South Korea’s overheated housing market is showing signs of cooling down, as Seoul housing prices have inched down in recent months with persistent inflation and soaring interest rates squeezing household budgets. According to the Land Ministry on Monday, apartment prices in Apgujeong-dong, a wealthy neighborhood in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, dropped by as much as 300 million won ($230,000) in June from the previous month. A price slowdown was palpable in other affluent Seoul districts like Son

Six in 10 South Koreans planning to buy homes believe house prices will start to fall in the second half of this year, as rising interest rates will worsen repayment burdens, according to a survey by local property technology firm and listing platform Zigbang. In a survey conducted on 1,727 Zigbang app users from June 20 to July 4, 1,069 respondents (61.9 percent) said they expect the prices of houses in their neighborhood to fall, amid speculation over a sharper-than-expected rate hike the cen

Banks in South Korea will likely maintain a mitigated lending stance for households in the third quarter but credit risks for them were expected to rise amid increasing borrowing costs, a survey showed Monday. According to the poll of officials handling credit affairs at financial institutions, including 18 banks, conducted by the Bank of Korea (BOK), the index gauging bank's attitude toward home-backed loans and unsecured household lending stood at 14 and 19, respectively, for the July-Sep