South Korea has postponed its decision on the possible adjustment of electricity fees for the third quarter, the state-run Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) said Monday. KEPCO had planned to announce the government's decision Tuesday, a day after being informed by the government on electricity rates for the July-September period. But the government put off the decision, as "discussions among ministries concerned are still under way," KEPCO said in a release. KEPCO earlier called

South Korea is ready to take appropriate action in response to any one-sided movements in the local foreign exchange market, the country's top financial policymaker said Monday in his latest remark apparently aimed at easing growing market anxiety amid the US' aggressive monetary tightening and worries over global recession. "Relevant authorities will take action in an appropriate manner in case that there is a one-side movement in the market due to anxiety," Finance Minister

Samsung Electronics Co. said Monday it has reached a tentative deal to provide a high-end LED signage system to Inspire Entertainment Resort, an integrated resort under development by U.S. casino operator Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment (MGE), set to open next year in Incheon, 40 kilometers west of Seoul. Samsung said it has signed a memorandum of understanding with Inspire Integrated Resort Co., an Incheon-based MGE affiliate, and digital signage service company Hyundai Futurenet Co., to build t

South Korean insurance companies' loans to households grew at a slower pace in the first quarter of this year from three months earlier due to tougher lending rules, data showed Monday. Insurers' outstanding loans to households totaled 128.8 trillion won ($99.77 billion) as of the end of March, up 300 billion won from the previous quarter, according to the data from the Financial Supervisory Service. The figure was down from the on-quarter rise of 800 billion won in the fourth quarter of last ye

A top financial regulator on Monday urged banks to beef up their loss-absorbing capabilities and make efforts for better management of foreign liquidity amid rising uncertainty at home and abroad from global monetary tightening and a possible economic recession. Lee Bok-hyun, chief of the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS), made the remark in his first meeting in Seoul with chiefs of major banks after taking office earlier this month. "Current economic conditions are showing signs of a com

LG Chem Ltd. said Monday it is building a hydrogen plant in South Korea to produce clean fuel for use in its key petrochemical processing in line with its long-term low carbon emission goals. The hydrogen plant, to be located in its Daesan complex, about 75 kilometers southwest of Seoul, will have an annual capacity of 50,000 tons by the second quarter of 2024, with the construction to start in the first half of 2023, the chemical company said in a release. It will be LG Chem's first plant

South Korea plans to expand fuel tax cuts in July as part of efforts to ease inflationary pressure from surging energy costs, the finance minister said Sunday. The government will expand tax cuts on fuel consumption to a legal cap of 37 percent from the current 30 percent, according to Finance Minister Choo Kyung-ho. The measure will be effective until the end of this year. South Korea is facing mounting inflationary pressure, as the protracted Russia-Ukraine war has jacked up crude oil and comm

The government has been considering expanding fuel tax cuts, as part of efforts to ease inflation pressure that has been building up amid surging energy prices, according to officials at the finance ministry Saturday. The government has been mulling expanding fuel tax cuts from the current 30 percent to a legal cap of 37 percent, according to ministry officials. Finance Minister Choo Kyung-ho plans to preside over an emergency meeting with economy-related ministers Sunday, when the expansion

SEJONG -- South Korea far outstripped the average of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development in the ratio of inheritance and gift tax revenues to gross domestic product, a local think tank said Friday. In a report, the Korea Economic Research Institute said Korea posted 0.5 percent in the ratio of revenue from inheritance and gift tax to GDP, which placed the nation at No. 3 among the OECD members as of 2020. While the institute said the level was higher by 0.3 percentage poi

South Korea's overseas direct investment more than doubled on-year in the first quarter of this year amid an economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, the finance ministry said Friday. The value of investments made overseas by South Korean companies reached $25.4 billion in the January-March period, up from $11.34 billion a year earlier, according to the data by the Ministry of Economy and Finance. The net amount went up nearly threefold to $21.5 billion in the first quarter from the pr

SEJONG -- The South Korean economy is at the risk of losing steam as deteriorating external economic conditions are feared to dent investment and export growth amid high inflation, the finance ministry said Friday. Market volatility and global economic downside risks further expanded due to the Federal Reserve's accelerating monetary tightening and global supply chain disruptions, the ministry said in its monthly economic assessment report, called the Green Book. "Amid a continued buil

Fears over rapid inflation and sluggish growth are gripping South Korea, with indicators pointing to a gloomy outlook and authorities conceding that Asia’s fourth-largest economy is facing a “full-blown crisis.” The Finance Ministry on Thursday revised up its inflation forecast for this year to 4.7 percent from 2.2 percent, with the estimate surpassing 4 percent for the first time in 11 years. Import prices jumped 36.3 percent in May from the same period a year ago on soaring

Finance Ministry cuts 2022 GDP growth target to 2.6%

South Korea's national debt surpassed the 1,000 trillion won ($781.07 billion) mark for the first time ever amid the government's expansionary fiscal spending to support the economic recovery, data showed Thursday. The total government debt hit an all-time high of 1,001 trillion won as of end-April, up by 19.1 trillion won from a month earlier, according to the data compiled by the finance ministry. The managed fiscal balance, a key gauge of fiscal health, posted a deficit of 37.9 trillion won

South Korea will keep close tabs on the financial market following the Federal Reserve's overnight rate hike decision as worries are growing over heightening volatility from the US' aggressive monetary tightening, the country's top financial policymaker said Thursday. On Wednesday (US time), the Fed decided to hike its interest rate by 0.75 percentage point in the latest move to tighten monetary policy and tame soaring inflation. It marked the first such steep rate increase since November 1994.