Korea trade volume sees sharp drop among OECD members

South Korea’s exports in July dropped by the fourth-largest amount among the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's member countries, hit by China's sputtering economy, while its imports showed the sharpest fall among them, data showed Sunday. Korea’s export volume in July dropped by 15.5 percent on-year, according to data compiled by the OECD. The drop was the fourth largest among the 38 OECD countries excluding Colombia, whose data has not been added yet.

Sept. 24, 2023

FSS issues advisories to fisheries cooperatives federation for W50b investment loss

The Financial Supervisory Service, South Korea's primary financial regulatory body, has issued management advisories to the National Federation of Fisheries Cooperatives after losing approximately 50.1 billion won ($37.5 million) it poured into an alternative high-yield overseas investment, as revealed by industry sources on Sunday. The NFFC is the umbrella organization for regional fishers' cooperatives throughout the country. It advocates for fishers and provides financial and insura

Sept. 24, 2023

S. Korean firms urge US to clarify 'foreign entity of concern'

South Korean companies have asked the United States to clarify from which foreign companies they are not required to import critical electric vehicle battery minerals under the US Inflation Reduction Act, industry sources said Sunday. Senior executives of South Korean battery and material companies made the request to US Deputy Secretary of Commerce Don Graves during a closed-door meeting in Seoul on Friday. The executives who attended the meeting were from South Korea's three leading car b

Sept. 24, 2023

Finance Minister Choo warns of 'higher for longer' rates

Financial Minister Choo Kyung-ho said Thursday high interest rates could persist for longer than expected in response to the US Federal Reserve’s decision to hold its policy rates steady earlier in the day. The US Federal Open Market Committee kept its policy rates unchanged at 5.25-5.5 percent, maintaining the rate gap between South Korea and the US at up to 2 percentage points. The Bank of Korea’s current base rate stands at 3.5 percent. “The FOMC decision shows high rates co

Sept. 21, 2023

Exports up 9.8% during first 20 days of September

South Korea's exports moved up 9.8 percent on-year in the first 20 days of September due to a higher number of working days, but shipments of chips and petroleum products remained sluggish, data showed Thursday. The country's outbound shipments reached $36 billion in the Sept. 1-20 period, compared with $32.7 billion tallied a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service. Imports fell 1.5 percent on-year to $36.4 billion during the period, resulting in a trade def

Sept. 21, 2023

S. Korea to closely monitor economic uncertainties, including US rates

Finance Minister Choo Kyung-ho said Thursday the government will closely monitor rising global economic uncertainties, after the US central bank decided to hold its key rates overnight. The US Federal Reserve on Wednesday announced the decision to hold the rate steady between 5.25 percent and 5.50 percent. It raised the rate by a quarter percentage point to the current level in July. "As shown in the recent FOMC meeting, the possibility over the protracted high interest rates have moved up

Sept. 21, 2023

Foreign virtual assets worth W131tr unveiled

Virtual assets accounted for more than two-thirds of the value held in registered overseas accounts this year, a report by the National Tax Service showed Wednesday, after it added them to the list of assets subject to mandatory registration. Some 130.8 trillion won ($98.3 billion) in virtual asset holdings were recorded out of 186.4 trillion won in the total registered external financial assets. Tax residents or corporations in Korea with foreign financial accounts are required to file a report

Sept. 20, 2023

Producer prices up 0.9% in Aug. amid higher oil prices

South Korea's producer prices expanded 0.9 percent on-month in August on the back of higher global oil prices, the central bank said Wednesday. The producer price index, a major barometer of consumer inflation, came to 121.16 last month, up from 120.08 tallied in July, according to the data from the Bank of Korea. From a year earlier, it rose 1 percent. It marked the sharpest on-month growth since a 1.6 percent rise tallied in April 2022. Producer prices are one of the key indicators that d

Sept. 20, 2023

S. Korea's 2023 tax revenue estimate revised down to 341.4 tr won

South Korea's finance ministry said Monday it has revised down its annual tax revenue estimate to 341.4 trillion won ($256.7 billion), mainly due to weak corporate earnings and a slump in the property market. The latest revision is down 59.1 trillion won from its previous outlook of 400.5 trillion won, according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance. To tackle the decline in tax revenue, the government also unveiled plans to utilize surplus resources, including those from the foreign excha

Sept. 18, 2023

Imports of Japanese seafood dip for fifth month in Aug.

South Korean imports of Japanese seafood fell for the fifth consecutive month in August on concerns over Japan's release of treated radioactive water, government data showed Monday. Seoul imported $7.81 million worth of fishery products from the neighboring country last month, down 34.8 percent from a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service. August posted the largest on-year decline this year, and last month's import value was the smallest monthly figure in t

Sept. 18, 2023

Indonesia-Korea collaborative platform to empower farmers

A business collaboration platform that will bridge 62 million Indonesian farmers to Korean scientists and global investors has been launched to support them in garnering cutting-edge skills like meta farming and carbon trading, as the two countries work to champion sustainability in the digital economy. The Green Digital Economy Platform (GDEP), spearheaded by HumanX, a global partnership promoting human-centered technology, was officially unveiled on Friday under the endorsement of Indonesi

Sept. 17, 2023

S. Korean economic growth estimated at 1.4% for 2023: S&P economist

South Korea's economy is expected to grow 1.4 percent this year, with the country's central bank anticipated to lower its key rate twice in 2024, an economist at S&P Global Ratings said Sunday. The growth forecast by Rajiv Biswas, the chief economist of Asia-Pacific at S&P Global Market Intelligence, comes in line with the South Korean government's projection made in July. Biswas attributed South Korea's sluggish economic growth in 2023 to the Bank of Korea's agg

Sept. 17, 2023

Ukrainian leader seeks South Korea's reconstruction assistance in nuclear energy, resources, defense industry

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has requested South Korea's cooperation in nuclear power, resource development and the defense industry as part of reconstruction efforts of the war-ravaged country, Seoul officials said Saturday. A delegation of government officials and business representatives who visited Kyiv this week to discuss South Korea's potential involvement in reconstruction projects, estimated to be worth around 1,200 trillion won (US$902 billion), returned home Saturd

Sept. 16, 2023

S. Korea's economic slowdown to ease on improving exports: finance ministry

South Korea's economic slowdown appears to be gradually easing on signs of a recovery in exports, the finance ministry said Friday, although volatility in global raw material prices is a threat. "The economic slowdown has seen some relief due to the improving trend in exports, including semiconductors, along with the recovery in consumer sentiment and employment," the Ministry of Economy and Finance said in a report. The country's exports fell for the 11th consecutive month i

Sept. 15, 2023

Inflation set to ease in Oct. amid oil price woes: finance minister

South Korea's inflation is anticipated to begin slowing down next month amid lingering woes over soaring oil prices, the top economic policymaker said Friday. "This year, the country's consumer prices are continuing on a path of decline," Finance Minister Choo Kyung-ho said during a government meeting ahead of the Chuseok holiday. He said the country still needs to be vigilant as risks, including higher global crude prices, linger. The Dubai crude price, South Korea's be

Sept. 15, 2023

S. Korea becomes EU’s 7th-largest source of imports: KITA

South Korea has risen to become the European Union's seventh-largest source of imports in the first four months of this year, eclipsing Japan and Russia for the first time, according to the Korea International Trade Association on Thursday. The value of the EU's imports from Korea climbed 10.7 percent on-year from January to April while the European trade bloc’s total imports dropped 8.6 percent during the same period, a report released by KITA showed. Its imports from Korea in t

Sept. 14, 2023

FTC chief vows strict scrutiny over platform monopolies

SEJONG -- Fair Trade Commission Chairman Han Ki-jeong on Thursday vowed that the antitrust regulator will continuously make efforts to promote fair and innovative competition in the fast-evolving digital market, while closely monitoring platform monopolization. “As the paradigm shift to the digital economy is expected to proceed rapidly, we’ll strive to establish institutional foundations for the digital market,” Han said in a press conference held at the Sejong Government Comp

Sept. 14, 2023

[Contribution] The beginning of 50 more years with Indonesia

By Woo Tae-hee Indonesia, a large economy with a population of 270 million people and an average age of 29, has impressively sustained an annual growth rate exceeding 5 percent in recent years. In 2018, Standard Chartered projected that Indonesia would become the world’s fourth-largest economy by 2030. Moreover, Indonesia is a nation endowed with abundant natural resources. Notably, the recent surge in the electric vehicle market has generated a huge demand for nickel, of which Indon

Sept. 13, 2023

S. Korea, Africa bolster ties for growth

Economy-related public officials from South Korea and Africa gathered in Busan to attend the 7th Korea-Africa Economic Cooperation (KOAFEC) Ministerial Conference, discussing ways to bolster the economic cooperation between two entities and explore new business opportunities. The event, organized by the African Development Bank Group (AfDB), South Korea’s Ministry of Economy and Finance and the Export-Import Bank of Korea, kicked off on Tuesday in the southern port city of Busan. The four-

Sept. 13, 2023

Import prices up by most in 17 months in August on higher oil prices

South Korea's import prices spiked by the most in 17 months last month due to the higher price of crude oil, central bank data showed Wednesday. The import price index rose 4.4 percent in August from a month earlier, following a 0.2 percent fall the previous month, according to the preliminary data from the Bank of Korea. The rise marks the sharpest since March last year, when the comparable figure was 7.6 percent. From a year earlier, the prices fell 9 percent. Import prices are a major fa

Sept. 13, 2023