Korea

SEOUL: South Korea’s central bank raised its growth and inflation forecasts for this year amid signs of the economy gaining strength, which could pave the way for increasing interest rates in the future. The bank now expects South Korea’s gross domestic product to grow 3.0% in 2017, faster than its July estimate of 2.8%, Bank of Korea Gov. Lee Ju-yeol ... Read More »

SEOUL: The number of employed people in Korea reached 26.84 million in September, marking the largest monthly employment growth since May, according to data compiled by Statistics Korea on Wednesday.  The government data showed that the unemployment rate hit 3.4 percent last month, down 0.2 percentage point from a year ago. The number of newly employed also marked an increase ... Read More »

SEOUL: South Korea’s central bank is expected to keep its benchmark interest rate unchanged on Thursday, as policymakers weigh risks stemming from tensions surrounding North Korea and the possible renegotiation of Seoul’s trade pact with Washington. All 20 economists polled by Reuters said they expect the Bank of Korea (BOK) to keep its policy rate KROCRT=ECI at a record-low 1.25 ... Read More »

SEOUL: South Korea’s jobless rate increased by the widest margin among members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development(OECD) in August, largely due to an increase in youth unemployment. According to OECD data on Monday, the country’s jobless rate came to three-point-eight percent in August, up point-two percentage points from the previous month. South Korea and Austria witnessed the ... Read More »

SEOUL: South Korea’s exports to China will face pressure in the near future due to China’s industrial upgrading and its exploration of multiple import sources, although the two countries could improve economic and trade relations in the long run, experts noted. South Korea’s presence in the Chinese import market is shrinking and is likely to fall below 10 percent this ... Read More »

SEOUL: The IMF overturned a summer downgrade to forecast the USA economy would now grow by 2.2% this year, with total world growth expectations rising 0.1% to 3.6% as a “global cyclical upswing” continued. However, the Fund said the structural reforms undertaken by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government would trigger a recovery-above 8% in the medium term. In its ... Read More »

SEOUL: Slowdown in South Korea’s economic recovery is expected to cause the country’s growth rate to hover under 1 percent for the second quarter in a row, forecast data by the government, central bank and local think tanks showed Monday. According to the estimates, economic growth for the third quarter will likely be in the mid zero percent level, and ... Read More »

SEOUL: South Korea hit a historic high in exports last month, setting new records in the areas of semiconductors and steel. After previously having been dealt a blow with nearly two straight years of decline through 2016, exports have bounced back into a clear recovery this year – and the trend of increase is only getting stronger. The Ministry of ... Read More »

SEOUL: South Korea’s exports reached an all-time high in September as the trade surplus hit $13.8 billion, thanks to strong demand for semiconductors and steel. Exports, the main driver of Asia’s fourth-largest economy, rose 35 percent year-on-year in September to $55.1 billion, according to data from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The September figure marked an all-time high, ... Read More »

SEOUL: North Korea’s trade deficit reached a record high in the first half of this year, due largely to the sanctions imposed since February, a local think-tank’s report showed.  According to a report by Korea Institute for International Economic Policy, trade between North Korea and China in the first six months this year was $2.5 billion, 0.8 percentage points down ... Read More »

SEOUL: Korea Gas (Kogas) will build the country’s fifth LNG-import terminal, comprising 10 200,000 mᶾ storage tanks and infrastructure at the west coast port of Dangjin, south of Incheon, receiving the first deliveries by 2025. The project comprises 10 LNG-storage tanks, offloading and gasification infrastructure, South Korean news agency Yonhap reports. Construction will be completed by 2031. The world’s second-largest ... Read More »

SEOUL: South Korea’s consumer price growth slowed from the fastest pace in five and a half years in September as blistering summer inflation in food prices finally cooled. South Korea’s consumer price index rose 2.1 per cent year on year in September, according to Statistics Korea, down from 2.6 per cent growth in August and coming in slightly below a ... Read More »

SEOUL:  Two South Korean refiners are exporting excess cargoes of residual fuel oil to nearby China, displacing some Singaporean sales of the commodity which can be used in ships and power stations, three trade sources said. Scheduled maintenance work at S-Oil Corp’s Onsan plant in September and a fire at GS Caltex’s Yeosu refinery in August has curbed the facilities’ ... Read More »

SEOUL:  South Korean exports jumped 31.1 percent in the first 20 days of September from a year ago in U.S. dollar terms, and imports also hiked 23.9 percent, customs data showed on Thursday. Shipments to most of the major importing countries showed large increases. Exports to the United States and China rose 31.7 percent and 22.7 percent, respectively, the Korea ... Read More »

SEOUL: South Korea on Wednesday called for broadening the scope of free trade agreement (FTA) with India for boosting two-way commerce and investments. South Korean deputy minister for trade, industry and energy Young Sam Kim said that there is a need to enhance cooperation in manufacturing and infrastructure sectors. The world class technology of Korea in the manufacturing sector can ... Read More »

SEOUL: South Korea’s imports of avocados have dramatically increased in recent years, riding on the surging popularity of the fruit for its versatility in cooking and health benefits, industry data showed Tuesday. According to data compiled by the Korea Customs Service, the amount of avocados imported last year reached 2,915 tons, a sixfold surge compared to 457 tons in 2010. ... Read More »

SEOUL: Gasoline and diesel prices rose sharply in North Korea after its sixth nuclear test and as the U.N. Security Council imposed new sanctions capping fuel supply, market data analyzed by Reuters on Monday showed. The Security Council unanimously passed a resolution on Sept. 11 banning exports of condensates and natural gas liquids to the North and capping the annual ... Read More »

SEOUL: South Korea’s coal imports rose 16.2 percent to 11.41 million tonnes in August compared with a year earlier, customs data showed on Friday. Total coal imports are composed of steam coal for power generation and coking coal for steel production. Read More »

SEOUL: Exports of South Korean beauty products to Southeast Asian countries soared 31.6 percent last year, amid surging demand for skin care and makeup items, a report showed Wednesday. The outbound shipments of Korean cosmetics products to the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) reached US$406 million in 2016, compared with $308 million tallied the previous year, according to ... Read More »

SEOUL: South Korea’s national tax revenue continued to grow in the first seven months of 2017 amid a steady growth pace of Asia’s fourth-largest economy, the finance ministry said Tuesday. The government collected 168.7 trillion won ($149.2 billion) in taxes in the January-July period, up a solid 13.4 trillion won from a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Strategy ... Read More »