The Korean government will put up nearly 1 trillion won ($769 million) in a bid to encourage young people who are not in education, employment or training, known as NEET youth, to encourage them to return to the labor market. On the back of a strong job market, the employment rate of young Koreans aged 15 to 29 stood at 46.6 percent in October. Yet more than 414,000 people, or 4.9 percent of the age group, were found not to have actively sought jobs during the first nine months of this year, acc

Economy Nov. 15, 2023

South Korea's import prices climbed for a fourth consecutive month following the devaluation of the Korean won, central bank data showed Wednesday. Export prices rose as well in the period. The import price index for October stood at 140.38, rising 0.5 percent from the month before. The figure has been advancing for four straight months since July, according to preliminary data from the Bank of Korea. Yet, compared to the same month last year when international oil prices surged, the figure

Economy Nov. 14, 2023

The Upbit D Conference, a leading blockchain event hosted by Dunamu, operator of the country's largest crypto exchange Upbit, took place Monday, sharing ideas on how to expand the blockchain industry. Under the slogan “All That Blockchain,” the event invited some 40 experts from 29 countries as speakers to discuss related trends, policies, finance and content involving blockchain. “As the blockchain industry evolves, the UDC continues to grow,” Song Chi-hyung, chai

Industry Nov. 13, 2023

Non-financial entities, including export companies, will be allowed to make transactions through forex aggregators, a service which has until now been limited to financial firms, according to an announcement from the Finance Ministry on Friday. The reform comes as part of the proposed revision to the Foreign Exchange Transactions Act, part of the Korean government's effort to make the local forex market meet the "global standards." Under the reform, forex aggregators will provid

Market Nov. 10, 2023

South Korea's commercial real estate market retreated in the third quarter as foreign investments declined due to high pricing, according to a report from market tracker MSCI Real Assets on Thursday. Local commercial real estate transactions in the third quarter stood at $4.6 billion, marking a 34 percent decrease on-year, the report showed. Though South Korea was the top country in the Asia-Pacific region in terms of transaction volume in the previous quarter, it fell to the third-larges

Market Nov. 10, 2023

The state-run Korea Development Institute brought down the economic growth forecast for 2024 to 2.2 percent and 1.4 percent in 2023, slashing 0.1 percentage point each from the previous projections made in August, citing slowed growth of private consumption stemming from high rates. The local economy will show a gradual recovery backed by exports next year, yet the pace will be limited due to the slowdown in the domestic consumption growth, following persistently high rates. Korea's gross d

Economy Nov. 9, 2023

South Korea has been removed from the US Treasury Department’s list of trading partners that it closely monitors for unfair foreign exchange practices, according to the department’s announcement Tuesday. It is the first time since 2016 for Korea to be pulled from the list. In its biannual report to the US Congress, the US Treasury placed six economies on its "monitoring list" -- China, Germany, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore and Taiwan -- and removed South Korea and Switzer

Economy Nov. 8, 2023

Korean tourists' total spending on overseas group tours posted the sharpest increase last month in 13 years, according to Statistics Korea on Tuesday, mainly due to rises in accommodation and flight costs. Consumer prices for overseas group tours in October showed a 15.9 percent increase from the same month last year, data from the Korean Statistical Information Service showed. Although the figure has been on a constant rise in recent months, advancing from 5.7 percent in August to 12.6 per

Industry Nov. 7, 2023

South Korean commercial banks are considering loan syndication for the Polish government to finance a weapons purchase deal worth 30 trillion won ($23.1 billion) with Korean arms companies, as state-run banks hit their loan limit for the contract. South Korea's Ministry of Defense on Monday held a meeting with officials from five top local banks -- KB Kookmin, Shinhan, Hana, Woori and NongHyup -- to discuss providing loans to the Polish government for an arms export deal, according to sou

Industry Nov. 6, 2023

South Korea and Indonesia, marking the 50th anniversary of diplomatic ties this year, are seeking to further extend their economic cooperation in key areas from electric mobility and infrastructure to finance, as both countries are eager to nurture future growth drivers. Over the past five decades, the two countries have enhanced their economic and business partnership. The trade volume has surged from $185 million in 1973 to $26 billion in 2022, with Indonesia becoming Korea’s 11th-larges

Economy Nov. 5, 2023

The US Federal Reserve’s second consecutive decision to maintain its key rate has lifted some of the weight off the Bank of Korea, which has been in a standstill amid rising economic uncertainties. The Federal Open Market Committee on Wednesday decided to hold the rate steady between 5.25 percent and 5.5 percent, continuing a rate freeze from September. "With the FOMC’s decision meeting market expectations, the global financial market remained calm in the early morning,"

Economy Nov. 2, 2023

South Korea's exports are showing signs of recovery, as the country’s outbound shipments in October rose on-year for the first time in 13 months. The country’s exports in October stood at $55.09 billion, a 5.1 percent increase from the same month last year. Imports declined by 9.7 percent to $53.5 billion, resulting in a trade surplus, according to preliminary data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and Korea Customs Service. Daily trade volume, taking into c

Economy Nov. 1, 2023

Hahn & Co., one of the largest private equity firms in Korea, announced Tuesday it had signed a definitive agreement with SKC, a semiconductor material arm under SK Group, to acquire its fine ceramics business for 360 billion won ($267 million). The company said SKC is a major player in the semiconductor industry with its fine ceramics business producing high-purity quartz and silicon carbide consumable materials crucial for manufacturing advanced chips. “SKC’s fine ceramics busi

Companies Oct. 31, 2023

Mirae Asset Global Investments is making its foray into China’s exchange-traded fund market, becoming the first Korean asset management firm to do so. The Global X Hang Seng Tech ETF, operated by the asset manager’s ETF arm in Hong Kong, will be set up for trading on China’s Shanghai Stock Exchange and Shenzhen Stock Exchange from Nov. 6. The ETF tracks the Hang Seng Tech index, a gauge of the 30 largest Chinese tech shares listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. Through the

Market Oct. 30, 2023

South Korean brokerage house Korea Investment & Securities has partnered with global private equity firm Carlyle Group, seeking to globalize its investment portfolio. The Korean firm said Monday it signed a strategic partnership with Carlyle Group, a global private equity firm with $385 billion of assets under management as of June. Korea Investment & Securities CEO Jung Il-moon and Harvey Schwartz, CEO of Carlyle Group, attended a signing ceremony held Friday in Seoul. Through the par

Companies Oct. 30, 2023