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Export-Import Bank of Korea (Eximbank Korea) Chairman and CEO

Hanwha Group Vice Chairman Kim Yeon-bae, second ...

GM Daewoo Auto & Technology CEO Mike Arcamone, ...

Rift emerging over current account cap

By Cho Jin-seo A schism is emerging among top Korean officials preparing for the G20 Seoul Summit over a solution to the most controversial issue that was patched up during last week’s precursor meeting in Gyeongju. The issue regards whether to introduce a specific target on surpluses or deficits a country has in its current account in relation to its gross domestic product (GDP). At the Gyeongju meeting of finance ministers and central bank governors, the participants decided not to introduce the suggestion pushed jointly by the United States and Korea, settling for an ambiguous, yet-to-be-determined term, “indicative guidelines,” in their joint communique. The International Monetary Fund is expected to be the arbiter of the guidelines. Now, Finance Minister Yoon Jeung-hyun wants to go after a country-by-country cap in the summit slated for Nov. 11 to 12 to once and for all bring a solution to the dispute caused by China’s ever-increasing surplus in combination with the U.S.’ chronic deficit, an imbalance that had threatened to blow into a full-blown “currency war” pr

Woori Bank CEO Lee Chong-hwi, right, poses with Yonsei ...

Indonesia hails G20s push for global safety net

By Lee Tae-hoon Indonesia, Southeast Asia's largest economy, pins high hopes on Korea’s initiative to establish a global financial safety net and produce tangible outcomes from the G20 Seoul Summit on Nov. 11 and 12, Indonesia’s top envoy in Seoul said in a recent interview with The Korea Times. “The emerging economies need a global safety net to counter problems related to the balance of payments, as well as also to address the challenges within a state budget hampered by a crisis,” Indonesian Ambassador to Korea Nicholas T. Dammen said. He said developing countries, including Indonesia, are highly vulnerable to external shocks, and would need access to special financial facilities, such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF), to better cope with the impact of another global economic crisis. In the previous summit in Toronto, Korea, as chair and host of the next summit, proposed the creation of a safety net as a main agenda item of the G20 Seoul Summit. The importance of the issue has heightened following a debt crisis in southern Europe that originated in Greec

Gyeongju meeting shows G20’s here to stay

Financial crisis highlights need to strengthen central banks’ role, not diminish it The Group of 20 member nations (G20) has made some tangible progress on key issues, such as global imbalance and the reform of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), at the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting held in Gyeongju from Friday to Saturday. The Korea Times had a joint interview with Bank of Korea (BOK) Governor Kim Choong-soo and Bank of France Governor Christian Noyer to hear inside stories of the important gathering and their insights about where the global economy is heading. The following is the full script of the interview ― ED. Gyeongju meeting Moderator: You two just finished a very important meeting with high anticipation from the public not just in Korea but also around the world. Are you satisfied with the result, about the communiqué? Noyer: I am extremely satisfied. I think everybody was very satisfied and we should be all satisfied. I think there is no period in the past where in such a short period of time we have achieved so many fundame

The world is more secure than before crisis

France to continue exploring Korea’s ‘financial safety net’ initiative By Kim Jae-kyoung Over the weekend, Group of 20 (G20) member nations struck a deal to avert a global trade war and reform the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The move is expected to pave the way for the world to find workable solutions for the global economy in the post-crisis world. Despite the agreements, many still doubt whether the G20 process is a step in the right direction, asking themselves two key questions: Are we safer than before the global financial crisis (thanks to the G20 accords)? And is a currency war looming or is it imaginary? These two important questions are difficult to answer. The G20 released a joint statement made by finance ministers and central bank governors but the carefully wording was not clear enough to assure the public that the world is moving toward a more secure environment. Two central bank governors from the current and next G20 hosts ― Bank of Korea Governor Kim Choong-soo and Bank of France Governor Christian Noyer ― both of whom played key roles in leadin

Doosan sets example of Korea Inc.s resilience

Light-industry conglomerate turns into heavy-industry cluster By Kim Yoo-chul Doosan Group ― the nation's oldest conglomerate whose key business areas range from construction, desalination, power plants to heavy equipment ― is set to further raise its international profile by using the upcoming G20 summit as the right forum for its future. Group officials say its chairman Park Yong-hyun is planning to hold several strategic meetings with high-profile executives from international companies as the business summit is crucial for Doosan to boost its corporate brand awareness. "Doosan is planning to use the business summit as a springboard to raise our international presence," said a senior group spokesman Shin Dong-gyu, Monday. Doosan, which has recently struck a series of sizable acquisition deals in the United States and the Czech Republic, is aiming to create 15 trillion won ($12 billion) in sales outside the peninsula this year. That's some 60 percent of this year’s total sales target of 24.4 trillion won, according to Shin. Doosan's key affiliates have about

Gist of Gyeongju communique

The following is the gist of the joint statement made by finance ministers and central bank governors from the Group of 20 advanced and emerging countries at the Gyeongju meeting that took place from Friday to Saturday. ● Pursue market-determined exchange rate systems in order to let economic fundamentals determine currency values and refrain from competitive devaluation of currencies. ● Reduce their excessive current account surpluses or deficits as a means to relieve global trade imbalances. They will maintain their surpluses or deficits at sustainable levels and ask the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to define those sustainable levels given regional circumstances. ● More strictly regulate the global financial system by requiring banks to raise capital and liquidity conditions to better fight a worldwide economic crisis like the one sparked in 2008. They pledged to impose tougher requirements for globally influential financial companies called significantly important financial institutions whose failure could endanger the whole global financial system. ● Shift by 201