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  • Cryptocurrency

    Finance minister nominee backs January crypto tax rollout despite industry, opposition pushback

    The nominee to head the Ministry of Finance and Economy expressed his intention on Sunday to implement the cryptocurrency tax next January as scheduled, despite pushback from both industry players and opposition lawmakers. In written materials submitted to the National Assembly ahead of a confirmation hearing slated for Tuesday, Lee Hyoung-il, who currently serves as first vice finance minister, noted that specific tax rules would be finalized through a National Tax Service public notice by year-end, ensuring taxpayers face no confusion when filing. He also defended classifying crypto asset income as miscellaneous income under the current tax framework, calling it an “appropriate” approach to applying taxpayer-friendly measures, such as a basic deduction and a single tax rate. “Given that stock trades involving major shareholders, foreign equities and unlisted shares, along with transaction taxes, are already subject to taxation, extending tax rules to crypto assets is essential for tax fairness,” he said. The crypto tax regime treats profits from transferring or lending digital

    3 MIN READBy Jun Ji-hye
    Finance minister nominee backs January crypto tax rollout despite industry, opposition pushback
  • Economy

    Korean construction stocks rise on nearing US investment deal

    2 MIN READBy Park Han-sol
    Korean construction stocks rise on nearing US investment deal
  • Economy

    More young Koreans look to stocks, bonds as retirement nest egg

    3 MIN READBy Park Han-sol
    More young Koreans look to stocks, bonds as retirement nest egg
  • Economy

    Foreign investors turn net sellers of Korean bonds in Aug.

    1 MIN READBy Yonhap
    Foreign investors turn net sellers of Korean bonds in Aug.
  • Economy

    KOSPI falls on higher oil prices, global bond yields

    2 MIN READBy Lee Hyo-jin
    KOSPI falls on higher oil prices, global bond yields
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Economy

Finance chief pledges timely response to excessive FX market volatility

Finance Minister Koo Yun-cheol said Wednesday that the government is closely monitoring foreign exchange (FX) market volatility, pledging to respond in a timely manner to excessive market movements. Koo made the remarks during a meeting with financial experts, including heads of major securities firms, the Ministry of Finance and Economy said, as the Korean won has fluctuated sharply following the U.S.-Israeli joint attacks on Iran. The minister stressed that authorities are maintaining heightened vigilance over foreign exchange market volatility following recent developments in the Middle East. He emphasized that the government will conduct 24-hour monitoring and respond in a timely manner if the won's movements deviate excessively from economic fundamentals. Koo also said a set of three tax support measures aimed at stabilizing the foreign exchange market will soon be submitted to a National Assembly plenary session, expressing hope that their passage would help ease market volatility.

Mar 18, 2026By Yonhap
Finance chief pledges timely response to excessive FX market volatility
Economy

Samil PwC launches AI advisory service as security disclosure scrutiny tightens

Samil PwC, Korea’s largest accounting firm by revenue, has launched an artificial intelligence (AI)-based advisory service to help companies comply with the country’s information security disclosure requirements as the government moves to tighten oversight, the company said Wednesday. Under proposed amendments to the enforcement decree of the Information and Communications Technology Industry Promotion Act, the number of companies subject to mandatory disclosure, which is currently around 600, is set to expand from 2027. Many firms previously outside the rule will need to build new compliance frameworks. The government has also set aside a larger budget to strengthen verification, signaling a more rigorous scrutiny ahead. In the past, minor errors or ambiguous wording in disclosures often went unchallenged. However, with tighter oversight, companies could face a greater risk of penalties stemming from inaccurate or incomplete filings. Samil PwC’s new service uses AI to streamline the disclosure process and reduce inconsistencies. Its automated engine reviews disclosure criteria by

Mar 18, 2026By Park Han-sol
Samil PwC launches AI advisory service as security disclosure scrutiny tightens
Economy

Students using low interest policy loan to invest in stocks sparks debate

“Max it out.” This was the blunt advice given in a viral post on X that has drawn 2.3 million views and more than 2,500 reposts, urging students to take full advantage of low-interest rate loans while they still can. “Where else are you going to get a 1.7-percent interest loan as a young adult?” the user Doll_Mock wrote. “Spend it however you want, whether that’s eating, having fun or investing.” Elsewhere on the platform, another user, who was planning to take out a student loan, asked for help in choosing between two options: “Should I take 500,000 won ($336) now to buy ETFs (exchange-traded funds) and invest the remaining 1.5 million won when the semester starts, or take the full 2 million won loan at the start of the semester and invest it all at once?” A growing number of university and graduate school students are tapping low-interest policy loans to invest in stocks and cryptocurrencies — an emerging practice that is raising questions about its purpose. The quasi-governmental Korea Student Aid Foundation extends student loans of up to 2 million won for living ex

Mar 18, 2026By Park Han-sol
Students using low interest policy loan to invest in stocks sparks debate
Others

Commuters turn to public transit as fuel prices soar amid Iran conflict

Lim Joo-young, an office worker in her 30s who commutes from Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, to Seoul's Seocho District, recently switched from driving to taking the subway as fuel costs climb. "I used to drive to work, so taking the subway during the rush hour has been uncomfortable," she said. "But fuel costs have become too high, so I plan to keep taking the subway for now. I used to fill up about three times a month, but I'm trying to cut that down to once or twice." Another office worker, surnamed Park, who lives in Yangcheon District in Seoul, has also began cutting back on driving. Though her workplace is just a 20-minute drive away, she now rides a bus that takes about an hour. "I've started taking the bus twice a week. I'm trying to rely less on my car overall," Park said. "I'm also cutting back on longer drives to shopping malls on the weekend to save on fuel." Data shows that more commuters are shifting to public transportation as high fuel prices, driven by the escalating conflict in the Middle East, weigh on household budgets. According to Seoul Metro on Wednesday, average daily

Mar 18, 2026By Lee Hyo-jin
Commuters turn to public transit as fuel prices soar amid Iran conflict
Economy

Gov't raises crude oil supply disruption alert to Level 2

The government raised Wednesday the alert over a possible disruption in crude oil supply by a notch to Level 2 as geopolitical tensions in the Middle East persist. The alert was raised to the second lowest tier, or yellow, in Korea's four-tier national resource security crisis warning system, as of 3 p.m., according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources. The decision was made as escalating tensions among major oil producers in the Middle East, the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz and price hikes in global oil prices were expected to strain the supply of oil in Korea. Korea had issued the lowest alert of Level 1 earlier this month, about a week after the U.S. and Israel-led war in Iran broke out. Under the Level 2 alert, the government will strengthen its supply and demand control measures for oil by exercising priority purchase rights to jointly held international petroleum reserves and securing alternative oil supplies that do not pass through the strait. Earlier in the day, Kang Hoon-sik, presidential chief of staff, said Korea has secured a pledge from the United Ar

Mar 18, 2026By Yonhap
Gov't raises crude oil supply disruption alert to Level 2
Economy

KRX issues buy-side sidecar for KOSPI on sharp surge

Korea's main bourse operator on Wednesday issued a buy-side sidecar for the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), temporarily halting trading on the market after a sharp rise. Program trading for KOSPI was suspended for five minutes at 2:34 p.m., according to the Korea Exchange (KRX). A buy-side sidecar is triggered when the KOSPI 200 Futures index increases 5 percent or more for at least one minute. A buy-side sidecar was previously issued on March 10.

Mar 18, 2026By Yonhap
KRX issues buy-side sidecar for KOSPI on sharp surge
Others

Korea Exchange in hot seat after botched Kosdaq status reversal

The Korea Exchange (KRX) is under fire after mistakenly removing a management-issue designation from a Kosdaq-listed firm and reinstating it just a day later, triggering sharp market volatility, market watchers said Wednesday. The controversy has intensified as the stock price swung sharply during the episode, raising concerns about potential investor losses. A management-issue designation serves as a warning mechanism applied to companies with serious financial or operational concerns, or those at risk of breaching listing requirements. Its removal, by contrast, is widely interpreted as a signal that such risks have been resolved and that the firm has returned to normal trading status. Because of this signaling effect, any change in designation can significantly move share prices. SCM Lifescience was designated as a management issue on March 21, 2025, after posting pretax losses from continuing operations for two consecutive years. The exchange’s Kosdaq market division lifted the designation at 7:02 p.m. Monday, concluding, based on the company’s 2025 audit report, that it had met th

Mar 18, 2026By Jun Ji-hye
Korea Exchange in hot seat after botched Kosdaq status reversal
Economy

Half of bond market experts predict consumer prices to rise due to Middle East turmoil

Half of bond experts in South Korea expected consumer prices to rise next month, as the effective closure of the Hormuz Strait amid the ongoing Middle East crisis is expected to fuel inflationary pressure, a poll showed Tuesday. According to the recent survey of 100 bond market experts conducted by the Korea Financial Investment Association (KOFIA), 50 percent of respondents said they expected consumer prices to go up in April. The reading marks a sharp on-month increase from 15 percent in February. Also, 35 percent of respondents said they expected the Korean won to fall further against the U.S. dollar. The local currency had fallen to its weakest level since March 10, 2009, on Monday due to the war in the Middle East, briefly touching the psychologically and technically critical 1,500-won threshold for the first time in 17 years. Since then, it has rebounded to 1,487 won per dollar as of 11 a.m. Wednesday. On bond yields, more experts said they project bond yields to go up in April, as the Bank of Korea (BOK) is likely to keep the country's base rate steady for a prolonged period amid th

Mar 18, 2026By Yonhap
Half of bond market experts predict consumer prices to rise due to Middle East turmoil
Policy

Korea to tighten monitoring of tariff-rate quota to prevent abuse by importers

The government on Wednesday announced plans to strengthen monitoring to prevent importers from exploiting the country's tariff-rate quota system, including imposing additional duties on violators. The Ministry of Economy and Finance said it has proposed revisions to the enforcement ordinance of the Customs Act and and related regulations to establish a legal basis for designating certain items for stricter oversight. The tariff-rate quota system allows a certain volume of imports to be subject to lower tariff rates within a specified limit. Under the system, tariffs on selected items, mostly essential goods, can be reduced by as much as 40 percentage points. Authorities have found that some importers abused the system. In some cases, companies imported goods at reduced tariff rates but stored them in warehouses or delayed customs declarations, later selling them at higher prices. Under the proposed revision, conditions for applying tariff-rate quotas will be tightened, including setting deadlines for the release of goods into the market. If companies violate the rules, tariff reductions w

Mar 18, 2026By Yonhap
Korea to tighten monitoring of tariff-rate quota to prevent abuse by importers
Economy

Korean won rises for 2nd session ahead of US Fed's rate decision

The Korean currency gained sharply against the U.S. dollar Wednesday, as investors awaited the outcome of the Federal Reserve's rate-setting meeting amid the ongoing Middle East crisis. The won was quoted at 1,483.1 per dollar, up 10.5 won from the previous session, extending the gaining streak for the second consecutive session. The currency had fallen to its weakest level since March 10, 2009, on Monday amid escalating tensions in the Middle East, briefly touching the psychologically and technically critical 1,500-won threshold for the first time in 17 years, but later rebounded Tuesday following a decline in global oil prices. Overnight, the U.S. Dollar Index, which measures the dollar's strength against a basket of six major currencies, stood at 99.540, extending its decline for the third consecutive day. It had risen as high as 100.537 on Friday. The Fed is scheduled to announce its policy decision Wednesday (U.S. time), and the focus is on how it will respond to the ongoing crisis. It is widely expected to hold rates steady. Korea's foreign exchange and stock markets have shown heig

Mar 18, 2026By Yonhap
Korean won rises for 2nd session ahead of US Fed's rate decision
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