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  • Economy

    Fed's hawkish hold strengthens case for BOK's hike in November

    The U.S. Federal Reserve's hawkish decision to hold interest rates steady has strengthened the case for the Bank of Korea (BOK) to raise its benchmark rate as early as next month, as stronger-than-expected growth and persistent inflation reinforce the need for further monetary tightening, analysts said Thursday. The Fed kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 3.75 to 4 percent on Wednesday (local time), but signaled that inflation remains elevated and reaffirmed its commitment to bringing inflation back to its 2 percent target. The decision has kept markets focused on the possibility of another Fed rate hike in December, raising the prospect that the BOK could pursue further tightening before its U.S. counterpart makes its next move. The BOK held its benchmark rate at 3 percent at its rate-setting meeting last Thursday, saying it needed more time to assess domestic and external economic conditions and the effects of two previous rate hikes. Recent economic data have strengthened the case for further tightening. Korea's real gross domestic product grew 1 percent in the third quarter

    2 MIN READBy Lee Hyo-jin
    Fed's hawkish hold strengthens case for BOK's hike in November
  • Economy

    Banks' household mortgage lending rates up for 5th month in Sept.

    1 MIN READBy Yonhap
    Banks' household mortgage lending rates up for 5th month in Sept.
  • Economy

    Korea to closely monitor impact of upcoming US midterm elections

    2 MIN READBy Yonhap
    Korea to closely monitor impact of upcoming US midterm elections
  • Policy

    Gov't to designate new housing zones for over 76,000 homes near Seoul

    1 MIN READBy Yonhap
    Gov't to designate new housing zones for over 76,000 homes near Seoul
  • Economy

    Seoul stocks down 3% late Thursday morning after weaker-than-expected Samsung earnings

    1 MIN READBy Yonhap
    Seoul stocks down 3% late Thursday morning after weaker-than-expected Samsung earnings
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Economy

Jobs at major Korean firms drop 0.4% in 2025

Employment at Korea's 476 largest companies edged down 0.4 percent from a year earlier in 2025 as gains at K-beauty and semiconductor firms were offset by job cuts elsewhere, industry data showed Wednesday. The companies employed a combined 1,625,526 workers as of December, down from 1,632,255 tallied a year earlier, according to the data from corporate tracker CEO Score. The figures cover 476 firms that responded to a survey of the country's top 500 companies by sales. Among the respondents, 222 companies, or 46.6 percent, reported an increase in employment last year, though more than 70 percent of those firms added fewer than 100 workers. CJ Olive Young, the retail and distribution arm of CJ Group, recorded the largest increase, hiring 2,518 employees, up 21 percent from a year earlier. Chipmaker SK hynix Inc. followed, adding 2,188 workers, a 6.9 percent on-year rise. "CJ Olive Young expanded its retail network and increased hiring to meet strong demand for K-beauty products. SK hynix expanded staffing at manufacturing facilities and research and development centers amid an upturn in

Feb 11, 2026By Yonhap
Jobs at major Korean firms drop 0.4% in 2025
Economy

Exports up 44.4% during first 10 days of February on robust chip demand

Korea's exports jumped 44.4 percent from a year earlier in the first 10 days of February, driven by strong demand for semiconductors, data showed Wednesday. Outbound shipments reached $21.39 billion in the Feb. 1-10 period, compared with $14.81 billion tallied a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service. Imports went up 21.1 percent on-year to $20.74 billion during the period, resulting in a trade surplus of $64 million, the data showed. The daily average volume of exports also advanced 34.8 percent on-year, while the number of working days during the period went up by 0.5 day from a year earlier to 7.5 days. By item, exports of semiconductors surged 137.6 percent on-year to $6.73 billion amid the global artificial intelligence (AI) boom. Chip exports accounted for 31.5 percent of the country's total exports over the cited period, up 12.3 percentage points from the same period last year. Exports of petroleum products jumped 40.1 percent to $1.52 billion. But automobile exports went down 2.6 percent on-year to $1.35 billion, while shipments of vessels dipped 29 perce

Feb 11, 2026By Yonhap
Exports up 44.4% during first 10 days of February on robust chip demand
Cryptocurrency

Global players call for stronger crypto risk controls at Bithumb

HONG KONG — Global crypto players called on Bithumb to establish robust internal systems that match traditional finance standards on Tuesday, echoing domestic sentiment that the exchange’s “ghost bitcoin” incident was human error compounded by weak internal controls. Chandan Gupta, an Indian crypto analyst and trader, said the incident can’t simply be blamed on a single employee error. "In any mature financial system, a single action should never trigger direct payouts of such scale. There should be proper payout caps, multilayer approvals and security checks." Jimmy Xue, chief operating officer and co-founder of Axis, a quantitative yield protocol, said the incident exposed a “fundamental structural vulnerability" in Bithumb as it operated like unregulated fractional reserve banks, capable of creating phantom assets that exist only on internal ledgers. On Friday, Bithumb, Korea’s second-largest cryptocurrency exchange, mistakenly distributed 620,000 bitcoins instead of 620,000 won ($426) to 249 winners of its “random box” promotion, after an employee incorrectly enter

Feb 10, 2026By Lee Yeon-woo
Global players call for stronger crypto risk controls at Bithumb
Economy

Silver economy may be next blue ocean amid surging demand for 'well-aging': BOK chief

The head of Korea's central bank on Tuesday stressed the need for the country to harness innovation and artificial intelligence (AI) to turn challenges stemming from population aging into new growth engines in line with the growing "silver economy." Bank of Korea (BOK) Gov. Rhee Chang-yong made the remarks in an address at a forum jointly hosted by the central bank and Yonsei University on industrial responses to a super-aged society. "Aging is clearly a crisis facing our society, but it is also a structural change that creates new demand," Rhee said. Korea officially became a super-aged society last year, with more than 20 percent of its population aged 65 or older. "The silver economy should no longer be confined to the realm of welfare. It is time to recognize it as a crucial industrial sector capable of creating added value through innovation and technology," he said, calling for an expanded role for the private sector to meet growing demand. The number of elderly people requiring intensive care and end-of-life preparation is expected to more than double from 292,000 in 2025 to 639,00

Feb 10, 2026By Yonhap
Silver economy may be next blue ocean amid surging demand for 'well-aging': BOK chief
Others

Labor union blocks new IBK head from entering office over wages

Chang Min-young, the new Industrial Bank of Korea (IBK) head, remains blocked from entering the bank’s headquarters in Seoul amid disputes with the state-run lender’s union over unpaid overtime wages and demands that they be exempt from the government-imposed total wage cap system, market watchers said Tuesday. Authorities reportedly prefer paying the roughly 780 billion won ($580 million) in unpaid wages over time to ease the impact on IBK’s capital. However, the union has rejected this, claiming that installment payments only exacerbate what they consider “ongoing wage theft.” As for the wage cap, the Financial Services Commission is in a bind due to fairness concerns. The cap applies broadly to state-run institutions, so granting the IBK union’s labor demands could trigger opposition from other entities that have long complied with budget limits. According to the financial market, the IBK union has blocked Chang from entering bank headquarters for 19 days. Chang maintains that discussions with the government are underway and progress is being made in forming “a broad con

Feb 10, 2026By Lee Kyung-min
Labor union blocks new IBK head from entering office over wages
Cryptocurrency

Bithumb bitcoin mishap casts doubt on CEO Lee Jae-won's third term

Bithumb CEO Lee Jae-won’s reappointment for a third term, once considered all but certain, has been thrown into doubt following the cryptocurrency exchange’s unprecedented bitcoin misallocation, industry officials said Tuesday. Lee had been widely expected to secure a third consecutive term in March, but the massive mishap, valued at over 60 trillion won ($41 billion), has raised serious concerns about fundamental weaknesses in the exchange’s internal control frameworks and ledger management systems. The incident happened Friday, when the country’s second-largest cryptocurrency exchange sought to credit customers participating in a promotional campaign with 2,000 won worth of bitcoin per person. Instead, an employee mistake resulted in each participant receiving 2,000 bitcoins, rather than 2,000 won, pushing the total misallocated amount to 620,000 bitcoins. At the time, bitcoin was trading near 98 million won, valuing the error at about 62 trillion won. According to Bithumb’s third-quarter report last year, the exchange held only about 42,800 bitcoins, meaning the payout exce

Feb 10, 2026By Jun Ji-hye
Bithumb bitcoin mishap casts doubt on CEO Lee Jae-won's third term
Others

Bad loans at 4 major financial groups surge amid ‘inclusive finance’ drive

Bad loans at the country’s four largest financial groups have increased at record pace over the past year as a government-led push for “inclusive” and “productive” finance collides with an economic slowdown and weakening asset quality, according to industry officials Tuesday. Critics say the seemingly well-intentioned policy is amplifying credit risk in a weakening economy, long under strain due to years of sluggish postpandemic economy. With bad loans on the rise, financial groups’ profits could be undermined by growing credit risk management concerns. According to financial market data, KB Kookmin, Shinhan, Hana and Woori banks posted a combined net profit of nearly 14 trillion won ($10.4 billion) last year. This was the highest on record, with each lender earning more than 3 trillion won. However, as of the fourth quarter, precautionary loans at the four institutions surpassed 7.9 trillion won, up 11 percent from a year earlier and nearly 49 percent compared with 2021. Those loans are between one and three months late. Similarly, non-performing loans that are overdue by more

Feb 10, 2026By Lee Kyung-min
Bad loans at 4 major financial groups surge amid ‘inclusive finance’ drive
Others

Bull market paves smoother path for brokerages to join W1 tril. club

An increasing number of brokerage houses are joining the so-called “1 trillion won club” with greater confidence than before, driven by an accelerated rally in the stock market that has subsequently boosted the companies’ profits, industry officials said Monday. In the brokerage sector, the club typically refers to companies that post more than 1 trillion won ($682.03 million) in yearly operating profit. The term now extends to the more demanding target of annual net income, with five companies — Mirae Asset Securities, Korea Investment Securities, Kiwoom Securities, NH Investment & Securities and Samsung Securities — so far having achieved both benchmarks. Mirae Asset Securities, one of the top-two companies, announced in its 2025 earnings report Monday that its operating profit totaled 1.91 trillion won and its net income 1.59 trillion won. Each figure set a record high, rising 72.2 percent and 61.2 percent, respectively, from the previous year. Korea Investment Securities, the other top-two company, has already secured entry into the club, with full-year earnings set to be an

Feb 10, 2026By Yi Whan-woo
Bull market paves smoother path for brokerages to join W1 tril. club
Economy

Korea to begin preliminary review of US investment projects amid legislative process

Korea will begin preliminary reviews of potential investment projects in the United States as the National Assembly prepares to handle legislation implementing Seoul's investment pledges to the U.S. under a trade deal, the country's top economic policymaker said Tuesday. Finance Minister Koo Yun-cheol made the remarks during an economy-related ministers' meeting, following the National Assembly's bipartisan approval of a resolution to form a committee that will oversee the legislation of a special bill on investments to the U.S. amid heightened tariff threats. "While the legislation is proceeding through the normal domestic law-making process, it is not in the national interest for unnecessary misunderstandings or damage to trust to arise between Korea and the U.S. during the implementation of the MOU," Koo said. Even after the law is passed, additional preparations, such as drafting subordinate regulations, could take around three months before implementation. In accordance, in the meantime, the government plans to establish a framework for conducting preliminary reviews of candidate pr

Feb 10, 2026By Yonhap
Korea to begin preliminary review of US investment projects amid legislative process
Others

Financial groups’ record profits raise prospects for higher shareholder dividends

A retail investor using the moniker “Jingle all the way” wrote on an online forum that he is thrilled about the expected returns from financial holding companies after taking a calculated risk that their profits would grow despite the government’s tighter lending regulations. He also expected that these gains would be shared generously with shareholders in line with the government’s stronger emphasis on investor rights. “And I could not be happier about the record earnings from the financial holding companies last week,” the investor wrote. He was referring to the record cumulative net income of 17.95 trillion won ($12.26 billion) posted by the four major KOSPI-listed financial holding companies — KB, Shinhan, Hana and Woori — in 2025. The amount rose 9.4 percent from a year earlier, despite the financial authorities’ curbs on housing loans and other lending restrictions. Such regulations had raised speculation that loan interest income, a major revenue source for the holding companies’ banking affiliates, would decline. Interest income still increased 2.6 percent year

Feb 10, 2026By Yi Whan-woo
Financial groups’ record profits raise prospects for higher shareholder dividends
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