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  • Economy

    Weakening won emerges as hurdle to Korea's US investment package

    Korea's weakening currency is emerging as a challenge to the country's planned $350 billion investment package in the United States, analysts said Thursday, as a senior finance ministry official prepares to travel to Washington for talks on foreign exchange market stability. Moon Ji-sung, deputy minister for international affairs at the Ministry of Finance and Economy, will meet senior U.S. Treasury officials in Washington on Friday (local time), according to government sources. Moon's trip is viewed as unusual, as senior officials overseeing foreign exchange policy rarely make separate visits to Washington outside regular consultation channels between the two countries' finance authorities. While the ministry declined to comment on the details of Moon's visit, market watchers expect the discussions to focus on ensuring that exchange rate volatility does not disrupt implementation of Korea's investment commitments in the U.S. The Korean won has remained under pressure in recent weeks, with the won-dollar exchange rate hovering around 1,500-level and trading near its weakest level since 2

    3 MIN READBy Lee Hyo-jin
    Weakening won emerges as hurdle to Korea's US investment package
  • Economy

    InterviewHong Kong's role as Korea-China business bridge grows, Chinese chamber chief says

    3 MIN READBy Lee Yeon-woo
    Hong Kong's role as Korea-China business bridge grows, Chinese chamber chief says
  • Policy

    5 nations sign AI alliance pact to shape global tech rules

    2 MIN READBy Jhoo Dong-chan
    5 nations sign AI alliance pact to shape global tech rules
  • Economy

    Korean won gains sharply against US dollar on renewed hope on US-Iran peace deal

    1 MIN READBy Yonhap
    Korean won gains sharply against US dollar on renewed hope on US-Iran peace deal
  • Policy

    BOK chief again signals rate hike to curb inflation pressure

    2 MIN READBy Yonhap
    BOK chief again signals rate hike to curb inflation pressure
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CEO & Publisher: Oh Young-jinDigital News Email: webmaster@koreatimes.co.krTel: 02-724-2114Online newspaper registration No: 서울,아52844Date of registration: 2020.02.05Masthead: The Korea TimesCopyright © koreatimes.co.kr. All rights reserved.

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Economy

Inflationary pressure growing amid Ukraine war: finance ministry

Gas prices are seen at a filling station in Seoul in this April 12 photo. Yonhap The Korean economy is on a recovery track on robust exports, but faces growing inflationary pressure as the protracted war in Ukraine has jacked up energy prices, the finance ministry said Friday.External economic uncertainties have heightened as global price pressure has risen due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, while major central banks are expected to accelerate monetary tightening, the ministry said in its monthly economic assessment report, called the Green Book."The Korean economy has extended its recovery momentum on exports and an improvement in the job market. But the spread of the COVID-19 variant and the Ukraine crisis are feared to constrain the recovery of domestic demand and price pressure has expanded," the report said.Asia's fourth-largest economy has been on a recovery path, but it faces growing downside economic risks amid the upsurge in COVID-19 cases and the Ukraine

Apr 15, 2022
Inflationary pressure growing amid Ukraine war: finance ministry
Economy

REITs draw spotlight amid rate hikes

An electronic board set up in a dealing room at Hana Bank in Seoul shows a closing price on the main bourse, the KOSPI, Thursday. YonhapBy Lee Min-hyungIndirect real estate investment is regaining the spotlight as a safe haven amid increasing volatility in the local stock market. Investors prefer real estate investment trusts (REITs) when demand for safer assets is rising amid fears of rate hikes, as REITs offer decent dividend returns even during periods of monetary tightening.Data also showed that major REITs traded on the local equity market have generated outstanding profitability this year when fears over the U.S. Federal Reserve's rate hikes started escalating here and abroad.According to data from the Korea Exchange, the average profitability of listed REITs reached 5.44 percent between the first trading day of this year and April 12. Most REITs turned out to have achieved growth, with 16 out of 19 traded REITs generating positive returns, according to the exchange operator.This growth is in contrast to a double-digit decline of the benchmark stock indexes here during the same

Apr 14, 2022By Lee Min-hyung
REITs draw spotlight amid rate hikes
  • BOK raises key rate to highest level in 3 years to fight inflation
Economy

BOK raises key rate to highest level in 3 years to fight inflation

Central bank hints at additional rate hikes this year, while vowing to handle growth, inflation in balanced mannerBy Yi Whan-wooThe Bank of Korea (BOK) raised its key interest rate, Thursday, by 25 basis points to 1.50 percent, the highest level since July 2019, in a desperate bid to curb inflation as well as a possible capital flight following the U.S. Federal Reserve's faster-than-expected tapering.The decision, which was made in the absence of a BOK governor, came as inflationary pressure mounts quickly with consumer prices rising at the fastest pace in over a decade amid skyrocketing energy and commodity prices triggered by a prolonged Russia-Ukraine war. “We judged that inflationary pressure can last longer than expected due to the Ukraine crisis, and correspondingly, had to take countermeasures despite the absence of a governor,” Joo Sang-young, the acting chairman of the BOK's monetary policy board, said during a press conference.Former governor Lee Ju-yeol retired in March. Governor nominee Rhee Chang-yong awaits a National Assembly hearing following his nominatio

Apr 14, 2022By Yi Whan-woo
BOK raises key rate to highest level in 3 years to fight inflation
  • REITs draw spotlight amid rate hikes
Economy

Calls grow for establishment of state agency overseeing cryptocurrency trading

gettyimagesbankBy Lee Min-hyungCalls are growing for the establishment of a government organization to oversee the cryptocurrency market.The Financial Services Commission (FSC) has so far functioned as a de facto control tower over the industry, but has been criticized for relying solely on tough regulations to do the job. As a result, the industry has requested the incoming administration led by President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol to foster more balanced policies by setting up a special government agency. The presidential transition committee is also considering establishing such an organization tasked with remedying ambiguous laws concerning the emerging crypocurrency industry.Discussions are underway at a virtual asset special committee in the main opposition People Power Party, to which Yoon belongs. Even if nothing specific has been confirmed by the presidential transition team, there stands a possibility of such a government authority being launched after Yoon is inaugurated in May.“We need to mitigate public confusion over a series of cryptocurrency organizations and associati

Apr 14, 2022By Lee Min-hyung
Calls grow for establishment of state agency overseeing cryptocurrency trading
Economy

Customs office seizes W120 bil. worth of fake designer goods

Counterfeit goods of luxury fashion brands from France and Italy are displayed in this photo released Thursday, after they were seized by the Seoul branch of the Korea Customs Service (KCS). More than 61,000 fake items, including handbags, wallets and clothes, worth an estimated 120 billion won ($98,000), were confiscated after they were smuggled in from China and stored in a warehouse at an undisclosed location. Courtesy of the Seoul branch of the KCS

Apr 14, 2022By Yi Whan-woo
Customs office seizes W120 bil. worth of fake designer goods
Economy

Import prices up for 3rd month in March on oil, raw materials price hikes

gettyimagesbankKorea's import prices increased for the third straight month in March as prices of crude oil and other commodities rose, central bank data showed Thursday.The import price index rose 7.8 percent in March from a month earlier, according to the preliminary data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). The rise followed 4.4 percent and 4.6 percent rises in January and February, respectively. The rise came as the ongoing war in Ukraine has sent oil and other raw materials prices even higher. The BOK said the average monthly import prices of Dubai crude oil, Korea's benchmark, stayed at $110.93 per barrel in March, up 20.1 percent from a month earlier. From a year earlier, the prices jumped 72.1 percent.Raw materials prices also rose 13.7 percent on-month in March, the data showed.Rising import prices have added to woes for Korea, which is currently striving to rein in climbing inflation pressure amid protracted supply chain disruptions and a rebound in demand from the pandemic. Lockdowns imposed in major cities in China due to spiking coronavirus infections have also spawned worries

Apr 14, 2022
Import prices up for 3rd month in March on oil, raw materials price hikes
Economy

Korea's central bank hikes interest rate by quarter percentage point to 1.5%

Bank of Korea / Yonhap South Korea's central bank raised its key interest rate by a quarter percentage point Thursday to the highest level in about three years to rein in rising inflation pressure as the ongoing war in Ukraine has sent oil and major commodity prices even higher.The monetary policy board of the Bank of Korea (BOK) convened a rate-setting meeting earlier in the day and voted to raise the benchmark seven-day repo rate to 1.5 percent, according to the central bank ― the highest level since July 2019."Currently available information suggests that inflation has accelerated while the recovery of the global economy has somewhat moderated, affected by the Ukraine crisis," the BOK said in a report on the decision. "The board will judge when to further adjust the degree of accommodation while thoroughly assessing developments related to COVID-19, the risk of a buildup of financial imbalances, monetary policy changes in major countries, geopolitical risks, and

Apr 14, 2022
Korea's central bank hikes interest rate by quarter percentage point to 1.5%
Economy

How much do young, wealthy Koreans own?

gettyimagesbankBy Anna J. ParkPeople in Korea who fall into the “young and rich” category possess 6.6 billion won ($5.3 million) in assets on average, including 1.7 homes. Over 30 percent of them are office workers, followed by professionals like doctors and lawyers at 20 percent. Those who inherited most of their wealth from their parents possess nearly twice as many assets as those who did not.This is according to the 2022 Korean Wealth Report, published by a research institute under Hana Financial Group on Wednesday, based on an online survey. This was the first time the report compared features of the young and rich ― those 49 years of age and under ― and the old and rich ― aged 50 and over. The report categorizes those who are 49 and younger and own over 1 billion won in financial assets as “young and rich.” The average amount of wealth these people own ― 6.6 billion won ― is smaller than the 8 billion won owned by the old and rich. Yet the two groups had similar asset portfolios, with real estate accounting for 60 percent of their wealth and financial as

Apr 13, 2022By Anna J. Park
How much do young, wealthy Koreans own?
Economy

Job market yet to show robust recovery despite improved figures: experts

Number of employed soars on base effect of pandemicBy Lee Min-hyungKorea's job market is still far from entering a phase of robust recovery despite remarkable improvements in employment statistics. Experts say that the improvements are mainly due to a base effect of the COVID-19 pandemic, while they advised the government to help private businesses hire more people instead of relying on government spending to create temporary jobs.According to Statistics Korea, Wednesday, the number of employed people in the country stood at 27.75 million last month, up 831,000 from a year ago. This is the largest growth in the same month since March 2002.The statistics authority explained that the performance was driven by modest export growth and digital transformation.“Robust exports and the rise of digital transformation in industrial sectors helped increase the number of the employed and reduce the number of jobless people,” Kong Mi-sook, a director at a social statistics division of Statistics Korea, said.Finance Minist

Apr 13, 2022By Lee Min-hyung
Job market yet to show robust recovery despite improved figures: experts
Economy

FSS faces possibility of becoming public entity once more under Yoon administration

The Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) flag stands alongside a Korean flag at the main gate of the FSS in Seoul in a photo taken in May 2021. Korea Times fileBy Yi Whan-wooThe Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) is facing the growing possibility of coming under government control again after it was listed as a public entity and then delisted during the 2000s. Established in 1999, the FSS is categorized as a private entity, although it is directed by the Financial Services Commission (FSC). The FSC is one of the commissions operating under the Prime Minister's Office. It is tasked with establishing regulatory policies, while the FSS implements its policies.Whether to list or delist financial entities that are associated with the government directly or indirectly is decided by the Ministry of Economy and Finance.The FSS was listed as a public entity in 2007 but was then delisted in 2009, in the name of ensuring its autonomy in the financial market as well as preventing bureaucrats from influence-peddling in private financial firms via the FSC.The possible listing of the FSS as a publi

Apr 13, 2022By Yi Whan-woo
FSS faces possibility of becoming public entity once more under Yoon administration
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