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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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Economy

Coordination on policy mix gets critical for incoming administration

Choo Kyung-ho, the nominee for the deputy prime minister and minister of economy and finance, speaks during a press conference at the Bankers' Club in central Seoul on the day he was nominated, Sunday. Joint Press CorpsSharp rise in Treasury bond yields shows need for cooperationBy Yi Whan-wooThe two nominees for the top posts of the nation's economic control towers are being urged to work closely, concerning the policy mix ― fiscal policy and monetary policy ― as the incoming Yoon Suk-yeol administration seeks to expand government spending and curb soaring inflation at the same time.The two nominees are Choo Kyung-ho for the deputy prime minister and minister of economy and finance and Rhee Chang-yong for the governor of the Bank of Korea (BOK), with the former to be in charge of fiscal policy and the latter responsible for monetary policy.It has always been desirable for the finance ministry and the central bank to work on the aforementioned policies in a mutually complementary manner in accordance with the economic situation.However, such harmony may be more difficult to achieve n

Apr 13, 2022By Yi Whan-woo
Coordination on policy mix gets critical for incoming administration
Economy

Job growth slows in March amid upsurge in COVID-19 cases

gettyimagesbank South Korea reported job additions for the 13th consecutive month in March, but employment growth slowed from the previous month as positions at in-person services were hit by the upsurge in COVID-19 cases, data showed Wednesday.The number of employed people came to 27.75 million last month, up 831,000 from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea.The number of employed people has increased every month since March last year. But the March tally was lower than a year-on-year increase of 1.14 million in January and 1.04 million in February.The statistics agency said the trend of job growth has been extended, but uncertainty about the job market remains high.South Korea's economy has been on a recovery track on the back of robust exports, but it has faced heightened economic uncertainty amid the fast spread of the Omicron variant and surging energy costs caused by Russia's invasion of Ukraine.Job data pointed to overall improve

Apr 13, 2022
Job growth slows in March amid upsurge in COVID-19 cases
Economy

Korean stocks tumble on Wall Street declines

Dealers at work at Hana Bank's headquarters in Seoul, Tuesday, when Korean stocks extended losses on growing investor preference for safer assets. YonhapKOSPI feared to fall furtherBy Lee Min-hyungThe benchmark KOSPI slumped around 1 percent Tuesday in the aftermath of an overnight retreat on Wall Street. U.S. stocks tumbled after the yield on 10-year U.S. Treasury bonds rose.In response, the main Korean bourse fell 0.98 percent or 26.34 points from the previous session to close at 2,666.76.Of particular concern is that local stocks will likely continue losing more ground from a short-term viewpoint amid the U.S. Fed's move to adopt a tighter monetary policy. The prevalent market outlook is that the Fed will take the big step of raising its key rate by 50 basis points at one time in May.The Bank of Korea's (BOK) monetary policy board is also set to hold its rate-setting meeting on Thursday. Even if the central bank, whose new chief has been nominated but not officially approved yet, decides to freeze the benchmark rate this time, it is also widely expected to follow the footsteps of

Apr 12, 2022By Lee Min-hyung
Korean stocks tumble on Wall Street declines
Economy

Will KRX's six-decade monopoly end with alternative trading systems launch?

gettyimagesbankFSS, FSC brush up assessment guidelines for preliminary approval of ATS By Anna J. ParkThe Korea Exchange's (KRX) monopoly over stock trading is likely to be broken up as soon as 2024, as moves are being accelerated to launch an alternative trading system (ATS) ― a trading venue or platform operated with looser regulations compared to traditional stock exchanges. According to the financial investment industry earlier this week, the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) will release guidelines as early as next month for the assessment of preliminary applications for establishing an ATS, which is being worked on by the FSS' ATS taskforce team in collaboration with the Financial Services Commission and the Korea Capital Market Institute.FSS Governor Jeong Eun-bo also reiterated the financial authority's intention last month to support preparatory moves for the establishment of an ATS, which is regarded as the financial authority's medium- and long-term direction for the advancement of the country's capital market infrastructure. Brokerage houses that have been preparing for

Apr 12, 2022By Anna J. Park
Will KRX's six-decade monopoly end with alternative trading systems launch?
Economy

Money supply grows in February amid increased savings, corporate loans

The Bank of Korea /Yonhap Korea's money supply grew 0.6 percent month-on-month in February driven by increased savings and corporate loans, central bank data showed Tuesday.The country's M2, a key gauge of the money supply, stood at 3,662.6 trillion won ($2.96 trillion) on average in February, up 21.8 trillion won from a month earlier, according to the preliminary data from the Bank of Korea (BOK).M2 is a measure of the money supply that counts cash, demand deposits and other easily convertible financial instruments.Contributing to the February rise were increased savings amid rising interest rates, along with a gain in corporate loans.Banks have raised interest rates on savings in line with the central bank's recent series of rate hikes aimed at taming inflation. (Yonhap)

Apr 12, 2022
Money supply grows in February amid increased savings, corporate loans
Economy

Market watchers divided over BOK's rate-setting meeting this week: poll

Rhee Chang-yong, the nominee for the governor of the Bank of Korea/ Yonhap Market watchers are sharply divided over whether the Bank of Korea (BOK) will raise its key policy rate this week amid persistent worries over inflation that has been under growing upward pressure from surging oil and commodity prices, a poll showed Tuesday. The BOK is set to hold a rate-setting meeting Thursday. In February, the central bank froze its policy interest rate at 1.25 percent after hiking it by a combined 0.75 percentage points since August last year. According to the poll of 100 bond market experts, 50 percent said the BOK will likely raise the rate this week, with the remainder predicting a freeze. The poll was conducted from April 1 to 6 by the Korea Financial Investment Association. This week's rate-setting meeting comes amid growing concerns over inflation running high as crude oil and commodity prices are on the rise due to global supply chain disruptions caused by the

Apr 12, 2022
Market watchers divided over BOK's rate-setting meeting this week: poll
Economy

Will corporate accounts boost cryptocurrency trading?

gettyimagesbankBy Lee Min-hyungAs Shinhan Bank starts to issue real-name bank accounts for corporate clients' cryptocurrency trading, more capital is expected to flow into the market in line with the incoming administration's deregulatory stance on the industry, officials said Monday.Up until recently, banks affiliated with crypto exchanges did not issue bank accounts for companies over fears of possible money laundering and the years-long regulatory market circumstances here.But Shinhan decided recently to issue real-name accounts for some of its corporate clients, so they can make crypto transactions via its affiliated exchange, Korbit. The lender said it has started doing so, as part of a pilot program, under which some members of the Korea Digital Asset Trust (KDAC) can receive the accounts after the lender finishes a review of them. Shinhan Bank invested in KDAC in January 2021 to tap into the digital asset custody market, with a long-term plan to attract more capital from corporate clients.The latest decision by Shinhan is expected to bring a ripple effect across the crypto ind

Apr 11, 2022By Lee Min-hyung
Will corporate accounts boost cryptocurrency trading?
Economy

Yoon's economic team tasked with juggling growth, inflation

Choo Kyung-ho, right, the nominee for deputy prime minister and minister of economy and finance, joins a meeting of the presidential transition committee at its office in Samcheong-dong, Jongno District, Seoul, Monday. Joint Press CorpsExperts say budget restructuring could be option for incoming gov'tBy Yi Whan-wooPresident-elect Yoon Suk-yeol's economic team led by Choo Kyung-ho, his nominee for deputy prime minister for economic affairs, faces a tricky job of effectively juggling both growth and inflation as the Korean economy reels from the fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic amid soaring prices.The trickiest part is to come up with policies that can inject new vigor into the sluggish economy, while stabilizing real estate markets underpinned by a heap of debt, and keeping consumer prices under control.Regarding the people's livelihood, President-elect Yoon wants to increase government spending by up to 50 trillion won ($40.5 billion) to support pandemic-stricken small businesses, but at the same time, wants to curb soaring inflation that requires a tightening of monetary policy.The

Apr 11, 2022By Yi Whan-woo
Yoon's economic team tasked with juggling growth, inflation
Economy

Banks to ease lending policy on households, companies in Q2: survey

Seen above are headquarters of Korea's four major financial holding firms including KB, Shinhan, Hana and Woori. Courtesy of the banksBanks in Korea will likely ease their lending criteria for households and companies in the second quarter amid expectations that the government could ease its tough curbs on lending, a survey showed Monday.According to the poll of officials handling credit affairs at financial institutions, including 18 banks, conducted by the Bank of Korea (BOK), the index gauging bank's attitude toward home-backed and unsecured loans to households stood at 11 and 3, respectively, for the April-June period.The figures compared with minus 14 and minus 17 tallied a quarter earlier.The index measuring banks' lending policy for large and small companies came in at 6 each for the second quarter, up from zero three months earlier, the survey showed.A reading below zero means the number of lenders that will restrict lending surpasses that of banks planning to ease lending criteria. A reading above zero means the opposite.The BOK said that demand for fresh loans from househol

Apr 11, 2022
Banks to ease lending policy on households, companies in Q2: survey
Economy

Will travel, leisure, airline stocks make turnaround this year?

gettyimagesbankDespite soaring projected earnings, travel agencies expected to log annual losses again this year By Anna J. Park As the Korean government has decided to lift the mandatory seven-day quarantine for fully vaccinated tourists, market watchers expect the country's leisure, aviation and casino sectors to post significant annual growth in their revenues from this year. The land and transportation ministry's announcement that the government will gradually increase the number of international flights in domestic airports from the current 420 per week to 520 per week in May has added fuel to expectations that these industries, which had been hit the hardest by the pandemic, might finally be able to log a turnaround this year. The government said that the number of international flights per week is slated to reach over 2,400 by November, which is about 50 percent of their pre-COVID-19 levels.Actually, following the government's announcements, the number of tourism reservations made at major travel agencies has more than doubled ― even quadrupled ― in the past week. Reflecting t

Apr 10, 2022By Anna J. Park
Will travel, leisure, airline stocks make turnaround this year?
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