Page 2 - South Korea Economy

South Korea's acting president Sang-mok calls for national harmony, unity

Republic of Korea is in an unprecedentedly serious situation, Choi said in a written statement, citing changes around global trade, diplomacy and security, as well as domestic political uncertainty

South Korean court sees strife as it is to decide fate of impeached Prez

South Korea's acting leader vowed Tuesday to convey to the world that things are back to normal following parliament's impeachment of conservative President Yoon Suk Yeol, but rival parties began squabbling over the mechanics of a court ruling to determine whether to formally unseat or reinstate him. The country's liberal opposition-controlled parliament voted to impeach Yoon last Saturday over his short-lived December 3 martial law imposition, suspending his presidential powers until the Constitutional Court determines whether to uphold or overturn the decision. If Yoon is dismissed, a national election must be held to pick his successor within two months. Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, who became acting leader, has taken steps to reassure the US and other countries and stabilise markets. Presiding over a Cabinet Council meeting on Tuesday, Han said he will continuously do my utmost to inform the international society that Republic of Korea is fast regaining stability and maintain ...

South Korea's midnight martial law: A dramatic move reversed in hours

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol announced the first martial law in over 40 years, reversing it hours later following a Parliamentary vote

Starbucks offers glimpse of North Korean life from new South Korea cafe

Starbucks Coffee Korea's new riverbank cafe at an observatory tower in South Korea's Gimpo city promises coffee aficionados a chance to gaze at normal village life in Gaepung county across border

South Korea's 'mountain' of plastic waste highlight limits of recycling

Bi-monthly MIT Technology Review magazine has rated South Korea as 'one of the world's best recycling economies', and the only Asian country out of the top 10 on its Green Future Index in 2022

South Korea's central bank raises interest rates to strengthen economy

South Korea's central bank on Friday cut its policy rate for the first time in more than four years as pressure to revive a sluggish economy outweighed concerns about the country's level of household debt. The Bank of Korea lowered its key interest rate by a quarter percentage point to 3.25% following a meeting of its monetary policy committee, in its first move to lower borrowing costs since May 2020, when the economy was weathering the COVID-19 pandemic. The bank raised the rate by a quarter percentage point in August 2021 over concerns about inflation and soaring household debt, driven in part by skyrocketing house prices, and then froze rates for over three years. The bank said in a statement that domestic demand is making a slow recovery, bogging down the pace of economic growth. It said there was room for a rate cut because inflation is showing signs of stabilizing and household debt is also increasing more slowly as the housing market in the greater Seoul area cools down. So

India, S Korea share bill of lading electronically to promote trade: DGFT

India and South Korea have started sharing the bill of lading in an electronic transfer mode between the customs of both sides, a move that will help promote ease of doing business, a senior official said on Thursday. A bill of lading is a legal document that serves as a receipt, contract, and proof of ownership for shipped goods. Director General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) Santosh Kumar Sarangi said as and when the system becomes a norm for all the countries, there will be no requirement for physical submission of records. "India in collaboration with South Korea has now started this concept of sharing the bill of lading in an electronic transfer mode between the customs of both sides," he said while addressing a session in the 'Deloitte Government Summit' here. South Korea is a key trading partner of India and both countries have implemented a comprehensive free trade agreement in 2010. India's exports to the country stood at USD 6.41 billion in 2023-23, while imports aggregated at

India-Korea to hold next round of FTA review meeting from Jul 17 in Seoul

With talks to upgrade the existing India-Korea free trade agreement (FTA) moving forward, senior officials of both countries will hold the next round of negotiations from Wednesday in Seoul, an official said. The agreement, dubbed as comprehensive economic partnership agreement (CEPA), was operationalised in January 2010. So far, 10 rounds of review talks have been concluded. The Indian team "will visit Seoul from July 17-19" for the next round of review meetings, the official added. "In the 11th round, both the sides would discuss the broad contours for closing the deal," the official said, adding that Korea is keen to conclude the negotiations this year. The two countries have sought greater market access for certain products, which are under the negative list of the agreement. No customs duty concessions are granted for the goods under this list. The Department of Commerce has engaged with different ministries, including heavy industries, steel, and chemicals, to prepare the of

Over 6,500 Samsung workers walk off assembly lines over pay, vacation time

This week, Samsung's preparing to unveil new foldable phones and watches as well as a smart ring in Paris ahead of the Olympics, in an attempt to forestall a challenge from Apple Inc

N Korea launches more trash balloons; South calls it 'irrational'

South Korea threatened on Tuesday to restart anti-Pyongyang frontline propaganda broadcasts in the latest bout of Cold War-style campaigns between the rivals after North Korea resumed its trash-carrying balloon launches. On Monday night, North Korea floated huge balloons carrying plastic bags of rubbish across the border in its fifth such campaign since late May an apparent response to South Korean activists flying political leaflets via balloons. South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol called North Korea's balloon activities a despicable and irrational provocation. In a speech marking the 74th anniversary of the start of the 1950-53 Korean War, Yoon said Tuesday that South Korea will maintain a firm military readiness to overwhelmingly respond to any provocations by North Korea. South Korea's military said North Korea floated about 350 balloons in its latest campaign, and about 100 of them eventually landed in South Korean soil, mostly in Seoul and nearby areas. Seoul is about 40-50

South Korea's SK Group considers asset sales, mergers as part of overhaul

The group, best known for its chip firm SK Hynix , has become bloated over the past decade and its electric vehicle battery unit has lost billions of dollars

Fire at South Korea battery plant claims 16 lives, five individuals missing

Live TV footage showed firefighters spraying the damaged steel and concrete building

North Korea'a Kim hails Russia tie as Putin reportedly plans a visit

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un hailed the country's expanding relationship with Russia on Wednesday, as reports suggest that Russian President Vladimir Putin will soon visit the country for his third meeting with Kim. Military, economic and other cooperation between North Korea and Russia have sharply increased since Kim visited Russia last September for a meeting with Putin. The US, South Korea and their partners believe North Korea has supplied artillery, missiles and other conventional weapons to Russia to support its war in Ukraine in return for advanced military technologies and economic aid. Kim has been pushing to boost partnerships with Russia and China in a bid to strength his regional footing and launch a united front against the United States. During their September meeting at Russia's main space launch site, Kim invited the Russian president to visit North Korea at a convenient time, and Putin accepted. On Wednesday, Kim sent Putin a congratulatory message commemorati

S Korea oppn leader Lee indicted over funds transfer to North Korea

"I am not that foolish," Lee said last year, calling the charges against him "fiction" as a court denied a warrant for his arrest

South Korea's Prez Yoon heads to Central Asia for talks on energy, minerals

Yoon will visit Turkmenistan with the first lady for a state visit before heading to Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan

South Korea to detail tax incentives aimed at supporting chip industry

The government will also release next month detailed measures to support the country's semiconductor industry

Prosecution appeal begins for Samsung chief Jay Y Lee over 2015 merger case

Prosecutors are appealing against a February ruling that found Lee not guilty of all charges including accounting fraud and stock manipulation

South Korea plans $7.3 billion program to support semiconductor industry

The move comes as the US government is pressing allies including South Korea to further tighten restrictions on China's access to semiconductor technology

CSuisse may face $36 mn fine over S Korea short-selling, says local daily

The notice was sent to the South Korean and Singaporean units of the bank

South Korea's PM, top officials offer to resign after election defeat

South Korea's prime minister and senior presidential officials offered to resign en masse on Thursday, after their conservative ruling party suffered a crushing defeat in parliamentary elections. The results of Wednesday's elections were a huge political blow to President Yoon Suk Yeol, likely setting back his domestic agenda and leave him facing an intensifying political offensive by his liberal opponents during his remaining three years in office. Prime Minster Han Duck-soo and all senior presidential advisers to Yoon, except those in charge of security issues, submitted their resignations, according to Yoon's office. It didn't immediately say whether Yoon accepted their resignations. Executive power in South Korea is heavily concentrated in the president, but the prime minister is the No. 2 official and leads the country if the president becomes incapacitated. Yoon said he will humbly uphold the public sentiments reflected in the election outcome and focus on improving people's