Cargo processed at South Korean seaports rose slightly during the first three months of 2017 from a year earlier amid a steady increase in exports, government data showed Friday. Cargo handled at the country's seaports came to 389.92 million tons in the January-March period, up from 375.64 million tons tallied a year earlier, according to the data by the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries. Non-co...

South Korean manufacturers' business sentiment for next month improved slightly as local companies expect steady gains in domestic demand and exports, data by the central bank showed Friday. The business survey index of manufacturing firms came to 84 for May, up from 82 for April, according to the Bank of Korea. A reading over 100 means optimists outnumber pessimists, while a reading below the ...

South Korea plans to sell a combined 7.75 trillion won ($6.84 billion) in state bonds next month, the finance ministry said Thursday. The government will issue 1.8 trillion won in bonds with a maturity of three years and 1.9 trillion won in five-year bonds. It also plans to sell 1.8 trillion won worth of 10-year Treasurys and a combined 2.25 trillion won of bonds with a maturity of between 20 a...

The three-year-old free trade agreement with Vietnam will allow South Korean companies to further increase their auto, steel and petrochemical exports on tax removal or cuts, customs experts said Thursday. In a seminar held at the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry in central Seoul, customs experts called on Korean companies to aggressively take advantage of tariff benefits in the third year...

The number of unemployed people aged 65 or older hit a record high in recent months, government data showed Thursday, amid the lack of proper job openings for senior citizens,m whose number has been growing rapidly in recent years. The number of jobless people aged 65 or older rose to 123,000 for the first quarter this year, up 31,000 from a year earlier, according to the Statistics Korea data. ...

Attention is being drawn to whether a new administration to be installed following the May 9 presidential election will push to draw up a supplementary budget this year. With the country’s economy showing signs of recovery, government policymakers are becoming increasingly negative on the need for additional fiscal spending. Korea’s gross domestic product increased 0.9 percent from the previous...

South Korea's industrial electricity consumption rose for five straight quarters in the first three months of the year on a sharp upturn in the chipmaking and chemical sectors, the government said Thursday. The amount of electricity consumed by the country's industrial sector reached 71.06 billion kilowatt-hours in the January-March period, up 2.4 percent from the same period last year, accordin...

South Korea’s economy grew at a faster pace in the first three months of the year on the back of robust exports and stronger-than-expected investment in construction and facilities, the central bank said Thursday. According to the Bank of Korea, the nation’s gross domestic product expanded 0.9 percent in the first quarter from the previous quarter, beating market expectations of 0.7-0.8 percent....

South Korea's economy grew at a faster pace in the first quarter than three months earlier due to increased construction investment and exports, central bank data showed Thursday. In the January-March period, the country's gross domestic product increased 0.9 percent from the previous quarter, improving from a 0.5 percent on-quarter expansion three months earlier, according to preliminary data f...

As of October last year, some 1.11 million women were hired in restaurant businesses, taking up 9.8 percent of the total working women. When adding bars and other beverage outlets, the proportion reached 12.0 percent, becoming the No. 1 industry in which women were employed, Statistics Korea data showed Tuesday. Half of the employed Koreans earned 2 million or less per month. When grouped by ind...

South Korea's top tax official and his Indian counterpart agreed to avoid double taxation between the two countries, the government said Wednesday. National Tax Service chief Lim Hwan-soo and India's Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia also agreed to create stable tax conditions for investments during their meeting in Seoul, according to the NTS. The bilateral double taxation avoidance pact was rea...

Payouts by private pension savings accounts to investors significantly fell short of needs for post-retirement life, official data showed Wednesday. The average monthly payout by private pension savings stood at 260,000 won ($231) last year, down 20,000 won from a year earlier, according to the data from the Financial Supervisory Service. Including an average monthly payout by the National Pens...

Consumer sentiment had generally improved in April, but it worsened for those under 40, a detailed index from the central bank indicated Wednesday. The Bank of Korea said overall the consumer sentiment index for the month rose to 101.2 from 96.7 in the previous month. A reading above 100 means there are more optimists than pessimists. However, a separate index for the under-40 age group measuri...

The number of companies that had their credit ratings upgraded increased by 76.9 percent last year compared to the previous year. Those that had their credit ratings downgraded, meanwhile, dropped by 42.8 percent, the Financial Supervisory Service said Tuesday. But there were still three times as many companies with “negative” outlooks for their credit ratings than with “positive” outlooks.

The second annual meeting of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank will be held on South Korea's southern island of Jeju in June, the finance ministry said Tuesday. The meeting of the board of governors will held on June 16-18 with the theme "sustainable infrastructure" and more than 10 seminars and discussion sessions, according to the Ministry of Strategy and Finance. Detailed programs inc...