South Korea's foreign exchange reserves climbed to a new high in February as a weaker U.S. dollar boosted the conversion value of assets in other currencies, the central bank said Thursday.   The country's foreign reserves reached US$297.67 billion as of the end of February, up $1.71 billion from the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea.   The reserves rose for the third consecutive mont

South Korean stocks got off to a strong start on Thursday, fueled by advances in shares of automakers and technology firms, analysts said.   The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose17.37 points, or 0.9 percent, to 1,945.61 in the first 15 minutes of trading.   Autos propped up the KOSPI with Kia Motors rising more than 2 percent and Hyundai Mobis, the country's largest auto par

Consumer prices rise 4.5% in Feb.Consumer prices in February rose above the government’s target for the second month in a row amid signs of slower growth, bolstering concerns of stagflation.The Consumer Price Index advanced 4.5 percent from a year ago to a 27-month high, following January’s 4.1 percent gain from last year. The Bank of Korea targets inflation rates to remain at 3 percent level for

Critics accuse former Prime Minister Chung of ignoring market economics A government-led initiative for profit sharing between large and small firms has sparked fury among conglomerates, politicians and academics who call it a “radical leftist” attempt to encroach on the free market economics.Chung Un-chan, a former prime minister who now heads the semi-official commission for “shared growth,” ann

Korea’s recent failure to legislate tax benefits for sukuk, or Islamic bonds, is seen to begin taking a toll on the country’s access to one of the world’s fastest growing financial sources. The Malaysian government is said to have declined requests by Korean companies to grant issuance of corporate bonds in the country, spurring concerns that it may be the first reaction to Korea’s reluctance to g

Asian countries should increase use of their local currencies in inter-regional trade settlements to avoid currency disturbances stemming from U.S. monetary policies, Supachai Panitchpakdi, secretary-general of the U.N. Conference on Trade and Development, said. “By creating more account settlement in, say Chinese renminbi, Indonesian rupiah, or the Korean won, the region could relax tension arisi

Chairman Kim vows to enhance global networking, toughen against fraudThe Korea Exchange will push for an initial public offering to boost its competitiveness and expand its operations globally, its chairman Kim Bong-soo said.He also pledged to toughen penalties on trading irregularities, citing the recent controversy involving Deutsche Bank, which allegedly manipulated the stock market through mas

Emphasis on free-trade deals has increased access for Korean exportsPresident Lee Myung-bak’s emphasis on business diplomacy for the past three years has been catapulted Korea to the forefront of free trade and international global coordination that helped the world tide over the worst downturn since the Great Depression. Korea’s first CEO-turned-president is praised for pulling the country out of

During his three years in office, President Lee Myung-bak is praised for achieving a rapid recovery from the financial crisis and boosting Korea’s economic clout in the world.His government has widened Korea’s free trade relations with major economies, mediated conflicts between traditional and emerging powers as the first host of G20 Summit and pulled off 6.1 percent growth last year to rank seco

The state-run Industrial Bank of Korea led Korean lenders in terms of labor productivity last year, government data showed Monday.According to the Financial Supervision Service, the IBK recorded 181 million won ($163,107) in profit per employee. Shinhan scored the second with 154 million won.Employees at Hana Bank came third with 118 million won and the state-run Woori Bank came fourth with 80 mil

The Korean delegation played a key role in Paris hammering out the Group of 20’s agreement on economic indicators to address the global trade imbalance, Finance Minister Yoon Jeung-hyun said.Finance ministers and central bank governors of the world’s 20 major economies agreed to narrow the list of economic indicators to detect signs of imbalances in their first meeting of the year over the weekend

Kozlowski calls Korea-Europe FTA a win-win deal benefiting businesses, consumersThe Korea-EU free trade agreement expected to come into force in July will benefit businesses, workers and consumers of both economies, Thomas Kozlowski, the new EU ambassador to Seoul, said Friday. The European Parliament approved the landmark accord on Thursday. Korea seeks a parliamentary ratification during an extr

The government faces an uphill battle to legislate tax benefits for Islamic bond investors at a parliamentary session starting Friday amid sturdy objections from opposition politicians and churches.The Finance Ministry is pushing for a bill on Islamic bonds, or sukuk, that would grant tax exemption on profits earned by bondholders in a bid to widen Korea’s access to increasing Middle Eastern oil m

Global stock exchange tie-ups to reduce trading options for Korea ExchangeA fresh wave of international stock exchange integration poses a bigger challenge to Korea Exchange lagging behind in trading infrastructure and networks with major global players, analysts said.Three major alliances are under way among top bourses in the U.S. and Europe representing more than 40 percent of the world’s trade

Overseas investors sell stock in response to inflation fears but not thought as part of long-term trendForeign investors pulled out the biggest amount of capital from Seoul stocks in Asia this month, reversing earlier snap ups on inflation fears.The selling spree was part of a regional outflow as investors fled to rebounding advanced economies, away from continued monetary tightening in emerging e

  Korean political parties on Saturday hailed the toppling of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak as a victory for the Egyptian people toward democracy.  Mubarak's three-decade reign ended earlier Saturday, Korean time, after the besieged ruler decided to comply with protesters' requests for him to step down.  A junta of military commanders will now assume power in a culmination of the 18-day uprisin

Surging farm product prices lift index to 26-month high in JanuaryKorea’s producer prices rose to a 26-month high in January on stoking agricultural and farm products, posing the prospect of further food price hikes for the consumers.The producer price index, indicating price movements at retailers, increased 6.2 percent in January from a year ago, recording a steeper pace from 5.3 percent posted

Currency appreciation would improve supply of imports, reduce currency volatility, economists sayA stronger won could help tame the country’s inflationary pressure, as a tool to ease the burden of surging import prices, economists said Thursday.Although tolerating a more expensive won would hurt exporters, the move will ease some supply shortage, they said. They predicted that further appreciation

Analysts’ views were mixed on the prospect of an interest rate hike ahead of the monetary policy committee’s monthly meeting for benchmark interest rate-setting slated for Friday. This reflects the Bank of Korea’s dilemma of containing rising prices while keeping growth on track. Inflation driven by fresh food prices and commodities abroad is pressuring the central bank to raise the key rate for t

Rhee Chang-yong, vice-chief of the G20 Preparation Committee is nominated as an economist at the Asian Development Bank, the Finance Ministry said Tuesday.The post makes Rhee, the second Korean economist at the regional lender after Lee Jong-hwa, presidential economic aide.  Rhee Chang-yongRhee has a bachelors degree in economics from Seoul National University. He served in numerous private posts