[THE INVESTOR] The head of South Korea’s central bank demanded consistent corporate restructuring in financially troubled industries in a meeting with several economists on Oct. 26.“The government should consistently push forward restructuring in close consultation with subjected industries according to market rules,” Bank of Korea Gov. Lee Ju-yeol said.The comments come as the shipping, shipbuilding, steel and petrochemical industries -- key pillars of the South Korean economy -- have been stru

[THE INVESTOR] Flower sales in South Korea have decreased more than 20 percent on-year in October, following the implementation of an anti-corruption law, data showed on Oct. 26.According to the data by the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade, flower transactions came to 1.96 million bunches in the first 24 days of this month, down a whopping 22 percent from the same period a year earlier.The plunge is deemed unusual as flowers are in high demand in October when many youths tie the knot or compani

[THE INVESTOR] South Korea’s national debt to gross domestic product ratio is lower than advanced nations, but not that low given its aging population, a report shows on Oct. 26. The National Assembly Budget Office said in the report that Seoul thus needs to step up efforts to bolster its fiscal soundness as its national debt has been rising at a much faster clip in the 2010s than countries in Southern Europe that suffered a debt crisis.According to the report, South Korea’s debt-GDP ratio stood

[THE INVESTOR] The overall sentiment of South Korean consumers climbed to a 10-month high in October, the central bank said on Oct. 26. The composite consumer sentiment index for October came to 101.9, compared with 101.7 the previous month, according to the data from the Bank of Korea. The figure marks the highest since December 2015 when the index stood at 102.4.A reading above 100 means optimists outnumber pessimists.A separate index gauging the people‘s sentiments toward the current economic

[THE INVESTOR] South Korea came in fifth in terms of business environment among 190 countries, according to a report by the World Bank on Oct. 26. According to the organization’s annual “Doing Business 2017” ranking report, the country received 84.07 points in total, slightly up from the previous year’s 83.88, but fell one notch from a year earlier.Every year, the World Bank analyzes 189 countries’ business environments by breaking them down into 10 broad categories in accordance with the busine

[THE INVESTOR]  South Korea’s health insurance outlays climbed to 57.95 trillion won (US$50.98 billion) last year buoyed by the increasing number of senior citizens requiring medical attention. The total amount to cover medical examinations, hospitalizations and drug purchases rose 6.6 percent on-year in 2015, according to the report by the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service and the National Health Insurance Corporation on Oct. 25. On average, a South Korean visited a hospital or cli

[THE INVESTOR]  The chief of Oxy Reckitt Benckiser apologized to the victims of the company’s toxic humidifier sterilizer products at a court hearing on Oct. 25.Ata Safdar appeared at the Seoul Central District Court as the representing director of the Korean unit of the British firm, which is standing trial as a defendant on charges of violating the Act on Fair Labeling and Advertising.“Firstly, I want to say that we are sorry for the great tragedy that is happening,” he said during the trial.

[THE INVESTOR] An executive of the country’s largest business lobby group was summoned on Oct. 25 in relation to the two nonprofit foundations, allegedly linked to a controversial figure with ties to President Park Geun-hye.Lee Yong-woo at the Federation of Korean Industries was called in by the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office to face questions over the Mir Foundation and K-Sports Foundation. Established in 2015 and early this year, the two foundations are suspected of raising a combi

[THE INVESTOR]  LG Electronics demanded that Miele stop using its steam washing technology, claiming the German appliance maker has infringed on its patents. LG sent a letter to Miele last week, urging the company to take amicable action to resolve the matter and respond by the end of this month. “After reviewing a response from Miele, we will review possible legal measures if necessary,” said an LG official. The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said LG will strongly deal with

[THE INVESTOR] Korean Air Lines said on Oct. 25 that it turned to black in the third quarter on-year, thanks to lower oil prices and increased passengers. Net profit reached 428 billion won (US$376 million) in the July-September period, compared with a loss of 510 billion won a year earlier, the company said in a regulatory filing.Sales increased 4.7 percent on-year to reach 3.06 trillion won over the cited period, while operating income reached a record high of 448 billion won, up 35 percent fr

[THE INVESTOR] Hyundai Motor Group announced on Oct. 25 that it will cut salaries of 51 affiliate executives by 10 percent starting this month amid the deteriorating business condition. “Executives of the group’s affiliates are moving to voluntarily cut their salaries,” said a high-ranking official at Hyundai Motor Group on the condition of anonymity. “As far as I know, it (pay cut) will start this month.”The Korean auto giant's possible pay cut for executives is the first since the 2008 global

[THE INVESTOR] Lotte Group units are planning to sell bonds to raise funds as the prosecution concluded a probe into the owner family’s alleged wrongdoing, according to market watchers on Oct. 25. Wrapping up a grueling four-month investigation last week, prosecutors indicted Lotte Group Chairman Shin Dong-bin, his father and elder brother without detention on charges of embezzlement and other business irregularities. According to sources, Hotel Lotte is moving to issue bonds according to its pl

[THE INVESTOR] South Korea will make efforts to reinforce its financial cooperation with African countries by creating a US$10 billion cooperation program, the Finance Ministry said on Oct. 25. “The South Korean government will participate in many African development issues and contribute to achieving their sustainable development,” Finance Minister Yoo Il-ho said in his opening remarks at the ministerial-level meeting of the Korea Africa Economic Cooperation in Seoul.Starting in 2006, the bienn

[THE INVESTOR] The South Korean government will keep the ratio of national debt to gross domestic product at 45 percent or lower, starting next year, the Finance Ministry said on Oct. 25. The new state budget management act, which was introduced in August as part of efforts to maintain sound fiscal status, was approved by the Cabinet and will be submitted to the National Assembly, according to the ministry.Under the law, the government has to comply with a debt-GDP ratio of 45 percent and the ba

[THE INVESTOR] Local investors are focusing on Chinese stock funds ahead of the stock exchange link between Shenzhen and Hong Kong in end-November. According to Korea Fund Ratings on Oct. 25, China-focused equity funds posted a net inflow of 29.8 billion won (US$26.20 million) for the past one-month period, the largest among offshore stock funds.Overall, overseas stock funds suffered a net outflow of 140.2 billion won during the period.The net inflow into Chinese stock funds is in sharp contrast

[THE INVESTOR] The Korea Exchange announced on Oct. 25 that an over-the-counter stock market for promising startups will open here on Nov. 14. The new market, named the KRX Startup Market, will be focusing more on technology-intensive startups than other OTC markets oriented toward unlisted large companies and middling firms.Retail investors will be attracted to invest in competitive local startups with great growth potential, the KRX said.Startups wanting to trade their shares on the KSM should

[THE INVESTOR] South Korea recouped 6.7 billion won (US$5.9 million) of bailout funds in the third quarter, the government said on Oct. 25. The retrieval of taxpayers’ money stemmed largely from the liquidation of non-performing assets, according to the Financial Services Commission.The government has spent a total of 168.7 trillion won since November 1997 to bail out financial services and other firms in a bid to cushion the shock to the nation‘s economy.It recovered 112.1 trillion won, or 66.5

[THE INVESTOR] The South Korean economy grew at a slower pace in the third quarter than three months earlier, according to central bank data on Oct. 25.In the July-September period, the country’s gross domestic product increased 0.7 percent from the previous quarter, decelerating from a 0.8 percent on-quarter expansion three months earlier, according to preliminary data from the Bank of Korea. From a year earlier, Asia’s fourth-largest economy grew 2.7 percent.(theinvestor@heraldcorp.com)

[THE INVESTOR] South Korea’s self-employed workers in their 20s and the elderly run a higher risk of defaulting on loans from financial institutions, according to a report on Oct. 24. The country’s financial authorities thus need to keep a close watch on the potential risk, which could come as a drag on the local financial sector, the Korea Institute of Finance said in the report on household debt.According to the report, the debt-to-income ratio for 20-somethings jumped to 174 percent as of end

[THE INVESTOR] Half the college students in South Korea consider job market conditions have worsened this year, a survey showed on Oct. 24. In the survey conducted by the Federation of Korean Industries, 52.6 percent of 3,461 students surveyed said job market conditions have deteriorated from a year earlier for fresh college graduates.Only 2.6 percent answered that conditions have rather improved, while 26.5 percent said they did not see any significant changes.The outcome of the survey was appa