Finance Minister Yoo Il-ho said that South Korea’s national debt in proportion to its gross domestic product is relatively low compared with other major economies.  Finance Minister Yoo Il-ho (Yonhap)Its largest trading partner China, which is undergoing structural changes to focus on spurring domestic consumption rather than exports, will have a positive effect on Asia’s fourth-largest economy. Korea’s benchmark interest rate of 1.5 percent is also higher than most other economies, he noted.“Ko

North Korea on Thursday reiterated its stance that its nuclear capability is the outcome of what it claims is nuclear blackmail from Washington, and threatened to launch a nuclear attack on the U.S. mainland.The Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), Pyongyang's official news outlet, said the U.S.'s call for a "world without nuclear weapons" is a prelude to a nuclear war against the communist state."The 4th Nuclear Security Summit held in the U.S. was an extremely deceptive and provocative farce aim

The government has rejected calls to disclose information on the possible deployment of an advanced missile defense system to South Korea, a civic group said Thursday.The Ministry of National Defense dismissed the information disclosure request filed by the Lawyers for a Democratic Society last month, the group said.It had asked the ministry to open the terms of reference it signed with its U.S. counterpart and clarify whether the agreement was a treaty, according to the association.In the after

South Korea has moved one spot up to rank No. 56 in the world, the latest FIFA ranking announced on Thursday showed.The April rankings of FIFA showed that the South Korea men's football team is ranked third best in Asia, just one notch above their archrival Japan.Iran was the top-ranked country in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) at No. 42 followed by Australia, which moved up from No. 67 to 50.Saudi Arabia was the fifth-highest-ranked Asian country at No. 60, followed by Uzbekistan (No. 6

From hotels, movies, games and financial services to energy, manufacturing and information technology, there is not one sector across industries or markets that China is not involved in.China’s growth may be losing momentum a bit, but that does not mean Chinese companies do not have the capital to remain acquisitive for businesses that can help them generate more value. And finance is one of many services where they want to get their hands on and boost global competitiveness through acquisitions

Given that concerns are falling over the possibility of the Korea Aerospace Industries share price further declining following massive block equity sales from its major shareholders, analysts said fundamentals of the aircraft maker and parts developer will now be reflected in the market.KAI's Surion utility helicopter (KAI)Shares of KAI, which develops FA-50 fighter jets and T-50 trainers, have been facing some headwinds as a result of stake sales by its shareholders, which include Hyundai Motor

Hyundai Merchant Marine, South Korea's No. 2 shipping line by sales, said on Monday it was mulling over selling its oil-carrier business unit to improve its financial footing."We are considering selling the oil carrier division (composed of five to six oil carrier ships) to secure liquidity and improve financial health. But nothing has been decided yet," the company said in a regulatory filing. Hyundai steel products (Yonhap)Hyundai Merchant has stepped up its efforts to sell non-core assets and

South Korea's largest multiplex cinema chain CJ CGV said Monday that it has purchased a 7.8-percent stake in Indonesian movie theater chain, PT Graha Layar Prima Tbk.The deal, valued at 34.7 billion won ($30.1 million), will help CJ CGV to make inroads into the Southeast Asian country with high potential of growth in the film market, the company said. CJ CGV (Yonhap)With the purchase, CJ CGV will control 40.25 percent of the Indonesian firm's total stakes, it said. The company further forecast t

WeMade Entertainment, a KOSDAQ-listed game developer and publisher, once made a name for itself with hit titles such as “Wind Runner” and “Legend of Mir” in both PC and mobile gaming.The company even garnered attention from the market for its investment in Kakao, Korea’s most used mobile messenger, for a strategic partnership in mobile games. WeMade has a 4 percent stake in Kakao, and holds equities in notable game companies including 4:33 and Joymax. However, currently with hardly any blockbust

The Korean won gained the fastest among Asian currencies last month on the back of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s dovish stance on raising interest rates and slower depreciation of the Chinese yuan, according to data by Yonhap Infomax and Capital Economics.The Korean strengthened against the U.S. dollar by 8.15 percent in March, the highest gain followed by the Malaysian ringgit’s 7.97 percent appreciation; Singaporean dollar’s 4.32 percent; Taiwanese dollar’s 3.44 percent; Philippine peso’s 3.16 pe

Hanwha Techwin has been chosen as a preferred bidder for Doosan DST by Doosan Group and DST’s sales manager Credit Suisse was perhaps fate, destiny or meant to be. Hanwha Techwin's K9 self-propelled howitzer (Hanwha Techwin)With most analysts, investment bankers and the defense industry having forecast Hanwha Techwin to win armored vehicle and missile launcher system developer DST, Techwin’s announcement Wednesday morning did not come as a surprise. This was because, as industry sources argued,

The race to take over Hyundai Securities will come down to two Korean financial holdings giants – KB Financial Group and Korea Investment Holdings – bidding for cash-strapped Hyundai Group’s brokerage.(Yonhap)After their shareholders meeting on Friday, chief executives of KB Financial and Korea Investment expressed their determined intent to acquire Hyundai Securities’ 22 percent stake owned by Hyundai Merchant Marine.“We have submited an appropriate bidding price for the brokerage,” Yoon Jong-k

The foreign financial community urged the country’s regulators Tuesday to keep rising household debt in check as it could hinder growth and efforts for structural reforms, amid numerous challenges faced by the Korean economy this year.As Korea is Asia’s fourth-largest economy and has achieved resilient growth over the years, the country’s “debt is manageable,” said Philippe Noirot, country head of BNP Paribas Korea, at the 8th FSS SPEAKS hosted by the Financial Supervisory Service in Seoul.But i

Doosan Corp. is expected to open bids for its defense subsidiary Doosan DST on March 25, according to news reports. Doosan DST's armored vehicle (Doosan DST)Doosan, which owns a 51 percent stake in DST through its special purpose company, DIP Holdings, has been seeking to sell the armored vehicle manufacturer since late last year, as it has been realigning its core business to improve the group’s finances amid a liquidity crunch. Credit Suisse is managing the sale of DST. Doosan’s private equity

It seems like yesterday that Korea’s shipbuilding trio conquered the world, leading in the number of contracts and orders they secured with well-known shipping companies to build container ships and LNG and bulk carriers.If that was not enough, Korean shipbuilders, whose exports of those ships used to account for more than 8 percent of the total exports starting in the 1980s, ventured into supplying materials and equipment to offshore energy plants and platforms that looked highly “lucrative and

South Korea's foreign ministry said it plans to hold a ministerial-level talk with France next week, and discuss various issues related to the two countries, including Pyongyang-related topics.The meeting comes as French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault plans to arrive in Seoul on March 23 for a three-day stay. "The topics will include bilateral matters, as well as comprehensive issues on the Korean Peninsula and the world, and seek strategic cooperation," the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.

South Korea has raised its travel alert level on Ankara, Turkey and Zanzibar, Tanzania, Seoul's Foreign Ministry said Thursday, advising its citizens to refrain from visiting them amid "deteriorating security" there.Security conditions have worsened in recent months in Ankara following a spate of terrorist attacks, the ministry explained.Last month, a terrorist bombing occurred in the Turkish capital, killing nearly 30 people. Another terrorist attack occurred in downtown Ankara on Sunday, leavi

President Park Geun-hye said Thursday she would create and preside over a strategic council on science and technology that will overhaul South Korea's research and development process.The proposed council is designed to "drastically enhance productivity in R&D investment," Park said in a meeting with officials and experts on artificial intelligence and software at Cheong Wa Dae, South Korea's presidential office. The council -- to be composed of about 20 civilian experts and public officials --

China has become Korea’s largest bond investor for the first time, according to the Financial Supervisory Service on Thursday. The world’s second-largest economy holds Korean state bonds worth 17.5 trillion won ($14.9 billion) as of the end of last month, surpassing the country’s previous top investor -- the U.S., which has invested about 14.4 trillion won in fixed-income securities.China’s Korean bond holdings now account for about 18 percent of the total bonds worth 97 trillion won held by for

Small and medium enterprises that are unable to meet their debt obligations worth more than 3 billion won ($2.5 billion) and fail to meet adequate credit standards will need to go through creditor-led workout programs, the top financial regulator announced Tuesday. The Financial Services Commission said that an enforcement ordinance to the Corporate Restructuring Promotion Act has been submitted to a Cabinet council for legislation.“The ordinance is expected to be enacted next month after furthe