South Korea's home transactions tumbled 23.4 percent in the first six months of the year from a year earlier, the government said Thursday, in an apparent sign of a slowdown in the local real estate market.The number of home transactions came to 468,000 during the January-June period, compared to a record high of 611,000 over the same period last year, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.For June alone, home sales fell 16.1 percent on-year to 92,611, marking the seven

South Korea's exports of information and communication technology products fell 5.1 percent in June due mainly to a slump in sales of mobile phones and displays, government data showed Thursday ICT exports reached $13.48 billion last month, down from $14.21 billion a year ago, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.Exports of ICT goods accounted for 29.8 percent of the country's $45.3 billion in overall shipments abroad over the cited period.South Korea's ex

South Korea's exports of industrial parts and materials fell in the first half of the year amid weak global demand and low oil prices, the trade ministry said Thursday.Outbound shipments of industrial parts and materials dropped 9.2 percent on-year to US$121.8 billion in the January-June period, accounting for 50.4 percent of the country's overall exports, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.Imports also retreated 8.2 percent on-year to $74.2 billion over the six-month period

The South Korea-Colombia free trade agreement will go into effect from Friday, immediately eliminating tariffs on 4,390 South Korean export products to the South American country, the trade ministry said.Trade volume between the two countries last year reached $1.45 billion, with South Korea exporting $1.13 billion's worth for a $800 million trade surplus, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy on Thursday. Colombia, with the third-largest population in South America at 47.6 mil

South Korean discount retailer E-mart said Thursday that it will open its first store in Mongolia later this month as part of efforts to expand presence overseas.The new branch will be opened in central Ulaanbaatar on July 28 and be the country's first large discount chain that will also house a bank, a kids cafe and a hair salon, E-mart said.The move comes as the discount outlet chain is moving to foster new growth engines and tap deeper into the new emerging market with a population of 3 milli

South Korea's diesel consumption hit a monthly record in May, state statistics showed Thursday, an indication that diesel-powered cars are still dominant over electric and hybrid vehicles.According to an informational website operated by state-run Korea National Oil Corp., South Korea consumed a record 14.31 million barrels of diesel in May. The previous record was 14.1 million barrels in October last year. Gasoline consumption for May was 6.6 million barrels.Automobiles used 77.73 percent of th

Tens of thousands of unionized workers of Hyundai Motor Co. have voted in favor of a strike, officials said Thursday, setting the stage for another walkout that may cut the carmakers' vehicle output.The officials said 37,358 unionized workers, or 76 percent of the more than 48,800 unionized workers, authorized a strike in a vote on Wednesday in Ulsan, home to Hyundai's main assembly plants, located some 410 kilometers southeast of Seoul.Still, the unions are not allowed to down tools immediately

South Korea will inject a net 6 trillion won ($5.2 billion) into a supplementary budget for the economy in order to invigorate Asia's fourth-largest economy struggling with faltering exports and flaccid domestic demand, the finance ministry said Thursday.Last month, the government announced a set of stimulus programs, including 10 billion won in extra budget for the second half of this year, citing rising uncertainties at home and abroad.South Korea's exports posted negative growth for a record

South Korea's ruling Saenuri Party on Thursday urged the Minjoo Party of Korea to express a clear view on the deployment of an advanced U.S. missile defense system, as the main opposition continued to maintain a neutral position on the sensitive issue."The country's main opposition party should not be vague on the biggest security issue," said Chung Jin-suk, the ruling party whip. Chung Jin-suk, the floor leader of the ruling Saenuri Party, takes a seat for a meeting held at the party's headquar

South Korea's central bank kept its policy rate frozen for July on Thursday, one month after it sent the key rate to a record low to bolster growth in Asia's fourth-largest economy.In a widely expected move, the Bank of Korea's monetary policy board voted to keep the key rate steady at 1.25 percent.The board made a surprise rate cut in June after holding the key interest rate steady at 1.5 percent for 11 consecutive months in what many saw as a pre-emptive step to boost local spending, one of tw

South Korea's corporate global bonds have become an investment attraction in overseas markets, helped by the country's sturdy credit ratings, finance industry officials said Thursday.Korea Gas Corp. earlier this week sold $900 million in five- and 10-year dollar-denominated bonds. Presale estimated demand was for $4 billion from 240 institutions. The yield for five-year notes settled at 1.920 percent and 10-year notes at 2.325 percent. The yield for the latter was the lowest for a South Korean c

President Park Geun-hye will convene a session of the National Security Council on Thursday to discuss follow-up measures to the recent decision by Seoul and Washington to deploy an advanced U.S. antimissile system here, her office said.On Wednesday, the allies announced their official decision to deploy a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense battery in the southern town of Seongju to better cope with North Korea's evolving nuclear and missile threats.The decision triggered a strong protest from

South Korean shares opened slightly lower Thursday, bucking the trend on Wall Street, as investors sought to lock in recent gains.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 1.34 points, or 0.07 percent, to 2,004.21 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Keen attention is being paid to whether the KOSPI will be able to maintain momentum after reaching a monthly high a day earlier.Traders are waiting for a statement on the results of the Bank of Korea's monthly monetary policy meeting later

President Park Geun-hye will leave for Mongolia on Thursday to attend the Asia-Europe Meeting summit and hold bilateral talks with her Mongolian counterpart, her office Cheong Wa Dae said.The five-day trip to the Mongolian capital of Ulaanbaatar is expected to focus on drumming up support for the ongoing international efforts to pressure North Korea to renounce its nuclear ambitions and deepen economic ties with the resource-rich country. It will be her first visit to Mongolia since she assumed

The nominee to be the U.S. ambassdor to the Philippines said Wednesday that he will work closely with Manila to help the Southeast Asian ally reduce tensions in the South China Sea and better monitor the waters off their shores.Amb. Sung Kim made the remark during his Senate confirmation hearing as tensions have spiked between the U.S. and China in the wake of an international tribunal's ruling that rejected China's territorial claims to most of the South China Sea in a victory for the Philippin

North Korea appears to be making progress in its submarine-launched ballistic missile development and is expected to conduct a full-range test within the next 12 months, a U.S. expert said Wednesday.The communist nation carried out the latest SLBM test last week, but the launch was considered a failure as the missile, known as KN-11, exploded at an altitude of some 10 kilometers after being launched from a submerged submarine.  (yonhap)It was the second SLBM test this year after the first one in

South Korea will increase the length of domestic highways to over 5,000 kilometers over the next four years to ensure faster and safer travel and ease traffic congestion, the government said Wednesday. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport unveiled the draft of the comprehensive road plan that calls for extending the combined length of nationwide highways from the current 4,193 km to 5,131 km by 2020.Once the 73.7 trillion-won ($64.2 billion) project is completed, the road construct

The government said Wednesday that it will allocate an additional 1.1 billion won ($958,000) to the development of next-generation semiconductors in an effort to boost the industry.This year's R&D budget will be put at 35.6 billion won, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.The state research and development funds will help the country maintain its worldwide competitiveness and raise self-sufficiency in the production of semiconductors, the ministry said.The state R&D expenditu

Thousands of residents in the southern town of Seongju took to the streets on Wednesday to protest the government's designation of the town as a site for the deployment of an advanced U.S. antimissile system.Some 5,000 residents of the town in North Gyeongsang Province staged a massive rally, chanting slogans upbraiding the government for the decision to station a Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense battery in the town.The residents argued that the decision by Seoul and Washington to bring in TH

South Korea's tech giant Samsung Electronics Co. topped a U.S. quality test for the fitness smartband segment, industry watchers said Wednesday.According to the research conducted by industry tracker J.D.Power and Associates, Samsung Electronics won the highest consumer satisfaction ratings for a smartband for fitness.With the satisfaction rating-- based on performance, reliability, features, price, ease of operation, style and warranty -- calculated on a 1,000-point scale, J.D. Power said the S