South Korea’s government on Wednesday revised the growth rate forecast for this year to 2.4-2.5 percent, down 0.2 percentage point from its earlier figure, amid sluggish exports and investments.It also reiterated the call for the National Assembly to approve the pending supplementary budget bill of 6.7 trillion won ($5.7 billion), vowing to execute 70 percent of the amount within two months. “The government has devoted maximum efforts for an economic paradigm conversion but uncertain

South Korea’s consumer price growth remained below the 1 percent mark in June, reflecting the slow growth in service charges and global oil price trend, government data showed Tuesday.The consumer price index stood at 104.88 last month, down 0.2 percent from the previous month and up 0.7 percent from a year earlier, according to Statistics Korea.This marked the sixth consecutive month that the on-year growth remained in the zero percent range. It was also the third-longest period that the

South Korea’s financial market watchdog is set to wrap up its long-stalled arbitration over the disputed sales of currency-option contracts within the month, and is likely to suggest a compensation rate of 20-30 percent on the product by banks.The dispute arbitration committee of the Financial Supervisory Service will hold its final meeting as early as next Tuesday to confirm its recommendations on the damage compensation for the so-called KIKO case, officials said Monday.The given arbitra

Starting in October, elderly people will receive twofold protection when subscribing to financial products, as it will become mandatory for service providers to notify a predesignated family member before confirming contracts.The Financial Services Commission said Sunday that it has come up with action plans on the notification service for elderly financial product subscribers. The announcement came as a follow-up to the road map for financial consumer protection unveiled in April this year

Starting Monday, local banks and financial companies come under the 52-hour workweek rule, becoming late starters in South Korea’s initiative to reduce long working hours and improve the quality of life.Due to the one-year grace period, the financial sector is apparently off to a better start than the manufacturing sector which had undergone radical changes in the labor environment last year, simultaneously with the double-digit hike in the nation’s hourly minimum wage.Their core dil

The South Korean government said Wednesday it will inject 70 trillion won ($60.5 billion) into service industries over the next five years, centered on stimulating research and development and reducing the discrimination with the manufacturing sector.“The advancement of the service sector is a matter of vitality in order for our economy to take a leap forward,” said Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki, citing the high potential of the service industries in terms of

The chief of South Korea’s central bank on Tuesday underscored that the prolonged low inflation trend does not necessarily indicate an imminent cut of the nation’s key interest rate, while leaving the door open to “necessary measures.”The monetary policymaker’s defensive remark came amid recently mounting market speculations that the central bank is likely to soon take further easing actions to deal with aggravating external conditions, mostly caused by th

Escalating housing prices and tighter loan regulations have pushed up the average age of first-time homebuyers here, government data showed Monday.The average age of householders at the time of their first home purchase stood at 43.3 as of 2018, according to data submitted by the Korea Research Institute for Human Settlements to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.The data was based on a survey conducted from June to December last year targeting a random sample of 61,275 household

Raised aisles stretch out under the glare of the spotlight, chic models parade up and down the catwalk, top-notch designers give brusque last-minute directions, and front-row celebrities flaunt their outfits for the cameras.This is how runways are often perceived by the general public -- sophisticated yet disconnected from everyday life.But what if fashion shows broke out of the conventional frame and models posed in the streets, under natural light and at eye level with the audience? Every part

Ten years since issuance, South Korea’s largest-denomination banknotes have solidified the position as the nation’s most essential form of paper money, accounting for a sweeping majority in money value and the highest proportion in volume, the central bank said Wednesday.As of the end of May, the 50,000 won banknotes accounted for 98.3 trillion won ($83.5 billion) or 84.6 percent of the total value of banknotes in circulation, while accounting for 1.97 billion in sheer number or 36.9

Mirae Asset Global Investments, a local asset manager, said Monday that it has earned about 160 billion won ($135 million) in profit through the sale of a premium office building in Germany.The asset management unit of Mirae Asset Financial Group has signed a deal to sell Taunusanlage 8, a prime office building located in Frankfurt, for 400 million euros ($449 million), the company said in a press release. Having acquired the building in 2017 for 280 million euros through a private equity f

Responding to mounting speculations that South Korea’s central bank may soon lower the policy rate amid uncertainties, Treasury bond interest rates hit a record-low this year, market observers noted Sunday.Gold price, in contrast, has remained strong and hit a new high, reflecting investors’ increasing appetite for low-risk assets.The yield on three-year Treasury bonds closed at 1.470 percent on Friday, marking the first case that the figure fell under 1.5 percent since November 2016

INCHEON -- The world’s top five intellectual property offices have agreed on cooperation to improve the global patent system in step with technological changes brought by the “fourth industrial revolution,” the Korean Intellectual Property Office said Thursday.The annual gathering of IP5, which kicked off Tuesday in Songdo, Incheon, under KIPO’s chairmanship, came to an end Thursday after three days of deputy- and head-level conferences, business roundtables and individua

INCHEON -- The world’s top five intellectual property offices have gathered this week in Songdo, Incheon, under South Korea’s chairmanship to discuss cooperation in light of the “fourth industrial revolution” amid the rising importance of intangible knowledge-based assets, according to the Korean Intellectual Property Office.The annual roundtable of IP5 kicked off on Tuesday to run through Thursday, marking the third such event to be held in Korea, since the first in 2008

South Korea’s top fiscal policymaker and the chief of the International Monetary Fund have agreed that Asia’s fourth-largest economy needs to continue its current pump-priming policies in order to respond to external risks and to boost growth, the Ministry of Economy and Finance said Monday.The finance minister also pledged his dedicated efforts to effectuate the government’s supplementary budget bill worth 6.7 trillion ($5.7 billion), which has been pending here since late Apr

The Korea Herald is publishing a series of articles and videos about some of the most expensive and fascinating landmark office buildings in Seoul. -- Ed.The real estate market for office buildings, which involves multibillion-won units even for average transactions, tends to be defined by lump-sum landmark deals. Investor attention is usually fixed on the most expensive item on the market, the tallest building in the city or country, or the most commercially active complex.But when the seller o

The Financial Supervisory Service has decided to take disciplinary action against major securities firms for lax control on their overseas stock trading systems, officials said Friday.　The financial market watchdog earlier conducted an investigation on 17 local brokerages, of which more than 10 turned out to have loopholes in their foreign stock trading systems, according to officials.The list included major players such as Korea Investment & Securities, Samsung Securities, NH Investment &am

Big Hit Entertainment, the agency that represents the globally popular K-pop band BTS, has surpassed $1 billion in corporate value, a local think tank said Thursday.According to a report released by the Hyundai Research Institute, the value of the agency is estimated at between 1.28 trillion won ($1.08 billion) and 2.28 trillion won. With the valuation, the company was classified as a unicorn, meaning a nonlisted venture valued at over $1 billion.Last year, the company scored 214.2 billion won i

The price of gold on South Korea’s bourse reached the highest level in three years this week, reflecting the market’s preference for risk-free assets amid persistent volatility, data showed Thursday.According to the Korea Exchange Gold Market, the price of gold closed at 50,430 won ($42.80) per gram Wednesday, down 30 won from the previous day’s close but up 9.06 percent from the beginning of the year.Tuesday’s closing price of 50,460 won per gram marked the highest since

The government is considering raising the purchase limit at departure duty-free shops from the current $3,600 and the tax exemption limit from the current $600, officials said Tuesday.“In consideration of increased national income and inflation, (the government) is reviewing the need and means to raise the limit of purchase and tax exemption at duty-free shops,” the Ministry of Economy and Finance said in a release.The decision will be confirmed later this month, when the ministry an