SEOUL, Dec. 10 (Korea Bizwire) — Household borrowing from South Korean banks grew at a slower pace in November as tighter mortgage regulations began to cool the heated property market in the Seoul metropolitan area, according to new data released Wednesday by the Bank of Korea. Outstanding household loans came to 1,175.6 trillion won ($799.6 billion) [...]
SEOUL, Dec. 10 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea unveiled a sweeping industrial strategy Wednesday to defend its lead in advanced memory semiconductors and accelerate development in underperforming segments, as global competition over artificial intelligence (AI) chips intensifies. Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan said the government will invest 215.9 billion won ($146.8 million) by 2032 in next-generation memory [...]
SEOUL, Dec. 9 (Korea Bizwire) — The presidential office reaffirmed Tuesday that South Korea’s easternmost islets of Dokdo are unequivocally South Korean territory, rejecting Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s renewed claim over the islets in the East Sea. A senior presidential official dismissed Takaichi’s remarks during a parliamentary session earlier in the day, reasserting that [...]
SEOUL, Dec. 9 (Korea Bizwire) — The government plans to devise a customized strategy to address non-tariff trade barriers faced by South Korean food exporters, while establishing a dedicated help desk for the firms to navigate shifting trade dynamics, the agriculture ministry said Tuesday. The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs unveiled the plan [...]
SEOUL, Dec. 9 (Korea Bizwire) — Beginning early next year, foreign nationals purchasing property in designated permit zones will be required to submit detailed documentation explaining how they intend to finance their purchases, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said Tuesday. The regulation, part of a revised enforcement decree taking effect on February 10, follows [...]
SEOUL, Dec. 8 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korean police have reassigned an investigator specializing in medical crimes to reexamine allegations that resident doctors at a major Seoul hospital received illicit kickbacks from pharmaceutical companies, signaling renewed scrutiny of a case long criticized for lackluster enforcement. According to officials and reporting by Yonhap News Agency, the Seoul [...]
SEOUL, Dec. 8 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea unveiled new measures on Sunday to strengthen security oversight of internet-connected cameras after police uncovered a sweeping hacking scheme in which more than 120,000 IP cameras installed in homes, hospitals, spas and massage clinics were compromised and used to produce sexually exploitative material. The scheme, uncovered by the [...]
SEOUL, Dec. 7 (Korea Bizwire) — Seoul’s apartment market has slipped into a sharp slowdown following the government’s October 15 real estate policy, with transaction volume dropping steeply and demand in key Han River districts all but evaporating, government data show. According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport’s real transaction system, there were 2,372 [...]
SEOUL, Dec. 7 (Korea Bizwire) — Four major financial firms will likely see their interest income decrease for the first time since 2020 this year due to tighter lending rules aimed at curbing surging housing prices, data showed Sunday. KB Financial Group, Shinhan Financial Group, Hana Financial Group and Woori Financial Group are expected to [...]
SEOUL, Dec. 6 (Korea Bizwire) — The government unveiled plans Saturday to toughen the management and screening process for the state-certified information security system amid growing personal data breaches at authorized companies, such as Coupang. The Personal Information Protection Commission and the Ministry of Science and ICT discussed the measures during an interagency meeting earlier [...]