SEOUL, Jan. 20 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s economic growth could stagnate at around 1% if political instability continues, warns a report by the Hyundai Research Institute. Released on Sunday, the report highlights both domestic and international risks weighing on Asia’s fourth-largest economy, which is already grappling with weakening market confidence. Political and Economic Pressures Domestically, [...]
SEOUL, Jan. 20 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s credit default swap (CDS) premium, a key indicator of national credit risk, has started to decline after spiking due to political turbulence. The downturn signals a slight recovery in investor confidence following heightened concerns over political uncertainty. On January 17, the five-year CDS premium for South Korea [...]
SEOUL, Jan. 17 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s economy is grappling with deeper-than-expected shocks stemming from President’s declaration of martial law on December 3, 2024, according to a new analysis from the Bank of Korea (BOK). The political instability has forced the central bank to reconsider its economic growth projections for both 2024 and 2025, raising the [...]
SEOUL, Jan. 16 (Korea Bizwire) — Foreign investors withdrew a significant amount of capital from South Korean financial markets in December during a period marked by the brief imposition of martial law, according to data released on January 15 by the Bank of Korea. The central bank’s “International Financial and Foreign Exchange Market Trends” report shows [...]
SEOUL, Jan. 16 (Korea Bizwire) — The number of companies in which South Korea’s National Pension Service (NPS) holds stakes of 5% or more has decreased by 14 over the past year, according to a new analysis. CEO Score, a corporate research firm, reported on January 15 that the number of listed companies with NPS stakes [...]
SEOUL, Jan. 14 (Korea Bizwire) — The surge in shareholder proposals at South Korean companies over the past five years is showing signs of stabilization in 2025 as corporations adopt proactive measures to address investor demands, according to a recent report. The Ajou Corporate Management Research Institute’s newly released “2025 Annual General Meeting Preview” reveals [...]
SEOUL, Jan. 14 (Korea Bizwire) — KB Kookmin Bank’s labor union has filed for dispute mediation with the National Labor Relations Commission, demanding a performance bonus equivalent to 300% of base salary and an additional 10 million won in special incentives. If mediation fails, this could lead to the bank’s first general strike since 2019. [...]
SEOUL, Jan. 13 (Korea Bizwire) — The South Korean won experienced a sharp decline last month, mirroring the drop in Russia’s ruble amid ongoing conflict, according to recent data. This currency depreciation, driven by the December 3 martial law incident, has heightened concerns over inflation in a country heavily reliant on imports. As the high exchange [...]
SEOUL, Jan. 13 (Korea Bizwire) — The debt burden among South Korea’s self-employed in their 50s and 60s has surged to unprecedented levels, raising concerns over financial stability amid sluggish domestic demand and persistently high interest rates. According to data submitted by the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) to Democratic Party lawmaker Lee Kang-il, as of November [...]
SEOUL, Jan. 10 (Korea Bizwire) — In 2024, the number of publicly listed companies on South Korea’s main stock exchange voluntarily disclosing sustainability reports rose by nearly 30%, reflecting growing awareness of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) principles. The Korea Exchange reported on January 9 that 204 companies listed on the KOSPI voluntarily released sustainability [...]