SEOUL, Aug. 4 (Korea Bizwire) – China has once again become the leading destination for South Korean products in the first seven months of this year, driven by increasing demand for semiconductors, data showed Sunday. Exports to China surged 14.9 percent year-on-year to $11.4 billion in July, marking the highest monthly total in nearly two [...]
SEJONG, April 11 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s economy is forecast to expand 3 percent this year, following last year’s 3.1 percent growth, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) said Wednesday. Asia’s fourth-largest economy is likely to benefit from a recovery in major economies and private spending, the regional bank said. In December of last year, [...]
SEOUL, Jan. 18 (Korea Bizwire) – The Bank of Korea (BOK) on Thursday raised its economic growth forecast for this year on expectations of continued domestic demand recovery and robust export growth. The central bank forecast that South Korea’s gross domestic product (GDP) will grow 3 percent in 2018, faster than its previous estimate of [...]
SEOUL, Jan. 2 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korean small and medium-sized businesses are expected to take a hit this year from the double whammy of a minimum wage hike and reduced working hours. The highest minimum wage hike in 17 years takes effect this month with a jump to 7,530 won per hour. However, not [...]
SEJONG, Dec. 21 (Korea Bizwire) – South Korea’s exports rose 16.4 percent on-year during the first 20 days of December, on the back of a rise in shipments of ships and semiconductors, data showed Thursday. A total of goods worth US$31.5 billion were shipped overseas in the period, according to the data from the Korea Customs [...]
SEJONG, Nov. 28 (Korea Bizwire) – South Korea’s economy is expected to grow at a brisk 3.2 percent this year, faster than the earlier estimate of 2.6 percent, on the back of improving exports and corporate investment, a Paris-based international organization forecast Tuesday. For next year, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) revised [...]
SEOUL, Nov. 21 (Korea Bizwire) — An extended period of slow growth and steady increase in household debt could spark an economic crisis in South Korea, which suffered a financial crisis two decades ago, economists said Tuesday. Seven out of 10 economists stated they believe the country could face an economic crisis within the next [...]
SEOUL, Nov. 1 (Korea Bizwire) – A South Korean think tank on Wednesday revised up its growth outlook for Asia’s fourth-largest economy this year to 3.1 percent, up 0.1 percentage point from its previous estimate in July. The upward revision by the Korea Institute of Finance is higher than growth outlooks estimated by the Korean [...]
SEJONG, Oct. 13 (Korea Bizwire) – South Korea’s economic recovery momentum remains feeble as weak domestic demand such as private consumption offset strong overseas sales, a government report said Friday. “The South Korean economy has been maintaining an upturn pace on the back of brisk exports and recovering global demand, but domestic consumption has remained [...]
SEOUL, Aug. 24 (Korea Bizwire) — As the long-term economic slump continues in South Korea, price-competitive fruits that might not meet conventional beauty standards are proving popular among South Korean consumers. Sales of ‘ugly’ fruits jumped more than fivefold between 2010 and 2016, the Rural Development Administration (RDA) announced on Thursday after analyzing household accounts [...]