The National Tax Service of Korea held the 24th Korea-Vietnam Bilateral Commissioners’ Meeting in Hanoi on Tuesday, in collaboration with the General Department of Taxation of Vietnam. The meeting aimed to address tax-related challenges faced by Korean companies operating in Vietnam. Vietnam is Korea’s third-largest trading partner, with a trade volume of $86.8 billion, making it a key investment destination for multinational companies, including Korean firms. This bilateral meeting, first estab

Individual shares to be taxed separately, ending decadesold estate-based system South Korea is planning to overhaul its inheritance tax system in 2028, shifting from a tax on entire estates to a levy on each inheritor's individual share. The Ministry of Economy and Finance announced the plan on Wednesday, aiming to introduce the long-discussed "inheritance acquisition system." This marks the first major revision to Korea's inheritance tax system in 75 years. Under the current system, taxes are l

South Korea's energy consumption grew at a sharply slower pace in 2022 than in previous years mainly due to limited transportation during the COVID-19 pandemic and lower demand from households, the industry ministry said Wednesday. The country's overall energy consumption stood at 230 million tons of oil equivalent in 2022, edging up 0.5 percent from the corresponding tally for 2019, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. South Korea has been conducting a national energy survey

Bond sales in South Korea rose sharply from a month earlier in February, helped by strong demand for corporate bond issues, data showed Wednesday. The value of bonds sold last month came to 86.1 trillion won ($59.2 billion), up 14.7 trillion won from a month earlier, according to the data from the Korea Financial Investment Association. The value of outstanding bonds rose 39 trillion won to 2,882 trillion won over the cited period. Last month, corporate bond issuance added 7.4 trillion won to 19

Samsung Electronics Co. ranked first in average salaries for outside directors among major listed companies in South Korea last year, a corporate tracker said Wednesday. According to CEO Score, Samsung Electronics paid an average of 183.3 million won ($126,000) per outside director in 2024, the highest among 247 companies surveyed out of the country's top 500 firms by market capitalization. Despite this leading position, the figure marked a 9.8 percent decline from the previous year. The average

South Korean stocks finished over 1 percent lower Tuesday, following overnight Wall Street losses spurred by US President Donald Trump's renewed tariff threats. The local currency fell against the greenback. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index dropped 32.79 points, or 1.28 percent, to close at 2,537.60. Trade volume was moderate at 370.3 million shares worth 9.47 trillion won ($6.5 billion), with losers outpacing winners 730 to 179. Foreign and institutional investors together sold a

Acting President Choi Sang-mok said Tuesday that South Korea and the US will soon enter into detailed negotiations on new US tariffs, as the country's economy is likely to be directly impacted by President Donald Trump's tariffs. Choi noted that Trump threatened to exert all-out pressure on Korea in a recent speech to the US Congress, labeling the Korea-US trade relationship as "unfair" and calling for the revocation of federal subsidies promised to semiconductor companies. “The arrow of Trump's

Industry and labor ministers on Tuesday called for an exemption of researchers in the semiconductor industry from South Korea's 52-hour workweek system that prevents them from working extended hours even when needed. The government has been calling for a revision to the system to allow such workers to put in additional hours when necessary. Industry Minister Ahn Duk-geun and Labor Minister Kim Moon-soo made the call during a meeting with officials from the semiconductor industry, including those

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy will reorganize the trade commission as part of efforts to strengthen its trade safeguard functions amid the expansion of global protectionism, officials said Tuesday. The Korea Trade Commission will have two new departments on dumping investigations starting next Tuesday, to better protect domestic industries amid global oversupply and protectionist policies of major economies, according to the officials. With the envisioned reorganization, the KTC wil

Retail investors are flocking to the country's first alternative stock exchange as the trading platform runs for extended trading hours and offers cheaper trading fees, data showed Tuesday. The Nextrade, launched last Tuesday, runs for 12 hours, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., longer than the trading hours of the main Korea Exchange bourse, from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. The NXT also offers lower fees compared with the main bourse and introduces different stock bid and ask prices. According to the data compile

South Korean stocks opened sharply lower Tuesday, following overnight Wall Street losses spurred by US President Donald Trump's renewed tariff threats. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index lost 1.08 points, or 0.04 percent, to 2,562.40 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, US stock markets plummeted after Trump shared in an interview with Fox News his intent to push forward with high tariff policies. The S&P 500 dipped 2.7 percent, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average decline

South Korea's exports increased from a year earlier in the first 10 days of this month on strong demand for shipbuilding and automobiles, data showed Tuesday. Outbound shipments reached $13.87 billion in the March 1-10 period, up 2.9 percent from $13.48 billion tallied over the same period last year, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service. Imports gained 7.3 percent on-year to $15.92 billion during the period, resulting in a trade deficit of $2 billion. The daily average volume of

Card spending in South Korea continued to slip in January as households tightened their purse strings amid an economic slowdown, industry data showed Tuesday. Credit card spending on lodging and restaurants, which was hit hard by impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol's botched martial law bid in December, continued to slide, falling 1.8 percent on-year to 12.27 trillion won ($8.41 billion) in January, according to the data from the Credit Finance Association. Card spending for transportation service

South Korean stocks finished slightly higher Monday as concerns over an economic slowdown was eased by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's dovish comments. The local currency lost against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 6.91 points, or 0.27 percent, to close at 2,570.39. Trade volume was moderate at 429.4 million shares worth 9.73 trillion won ($6.7 billion), with losers closely outpacing winners 466 to 406. Individual and institutional investors led the da

South Korea’s overall economic freedom ranking fell to 17th from 14th in this year’s Heritage Foundation Index of Economic Freedom, with its lowest score in the labor market category, where it ranked 100th. According to the Korea Enterprises Federation on Monday, the 2025 Index of Economic Freedom, published by the conservative US think tank the Heritage Foundation, gave South Korea an overall score of 74 out of 100 — an increase from 73.1 the previous year. However, the country dropped three sp