South Korea
South Korea has a big household debt problem. The country’s unique rental system may be to blame
Illuminated residential buildings and houses at dusk in Mokpo, South Korea, on Friday, Aug. 16, 2024. Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images Central banks, by and large, have one overarching mandate: to ensure price stability and control inflation in a country. Policymakers in South Korea need to contend with another responsibility: managing high household debt. […]
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Asia-Pacific markets slide after Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs on several countries
View of the central business district skyline at sunset in Beijing, China. Sheng Peng | Visual China Group | Getty Images Asia-Pacific markets opened lower Monday after U.S. President Donald Trump levied tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China over the weekend. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 dropped 1.86%. Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 1.84% at the open, while […]
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South Korea fourth-quarter GDP grows at its slowest pace in six quarters, missing expectations
The Seoul skyline. Mongkol Chuewong | Moment | Getty Images South Korea’s economy expanded 1.2% year on year in the fourth quarter, marking its slowest expansion since the second quarter of 2023. Advance figures missed the 1.4% expansion expected by economists polled by Reuters, and the growth was also softer compared with the 1.5% rise […]
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Asia-Pacific markets open mixed as investors parse slew of economic data in the region
Aerial view of the capital city of Seoul in South Korea, seen at sunset. Tobiasjo | E+ | Getty Images Asia-Pacific markets opened mixed Thursday as investors assessed a slew of economic data in the region. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 traded 0.42% lower at the open. Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.38% at the open, while the […]
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Asia markets open higher as Trump promises U.S. ‘golden age’ at presidential inauguration
Sunrise scene of Seoul downtown city skyline, Aerial view of N Seoul Tower at Namsan Park in twilight sky in morning. The best viewpoint and trekking from inwangsan mountain in Seoul city, South Korea Mongkol Chuewong | Moment | Getty Images Asia-Pacific markets are expected to gain Tuesday, as investors await greater clarity on policies […]
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Loved by adversaries, feared by allies: How the world feels as Trump takes center stage
U.S. President Donald Trump at a press conference at the end of the NATO summit in July 12, 2018. Bernd von Jutrczenka | dpa | picture alliance | Getty Images U.S. President-elect Donald Trump returns to the White House on Monday, and much of the world is watching on with bated breath. The prospect of […]
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Asia-Pacific markets track Wall Street gains; South Korea unexpectedly keeps rates unchanged
People walk inside the Korea Exchange (KRX) building, as stock markets in Asia as a whole have been affected by the intensifying political turmoil over president Yoon Suk Yeol’s role in martial law, in Seoul, South Korea, on Dec. 9, 2024. Daniel Ceng | Anadolu | Getty Images Asia-Pacific markets climbed Thursday, after U.S. markets […]
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Asia markets open mixed, tracking Wall Street moves that saw investors rotate out of tech
Sunrise scene of Seoul downtown city skyline, Aerial view of N Seoul Tower at Namsan Park in twilight sky in morning. The best viewpoint and trekking from inwangsan mountain in Seoul city, South Korea Mongkol Chuewong | Moment | Getty Images Asia-Pacific markets opened mixed Tuesday after a mixed session on Wall Street that saw […]
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The world’s most powerful passport has a clear winner this year — in 2024 it was a six-way tie
Singapore has the world’s most powerful passport, according to the 2025 Henley Passport Index. The nation-state was one of six countries which tied for the top spot in 2024 in the list produced by the migration consultancy Henley & Partners, which ranks passports by the number of destinations that holders can access without needing a […]
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Trump tariffs pose a greater threat to South Korea’s economy than domestic political chaos, BOK official suggests
The Bank of Korea (BOK) in Seoul on Dec. 28, 2024. Kim Jae-Hwan | Lightrocket | Getty Images Risks posed by South Korea’s political turmoil to its economy could subside within half a year, but external pressures owed to possible tariffs on the country’s exports to the U.S. are “troublesome,” a key Bank of Korea […]
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