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☆ Japan Nov factory activity shrinks at quickest pace in 2 years
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-24 | by ( Cynthia Kim | Jihoon Lee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

TOKYO, Nov 24 (Reuters) - Japan's manufacturing activity contracted at the fastest pace in two years in November as demand worsened due to strong inflationary pressures, a business survey showed on Thursday. The au Jibun Bank Flash Japan Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) slipped to a seasonally adjusted 49.4 in November from a final reading of 50.7 in the previous month. Output contracted at the quickest pace in 26 months, falling for the fifth consecutive month, the survey results showed. Activity in the services sector stagnated even as new business inflows grew for a third straight month, the data showed. The au Jibun Bank Flash Services PMI Index came in at a seasonally adjusted 50.0 in November, down from the previous month's 53.2 final, the survey showed.

Meanwhile, the downturn in euro zone business activity eased slightly in November, offering a glimmer of hope the expected recession there may be shallower than feared, but consumers still cut spending amid a cost of living crisis. However, November is the fifth month the index has been below the 50 mark separating growth from contraction. But in France activity contracted for the first time since February 2021 as lower new orders weighed on the euro zone's second-biggest economy. Activity in the bloc's dominant services industry declined again, with the headline index matching October's 20-month low of 48.6. Manufacturing activity, particularly hard hit by soaring energy prices and disrupted supply chains, also declined but at a slower pace.

SEOUL, Nov 16 (Reuters) - South Korea's housing prices fell at the sharpest rate in at least 19 years in October, adding to expectations the nation's central bank will slow its pace of interest rate hikes in the coming weeks. In the capital Seoul, apartment prices declined 1.24%, the fastest since December 2008, extending losses to a ninth straight month. The national index for apartment transaction prices dropped 7.13% during the January-September period, on track for the biggest annual decline since that data was introduced in 2006. Analysts expect only one or two more interest rate hikes by the Bank of Korea for the remainder of this year and 2023 to take the terminal rate to 3.25% or 3.50%. South Korea's household debt-to-GDP ratios stood at 102.2% in the second quarter, data of 35 major economies from the Institute of International Finance showed.

☆ U.S. To deploy B-1B strategic bomber to U.S.-South Korea drill Saturday, Yonhap reports
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SEOUL, Nov 5 (Reuters) - The U.S. Air Force plans to deploy B-1B strategic bombers in U.S.-South Korea military exercises on Saturday, Yonhap News reported, after North Korea fired a barrage of weapons tests in recent days to protest allied military drills. This is the first the B-1B has been deployed in U.S.-South Korean drills since 2017, Yonhap said. The United States has kept four of the bombers in Guam since late October, according to the news agency. South Korea has asked the United States to step up deployment of “strategic assets”, which include aircraft carriers, nuclear submarines, and long-range bombers like the B-1B. After talks with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin in Washington on Thursday, South Korean Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup said the United States had agreed to employ “U.S.

☆ North Korea fires four ballistic missiles as U.S., Seoul end drills
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-05 | by ( Cynthia Kim | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SEOUL, Nov 5 (Reuters) - North Korea fired four short-range ballistic missiles into the western sea on Saturday, South Korea's military said, as Seoul and Washington ended a high-profile six-day military exercise. South Korea said it scrambled warplanes in response to 180 North Korean military flights near the countries' shared border on Friday. On Wednesday, North Korea fired a daily record 23 missiles, with one landing off the coast of South Korea for the first time, after Pyongyang threatened to take powerful measures unless Washington halts allied air exercises with South Korea. In recent years the Security Council has been split on how to deal with North Korea. In May China and Russia vetoed a U.S. attempt to impose more U.N. sanctions in response to North Korean missile launches.

☆ U.S. To deploy B-1B strategic bomber to U.S.-South Korea drill Saturday -Yonhap
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

☆ Two South Korean miners rescued from collapsed mine after nine days
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SEOUL, Nov 5 (Reuters) - Two South Korean miners who were trapped inside a collapsed zinc mine in the country's northeastern county of Bonghwa walked out alive after nine days late on Friday as the nation mourned a deadly Halloween tragedy, officials said on Saturday. Local fire authorities said the two miners walked out of the underground mine that had collapsed after a landslide on Oct. 26, through rescue efforts that focused on drilling a hole. The two survived by consuming instant, sweetened coffee powder and pitched a tent with plastics inside the collapsed mine to keep themselves warm, local Yonhap News reported citing rescuers. South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol declared a week-long mourning period through Nov. 5 after 156 people killed in a crowd crush in Seoul during Halloween festivities. Reporting by Cynthia Kim; Editing by David GregorioOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

SEOUL, Oct 31 (Reuters) - Across South Korea, events such as autumn foliage festivals and K-Pop concerts are canceled, and grief-stricken communities are putting off gatherings after a Seoul crowd crush killed at least 154 people, threatening to crimp growth further. Universities have canceled weekend retreats known as MTs, and the opening event of the two-week Korea Sale Festa, the Korean version of the Black Friday, was called off. South Korea's southern resort island of Jeju called off the Jeju Olle Walking Festival, scheduled from Nov 3 to 5. The Korea Baseball Organization and Korea Volleyball Federation both said there won't be cheerleaders during its championship series. South Korea's economic growth already decelerated last quarter in response to slowing exports and a weakening currency.

☆ S.Korea to scrap taxes for foreigners' income from bonds - minister
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SEOUL, Oct 16 (Reuters) - South Korea's finance minister said the government will scrap taxes on foreigners' income from investments in treasury bonds and monetary stabilization bonds from Monday. Speaking to reporters late on Saturday in the United States after a meeting of Group of 20 finance ministers and central bankers, Choo Kyung-ho said the government decided to bring forward the timing of the planned tax removal from 2023 to next week to boost capital inflows into the local bond market. FTSE Russell, a global index provider, said on Sept. 30 it had added South Korea to a list for possible inclusion in its World Government Bond Index (WGBI). "We were included in the WGBI watchlist at the end of September but were thinking there is a need to make a quick move to attract more foreign investment into our treasury bond market," Choo said. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Cynthia Kim; Editing by William MallardOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Joo and Shin voted for a smaller hike in the rate, Rhee said in news conference, but did not elaborate on their views. Twenty-three of 26 analysts expected the bank to go for a half-point hike in a Reuters poll, while the remaining three expected a quarter-point hike. The median forecast in the poll showed the BOK's base rate going to 3.25% by year-end and then peaking at 3.50% in the first quarter of 2023. Almost half of respondents in the Reuters poll expected the base rate to reaching 3.75% in the first quarter of next year. After Wednesday's rate hike, the Korea Federation of Small- to Medium-sized Enterprises expressed "serious concern" about higher rates.

The Bank of Korea (BOK) raised its benchmark policy rate (KROCRT=ECI) by 50 basis points to 3.00% on Wednesday, bringing total rates hike since August last year to 250 basis points. Twenty-three of 26 analysts expected the bank to go for a half-point hike in a Reuters poll, while the remaining three expected a quarter-point hike. "The 50 bp hike today was the BOK's response to the sinking won, it seems." South Korea's three-year treasury bond futures fell after the BOK's statement on the decision. The median forecast in the poll showed the BOK's base rate going to 3.25% by year-end and then peaking at 3.50% in the first quarter of 2023.

North Korea fired two ballistic missiles early on Sunday, officials in Seoul and Tokyo said, the seventh such launch since Sept. 25. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterThe tests simulated striking military command facilities, main ports, and airports in the South, KCNA added. The naval forces of South Korea, Japan and the United States also conducted joint drills before that. South Korean and U.S. officials say there are signs North Korea could soon detonate a new nuclear device in underground tunnels at its Punggye-ri Nuclear Test site, which was officially shuttered in 2018. NEW MISSILE, UNDERWATER SILOSOn Oct. 4, the North test-fired a ballistic missile farther than ever before, flying what it said was a new intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM) missile over Japan for the first time since 2017.

☆ S.Korean won falls through key level after Fed hike
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-21 | by ( Choonsik Yoo | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A South Korea won note is seen in this illustration photo May 31, 2017. The won fell as much as 0.9% to 1,406.8 per dollar in early onshore trading, marking the first time it crossed the 1,400-won mark since late March 2009. Both the finance ministry and the central bank separately issued warnings that they would act against excessive movements in the foreign exchange market. "The authorities will introduce various measures aimed at easing a supply-demand imbalance for foreign currencies from the pension fund and foreign trading companies," Minister Choo Kyung-ho said at a meeting of senior officials. Both the Bank of Korea and the National Pension Service declined to comment on the reports.

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