The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy plans to inject 100 billion won into companies in advanced strategic industries and key supply chain sectors that are returning (U-turn) to Korea this year. This marks a 75% increase from the previous year. The corporate tax reduction period will be extende
The government is set to implement a comprehensive plan for “smart cities” incorporating new technologies. The primary focus is accelerating the entry into foreign markets through the restructuring of the “K-City Network” project. This initiative aims to strengthen the global competitiveness of Kore
The government is restructuring industrial and energy technology development projects to focus on high-risk, next-generation, and large-scale tasks. There will be a significant reduction in the financial burden on companies. The plan is to transition to a demand-driven process where businesses and r
A bill to amend the Petroleum and Petroleum Alternative Fuel Business Act passed the National Assembly’s plenary session on Sept. 9, paving the way for refiners to produce sustainable aviation fuel (SAF).SAF is an aviation fuel derived from renewable biomass or carbon dioxide. It has the same compos
Despite a record influx of foreign workers, South Korea’s small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are still facing a labor shortage.According to a comprehensive survey on foreign labor employment conducted by the Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business (K-Biz), 29.7% of the 1,200 SMEs employ
The government’s new entrusted operating funds for the Korea Investment Corporation (KIC), the sovereign wealth fund, have effectively ceased from 2022 until last year. Some argue that the KIC faces concerns about its international competitiveness. In a landscape where competing sovereign wealth fun
The Korean government will increase an influx of foreign workers to industrial sites and rural areas suffering from labor shortages in 2024 to more than 260,000 from 170,000 in 2023 in response to the Korea’s population crisis and labor shortage, according to the Korean Government’s Economic Policy
The Korean government has earnestly taken steps to address the escalating population crisis, which has emerged as a significant social concern in the nation. More efforts will be made to bolster support for childbirth and the upbringing of infants and children, aimed at mitigating the population dec
The government has announced its intention to reduce the ratio of household debt to gross domestic product (GDP) to below 100 percent by the year 2027.On Jan. 4, the government released the “2024 Economic Policy Direction,” outlining its strategy for managing household debt.According to the Bank for
Last year, 540,000 foreign workers received year-end settlements, and the reported tax amount reached a record-breaking 1.2 trillion won (US$915.68 million).The National Tax Service (NTS) announced that the number of foreign workers who filed tax reports was 544,000, and the reported tax amount reac
On Jan. 2, President Yoon Suk-yeol announced, “I will push for the abolition of the Financial Investment Income Tax.” This move is expected to spark controversy as it involves the cancellation of an agreement with the opposition party.On this day, President Yoon attended the “2024 Securities and Der
A plenary session of the National Assembly passed an amendment to the Capital Markets and Financial Investment Business Act, which will require large-scale stock transactions by insiders of listed companies to be disclosed in advance beginning from the second half of 2024.The Financial Services Comm
The National Tax Service (NTS) announced on Dec. 28 that it has collected 1.35 trillion won (US$1.05 billion) in tax assessments in the area of overseas tax evasion alone through tax investigations conducted this year. The figure exceeds the average annual collection for the three years before the C
The government will build 10,000 “smart plus” buildings specializing in robots, drones, autonomous vehicles and urban air mobility (UAM) by 2035.The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport (MOLIT) announced a road map for the promotion of smart plus buildings as an innovation policy in the s
The small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) sector is urging the swift passage of the “Business Succession Support Act” currently under consideration in the National Assembly, advocating for businesses to opt for continuity rather than closure. This comes as numerous companies consider closure inste
In 2024, 165,000 foreign workers will enter Korea on non-professional work visas (E-9). This will be the highest number ever. The industries they can work in will also be expanded to include restaurants, mining and forestry.The Ministry of Employment and Labor announced the decision in a meeting of
The government has decided to extend financial market stabilization measures, currently operating at a scale of 37.4 trillion won (US$28.77 billion), until the end of next year. Additionally, flexibility measures in financial regulations, such as the banks’ liquidity coverage ratio (LCR) and the res
Prosecutors have embarked on a search and seizure operation targeting the CEO of Hyundai AutoEver and others.The Fair Trade Investigation Division of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office announced that they have been conducting search and seizure operations at a total of four locations, in
The Korean government has withdrawn its controversial proposal to revise working hours to a maximum of 69 hours a week and will maintain the current 52-hour workweek while providing improvement measures for some industries and occupations.The Ministry of Employment and Labor announced the results of
The Korean business community has been strongly opposing the Yellow Envelope Bill (an amendment to Article 2-3 of the Trade Union Act), saying it will disrupt Korea’s labor relations and industrial ecosystems. But the majority Democratic Party passed the bill in a plenary session of the National Ass