창간 80주년 경향신문

Airport exchange rates are already in the 1,620-won range···Despite repeated government verbal interventions, the exchange rate keeps soaring

The won-dollar exchange rate climbed above 1,560 won during intraday trading, raising red flags. Weakness in the won has become more pronounced as high oil prices from the US-Iran war and strong foreign selling in the domestic stock market persist, compounded by the possibility of a Federal Reserve policy rate hike.The government said on the 7th that it would convene an emergency meeting to review market conditions and begin stabilization measures. Although the foreign exchange authorities h...

11시간 전

Government convenes an emergency review meeting amid a sharp surge in the exchange rate…“A stern crackdown on excessive one-way bets and speculative activity”

The government has begun measures to stabilize the market after the won-dollar exchange rate surged amid escalating tensions originating in the Middle East and expectations of U.S. interest rate hikes. To prevent excessive volatility in the foreign exchange market, it will crack down on speculative trading and conduct a full investigation into expedient transactions by importers and exporters that have ridden the rise in the exchange rate.Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance and Eco...

11시간 전

‘No. 1 in tax arrears’ shipping tycoon targeted···National Tax Service joins hands with Liberia to track concealed overseas assets

The National Tax Service invited the head of the Liberian tax authority to Korea and signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on mutual assistance in collection. It is seen as a step to collect taxes from SIDO Group Chairman Kwon Hyuk, a ‘shipping tycoon’ who is in arrears by about 400 billion won.The National Tax Service said on the 7th that Commissioner Lim Gwang-hyun held the first Commissioners Meeting in Seoul on the 5th with James Dover Jallah, the tax commissioner of Liberia, and si...

12시간 전

OECD raises forecast for Korea core inflation··· ‘Inflation becoming entrenched’ concerns grow

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) revised upward its forecast for core inflation in Korea this year. With oil prices surging due to the Middle East war and the won-dollar exchange rate breaking into the 1,550-won range, import prices have risen, and inflation is spreading across the economy rather than proving temporary. There are growing concerns that price pressures will intensify in the second half, increasing the burden on vulnerable groups.According to ...

12시간 전

Forget ‘the Architect of God’··· Meet the real Gaudi 100 years after his death

“It is a major misunderstanding to see Gaudi only as a decorative artist who created distinctive forms. He was an architect who experimented with how to make architecture more rational and dynamic within the conditions of his time.”Few architects are as readily paired with the label ‘genius’ as Antoni Gaudi (1852~1926). He is also one of the most beloved architects today, to the point that people plan trips to Spain to see his buildings. Yet that fame sometimes confines Gaudi within a n...

13시간 전

‘The Hospital Without Thresholds’ upheld by Woo Seok-Gyun, director of Seongsu Clinic, has passed away

Dr. Woo Seok-Gyun, a family medicine specialist and a leading activist in the healthcare movement in South Korea, has died after battling illness. The deceased treated workers and the socially disadvantaged for 24 years in Seongsu-dong, Seongdong-gu, Seoul, and took the lead in movements to stop healthcare privatization and to defend the health rights of workers. He was 64.From 2001, he ran Seongsu Clinic in Seongsu-dong, caring for workers, undocumented migrant workers, children with disabi...

13시간 전

President Lee to hold a first-anniversary press conference tomorrow… ‘3.8 trips around the Earth’ summit diplomacy over the past year

President Lee Jae Myung will hold a press conference on the 8th marking the first anniversary of his inauguration and will present his vision for the second year of governance along with four major goals.The presidential office said on the 7th that at 10 a.m. on the 8th, President Lee will hold the first-anniversary press conference at the State Guest House at Cheong Wa Dae under the slogan ‘An Irreplaceable Republic of Korea’. The slogan embodies a vision and resolve to leap from a country ...

13시간 전

President Lee Jae Myung names Han Seong-sook, Minister of SMEs and Startups, as prime minister nominee

On the 7th, President Lee Jae Myung nominated Han Seong-sook, Minister of SMEs and Startups, as a candidate for prime minister. If Minister Han assumes office after receiving approval by the National Assembly, she will become the second female prime minister in history, following former Prime Minister Han Myeong-sook, who took office in 2006.Kang Hoon-sik, Chief of Staff of the Office of the President, held a briefing at the Blue House that day and made the announcement.Regarding nominee H...

13시간 전

National Museum of Korea visitors already 3.25 million···Will it surpass ‘6 million’ again this year?

Last year, the National Museum of Korea ushered in the era of ‘6.5 million visitors’ for the first time, and it is continuing its popularity this year, already surpassing 3.25 million visitors.According to the National Museum of Korea on the 7th, from January∼May this year, the museum drew a total of 3,255,160 visitors (Koreans 3,133,136·foreigners 122,024). This is 45.2% higher than the number of visitors during the same period last year (2,241,592).In January∼February, which...

13시간 전

Choo Mi-ae broke the glass ceiling, but only 3.9% of basic local government heads are women

South Korea’s first woman metropolitan-level local government head emerged from the June 3 local elections. Choo Mi-ae, the Democratic Party of Korea governor-elect for Gyeonggi Province, won 3,760,080 votes (vote share 55.04%), defeating Yang Hyang-ja of the People Power Party, also a woman. Since the first local elections in 1995, this is the first time a woman politician has been elected as a metropolitan-level local government head. It is a meaningful moment in which a woman politician b...

13시간 전