debt-ridden household

Shin Myung-in, 59, who runs a small machine parts supplying company, used to spare no money on designer's clothes. But it is now a thing of the past. Now she frequents to a second-hand shop near her office to buy clothes worth only one tenth of those she used to buy at a department store.

Before the business went sour the family used to eat out quite often, board a plane rather than bus or train when going to other city, and shop at department stores. But things turned bad in 2000 and she had to take out W20m in loan before the company went bust.

"Without the loan, our business must have gone bankrupt," she said.

The business is still struggling and the company earns only slightly enough to get by, so they only manage to pay a monthly interest of W150,000, postponing to pay up the principal.

She said she tried to be frugal in every part of living.

"My husband and I had 4 or 5 monthly meetings with family friends but we reduced that to only two. And during winter, we don't turn up the heater until it gets really cold."

Her rickety family car is 11-year-old, apprently causing lots of problems. They badly need a new car but can't afford it now.

"Once our car just stopped in the middle of nowhere during travel, so we had it towed to a repair center and had to rent a car for the rest of our holiday."

"My husband has been for years really anxious to get a new car. So when the business picks up again and we pay off all our debt, the first thing I will do is buy a new car."

Rising household debt in Korea

According to a data produced by Bank of Korea early September, Korea’s household debt rises to a total of W600 trillion as of June this year, which translates into W36.83m debt per household, up by W430,000 from W36.40m at the end of last year.

Rising household debt is mainly blamed on government’s stringent control on bank loans, which makes people in urgent need of money left with no other option but to flock to ‘second financial institutions’ to which borrowers should pay outrageous amount of interests.

- Shon Hak-kyu returned to the UNDP primary. He suddenly disappered after vote results unexpectedly turned out to be disappointing to him and several problems arose in the primary process.

- An internal report from the budget ministry shows Seoul might divert some pf defense ministry budgets into inter-Korean economic cooperation funds. And it might create a new taw or 'peace lottery' if need be.

- President Roh hinted at discussing with Kim Jong-il on infrastructure construction in North Korea. Kim Jae-hyun, president of Korea Land Cooperation, replaces Byeon Yang-koon as an official attendant at the summit.

- The Fair Trade Commission levied fines of W3.39 bn and W1.61 bn on Hyosung and Hyundai Heavy Industries respectively for price fixing for 8 years.

- Government's project to help the poor get back on their feet failed to achieve its intended results. The project spent W663.2 bn from 2004 to 2006 but only 5.68 per cent of receivers succeeded to seek a living for themselves by landing a stable job.

- For the past 5 years, the Roh government has spent W12.1 trillion on job creation, but the unemployment rate, in fact, rose about 10 per cent.

- Asked on the children human rights abuse problems associated withPyongyang's Arirang performance, Lee Jae-joung, unification minister, told reporters "(North Korea's) human right issues should be interpreted differently according to the region's environment and characteristics."

On the question 'is it appropriated for President Roh to watch the performance for a long time that is believed to expose children rights abuse,' he said "judging whether it is human rights abuse or not is, in itself, inappropriate."

[The Financial Times] Mongolian Holiday

Shinzo Abe is not the only powerful man in Japan to flee his position. Asashoryu, Japan’s most famous sumo wrestler, this month rushed home to his native Mongolia after being accused of bringing the sport into disrepute.

Asashoryu angered Japanese people by declining to take part in off-season sumo activities on the grounds that he was injured. Yet the injuries did not prevent him from playing football, apparently.

Footage of him playing were relayed around a shocked Japan, which treated him as a horrifying spectacle on a par with bank robbery of kitten strangling.

The giant man reacted by retreating into silence, locking himself in his house for days, before boarding a flight back to Mongolia for psychological treatment.

Abe was not filmed playing football or robbing a bank, though like Asashoryu he is said to be suffering from psychological strain. Nor has Abe yet fled to Mongolia, although yesterday he did check into a hospital and cancelled all meetings.

If his party, incensed at his sudden resignation, cannot forgive him, Abe might consider a future in Ulan Bator.

- Asked what the Korean economy should focus on at this point, Lee Kun-hee told reporters nurturing talents, R&D, and deregulation. Especially underlining the importance of deregulation, he said “Korea can fast become a developed nation when it aggressively pursues deregulation.”

- A high-ranking government official said “Wooribank and Kyungnam and Kwangju banks failed to produce synergy effects, so we think they have to be separately sold.”

- Due to sluggish property market, two mid-sized construction companies in Jellabukdo and Pusan respectively went bankrupt.

- The six party talk is likely to resume on September 27 for 3 or 4 days, said a person close to the talk.

- The government declared typhoon-stricken Jeju Island a special disaster zone to give it financial supports for clearing up damages.

- While meeting with US senators, former President Kim Dae-jung said Kim Jong-il had told him in the first summit that Pyongyang would dispatch soldiers in case there were not enough workers in the Kaesung Industrial complex.

- A research shows when apartment prices increase, it is often dramatic, but only slightly when it falls. For example, Kangnam’s housing prices shed only 1.25 per cent this year while rising 21.27 per cent last year.

- The Seoul government considers proposing a bill to include AIDS patients in the category of the disabled, in order to broaden medical, welfare supports for them.

- The construction ministry is to buy 5,000 unsold apartments nationwide by next year to use them as long-term rental as well as reserved public apartments .

- SK Telecom is to launch a new fee program from October which allows its subscribers to talk to another subscribers with 50% reduced price if they monthly pay an additional W2,500. KTF and LG Telecom are about to roll out similar fee system.

- Former Seoul National University professor Hwang Woo-suk is believed to have been working on human embryonic stem cell researches in Thailand since June.

- Lee Myung-bak is considering changing the name of his key election pledge, by using ‘inland waterway’ instead of ‘canal,’ in order to instill the name some environment-friendly color.

- It is reported that President Roh might visit Kaesung industrial complex on his way back to Seoul after the summit.

- WHO said waterborne epidemics such as sore eyes and diarrhea are spreading throughout North Korea, but there aren’t enough medicine.

- According to some sources, Shon Hak-kyu is considering stopping running as UNDP’s primary candidate after disappointing vote results from electoral college.

- Foreign investors continue their sell-off spree for three consecutive months, resulting stock owned by them falling to 33% of the total stock value for the first time in 6 years.

- Seoul might give Kim Jong-il a home-theater with famous Korean movie DVDs including D-War as presents at the summit.

- The construction ministry actually conceded that there are some problems with unsold public apartments in non-metropolitan area. As of March this year, the average unsold rate is 3 per cent but in some areas the rate amounts to 76 per cent.

Seoulite negative, but sympathetic towards suicide

Seoul citizens are found to have negative attitudes towards suicide but sympathetic to people who take their own lives, according to a poll by Korean Research on 1,000 people, which was commissioned by the Seoul City Government.

About eighty-eight per cent of respondents agree that suicide is an act of deserting one’s own family, 82.6 per cent say it is not right in any case, and 71.9 per cent agree that it a serious moral sin.

But over 50 per cent say they can understand people who take their own lives, 36.2 per cent consider it to be one of many options, and 32.5 per cent think it is ones’ own right.

In Korea, suicide has increased in five consecutive years, with 26 cases out of 100,000 in 2006, which is the biggest among OECD member countries. The statistics shows that 33 people, on average, take their own life a day last year, 2.2 times more than 1995.

It takes up 4.9 per cent of death causes in 2005, 5.9% for man and 3.6% for woman, and it is the biggest cause for death among people age from 20-39.

Compared to the 1995 statistics, suicide-caused death has increased a lot. In 1995, suicide ranked 9th but 4th in 2005 as the cause for death . In 1995, 11.8 cases out of 100,000 kill themselves, but 26.1 in 2005.

today's headlines

- Chung Woon-jae, a former presidential secretary, is revealed to have received tens of millions of won in kickback from a corrupt constructor early this year.

- Korea’s ratio of taxation against national income since the Asian financial crisis has grown fastest among 30 members of the OECD.

- Unification minister Lee Jae-joung told reporters this morning that Seoul would positively consider watching Arirang performance if requested by North Korea. “Arirang performance is one of their very proud performances and we respect it in that regard, and would think about it (watching the performance).”

- Chung Mong-koo is at pains to prepare a lecture and write in the paper, part of punishments he received from the appeal court. Hyundai Motor said it will be done by the end of October.

- When visiting companies and plants on July 29, Kim ordered officials at Bureau 39 to close all restaurants run by the bureau and focus more on mining production, the Mainichi Newspaper quoted a Chinese official as saying.

- Prosecutors raided Byeon’s Somerset Place residence after finding out the monthly rent of W2m had been paid by someone else for the past 13 months.

- According to a document submitted by the FSS, 8 out 12 local banks and 11 out of 21 securities companies have an auditor who used to work at the FSS, fuelling suspicions they are hired not for internal inspection, more for lobbying the FSS.

- Kim Seung-yeon is to resign as Hanwha Corporation CEO soon and leaves for Japan to recuperate himself.

Lee Myung-bak's election pledges on North Korea

‘Denuclearization and Openness 3000’

Main point is helping NK achieve an average economic growth of 17 per cent for ten years and ultimately reach $3,000 per capita GDP.

The goal can be achieved through comprehensive aid packages, in hands with international community. The aid package is divided into five sectors: economy, education, finances, infrastructure, and welfare.

Details on ‘Comprehensive aid packages’

1. Economy
- sending economic experts for business, legal, financial consulting
- establishing five free trade zones in NK
- nurturing 100 companies which are capable of exporting more than $3m a year
- Korea’s overseas networks such as KOTRA will give help in this matter

2. Education

- educating 300,000 experts on economy, finance, and technology
- establishing technology-education centers in 10 North Korean cities
- sponsoring establishment of research centers like ‘KDI’ and ‘KAIST’
- supporting North Korean universities to have proper economy, finance, and trade curriculum

3. Finance

- helping NK take out loans from World Bank or ADB
- raising inter-Korean cooperation funds: $10bn for the space of 10 years
- supporting NK for luring direct investment from overseas
- persuading Japan to give financial support depending on relations between NK and Japan

4. Infrastructure

- providing infrastructure to relieve energy shortage
- building basic infrastructure such as ports, railroad, and roads
- building 400km-long highway connecting Seoul and Sinuiju
- making sure Grand Cannal can be useful in NK as well

5. Welfare

- relieving food shortage, thus solving absolute poverty
- dispatching medical workers and improving hospital conditions
- rebuilding houses and improving water supply and drainage system
- planting 0.1 bn trees for greener environment

A New Vision for the Korean Peninsula

It is an upgraded version of ‘Denuclearization and Openness 3000.’

The establishment of a consultation body with NK for an inter-Korean economic community will be the first step for that matter.

The two Koreas will work on detailed matters covering from economy to welfare, and try to raise ‘international cooperation fund,’ of up to $40 bn. Depending on the outcome of denuclearization process, the body will further work on other projects.

Regardless of nuke issues, humanitarian works especially establishing flood-preventing infrastructure will start and a humanitarian cooperation office dealing with food shortage and medical assistance will be set up in North Korea.

The Vision set the goal of more active private and material exchanges between the two Koreans, and more Korean companies involved in inter-Korean business.

Aid should be an investment and a win-win project. No one-way

The consultative body will also pursue concluding Korean Economic Community Cooperation Arrangement (KECCA) with NK for more active inter-Korean economic cooperation, which will serves as a legal and institutional support system.

- Tax burden will hit a record-high next year, with an average tax of W4.34 m per capita. Seoul is to raise labor income tax by 8.8 per cent next year, which translate into W110,000 more tax burden for a office worker.

- The major opposition party's presidential candidate Lee Myung-bak said President Roh should tell the nation what he would talk about with Kim Jung-il in the second inter-Korean summit slated to be held on October 2-4. “It will impose a huge impact on the next government if other issues (like a peace declaration) are pushed ahead with while there is no progress on the nuke issue,” he said.

- In a short meeting with a Chosun reporter, Byeon Yang-kyoon, a disgraced former chief secretary to president on natioanl policy, said “I am deeply sorry for troubles I created, and I am really sorry to trouble the president so much.”

- Lee Myung-bak considers moving to another place from his hanok in Kahui-dong because of security reasons. The neighborhood is too narrow and labyrinthine for security staff to properly do their job.

- Samsung has recently been spreading an animation UCC titled “thank-you(고맙습니다)” on the internet, in a series of its campaigns to improve company image and create appreciative and understanding culture in society.

- Lee Myung-bak is said to go through ‘private lessons’ from think-tanks on security, diplomacy, and defense matters, which have often been pointed out as his weak points.

- "D-War, " a made-in-Korea blockbuster, is to be released on 2,275 theaters in the US today, becoming the first Asian movie to be shown in so many theaters.

- My husband is very respectful and led an exemplary life. I don’t believe anyone except my husband,” said the wife of Byeon Yang-kyoon, in a phone interview with Chosun Ilbo. 　

- Lee Myung-bak said “President Roh is busy preparing for the up-coming inter-Korean summit and filing a suit against the presidential candidate from the opposite party…he is interested in so many other stuffs, you know, just under the light is the dimmest.”

- President Roh is mounting pressure on the start of the construction of 10 ‘innovative cities’ where government offices will be moved to, before his term ends. The construction ministry even promised incentives to provincial governments who come the first and second to start the ground-breaking.

- The New York Times quoted US defense officials as saying North Korea might have secretly sold nuclear material to Syria.

- Prosecutors are urging Shin, who is seeking hide-outs in America, to come back for investigation. One of the proofs for their ‘romantic relationship’ is said two pieces of portraits they pictured each other by themselves. Shin Jeong-ah is believed to have millions of dollars in her acquaintance’s bank account in New York.

- Seoul is said to have asked the UNC if it is appropriate to bring up NLL(Northern Limit Line) issues in the upcoming inter-Korean summit. The UNC is believed to have said the two Koreans need its agreement for any change in NLL.

- First Lasy Kwon Yang-suk is reported to have had lunch with the wife of Byeon Yang-kun at Cheong Wa Dae the day before yesterday.

- The Fair Trade Commission ordered a correction to ‘slavery contracts’ between entertainment companies and aspiring actors, who often end up being forced to pay outrageous damages for breaching contracts.

- Local cow breeders suffer from falling cow prices which fell 26.5 per cent compared to last year.

- The BOK, in its first such move, intervened in the swap market to stave off continuing imbalances in the foreign exchange market.

- Two out of ten Seoul citizens have thought about committing suicide and five are found to have sympathetic opinions towards people who take their own life, a poll shows.

- Prosecutor’s investigation revealed several monks wired money to Shin’s account, raising a suspicion that Byeon Yang-keun exerted influence over cultural budgets when he served as budget minister to be given to monks, who in turn gave the money to Shin.

- Seoul National University’s dean post will be open for outside applicants, ending its legacy of choosing the dean strictly from inside who is a graduate of the school.

- The FSS launched a probe into Hyundai Merchant Marine for an alleged stock price manipulation. The company’s shares have more than doubled this year.

- According to Cyworld, female members are more active than male in the field of clubs and Paper, on-line magazine, showing an ‘alpha girl,’ a new term referring to women who exhibit equal to or better academic performance and leadership than men, prevails in virtual world as well.

- An online poll on 309 adults reveals the most-hated topic during the Chuseok holiday is bad-mouthing about family members by spouses and marriage for a married respondent are and for a single one, respectively.

- The average money given by companies to their interviewees is W32,000, according to an online job-search site, Saramin. KT is, on average, found to be the most generous, giving W0.5m for overseas applicants and W50,000 for domestic ones.

- North Korea’s KCNA reported 80 per cent of devastated roads by flood have been recovered.

- More than 50,000 tourists are expected to visit Mr. Keumkang this October, the biggest monthly visitor ever. Hyundai Asan expects the number to well pass the yearly target of 0.3m.

- Lee Myung-bak is to run his campaign office in a company-like manner. Newly established teams include PR Team, Communication Team, Schedule Team, and Message Team etc.

- There emerged another mysterious man behind Shin Jeong-a’s scandal. Shin is said to have talked about a 30-something man from Gyeongsangnam-do, who works at a financial government office and help her get sponsors to her gallery.

- The GNP is to set up a special prosecutors’ investigation into recent scandals involving president’s aides.

- GNP lawmaker Lee Myung-kyu claimed that state-run companies have, intentionally or accidentally, not paid taxes of up to W570 bn since 2000.

- FSC public information officer Hong Young-man said broadcasters should get prior permission for an interview of any FSC employee.

- A revised law will allow a male worker shorter working hours by 15-30 hours a week or a guaranteed three-day paternity leave. Companies that do not abide by the new rules are fined up to W20m.

- Samsung Group is said to give pink slip to as many as 5,000 employees within this year and CEOs who failed to perform well are expected to be replaced.

- A KBS drama ‘Sayooksin,’ which depicts King’s loyalists in Chosun Dynasty, will be aired in North Korea at the end of this year.

- A court hearing for Hanhwa CEO Kim Seung-yeon will be held at 2:00 pm this afternoon.

- Prosecutor’s started an investigation into an entertainment investment company involving the youngest son of Kim Woo-joong, former Daewoo CEO, for suspicious money dealings which amounts to W10bn.

English craze

Even though you are armed with a great depth of business expertise and insights, you will never be able to impress Nam Young, CEO of LG Electronics, without fluent English.

Since he took the helm of the company, he has embarked a set of very aggressive plans to make LG ‘a truly globalized company, which is true since 80 per cent of it profits come from overseas.

One of the measures managers find most challenging about is using English as their ‘official in-house language.’ Meetings chaired by Mr. Nam are done in English, and the company plans to gradually change all company files and documents into English. Even it encourages employees to speak only in English during phone conversation.

No wonder, a 40-something executive join his 13-year-old daughter late night to study English and rank-and-file employees hurry to take up online English lessons not to be left behind in an increasingly competitive promotion battle.

In Korea, people with work irrelevant to English, not to mention those often use English during work, feel pressured to get at least OK-level of English, if not fluent.

Kim Ki-joon, a software programmer, seriously considers taking up phone-English course which offers him a chance to freely talk to a native speaker for 10 minutes a day, though he rarely uses English during daily work.

“The fact that I can’t speak English has been always bothering me. And I would be better to be prepared. Who knows if I might be offered to work in a foreign company?”

“For me, speaking Japanese is not enough. English is some kind of a general culture,” said Kwon Ju-hee, a Japanese translator, who has recently quitted her job of 5 years to go to Canada to learn English.

Seoul Today_Sep 7

- New measures by education ministry face a mounting criticism from education circles.

- Prosecutors revealed Kim Sang-jin confessed he gave Chung Yoon-jae, close aide to President Roh, a kickback of W20m for a political favor back in 2003.

- Hyundai Motor union members voted yes by 77.09 per cent to a tentative wage agreement struck between management and labor.

- The BOK decided to keep its call-rate at 5 per cent.

- FSS (Financial Supervisory Service) governor Kim Yong-duk told Seoul Financial Forum, this morning, “there needs to be some patience (regarding the KEB sale) because of legal issues.” In the past, New Bridge, Commerzbank, Carlyle came to Korea, legally did their business and exit Korea without any problem, he said.

- FSS governor Kim Yong-duk said in order to encourage financial institutions M&As, the government will increase incentives and create environment that can push up competitiveness

- UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon moved into his new house, of which guest room is especially decorated in Korean style with traditional Korean paper from Jeon-ju being used as wallpapers.

- Korea University said it will file a complaint within next week against Education Ministry’s measure to cut new student enrollment for 2008.

- Six ministers (Finance, Defense, Unification, Science & Technology, Agriculture, and Welfare), seven people from Cheong Wa Dae, including NIS chief, will accompany President Roh on his visit to Pyongyang.

- The BOK prospects the Korean economy continues its growth momentum in the next half of this year, putting a growth rate at mid 4 per cent.

- Judge Lee Jae-hong said in the court ruling for Chung Mong-koo, “I have, too, bitter taste in my mouth. Judges have intensive, long debate on the issue, and I even asked a tax driver and a restaurant working staff about this case…I am well aware of the fact that there are lots of criticism levied on court for its leniency to white-collar crimes and giving out a suspended sentence to Chaebol, and I will humbly accept (such criticism).”

Korea's headlines_Sep. 6

- The education ministry sent an official letter to Korea University yesterday, ordering it to slash student numbers by 160 next year, which is believed to be an act of punishment for the university not abiding by ministry’s rules.

- It is revealed that seven ministries haven’t held a single regular briefing this year.

- A government source told that Song Min-soon and Kim Jang-soo (Minister of National Defense) will accompany President Roh in the second inter-Korean summit expected to be held in October.

- The Education ministry revealed yesterday that it will not allow any more ‘special purpose( such as foreign language, science..)’ high schools to be established, citing that those schools are not run according to its original purposes and greatly blamed for driving up private education.

- Seven out of ten office workers say 정(情) (affection for other people) helps them in one way or another in their working life. 54.5 percent of women and 70.3 percent of men say so.

- A Seoul appellate court is to hold a court hearing of Chung Mong-koo on charges of embezzlement and breach of trust at 2:30 pm this afternoon.

- According to the KCNA, North Korea’s national security agency told yesterday that it arrested a foreign spy, whose nationality was not revealed, and a North Korean informant. It was the first time since 1990 that the country’s top security agency openly said it nabbed spies.

- Lee Myung-bak said this morning he will not respond to the libel lawsuit filed by Cheong Wa Dae.

- The tax agency is considering levying corporate taxes on Hana bank for its 2002 merger with Seoul Bank. Industry sources estimate the tax can reach as much as to W1.3 trillion.

Today's headlines_Sep. 5

- The Education Ministry warned local universities it will apply ‘administrative and financial sanctions’ to them unless they abide by university entrance guidelines set by the ministry.

- The New Democratic Party is under criticism for making up fake lists who they claim were part of participants of pre-primary election. Thirty-three percent of the participants were found to be a fake.

- The city of Mokpo in Jellanamdo unveiled aggressive childbirth encouraging programs with a yearly budget of W22-38 bn, under which the city gives a household up to W19.49 m for a first child, W22.35m for a second one, and W41.75m for the third one.

- SK Group is to give 8 high schools nationwide W250 m each for the space of three years in an effort to support public education.

- Lee Myung-bak will meet Park Geun-hye on Sep.7 to encourage internal cooperation in the run-up to the presidential election.

- Hynix creditors have chosen Credit Swiss as their advisor in a step toward selling its remaining shares. The sell-off might be possible within this year if creditors all agree.

- Rep. Chung Kyun-hwan from the New Democratic Party asked President Roh to issue an apology for the prosecution’s probe into sending secret money to the North in return for the 2000 summit. He said “because of the investigation, inter-Korean relations have badly deteriorated, which incurred damage to the country.”

- 15 representatives from the New Democratic Party have proposed a legislation under which the practice of circulatory shareholdings among chaebol affiliates is banned.

- Financial Supervisory Service is said to have issued strong internal orders to its officials not to contact with reporters in the office. A FSS official who was asked to be interviewed said “we’ve received oral instructions from above not to meet reporters within the office, so how about meeting you at a coffee shop near the building?”

- It is believed that GNP rep. Chung Byung-kook who worked for Lee Myung-bak’s camp contacted a North Korean official last month in Beijing, spreading speculations that the GNP party is doing some secret works to minimize North Korea’s influence in the up-coming election.