Total output and domestic consumption of Makgeoli, a specialty rice wine in South Korea, made the first fall in 32 months after a relentless upward swing. Meanwhile, production of beer and soju, a popular Korean spirit, are embarking on an uphill trend.
According to a report published by Statistics Korea on Monday, total output and domestic shipments of Makgeoli posted 24,395 kiloliters(kl) and 22,753 kl each this February, falling 6.8% and 8.1% respectively from last year. This is the first negative month-on-month growth since June 2008.
Since the onset of the Makgeoli boom in 2009, output of Makgeoli had grown to the 20,000 kl range by September 2009 and 30,000 kl range by March 2010, peaking in June last year at 33,906 kl. Monthly output had exceeded 30,000 kl almost nonstop from March to September last year, but sunk to 28,125 kl in October and stayed low at the 25,000 kl range for the next four months.
A similar trend was apparent in shipments for domestic consumption. Yet, despite the recent dip, current records in output and domestic consumption are still more than twofold the figures in February 2009 (output 11,389 kl, consumption 10,904 kl).
Meanwhile, production of beer and soju are moving up. Beer output for February reached 132,395 kl, marking a 7.0% hike from the same period last year and fifth month of consecutive growth. Soju output had tripped slightly in February (-0.6%), but has been breaking away from the long-term stagnancy by recording a 10.0% in October last year. The ensuing four months saw growth of 14.5%, 12.7%, and 8.8%.
"South Koreas domestic agricultural industry now has to engage in global competition amid the increasing trend of market liberalization. If the Government and farmers join forces, the domestic agricultural industry would have great potentials to make its presence felt overseas," President Lee Myungbak said in his 62nd radio and Internet address to the nation on Monday.
"Many people often say that farming is a sunset industry, but it is not true. With the advent of a bio-agriculture era driven by progress in agricultural bioengineering, farming is now emerging as a promising future growth engine," President Lee said.
"Having a huge market like China close by may well be an opportunity for us. As China keeps adding high income earners day by day, the market for high-end agricultural products is growing very rapidly in that country. This presents a good chance for the high value-added organic agricultural and fisheries products of Korea to succeed in a big way," Lee said.
"I dare say agriculture in the 21st century is a multi-cultural industry as well as a knowledgebased industry. Agriculture is no longer about the simple production of food but is an industry that combines food with tourism, cultural experiences, leisure and even arts," Lee emphasized.
"The revision of the National Agricultural Cooperative Federation (NACF) this time will put an advanced system in place that will enable farmers to single-mindedly devote themselves to production with the NACF taking responsibility for distribution and sales," Lee said as to the revision of the NACF Act. "If the NACF takes charge of the distribution and sales of farm produce and thus, streamlines the intermediary process, it would enable farmers to sell at a fair price and consumers to purchase more cheaply."
Deputy US Trade Representative (USTR) Demetrios Marantis urged the US Congress to speed up the ratification process for the free trade agreement between South Korea and the U.S. (KORUS) during the hearing at the House Ways and Means subcommittee on trade held on Thursday.
"Now is the time to act on this agreement so American families can realize the many benefits of the US-Korea trade agreement. Working together, lets move this agreement without further delay," he said in a statement to the subcommittee.
The trade official further urged Congress to "work on passing a comprehensive trade policy - one that includes the pending trade agreements," while stressing that "the U.S. - Korea trade agreement is ready to move today."
Marantis also brought a copy of the draft implementing bill for the Korean trade deal, thus hinting at the urgency of the procedure. Congressman Jim McDermott from the Democratic Party responded by pressing the administration to send up the draft implementing legislation without delay so as to fast-track procedures.
"We remain committed to further opening beef markets across Asia, including Korea, consistent with international science," Marantis said in regards to the controversial beef issue. However, he expressed concerns that Korea was still not opening the market for cattle over 30 months of age, and said this was one of the concerns that should be further worked out with the Korean government.
Korea Development Institute (KDI), South Korea's economic think tank announced on Sunday that employment conditions are improving and inflation rates are rising further, while the real economy is contracting temporarily.
"Production in the mining and manufacturing industries and the service industry seemed depressing in February compared with the previous month. Consumption-related indicators also showed poor records," the institute said in its monthly publication KDI Economic Trends.
As for inflation, "consumer prices in March grew by 4.7% as prices of industrial products and houses soared. Despite slowdown in growth of agricultural and fisheries prices, prices of industrial products, centering on high oil prices, keep rising further," KDI said.
"Service prices rose by 2.5% as housing prices climbed, in spite of slowdown in growth of public service prices. There is a possibility that the current growth in inflation rates could expand as the number of both industrial and service items whose prices are going up further increases," the institute expressed worries.
However, KDI was positive about the current employment conditions, saying "the labor market improved in February as shown in the growing number of employed people and the rising economic participation rate."
Meanwhile, the institute forecast that the Japan earthquake will have limited impacts on the Korean economy as long as the global economy continues to grow. "Some domestic manufacturers that are heavily dependent on Japanese-made parts could face difficulties in producing goods. However, the impact will be very limited since Koreas exports to Japan account for a mere 6.0% of the countrys entire exports," KDI said.
The Android operating system (OS), a popular mobile system for smartphones developed by Google, is undergoing swift evolution with at least two upgrades a year. However, the inability of smartphone makers to match the pace of upgrades by Android is sparking a series of complaints by consumers in South Korea.
LG Electronics promised at least one yearly upgrade in the Android OS for smartphone buyers when it first released its products into the market. The companys failure to keep its words, however, raised controversy as disgruntled consumers started to protest. Similarly, Enspert - the producer of Koreas very first tablet PC - only just announced the upgrade to Android 2.2 this month, inviting similar complaints from consumers.
Consumer discontent was still high in cases where OS upgrades were offered in a timely manner. For instance, users of Galaxy S - Samsung Electronics most popular smartphone model - were taken aback when the OS upgrade wiped out all prior information stored in their smartphones. Motorolas Motoroi displayed countless errors, such as failures to close application, after the upgrade.
Users of Android-based smartphones point out that there are no regulations on OS upgrades. This is driving handset makers to focus their energy and resources on development of new products, causing them to be careless on customer support for existing products.
On the opposite end, manufacturers argue that Androids are evolving so fast that it is impossible for others to catch up. Ever since the launch of Android 1.5 in April 2009, the OS underwent six upgrades in less than two years. As a result, the Korean smartphone market is flooded with seven different versions of the OS, ranging from versions 1.5 to 3.0.
- Korean automakers view giant neighbor as the new top growth market for sales
With competition becoming fierce in the local automobile market, Hyundai Motors Beijing unit released its new Sonata in China yesterday, hoping to expand its global sales by increasing its presence in the worlds largest car market.
Beijing Hyundai Motor had unveiled the midsize sedan in China last December at the Guangzhou Motor Show and is marketing the vehicle as an "intelligent dynamic sedan."
It has been promoting the model with tours in major cities and was a recent corporate sponsor of the Chinese production of the popular musical "Mamma Mia!"
The automakers move comes as it faces increased competition in Korea from imported cars. Local automakers are looking outside Korea, especially big emerging markets like China, to expand sales since China is now the worlds largest auto market with sales of 11.12 million vehicles last year.
"Midsize sedans in particular are becoming more popular among Chinese consumers," said an official from Hyundai Motor. "Sales in that specific segment jumped 18.5 percent to 2.06 million units in 2010 from a year earlier."
The company aims to sell 50,000 Sonatas in China this year and 80,000 units in 2012 in addition to its sales of the Tucson ix and Accent.
As of February, Volkswagen had the largest market share among foreign carmakers in China with 12 percent, followed by General Motors with 7 percent, and Hyundai Motor Group with 6 percent.
Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation is the largest China automaker with 22 percent market share, followed by Dongfeng Motor Corporation with 15 percent and Changan with 13 percent.
GM Korea exports the Alpheon, under the name Buick Lacrosse, to China as well as the Chevrolet Cruz in a complete knockdown form.
Ssangyong Motors is selling its sports utility vehicles, including the Kyron and Actyon, in China and is planning to expand its operations in China based on its previous experience with its former owner SAIC.
"We plan to sell more than 4,000 units in China this year," said a Ssangyong official. Last year, Ssangyong sold 2,230 units in China.
Hyundai is enjoying another recent advantage over their Chinese rivals, which are dependent on supplies of Japanese car parts. A supply shortage resulting from the earthquake in Japan has forced Chinese automakers to raise their prices. But Hyundai and Kia are believed to be better insulated as their dependence on Japanese parts is significantly lower.
South Koreas free trade agreement (FTA) with China will help the national economy grow by more than 2% additionally, according to an analysis.
"Considering that Korea and China are large trading countries and Korea, in particular, is a manufacturing powerhouse, the Korea-China FTA will contribute to actually expanding trade industries of the two countries," economists from Samsung Economic Research Institute (SERI) said on Sunday.
"Koreas exports of automobiles, textile and petrochemical products will grow significantly. However, for agricultural goods, imports from China will outstrip exports to the country," the economists forecast.
If the two countries sign the trade deal, Koreas gross domestic product (GDP) will rise by 2.72%, according to the analysis on effects of the Korea-China FTA on Koreas GDP. The growth is even higher than expected GDP growths with the countrys FTA with the United States (0.56%) and the European Union (1.02%).
"Exports to China will climb by more than 30%. However, if tariffs on agricultural and fisheries products are cut by 100%, imports of agricultural goods could double, dealing a big blow to Koreas agricultural sector," the economists said.
"For Korea, China is the largest economic partner and agricultural powerhouse. For China, Korea is a manufacturing powerhouse. In this sense, the Korea-China FTA is politically and economically a huge challenge. Efforts should be made for effective negotiations, including accurate analyses on comparative edges of the two countries and preventive measures against heavy reliance on the Chinese market," they advised.
The South Korean government decided to impose zero tariffs on imported flour, eliminating the current 2.5% quota tariffs. The government also plans to monitor price cuts in flour-related food products through civil activist groups.
"Businesses are bearing the brunt of mounting pressures from rising commodity prices as corn and sugar cane prices soared by 120% and 68%, respectively, in the international grain market. The government will put zero tariffs on flour by lowering the current tariff tax rates," Yim Jong-ryong, Vice Minister of Strategy and Finance said on April 8th in a joint anti-inflation meeting of related government agencies.
Quota tariff is one of the Korean governments price stabilization measures to raise or lower tariff rates temporarily on a certain amount of imported goods for a given period of time.
"Lowering quota tariff rates should benefit consumers. Related government agencies need to conduct close monitoring on consumer prices in cooperation with civil groups," Yim said.
"The government is aware of significant impacts of oil prices on the national economy and will mull over lowering oil taxes, considering various aspects including the international oil price trends and efficacy of the measure to lower oil taxes.
Office of Commercial Affairs, Royal Thai Embassy in Korea
Source : http://www.depthai.go.th