1. BILATERAL/MULTILATERAL ISSUES

S. Korean parliament to discuss ratifying FTA with EU this week [English, OSY]

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/news/2011/05/02/0200000000AEN20110502008600315.HTML

Summary: SEOUL, May 2 (Yonhap) -- The South Korean parliament will discuss the ratification of Seoul's free trade deal with the European Union (EU) at a plenary session this week, a lawmaker said Monday, after rival parties agreed on related issues.   Rep. Lee Koon-hyon of the ruling Grand National Party (GNP) said the National Assembly will discuss ratifying the free trade agreement (FTA) with the EU this Wednesday. The decision was reached after a meeting

2. ECONOMIC ISSUES

S. Korea's foreign reserves top US$300 bln in April [English, OSY]

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/news/2011/05/02/0200000000AEN20110502007600320.HTML

Summary: SEOUL, May 3 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's foreign exchange reserves surpassed the US$300 billion mark for the first time in April as a weaker U.S. dollar boosted the conversion value of assets in other currencies, the central bank said Tuesday.   The country's foreign reserves reached a record $307.2 billion as of the end of April, up $8.58 billion from March, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK).

S. Korea's consumer prices grow 4.2 pct in April [English, OSY]

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/news/2011/05/02/0200000000AEN20110502001100320.HTML

Summary: SEOUL, May 2 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's consumer prices grew at a slower pace in April, but they still remained relatively high, raising concerns price hikes might undercut the overall momentum of the economic recovery, a report showed Monday.  According to the report by Statistics Korea, the country's consumer price index jumped 4.2 percent last month from a year earlier. It was slower than the previous month's 4.7 percent gain but marked the fourth consecutive month that the price growth has been above the 4 percent mark.

S. Korea's trade surplus reaches US$5.82 bln in April [English, OSY]

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/news/2011/05/01/0200000000AEN20110501001700320.HTML
Summary: SEOUL, May 1 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's trade surplus surged to US$5.82 billion in April up sharply from US$2.78 billion the previous month on the strength of record-high exports, a government report showed Sunday.   April marks the 15th straight month that the country has posted a favorable balance. Exports rose 26.6 percent on-year to a monthly high of $49.77 billion last month, with imports rising 23.7 percent to $43.95

Australian Dollar - Korean Won Exchange Rate Hits a 13 Year High [Korean, OSY]

http://media.daum.net/economic/view.html?cateid=100014&newsid=20110502183127805&p=ked

Summary: The value of one Australian dollar marked 1,173.65 won on May 2, which was the strongest level in 13 years.  Importers of Australian products and students studying in Australia are reportedly experiencing a financial trouble due to the rising value of Australian dollar.

3. GRAIN & OILSEED ISSUES

S. Korea aims to boost grain self-sufficiency [English, OSY]

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/news/2011/05/02/0200000000AEN20110502002800320.HTML

Summary: SEOUL, May 2 (Yonhap) -- South Korea aims to raise the self-sufficiency rate of wheat, corn, bean and various cereals to 14.3 percent by 2015 to ensure their steady supply, the government said Monday.  The move comes as climate change, bad harvests and rises in overall demand have caused international grain price.

4. LIVESTOCK ISSUES

S. Korea to exempt tariffs on chicken for price stability [English, OSY]

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/business/2011/05/03/86/0502000000AEN20110503002200320F.HTML

Summary: SEOUL, May 3 (Yonhap) -- South Korea will impose no tariffs on imported chicken this year as part of its efforts to ease price hikes caused by a massive cull of livestock amid outbreaks of animal diseases, the finance ministry said Tuesday.  The ministry also said that it will add eight other products, including milk cows, cheese, chocolate and raisins, to the list of imports subject to such temporary duty exemptions or reductions this year.  Under the plan, 50,000 tons of chicken meat and 10,000 heads of milk cow will be exempted from tariffs until the end of this year, according to the ministry.  Duty rates for all imported raisins will be cut from 21 percent to 8 percent this year, while the other products will have zero tax rates applied mostly by the end of the year, the ministry said. The move is the latest in a series of government actions to ease recent price hikes of food and key materials by stabilizing supply through import tax reductions. It is also in line with the ongoing government drive to ease mounting inflationary pressure.  Prices of milk, chickens and pork meat, in particular, have been jumping in recent months due to the massive slaughter of livestock caused by the outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease and avian influenza. In a follow-up move, the ministry said that it will increase the amount of pork belly meat subject to zero duties from 60,000 tons to 80,000 tons by the end of June.

The ministry added that it will extend the no-tax period for flour imports until the end of this year from its earlier deadline of the end of June.  "We expect the latest move to reduce import tariffs will contribute to price stabilization for related products by expanding their supplies," the ministry said in a press release.     So far this year, the government imposed lower or no import taxes on a total of 108 products, including the additional items announced on Tuesday, the ministry said.

5. MARKETING ISSUES

Shinsegae picked as main bidder for Kim's Club [English, OSY]

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/news/2011/05/02/0200000000AEN20110502007200320.HTML

Summary: SEOUL, May 2 (Yonhap) -- E-Land Group, a leading South Korean fashion retailer, said Monday that it has selected Shinsegae Co. as the preferred bidder for Kim's Club Mart Co., the group's supermarket chain operator.

E-Mart Wins the Bid for Kims Club Grocery Supermarket Stores [Korean, OSY]

http://www.fnnews.com/view?ra=Sent1001m_View&corp=fnnews&arcid=0922298810&cDateYear=2011&cDateMonth=05&cDateDay=02

Summary: E.Land Group, the owner of Kims Club, announced on May 1 that Shinsegae E-Mart had won the bid for the grocery supermarket chain.  Kims Club currently operates 54 stores in Korea.  The annual sales of the chain in 2010 were 286 billion won.  Market analysts agree that the acquisition will help E-Mart expand into the grocery supermarket business more aggressively.  It is reported that the price that E-Mart offered for the acquisition was around 200 billion won.

Temporary Import Tariff Exemption Expanded to Chicken Meat, Milk Cow, and Wheat Flour [Korean, OSY]

http://www.yonhapnews.co.kr/economy/2011/05/03/0301000000AKR20110503060200002.HTML?template=2087

Summary: The ROKG Cabinet Meeting on May 3 ruled an expansion of temporary import tax exemption/reduction from existing 99 products to 108 products.  Products that are newly added to the import duty exemption are: Chicken meat (50,000 tons), Milk cow (10,000 heads), Goda cheese (1,000 tons), Cream cheese (1,200 tons), Milk cream (1,500 tons), Chilled pork belly cut meat (20,000 tons), Rice bran oil (no limit), and Processed chocolate (no limit).  Wheat flour (no limit), which were previously subject to a temporary import tariff reduction down to 2.5 percent, will be subject to zero tariff throughout the year.

8. OTHER MISCELLANEOUS ISSUES

Exports of S. Korean foodstuffs to EU surge in Q1 [English, OSY]

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/news/2011/05/03/0200000000AEN20110503003200320.HTML