Korea

Korea will form a won 1tn (US$1.1bn) fund to assist the country s small- and medium-sized businesses.

Asian firms think Korean small- and medium-sized companies (SMEs) are the third most competitive in Asia following those in China and Japan.

 

Korea's corporate bankruptcies dropped in April from the previous month due to a slowdown in failures among manufacturers, builders and service businesses, the central bank said.

Competition among Korean banks to win small-business customers may lead to rising loan defaults and threaten growth here, the nation s chief financial regulator warned.

Since 2006, the number of firms finishing the program has grown considerably. Nearly half of the troubled small- and mid-size companies that entered a debt restructuring program introduced in July 2004 are back to normal, the Financial Supervisory Service said.

Local banks were the main supporters of small- and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) in Korea, as their lending to those firms soared in 2006

South Korea's state export insurer announced it plans to provide won 88 tn (US$93.5 bn) of export insurance this year to protect local companies

Korea Development Bank will continue to support small companies this year and will establish a private equity fund as part of its effort

The Export-Import Bank of Korea plans to increase its loans and debt payment guarantees for companies to a record

The government plans to aid 30,000 small- and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) by 2008, Prime Minister Han Myeong-sook announced at a New Year's ceremony for small- and medium-sized entrepreneurs