▲ AI PRISM* Personalized Economic Briefing
* Editor's note: AI PRISM (Personalized Report & Insight Summarizing Media) is an artificial intelligence-based personalized news recommendation and summary service developed with support from the Korea Press Foundation. It selects and delivers six news items tailored to each reader type.
[Key Issue Briefing]
■ 6.67 Million Homemakers: Push to Close Pension Coverage Gap: A plan is being pursued to bring married people without income into the National Pension as regional subscribers in payment-exempt status. The move seeks to overhaul, after 38 years, a structure designed in 1988 on the assumption of single-income households.
■ Seoul Studio Rents Hit Young Tenants Directly: The average monthly rent for studio units in Seoul's low-rise multi-unit housing rose to 710,000 won in September, up 5.2% from the previous month, adding to housing cost burdens for young adults. Over the same period, the average jeonse (a Korean lease system requiring a large lump-sum deposit instead of monthly rent) deposit fell 1.1% to 219.91 million won, intensifying pressure to shift from jeonse to monthly rent.
■ Crypto Taxation: Deferral Debate Reignites: The ruling and opposition parties and the government are shifting toward a further deferral of cryptocurrency taxation, which is scheduled to take effect next January. Ahead of a tax subcommittee review, multiple tax code revision issues have surfaced at once, including a production tax credit for electric vehicles, adjustments to income tax brackets and an expanded inheritance deduction for spouses.
[News of Interest to New Employees]
1. Homemakers to Gain Access to the National Pension
Key points: An overhaul of the subscription structure is being pursued to bring 6.67 million people, including spouses without income, into the National Pension as regional subscribers in payment-exempt status. The current system was designed in 1988 on the assumption of single-income households, pushing married people who lost their income after marriage outside the institutional framework. Women received an average monthly old-age pension of 429,206 won, roughly half the 851,670 won received by men, and their average contribution period was 123 months, 29 months shorter than the 152 months for men. Kim Sung-joo, chairman of the National Pension Service, said, "We can become a country that genuinely guarantees retirement income only by bringing spouses without income into the system."
2. Seoul Studio Rents Pass 710,000 Won
Key points: An analysis of Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport actual transaction prices by real estate information platform Dabang found that the average monthly rent for studio units in Seoul's low-rise multi-unit housing jumped 35,000 won, or 5.2%, from the previous month to 710,000 won in September. Over the same period, the average jeonse deposit fell 2.37 million won, or 1.1%, to 219.91 million won, intensifying pressure to shift from jeonse to monthly rent. The average monthly rent in Gangnam District was 970,000 won, or 138% of the Seoul average, up 10.8% from the previous month, while Gwanak District surged 30.0% in a single month as newly built studio transactions entered the market. Monthly rent movements diverged sharply by district depending on whether transactions in new complexes came into the mix.
3. Crypto Tax Effectively Deferred: Round 2 of Tax Code Revisions Begins
Key points: The government and the ruling and opposition parties have entered a period of reconsideration over cryptocurrency taxation scheduled to take effect next January. Kim Min-seok, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, proposed to Deputy Prime Minister Lee Hyoung-il that they "conduct a final review and reach a conclusion," and Lee reiterated at the parliamentary audit that he would "listen broadly to the views of the National Assembly, the industry and experts." After an electric vehicle production tax credit bill jointly introduced by 19 lawmakers from both parties came to the negotiating table, adjustments to income tax brackets and rates and an expanded inheritance deduction for spouses also emerged as points of contention. Kim Woo-chul, a professor of taxation at the University of Seoul, stressed that "predictability in tax policy must be secured through sufficient review and social consensus."
[Reference News for New Employees]
4. "No More Nicolas Paying the Bills": The Anger of France's Young Adults
Key points: Behind the spread of French protests nationwide, which began with demands to improve the education environment, lies the accumulated anger of the younger generation over the pension system. France's fiscal deficit exceeds 5% of GDP and national debt approaches 120% of GDP, while companies are cutting hiring of young workers, citing the burden of pension contributions. The government pushed a reform plan in 2023 to raise the statutory retirement age from 62 to 64 but failed to secure a parliamentary majority and deferred it until 2028. On social media, memes satirizing "Nicolas, the thirty-something office worker," who dutifully pays taxes and insurance premiums yet is sacrificed in favor of foreigners and the retired generation, are spreading.
5. KOSPI Plunges 3.52%, Reduced to a "Playground for Foreigners"
Key points: The KOSPI plunged 201.89 points, or 3.52%, on the 22nd from the previous session to close at 5,533.77, its lowest level in six months since April 7. Meta's large-scale capital spending reignited concerns over the profitability of AI infrastructure, and the Bank of Korea's decision to hold its base rate at 3.00% while signaling a further increase weighed on investor sentiment. Cumulative net selling by foreign investors in October reached 17.403 trillion won, and investor deposits, the cash on the sidelines of the stock market, fell to 89.6343 trillion won, the lowest in nine months. Hanwha Investment & Securities put its projected KOSPI range for next year at 6,000 to 9,300, recommending buying below the 6,000 level.
6. Beyond Manufacturing to Care and Cleaning: Humanoids Gather in Daegu
Key points: At the Daegu International Robot Industry Show (ROBEX) held at EXCO in Daegu, 65 companies from Korea and abroad are taking part across 220 booths, presenting the latest direction of the robot industry centered on physical AI and industrial humanoids. HD Hyundai Robotics unveiled for the first time an intelligent dual-arm robot based on physical AI, with each arm capable of lifting up to 7 kilograms, while Doosan Robotics exhibited Scan&Go, an autonomous mobile robot combined with 3D vision technology. Aerobot's bipedal humanoid "Alice5" is drawing attention for its design enabling flexible task performance in varied environments, including stairs and confined spaces. As robot technology rapidly expands beyond manufacturing sites into care, safety and daily-life services, the pace of change in industrial structure is accelerating.
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