NEWS BRIEF

[Anchor Lead]

The National Tax Service says all residents and businesses in South Korea must report to tax offices by June 30 if they held the balance of over 500 million won in their offshore financial accounts at the end of any month last year. This rule applies to all types of overseas financial deposits from cash to stocks and bonds as well as insurances and derivatives. Those failing to report or underreporting overseas financial holdings will be slapped with fines.
The Ministry of Economy and Finance says ministries have requested a total of some 593 trillion won in the budget for next year. It is up 6.3 percent from this year. The finance ministry said the budget increase is most evident in the fields of environment, welfare, R&D and energy, as the government is pushing forward with the New Deal economic drive and programs to alleviate social polarization.
The Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative says North Korea has bought two oil tankers despite sanctions against it. According to the agency' recent report, the North purchased the oil tankers--the Sinpyeong 5 and Gwangcheon 5--in China last year and they were previously owned by a South Korean company. The Gwangcheon 5, in particular, is known to have transported refined oil to North Korea's Nampo port ten times since it was sold to Pyongyang.