South Korean Banks to Reduce Hiring of New Recruits

(MENAFN- Qatar News Agency) South Korean banks are expected to sharply reduce hiring of new employees this year due to falling profits amid the economic slowdown, data showed Sunday. Top lender Kookmin Bank and six other lenders are forecast to hire a combined 2,722 employees this year, down 27.6% from the previous year, a Yonhap report said Sunday, citing data provided by banks. In the second half, the number of recruits is expected to be fewer than 1,000, it showed. A cut in bank hiring comes as local banks are suffering from falling profitability because a long streak of low rates and the economic slowdown have squeezed their profit margins. The combined earnings of 18 local banks fell 48% on-year to 1.1 Trillion won (US$987 Million) in the second quarter, according to data by the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). Non-bank institutions such as brokerage houses are also not an exception in reducing the number of new employees, Yonhap added.