Most Popular
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Blinken calls on China to press N. Korea to end its 'dangerous' behavior
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S. Korea, Japan could consider simplified entry agreement: Seoul official
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New celebrity-endorsed therapy for face contouring requires only a pair of rubber bands
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[Weekender] How DDP emerged as an icon of Seoul
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Doctor group's incoming head renews call for govt. to scrap medical school quota hike for dialogue
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Tensions heighten ahead of first president-opposition chief meeting
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'The Roundup: Punishment' becomes fastest 2024 film to top 2 mln admissions
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[Music in drama] An ode to childhood trauma
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New head of doctors' association vows war in case of disadvantage to medical professors
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Seoul to provide housing subsidy to married couples with newborns
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Kakao Bank's mid-rate lending total surpasses W2tr
Kakao Bank, South Korea’s leading internet-only bank and an affiliate of mobile platform operator Kakao, has supplied more than 2 trillion won ($1.7 billion) in accumulated mid-range interest rate loans, officials said Sunday. The company has also already achieved its annual target of 1 trillion won and has vowed to sustain its mid-rate lending throughout the rest of the year in a gesture to provide liquidity to people with weak credit ratings. Kakao Bank’s mid-range lending so far
Oct. 11, 2020
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Fund scam to take center stage in Assembly's financial audit
Tension is escalating at financial institutions as the National Assembly begins two weeks of auditing on financial bodies, focusing on a private equity fund scam and the government’s “Korean New Deal” program. This year, the inspected organizations are especially weighed down by advance paperwork, as only a limited number of people are allowed in the audit hall, as par of anti-coronavirus social distancing rules. The National Policy Committee of the National Assembly will
Oct. 11, 2020
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Tencent-backed Maoyan divests W22b YG Entertainment stake
Tencent-backed online movie ticket booking platform Maoyan Entertainment has unloaded its stake in YG Entertainment worth a combined 22.1 billion won ($19.2 million) since August, disclosures showed Sunday. The selloff reduced the Chinese company’s control over South Korea‘s major entertainment powerhouse -- home to K-pop groups Big Bang, Blackpink and the newly-debuted Treasure -- to 5.78 percent, from the previous 8.09 percent. In September alone, Maoyan divested a combine
Oct. 11, 2020
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No. of fitness centers soar in 10 years: data
The number of fitness centers in South Korea has soared in recent years, reflecting the rising demand for fitness and leisure activities in the midst of the work-life balance culture triggered by the government’s 52-hour workweek cap, an industry report showed Sunday. According to KB Financial Group’s report on self-employed workers here, nearly 9,900 fitness centers are in operation nationwide as of July, increasing 53 percent during the last 10 years. Of them, 1,109 opened last
Oct. 11, 2020
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Corporate retirement pension funds’ poor returns draw flak
Corporate retirement pension funds managed by South Korea’s major commercial banks posted poor returns in the first half of the year, data showed Thursday. Low yields have also drawn criticism from a lawmaker here, who called for swift adoption of improvement measures in operating such funds. Retirement pension funds managed by top commercial lenders saw their yield rates hover at 1.69 percent on average, according to the state regulator Financial Supervisory Service’s data acqui
Oct. 9, 2020
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Race for leadership heats up in local credit card market
Runners-up in the local credit card sector increased their market shares in the April-June period, upping the ante against South Korea’s largest card issuer, Shinhan Card, data showed Thursday. Overall sales from personal and corporate credit cards issued by the nation’s seven leading credit card companies, including Samsung Card, KB Kookmin Card and Hyundai Card, came in at 140.3 trillion won ($121.2 billion) in the second half, according to the state regulator, the Financial Supe
Oct. 9, 2020
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Finance minister considers easing ‘large shareholder’ standards
Amid fierce backlash from retail investors on the Korean government’s major shareholder standards, the Finance Ministry is currently mulling to alter its plan to define retail investors with shares worth 300 million won ($260,000) as large shareholders. “The financial authority is considering to charge stock transfer taxes based on the value of stocks held by each individual, not on the aggregated holdings of households,” said Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Hong Na
Oct. 8, 2020
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Seoul stocks up for 7th day on US stimulus hopes
South Korean stocks extended their winning streak to seven straight sessions Thursday, thanks to the massive foreign buying that stemmed from US stimulus hopes. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 5.02 points, or 0.21 percent, to close at 2,391.96. Trading volume was moderate at about 939 million shares worth some 12.2 trillion won ($10.6 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 510 to 300. Foreigners bought a net 756 billi
Oct. 8, 2020
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IFC hosts online workshop to discuss APAC infrastructure opportunities
International Finance Corp., a global development institution, said on Wednesday it hosted a virtual workshop targeting Korean infrastructure developers and investors to allow them to identify new opportunities post-COVID-19. IFC officials discussed the upsides and challenges of public-private partnership projects in Southeast and Central Asia and highlighted the role of IFC to turn the PPP projects into more bankable ones, according to IFC. Speakers also focused on environmental and social ri
Oct. 8, 2020
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Seoul stocks open higher on Wall Street rallies
South Korean stocks opened higher Thursday, taking a cue from U.S. stock rallies over stimulus hopes. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) gained 12.88 points, or 0.54 percent, to 2,399.82 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Local stocks got off to a strong start, bolstered by optimistic signals by US House speaker Nancy Pelosi over an airline-relief bill in talks with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin. Investor appetite for risk also hiked on the back of the Federal Open
Oct. 8, 2020
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Former Lime Asset executive gets 5-year prison term in fund scam case
A former executive of Lime Asset Management, a scandal-ridden hedge fund based in Seoul, was sentenced to five years in prison by a local court on Wednesday for illegally investing about 20 billion won ($17.3 million). The Seoul Southern District Court convicted the former Lime executive, surnamed Kim, who served as head of the fund's alternative investment division, of breach of trust and other crimes and handed down the five-year prison term and a fine of 3.5 billion won. Kim was arrested in
Oct. 7, 2020
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KB Securities, NCSoft, December & Co. join hands for AI-based securities services
Brokerage firm KB Securities and gaming company NCSoft have recently joined forces with December & Company, an asset management company offering customized services, to provide stock trading services using artificial intelligence technology, according to the companies on Wednesday. Under the partnership, KB and NCSoft will invest 30 billion won ($25.9 million) each to December for development of an AI-powered stock trading platform. December will use its asset management platform Fint, an
Oct. 7, 2020
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CEOs of 3 brokerage firms informed of disciplinary action over Lime fiasco
South Korea’s financial watchdog has informed top executives at three securities firms of its plan to impose disciplinary action over the misselling scandal involving Lime Asset Management, according to Financial Supervisory Service officials and industry sources Wednesday. The FSS gave prior notice to Shinhan Investment, KB Securities and Daishin Securities on Tuesday that they will be reprimanded for misleading consumers by providing them with inaccurate information about Lime’s
Oct. 7, 2020
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Seoul stocks extend winning streak to 6th day on lingering US stimulus hopes
South Korean shares extended their winning streak to a sixth session Wednesday as US President Donald Trump kept hopes for a stimulus package alive after postponing negotiations for the deal. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 21.04 points, or 0.89 percent, to close at 2,386.94. Trading volume was moderate at 722.8 million shares worth 8.8 trillion won ($7.6 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 483 to 309. Retail inves
Oct. 7, 2020
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Citibank Korea set to name first female CEO
Yoo Myung-soon, interim chief executive officer of Citibank Korea, was recommended as the sole candidate for the bank‘s top post, paving the way for her to become the first female CEO of the local branch of the US lender. The appointment recommendation committee under the South Korean subsidiary of the New York-based bank is set to confirm the appointment of Yoo during a general meeting of stockholders and board of directors slated to be held on Oct. 27. Yoo, the bank‘s senior ex
Oct. 7, 2020
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KFCC holds exchange program online with Thai Savings and Credit Cooperatives
The Korean Federation of Community Credit Cooperatives, the nation’s leading mutual financial institution, held an annual exchange program with its counterpart in Thailand to introduce the group’s ongoing projects and management tips, officials said Wednesday. Arranged as one-day videoconference in line with the government’s strict quarantine measures against the COVID-19 resurgence, the training event provided a series of online lectures on KFCC‘s fund managemen
Oct. 7, 2020
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Seoul shares open lower on Wall Street losses
South Korean shares opened lower Wednesday, tracking overnight losses on Wall Street after US. President Donald Trump said he would postpone talks for a new stimulus plan until after the upcoming US elections. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 11.84 points, or 0.5 percent, to 2,354.06 in the first 15 minutes of trading. The main index tracked overnight losses on Wall Street. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 1.3 percent, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index
Oct. 7, 2020
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Top fried chicken franchise Kyochon to go public next month
Kyochon F&B, South Korea’s largest fried chicken franchise, will go public next month, aiming to secure up to 71.3 billion won ($61.4 million) of funding. According to the company’s securities report submitted to the Financial Services Commission on Monday, the fried chicken franchise will issue 5.8 million shares that are forecast to be priced at between 10,600 won and 12,300 won. Based on these share prices, the market capitalization of the company after the IPO is anticipated
Oct. 6, 2020
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Seoul stocks extend winning streak to 5th day on hopes of US stimulus
South Korean shares closed higher to extend their winning streak to a fifth session Tuesday, as investor sentiment was buoyed on hopes for new economic stimulus in the United States. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 7.90 points, or 0.34 percent, to close at 2,365.90. Trading volume was moderate at 847 million shares worth 10.8 trillion won ($9.3 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 426 to 400. Foreigners scooped up a
Oct. 6, 2020
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W58.4tr flows into BTS agency’s stock preorders
Big Hit Entertainment, the agency behind K-pop sensation BTS, closed a two-day retail subscription Tuesday for its long-awaited initial public offering. Retail investors had submitted some 58.42 trillion won ($50.26 billion) in deposits for stock preorders. Despite anticipation by market watchers who thought the K-pop agency would set a record for subscription deposits, the accumulated amount was a little less than the figure seen during the public subscription of Kakao Games -- some 55.55 tri
Oct. 6, 2020