Most Popular
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[Exclusive] Korean military set to ban iPhones over 'security' concerns
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Korean, Romanian leaders discuss defense tech, nuclear energy
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[Graphic News] 77% of young Koreans still financially dependent
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S. Korea calls on Japan to confront history amid Yasukuni Shrine visit
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Yoon’s jailed mother-in-law excluded from latest parole list
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Hybe and Min Hee-jin, CEO of Hybe sublabel Ador, lock horns
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[Pressure points] Leggings in public: Fashion statement or social faux pas?
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Yoo Jae-suk, Yoo Yeon-seok team up in 'Whenever Possible'
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Korea’s homegrown nanosatellite successfully launches into space
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Aging population to drive down Korea's housing prices from 2040: experts
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[Weekender] ‘Revenge shopping’ on rise as alternative to summer vacay
For Kim Su-yeon, a 40-year-old office worker, standing in line for a Louis Vuitton bag has become a way to beat the heat -- instead of traveling overseas for some relaxation and summer fun. “All my travel plans came to naught due to the coronavirus spread, so I decided to pour my savings into Louis Vuitton bags,” said Kim, who joined the lines stretched along the street leading to the main branch of Shinsegae Department Store in Sogong-dong, central Seoul, Tuesday. Her ques
July 16, 2020
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KOFIA vows to restore trust amid snowballing hedge fund fiasco
The chief of an association representing 440 brokerages and asset management firms in South Korea apologized Thursday for a series of hedge fund fiascos and vowed to strengthen voluntary monitoring of the market. “We will concentrate on our capability to rebuild trust and carry out sustainable innovative tasks,” said Korea Financial Investment Association Chairman Na Jae-chul. “We think now is the time for the market players to open their eyes. To help them make a new leap f
July 16, 2020
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FSC convenes working group to nurture AI-based finance
South Korea’s financial regulator on Thursday held a joint working group meeting to discuss measures to nurture financial services based on artificial intelligence technologies, in preparation for new waves of digital transformation in the sector. Hosted by the Financial Services Commission, the meeting was attended by traditional local lenders, fintech firms and leading AI programming companies. Its main agenda was to seek ways to improve the current regulations that hampe
July 16, 2020
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Kakao Pay vows to expand e-bills service
Electronic payment service provider Kakao Pay said Thursday it aims to expand its service to enable bills to be created, delivered and paid online to spearhead Korea’s aim to transform into a paperless society. Capitalizing on the group’s popular mobile messenger platform KakaoTalk, Kakao Pay is likely to dominate the e-bills market by inviting more e-bill distributors to its platform, Lee Seung-hyo, chief product officer of Kakao Pay, said in a seminar held in Seoul. “At th
July 16, 2020
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Seoul stocks open flat on recovery hopes, Sino-American risks
South Korean stocks opened nearly flat Thursday amid rising Sino-American tensions and recovery hopes of the pandemic-hit global economy. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 2.13 points, or 0.1 percent, to 2,199.75 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Investors walked a tight rope between signs of a global economic recovery and the rising political friction between the world's two largest economies. US industrial production in June jumped 5.4 percent from a month a
July 16, 2020
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Seoul stocks exceed 2,200-level for first time in five months on COVID-19 vaccine hopes
The South Korean benchmark stock index finished above the 2,200-level for the first time in nearly five months on Wednesday, largely on hopes for a coronavirus vaccine and economic recovery. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 18.27 points, or 0.84 percent, to close at 2,201.88. The index surpassed 2,200 for the first time since 2,210.34 on Feb. 19. Trading volume was high at about 811 million shares worth some 13.4 trillion won ($11.
July 15, 2020
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Eximbank signs $100m sublease contract with African bank to boost bilateral trade, investment
Responding to growing trade and investment volume between South Korea and Africa, the state-run Export-Import Bank of Korea has signed a sublease contract worth $100 million with the Eastern and Southern African Trade and Development Bank via a videoconference, officials said Wednesday. Launched in 1985, the TDB, a multilateral, treaty-based development financial institution, is aimed at financing local businesses as well as trade activities in the African regions. It has 22 member coun
July 15, 2020
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IBK to launch new online ‘untact’ mortgage product
The state-run Industrial Bank of Korea said Wednesday it plans to launch a new mobile untact -- non face-to-face contact -- mortgage product for customers. The product, designed to support self-employed or small business owners, will be extended through IBK’s mobile banking app I-One Bank. Users will be required to submit only basic personal information, instead of actual paper documents. The time tied to the process of receiving the mortgage will be shortened, as borrowers will b
July 15, 2020
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Mastern to invite W110b for French office acquisition through REIT IPO
Seoul-based property investment house Mastern Investment Management said Wednesday it plans to invite 110 billion won ($91.6 million) in South Korean retail money through its new real estate investment trust to take over part of equities in an office building in the suburb of Paris. Mastern plans to list the REIT’s 22 million shares, each priced at 5,000 won, on Korea’s main bourse Kospi in August. The listing schedule will be determined after an initial public offering that is set
July 15, 2020
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S. Korea ranks 30th in global real estate transparency: JLL
The South Korean real estate market ranked 30th in terms of transparency, a survey showed Wednesday. According to Jones Lang LaSalle Korea, the country climbed one notch in its Global Real Estate Transparency Index, a benchmark of real estate market transparency that covers 99 countries. The index studies 210 indicators, including the level of sustainable management, resilience to economic crisis and technological advances of respective countries. Officials of the global real estate se
July 15, 2020
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ELS issuance in S. Korea tanks in H1 amid pandemic
Sales of equity-linked securities in South Korea tumbled in the first half of the year as the coronavirus pandemic weighed on major stock markets, data showed Wednesday. The value of ELS issues came to 31.6 trillion won ($26.3 billion) in the January-June period, down 39.6 percent from six months earlier, according to the data from the Korea Securities Depository. The figure was also down 33.8 percent from the 47.7 billion won floated during the same period a year earlier. ELS refers to hyb
July 15, 2020
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S. Korea's money supply gains at record pace in May
South Korea's money supply grew by a record amount in May on increased loans to households and firms amid the coronavirus pandemic, central bank data showed Wednesday. The country's M2 stood at 3,053.9 trillion won ($2.55 trillion) as of the end of May, according to preliminary data by the Bank of Korea (BOK). The amount represents an increase of 1.2 percent, or 35.4 trillion won, from April, which is the biggest on-month gain since data tracking began in December 2001. From a year earlier,
July 15, 2020
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Seoul stocks open higher on positive vaccine data
South Korean stocks opened higher Wednesday, buoyed by progress toward a new coronavirus vaccine. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) jumped 32.14 points, or 1.47 percent, to 2,215.75 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Investor sentiment improved following new reports that the COVID-19 vaccine developed by Moderna Inc. showed progress. The US biopharmaceutical firm's vaccine produced antibodies in all patients during an initial safety trial, according to the reports. T
July 15, 2020
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Seoul stocks down on virus fears despite stimulus plan
South Korean stocks closed marginally lower Tuesday amid concerns over a global resurgence in new coronavirus outbreaks, despite a massive stimulus package and rising demand in China. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) lost 2.45 points, or 0.11 percent, to close at 2,183.61. Trading volume was high at about 800 million shares worth some 11.4 trillion won ($9.5 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 477 to 356. Foreigners sold
July 14, 2020
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NH-Amundi names new deputy CEO
Seoul-based joint venture NH-Amundi Asset Management said Tuesday that it named Nicolas Simon as the deputy chief executive officer of the France-based asset management house’s South Korean arm on Monday. Simon is formerly a deputy CEO of State Bank of India Funds Management, a joint venture of State Bank of India and Amundi to lead Amundi’s Indian operation. He served the term for five years until March. The start date has yet to be determined, according to NH-Amundi. Simon wi
July 14, 2020
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JR AMC to list first cross-border REIT on Kospi
South Korean firm JR Asset Management said Tuesday it is eyeing its first cross-border real estate investment trust to list on the nation’s main bourse Kospi in early August. JR Global REIT is designed to invest in Belgium’s second-tallest skyscraper Finance Tower Complex. Located in Brussel’s central business district, the 36-story building was valued at 1.44 billion euros ($1.29 billion) as of June 21, JR AMC President and CEO Kim Kwan-young said in a press briefing. &ldq
July 14, 2020
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Credit card spending drops amid pandemic
Payments made with cards here began to drop shortly after the country confirmed the new coronavirus outbreak in late January, central bank data showed Tuesday, in what could be another data backing reduced spending amid the pandemic. Between February and May, the overall amount of payments made with cards dropped 2.1 percent from the same period last year, according to the data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). South Korea reported its first COVID-19 infection case on Jan. 20. Credit card spendi
July 14, 2020
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Seoul stocks open lower on Wall Street losses
South Korean stocks opened lower Tuesday, following overnight losses on Wall Street amid the growing toll of the coronavirus pandemic around the world. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 7.85 points, or 0.36 percent, to 2,178.21 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Major US stock indices ended weaker on Monday (New York time), with the confirmed COVID-19 toll topping 13 million globally. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 2.13 percent to 10,390.84, snapping a three-session winni
July 14, 2020
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K bank resumes consumer loan service
South Korea’s oldest online-only lender K bank said Monday it has resumed its consumer loan business through its mobile apps. The new loan products will be offered either in the form of personal loans for consumers with mid- to high-credit scores or overdrafts. The annual interest rate for borrowers will be 2.08 percent at its lowest. Borrowers’ credit-worthiness will be assessed under K bank’s own credit scoring system that applies machine-learning techniques and big data
July 13, 2020
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IMM pauses acquisition of Kolmar CMO units
IMM Private Equity’s plan to acquire Kolmar Korea’s contract-based pharmaceutical business assets for 512.52 billion won ($427.24 million) has been postponed indefinitely, filings showed Monday. In a renewed disclosure, the prearranged deadline for IMM’s all-cash deal to buy the assets owned by Kolmar Korea Holdings’ stake by July 31 was scrapped on Friday, without setting a fresh due date. This comes two months after Korea’s third-largest private equity fund ink
July 13, 2020