Most Popular
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Korea enters full election mode
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Seoul bus drivers go on general strike, cause morning rush hour delays
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Immigrant woman stabbed to death by Korean husband
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Official campaigning kicks off for April 10 elections
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Lee Jong-sup resigns as envoy to Australia
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Yellow dust engulfs S. Korea, advisory alert issued
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S. Korea to boost support for single-parent families
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Court upholds jail term for man who attempted to murder ex-girlfriend
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Kia EV9 wins world car of year
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Korea misses out on global bond index boost
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Mirae Asset Daewoo loses $5m in email scam
Korean brokerage firm Mirae Asset Daewoo said Friday that its Hong Kong branch has suffered a loss of $5 million in a recent email fraud scam. The firm’s Hong Kong branch concluded an underwriting agreement to take over airplanes from an aircraft leasing company last year and made another contract to sublease the aircrafts to a carrier in Asia. But it was targeted in a “spear-phishing” attack while paying the balance, the brokerage said. Spear-phishing is an email scam targe
March 27, 2020
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Seoul stocks open sharply higher tracking Wall Street gains
South Korean stocks opened sharply higher Friday, tracking overnight gains on Wall Street boosted by historic stimulus measures amid the novel coronavirus pandemic. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 62.47 points, or 3.7 percent, to 1,748.71 in the first 15 minutes of trading. US stocks rallied for a third straight day Thursday (local time) after the Senate passed a $2 trillion relief package to tackle the economic fallout from the COVID-19 crisis. The Dow Jones Industria
March 27, 2020
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Moody's reviews ratings of Hyundai Motor, Kia Motors for downgrade
Moody's Investors Service said Thursday that it has placed the ratings of Hyundai Motor and its affiliate Kia Motors on review for downgrade due to the coronavirus outbreak. The global credit rater said the two South Korean carmakers remain vulnerable to the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic and predicted demand for new vehicles will reduce meaningfully over the coming months, especially in the Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) and North American markets. "
March 26, 2020
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Financial watchdog warns Woori, Hana over board infractions
The Financial Supervisory Service on Thursday issued warnings to two major banking groups here -- Woori and Hana -- directing them to improve their overall transparency and corporate governance. The financial watchdog noted that Woori Financial Group’s board meeting minutes -- which serve as official legal records -- between January and September 2019 lacked transparency. The minutes were treated “as mere formalities” and contained few details such as the substance of
March 26, 2020
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[Weekender] How to raise W100m by 30: Millennial investment strategies
It’s not a fancy car or a Louis Vuitton bag that Joung Hye-dan, a 27-year-old former nurse in Seoul, is interested in. Once called a big spender by college friends, she transferred nearly 80 percent of her monthly income from her former job into 10 separate bank and investment accounts. She has now diversified her personal financial portfolio from regular deposits to peer-to-peer investing, profiting by 1.2 million won ($980) so far. “I started my nursing career
March 26, 2020
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KB Card to lease Apple products
Local credit card issuer KB Kookmin Card said Thursday it will launch a new leasing service of Apple devices -- from iPhones to iPads -- starting April. The company will purchase products on behalf of customers and charge them regular payments for an agreed upon period, according to the officials. The company has signed a contract with six Apple premium resellers to start the service. “In response to the latest consumer trend of using different smart devices rather th
March 26, 2020
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Seoul stocks down after strong 2-day rebound, Korean won falls
South Korean stocks finished lower Thursday after two straight days of robust gains, as investors cashed in part of recent gains. The Korean won lost ground against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) shed 18.52 points, or 1.09 percent, to close at 1,686.24, ending its two-day winning streak. The index spiked nearly 14.5 percent over the last two days on stimulus hopes. Trading volume was high at 982 million shares worth 12.2 trillion won ($9.9 billi
March 26, 2020
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Shinhan Financial chief reappointed despite recruiting scandal
Shinhan Financial Group Chairman Cho Yong-byoung on Thursday was reappointed for another three years, despite disapproval of the largest shareholder and an ongoing legal dispute. The appointment was approved at the group’s annual shareholders meeting in Seoul which was livestreamed on the its website due to the COVID-19 spread. Cho will retain his position until March 2023, with no apparent signs of dissent from the attending shareholders. “I will make the best efforts to mini
March 26, 2020
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BOK to supply dollars next week under swap deal
The Bank of Korea said Wednesday that it will release its first batch of US dollar reserves in the financial market next week in accordance with a currency swap deal with the US Federal Reserve. “Negotiations on the swap contract are still underway and we plan to start supplying US dollars next week,” BOK Deputy Gov. Ryoo Sang-dai told reporters. The US dollars will be made available in different installments, but the exact amount has yet to be confirmed, he said. Earlier,
March 25, 2020
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NPS contemplates stance on fate of Hanjin KAL chairman
South Korea’s state pension fund said Wednesday that it will take a final stance Thursday on the family feud centering on management control of Hanjin KAL, holding company of Hanjin Group which runs Korean Air. A trust management committee under the state-run National Pension Service, which holds 2.9 percent stake in Hanjin KAL, will decide on its vote on the reappointment of Cho Won-tae, chairman of Hanjin Group, at a shareholders meeting scheduled Friday. It is widely expected that
March 25, 2020
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Woori Financial chief seals 2nd term despite opposition
Woori Financial Group Chairman Sohn Tae-seung was reappointed for three more years by shareholders Wednesday, despite disciplinary measures imposed by South Korean financial authorities. At the group’s annual shareholders meeting, Sohn’s appointment was approved by 50 percent stakeholders -- including private equity fund IMM Private Equity, Fubon Life Insurance, Kiwoom Securities and the Korea Deposit Insurance Corp. The KDIC is the largest shareholder, with a 17.25 percent stak
March 25, 2020
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[Market Close-up] Battered brokerages to get breather after risky assets tank
South Korea’s brokerage houses suffering from recent losses on risky structured products that placed bets on foreign stock indexes are expected to get some relief after the government allocated a larger-than-expected slice of its stimulus package to the sector. Reporting on the results of a meeting presided by Moon Jae-in on Tuesday, the Financial Services Commission said authorities would inject 5 trillion won ($4.1 billion) to help securities firms deal with the stress, as part o
March 25, 2020
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Net profit of Korean banks' overseas branches edges up in 2019
Overseas branches of South Korean banks saw their combined net profit edge up 0.4 percent on-year to $988 million in 2019, data showed Wednesday. The figure accounted for 7.9 percent of the combined net profit of banks operating in South Korea last year, according to the data by the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). The combined interest income at 195 overseas branches gained 9.4 percent on-year to $2.06 billion, the data showed. Their average non-performing loan ratio stood at 0.63 percen
March 25, 2020
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BOK to begin supplying dollars under US currency swap deal next week: official
South Korea is seeking to begin supplying US dollars under its bilateral currency swap arrangement with the United States next week, a Bank of Korea (BOK) official said Wednesday, a move that is widely expected to help ease dollar shortage caused by the new coronavirus pandemic. Negotiations are underway to finalize the currency swap deal, BOK Dep. Gov. Ryoo Sang-dai told reporters. "There are many issues that need to be discussed, but (the talks) are moving forward without any major diff
March 25, 2020
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Major banks seen to shoulder bulk of bond fund
Five major banks in South Korea are expected to contribute to nearly two-thirds of an envisioned bond market stabilization fund, sources said Wednesday. Seoul unveiled an emergency financial aid package Tuesday, which calls for a 10 trillion-won bond market stabilization fund in early April to help coronavirus-wracked businesses raise money. Several dozens of local financial companies will contribute an additional 10 trillion won to the fund later. More than 20 major financial firms will also
March 25, 2020
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Seoul stocks open sharply higher tracking Wall Street gains
South Korean stocks opened sharply higher Wednesday tracking a record rally on Wall Street as investors bet on stimulus measures around the globe amid the new coronavirus pandemic. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index had risen 64.16 points, or 3.99 percent, to 1,674.13 as of 9:15 a.m. The Dow Jones Industrial Average on Tuesday skyrocketed 11.4 percent to close at 20,704.91, its biggest one-day gain since 1933, after US lawmakers said they are close to passing a $2.5 trillion stim
March 25, 2020
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Forex pressure looms over Korea's outbound investments
Facing a weakening local currency amid the escalating novel coronavirus crisis, companies are hedging their cross-border investment plans, including mergers and acquisitions, filings showed Tuesday. The deals denominated in foreign currency are facing increasing exchange rate pressure. as some of the investment decisions were made before the coronavirus outbreak. Over the past three weeks, South Korea’s local currency has weakened 4.6 percent against the greenback and fell 2.4 percent a
March 24, 2020
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Seoul stocks rebound amid US Fed, Korean financial market easing plans
South Korean stocks rebounded sharply Tuesday, as investors were buoyed by the US Federal Reserve’s overnight announcement of unlimited bond-buying and the government’s bold emergency financial aid package to tackle the economic slowdown due to novel coronavirus spread. The benchmark Kospi soared 127.51 points, or 8.6 percent, from the previous session, to close at 1,609.97. The market began strong at 1,523.69 and continued to move upward through the day, marking the biggest incr
March 24, 2020
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Business loans soar in March amid looming coronavirus recession
As the COVID-19 pandemic is expected to cause an economic contraction worldwide, South Korean conglomerates, the main locomotives of the nation’s economy, are increasingly borrowing money from banks in a bid to improve liquidity, according to data Tuesday. The loan balance of Korean conglomerates at five banks -- KB Kookmin Bank, Shinhan Bank, Woori Bank, Hana Bank and NH Bank -- came in at 78.7 trillion won ($62.9 billion) as of Friday, up 1.78 trillion won from late February. T
March 24, 2020
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Real estate trust firms' 2019 net down 5.5%
Real estate trust firms in South Korea saw their combined profit fall 5.5 percent in 2019 from a year earlier due to increased operating costs, data showed Tuesday. The combined net profit of 14 real estate trusts stood at 480 billion won ($379 million) in 2019, compared with 507.9 billion won in 2018, according to the data released by the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). Real estate investment trusts are a type of security that invests in real estate to be traded on major exchanges and p
March 24, 2020