Seoul stocks snap 4-day winning streak on spiking virus cases

South Korean shares ended a four-session winning streak Thursday, as the daily new virus cases in the country spiked to a nearly six-month high. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) lost 24.87 points, or 1.05 percent, to close at 2,344.45. Trading volume was high at about 898 million shares worth some 14.9 trillion won ($12.6 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 725 to 152. Foreigners sold a net 24 billion won, ending a four

Aug. 27, 2020

KB Financial’s acquisition of Prudential Life approved

KB Financial Group said Thursday that it has received approval from the Financial Services Commission to acquire Prudential Life Insurance of Korea. In April, the Korean financial giant inked a deal with Prudential to buy a 100 percent stake in the insurance company for some 2.3 trillion won ($1.94 billion). It is scheduled to pay for the acquisition by Monday. When the deal closes, the insurance firm will become the financial group’s 13th subsidiary. The takeover of the nation&rsquo

Aug. 27, 2020

Amid virus resurgence, BOK slashes S. Korea growth forecast to minus 1.3%

South Korea’s economy is forecast to see a sharper-than-expected contraction of 1.3 percent this year under the coronavirus pandemic, the central bank said Thursday, fueling concerns that this year may see one of the worst negative growth figures in decades. In May the Bank of Korea slashed the growth forecast from the previous minus 0.2 percent. The May revision sent shock waves across the nation, as it was previously expecting a 2.1 percent expansion since February. BOK Gov. Lee Ju-y

Aug. 27, 2020

[Monitor] No. of newborns in Korea dips to record-low

In the first six months of this year, 142,663 babies were born in South Korea, marking the lowest since the Statistics Korea started compiling related data in 1981. The number of newborns in June dropped to 22,193, down by 7.5 percent from 23,992 in the same month of 2019. The nation’s fertility rate -- average number of children a woman bears in her lifetime -- came to 0.92 last year, down from 0.98 in 2019. Meanwhile, the number of people who died during the first quarter reached

Aug. 27, 2020

Macquarie IM Korea names new CEO

Macquarie Investment Management has named Bastiaan Jeroen van Buuren as its new chief executive to oversee its Korean operation, a filing showed Thursday. The change of leadership has been effective since Aug. 18. Van Buuren replaced Lee Kyung-soo, who served for 16 months at the top post. Joining the Australian asset management house in 2018, van Buuren was head of Asia Distribution based in Hong Kong. He joined Macquarie IM Korea’s board in June 2020. Macquarie IM acquired ING Inve

Aug. 27, 2020

Kakao, Naver shares continue to surge amid prolonged virus battle

Shares of South Korea’s top mobile messenger operator Kakao and leading portal operator Naver continued their bullish run on the local stock market Thursday, on investors’ profit-taking drive from “untact” -- contactless -- sectors amid the spike in COVID-19 pandemic cases. Kakao’s stock price began trading at 392,000 won ($330.38), then rose by 18,500 won, or 4.72 percent, to close at 410,500 won. It once soared up to 413,000 won in later trading hours, jumping ab

Aug. 27, 2020

Netflix under probe in Korea over potential tax avoidance

Netflix’s regional office in South Korea is being investigated for alleged tax avoidance, according to industry sources on Thursday. The National Tax Service made its first visit to the Netflix‘s office in Seoul and launched a probe on Wednesday. The NTS suspects the global streaming giant might have intentionally avoided paying tax by reporting fiscal deficits after sending large-sized management consultation fees to the company‘s US-based headquarters. Netflix’s o

Aug. 27, 2020

Shinhan BNP Paribas closes W690b private debt fund

Shinhan BNP Paribas Asset Management said Thursday it has raised a total of 690 billion won ($582 million) commitment to close its latest private debt fund, designed to offer nonbank loans to support mergers and acquisitions activities. Backers of the fund include its affiliates Shinhan Bank and Shinhan Life Insurance, under the umbrella of the nation’s largest Shinhan Financial Group. The Seoul-based asset management house’s new blind pool fund will extend loans to an acquirer by

Aug. 27, 2020

How fungal infection can be treated

Hardened heels, or plantar callus, can turn out to be a fungal infection known as athlete’s foot. Athlete’s foot in the heels is difficult to distinguish from callus, as it does not itch. To the eye, it may appear like any ordinary hardened heel. Dong-A Pharmaceutical said Thursday it released over-the-counter drug Terbinew Gel in time for summer, when such conditions tend to spike. Terbinew Gel is a percolative cream that forms a film on the applied skin surface. By creating thi

Aug. 27, 2020

Chong Kun Dang releases smaller Itun Q Plus

Not all that is big is good -- and this is especially true of tablets that have to be swallowed to deliver medicine. Chong Kun Dang’s newly launched Itun Q Plus is everything the original Itun Q was -- but it’s been enhanced through downsizing. Itun Q is an over-the-counter herbal medicine for periodontal discomfort that helps keep teeth sturdy and fights gum inflammation. Its active ingredient is titrated extract of the unsaponifiable fraction of corn. According to Chong Kun Da

Aug. 27, 2020

Real estate startups surge in H1 despite pandemic

New startups, particularly those in real estate, surged in the first half of this year despite the impact of the pandemic, data showed Thursday. According to the data released by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, the number of new startups in the January-June period was 809,599, up 26 percent from the same period last year. The surge was attributed to new real estate businesses, which stood at 292,810 during the period, up 131.6 percent year-on-year. The real estate sector accounted for 36.

Aug. 27, 2020

BOK again trims growth outlook, stands pat amid growing

South Korea's central bank on Thursday again sharply lowered its growth outlook for the economy this year and froze its policy rate at a record low as uncertainties stemming from spiking virus cases heightened. The Bank of Korea (BOK) forecast a 1.3 percent contraction for Asia's fourth-largest economy in 2020 amid the deepening virus fallout, sharper than its estimate in May of a 0.2 percent retreat. "The recovery of domestic economic growth is likely to be slower than previously foreca

Aug. 27, 2020

[Monitor] Employment rate drops nationwide

The employment rate in South Korea dropped in the first half of this year, due to the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic, according to Statistics Korea’s data Wednesday. The employment rate for cities went down by 2 percent at 58.3 percent, compared to last year, according to the data. The employment rate for counties also decreased by 0.9 percentage point to 65.9 percent. The jobless rate in Osan, Gyeonggi Province, and Gumi in North Gyeongsang Province reached 5.4 percen

Aug. 27, 2020

Seoul stocks open higher on Wall Street gains

South Korean shares opened higher Thursday due to an overnight tech rally on Wall Street, despite concerns over the rising new COVID-19 cases in the country. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 32.36 points, or 1.42 percent, to 2,306.58 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Stocks traded choppy as a recent spike in South Korea's daily new COVID-19 cases sparked concerns of a lockdown. The Nasdaq Composite jumped 1.73 percent to close at 11,665.06 points on Wednesday (

Aug. 27, 2020

S. Korea to draw up new measures to support low-income

SEJONG -- South Korea will draw up additional measures to support low-income people who are hit by a recent resurgence of the new coronavirus, Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said Thursday. Hong made the remarks at a meeting with economy-related ministers amid growing worries that the resurgence could weaken the economy's recovery momentum. With the infections recently sharply growing, the government "will actively push for additional measures to cope with damages" for low-income and

Aug. 27, 2020

Netflix office in Seoul investigated for suspected tax avoidance

The South Korean office of the global streaming giant Netflix is under investigation for possible tax avoidance, industry sources said Wednesday. The sources said the National Tax Service (NTS) sent officials to Netflix Services Korea's headquarters in Seoul earlier in the day to launch their probe. According to the sources, the NTS suspects Netflix Services Korea paid its US headquarters a large sum of phantom management consulting fees, so that the Seoul office would report a deficit and av

Aug. 26, 2020

Hyundai Mobis expands EV parts plant in S. Korea

Hyundai Mobis Co., South Korea's biggest auto parts maker, said Wednesday it will invest 36 billion won ($30 million) in expanding its output capacity of electric vehicle components. Hyundai Mobis has already invested more than 300 billion won in EV parts plants in the central city of Chungju -- where it mainly produces core parts for Hyundai Motor Co.'s hydrogen fuel-cell electric vehicles -- and the southeastern industrial city of Ulsan, home to the main plants of its captive buyer Hyundai M

Aug. 26, 2020

Creditor, HDC discuss 'all possible options' over stalled Asiana deal

The main creditor bank of Asiana Airlines Inc., said Wednesday it has discussed with HDC Hyundai Development Co. all possible options to wrap up the acquisition of the carrier by the builder. Lee Dong-gull, chairman of the state-run Korea Development Bank (KDB), and HDC Chairman Chung Mong-gyu met for a third time to find ways to push forward the stalled deal amid the coronavirus outbreak. "In today's meeting, the KDB and HDC discussed all possible options involving acquisition terms wit

Aug. 26, 2020

KDB says ball in HDC’s court after chiefs’ talks on Asiana deal

The Korea Development Bank, Asiana Airlines’ main creditor, said it will await HDC Hyundai Development Company’s answer on acquiring the airline after a fresh round of talks between their chiefs in Seoul on Wednesday. In a statement, KDB said the high-profile discussion between KDB Chairman Lee Jong-gull and HDC Chairman Chung Mong-gyu took place with “all options on the table.” It said further plans will be decided in consultation with Kumho, the airline’s majo

Aug. 26, 2020

KB Kookmin expands presence in Indonesia with acquisition of local lender

South Korea’s largest commercial lender KB Kookmin Bank said Wednesday it is now in the final stage of acquiring Indonesia-based Bank Bukopin. The Seoul-headquartered bank said its shareholders have approved its purchase of 33.1 percent of new shares in Bank Bukopin. The latest deal came after the Korean bank bought a 22 percent stake in the Indonesian firm in 2018 and an additional 11.9 percent in July. KB Kookmin said it has paid a combined 400 billion won ($337.1 million) over the pas

Aug. 26, 2020