Most Popular
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10-man S. Korea lose to Indonesia to miss out on Paris Olympic football qualification
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Hybe-Ador feud should have limited effect on Hybe's overall performance: analysts
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Second Gimpo civil servant found dead, after apologizing for not finishing work
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DP leader says he will meet Yoon without conditions
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First-ever meeting of president, opposition chief set to finally happen
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NewJeans' singles, Japanese debut to proceed as planned, despite Hybe-Ador feud
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Experts raise concerns about Japan putting pressure on Naver over Line
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Samsung mobile chief, Google device head meet in Seoul
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Ship linked to NK arms shipments to Russia is moored in China: State Dept.
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[Kim So-hyun] The quiet taxi driver from Paris
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Local private equity firm to acquire fledgling hybrid air carrier
An investor group led by a domestic private equity firm JC Partners is looking to take over the South Korean fledgling hybrid airline Air Premia, industry sources said Wednesday. The consortium composed of JC Partners, founded by former head of Orix Private Equity Korea Lee Jong-chul, and Hong Kong-based Korchina is said to close the buyout deal by acquiring at least 65 percent of Air Premia voting rights before the first half of 2021. Their combined price is expected to reach at least 50 bill
March 3, 2021
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KOSPI finishes higher on massive institutional buying
South Korean stocks finished higher Wednesday on strong institutional buying amid mixed prospects of a post-pandemic bond yield hike. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 39.12 points, or 1.29 percent, to close at 3,082.99 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 2.2 billion shares worth some 13.9 trillion won ($12.4 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 655 to 206. Institutions bought a net 691 billion won, while for
March 3, 2021
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Major banks shed over 1,500 jobs, 200 branches amid COVID-19
South Korea’s five major banks cut over 1,570 jobs and shut down 238 brick-and-mortar branches last year, as the COVID-19 pandemic pushed them toward digitalization, industry data showed Wednesday. According to data compiled by the Korea Federation of Banks, KB Kookmin, Shinhan, Hana, Woori and NH NongHyup shed a combined 238 offline branches and offices on-year to 3,546 as of end-December. While local lenders have been steadily shutting down their brick-and-mortar operations, the figur
March 3, 2021
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Coupang ready to go public
E-commerce giant Coupang’s initial public offering plan has been picking up momentum as the offering price of the company’s shares will be determined next week. The New York Stock Exchange announced Tuesday (local time) that the expected pricing date for the e-commerce firm’s IPO will be set on March 10. When the offering price is decided as scheduled, Coupang will likely start being traded publicly on the US stock market from March 11. Hours before the NYSE announcement, Th
March 3, 2021
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KDB commits $126m financing to satellite project
South Korea’s state-run lender Korea Development Bank said Wednesday that it had agreed on a $126 million commitment to finance an artificial satellite project in Indonesia. KDB is the first Korean lender to finance a space satellite project. The bank’s funding is part of the latest batch of a $431 million project financing to the digital infrastructure project called Satellite of Republic of Indonesia (Satria). KDB joins lenders HSBC, Banco Santander and Asia Infrastructure Inve
March 3, 2021
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Corporate loan growth decelerates in Q4 amid pandemic
Loans extended to companies in South Korea grew at a slow pace in the fourth quarter of last year, as manufacturing firms got fewer loans amid the coronavirus pandemic, central bank data showed Wednesday. The outstanding amount of corporate loans came to 1,393.6 trillion won ($1.23 trillion) at the end of December last year, up 27.7 trillion won from three months earlier, according to the data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). It compared with a 37.8 trillion-won rise tallied in the third quarter
March 3, 2021
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Seoul stocks open tad higher amid investor wariness of bond yield hike
South Korean stocks opened slightly higher Wednesday as investors took a wait-and-see mode over prospects of a post-pandemic bond yield hike. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 3.88 points, or 0.13 percent, to 3,047.75 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. The KOSPI got off to a muted start after the three key stock indexes on Wall Street dipped over speculation of early inflation, heralded by a bond yield hike late last week. Overnight, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composit
March 3, 2021
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Seoul stocks up 1% on eased inflation woes
South Korean stocks rebounded from last week's sharp plunge Tuesday to end 1 percent higher on eased inflation concerns, but they pared part of earlier gains in the face of profit-taking. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 30.92 points, or 1.03 percent, to close at 3,043.87 points after rising as high as to 3,096.50. Trading volume was moderate at about 1.7 billion shares worth around 18.5 trillion won ($16.5 billion), with g
March 2, 2021
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Coupang Inc. seeks up to $3.6b through listing on NYSE
Coupang Inc. looks to raise as much as $3.6 billion in fresh funds via an initial public offering, which would likely be among the largest deals in the US market this year. In a regulatory filing submitted to the US Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday there, Coupang Inc. said it plans to offer 120 million shares -- 100 million new Class A shares in the IPO and 20 million shares to existing investors -- in a price band between $27 and $30. The firm will consist of two classes of commo
March 2, 2021
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[EXCLUSIVE] Coupang IPO rumored to take place March 10
Anticipation for the listing of South Korean e-commerce firm Coupang has been growing as the company’s initial public offering, which will be the fourth largest of an Asian firm on the New York Stock Exchange, is just around the corner. Although the Korean firm based in Seoul has not yet announced the exact IPO date, it is said to have decided to list its shares next week, a source familiar with the matter told The Korea Herald. “The listing date has been set for March 10,&rdquo
March 2, 2021
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SK hynix shares hit new high on chip shortage
The share price of South Korean semiconductors manufacturer SK hynix hit an all-time high during intraday trading Tuesday in hopes of a first-quarter earnings surprise due to global chip shortage. At around 9:10 a.m. Tuesday, SK hynix‘s stock price touched 150,500 won ($134), up 5.3 percent from the Friday session’s closing price, bringing its total market capitalization to nearly 110 trillion won. The closing price Tuesday was 144,500 won, up 2.1 percent from Friday and 57 percent
March 2, 2021
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AlixPartners hires ex-Samsung executive for ICT capability
Consulting firm AlixPartners said Tuesday it has hired Kim Joo-wan, former senior executive at Samsung Electronics, as a new director in the Seoul office to enhance its counsulting capability in the field of information, communication and technology. AlixPartners said Kim has had experience in consulting, cutting-edge technology, and IT business operation over the course of his 25-year career. Prior to joining AlixPartners, Kim was a corporate vice president at Samsung Electronics, leading g
March 2, 2021
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Loan maturity extended for 6 months
South Korea’s financial regulator said Tuesday it has extended the grace period for loan repayments until September as part of policy effort to support individuals and businesses reeling from the resurgence of the COVID-19 pandemic. “In response to small-and medium-sized enterprises and merchants’ economic difficulties wrought by the prolonged social distancing rules amid the virus resurgence, the Financial Services Commission and financial circles have decided to exte
March 2, 2021
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Seoul stocks open steeply higher on eased bond yield concerns
South Korean stocks opened steeply higher Tuesday, tracking an overnight Wall Street rally that stemmed from eased concerns about the impacts of a bond yield hike. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 81.62 points, or 2.71 percent, to 3,094.57 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Stocks got off to a bullish start after a three-day holiday weekend on strong institutional and foreign buying. Foreigners, who net sold a record 2.8 trillion won ($2.5 billion) the p
March 2, 2021
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Average daily export volume hits new high in February
South Korea saw the volume of exports continue growing for a fourth consecutive month in February, showing signs of recovery from the coronavirus crisis, on the back of strong chip and automobile demand. According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy on Monday, outbound shipments came to $44.81 billion last month, up 9.5 percent from the previous year. The average daily export volume increased 26.4 percent to reach $2.3 billion -- the largest for the month. The on-year export growth
March 1, 2021
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[Herald Interview] Tailored foreign investing advice gets new twist
Collector of Korean art, TV celebrity, motivational speaker and investment adviser -- those are just a few of the titles Mark Tetto, 40, has under his belt. After about 10 years of living in Seoul, the Italian American multihyphenate is taking on a new challenge in leading Topor & Co. Korea, one of the first investment advisers in South Korea that handles private wealth management for wealthy families. In the past five years as a partner at TCK, his primary focus was to manage a globally d
March 1, 2021
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Pension funds extend stock selling streak to 42nd straight session
South Korean pension funds logged a record-long selling spree of local stocks, extending net selloffs to a 42nd consecutive session. While the unloading trend extended during a recent market correction period, experts predict their selling will likely to continue at least until June this year. The combined net sales of the pension funds came to 12.98 trillion won ($11.57 billion) so far this year. In February, they sold a net 4.58 trillion won -- 4.32 trillion won on the main bourse Kospi an
March 1, 2021
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Asia markets stage rebound after last week's rout
HONG KONG (AFP) -- Equities rose in Asia on Monday as investors took a breather following last week's heavy selling, with a drop in US Treasury yields giving markets some much-needed stability, while the passage of Joe Biden's stimulus through the House provided some cheer. However, observers warned that trading floors were still gripped by fears the expected global economic recovery will fuel inflation and force a hike in interest rates earlier than previously thought, removing a key pillar of
March 1, 2021
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Institutional investors bet on stock market decline
Amid lingering market uncertainties alongside rising US Treasury yields, local institutional investors seem to have started betting against the equity market, investing in inverse exchange traded funds. Inverse ETFs are designed to make money when target stocks or underlying indexes decline in value. According to data compiled by the nation’s sole securities exchange operator Korea Exchange, investment companies, including stock brokers, bought some 200 billion-won ($177.6 million) wor
Feb. 28, 2021
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Demand for Seoul apartments down slightly: report
Demand for apartments in Seoul inched down last week, data showed, after the government rolled out a series of supply measures Feb. 4. According to data collected by the state-run Korea Appraisal Board, an index that gauges supply and demand for apartments dropped by 0.8 points to 109.8 last week, compared with 110.6 marked in the previous week. A rating above 100 means demand exceeds supply. After seeing bouts of fluctuations, the index had risen for 10 straight weeks since the last week o
Feb. 28, 2021