Could SpaceX, OpenAI IPOs derail Korea's chip rally?

The blockbuster IPOs of SpaceX, OpenAI and Anthropic could trigger a bout of profit-taking in South Korea's soaring chip stocks, as investors rotate capital into some of Wall Street's most anticipated listings. Elon Musk's rocket and satellite maker SpaceX aims to list its shares as early as June 12, in what could become the biggest initial public offering of all time. Anthropic, developer of the Claude AI model, has also recently filed to go public, setting the stage for a closely watched IPO r

2026-06-04 14:17:05:00

A sleepless Korean won: Will 24-hour trading pay off?

The Korean won is about to lose its bedtime as the country introduces round-the-clock trading of the currency against the US dollar next month. While trading of the won against the greenback, the world's dominant reserve currency, already operates for longer hours than exchanges involving other currencies, it will be extended to run 24 hours on weekdays starting July 6. The shift comes at a time when the local won is facing sustained depreciation pressure. On Tuesday, the currency was quoted at

2026-06-02 15:23:47:00

Bedding maker's best performer? Samsung and SK hynix

For Allerman, a South Korean maker of bedding, its most profitable product last year was not a duvet or mattress cover. It was semiconductor stocks. The company's investments in Samsung Electronics and SK hynix generated unrealized gains of about 37.6 billion won ($27.7 million), exceeding the operating profit it earned from its core bedding business. According to Allerman's latest audit report, the company purchased 30,000 Samsung Electronics shares and 17,132 SK hynix shares last year for a co

2026-06-01 18:26:07:00

Kospi rally drains momentum from Korea's crypto market

Amid the benchmark Kospi's record-breaking rally, South Korea's cryptocurrency market has slowed, with trading volumes falling sharply as investors rotate into equities. Retail investors have been shifting funds from cryptocurrencies into equities as the Kospi extends its rally, hitting an intraday record high of 8,874.16 before closing at an all-time high of 8,788.38 on Monday. Investor appetite for virtual assets, on the other hand, has been dampened by bitcoin's decline from last year's peak

2026-06-01 15:17:22:00

Korea to offer 24-hour won-dollar trading from July

South Korea's foreign exchange market will move to round-the-clock won-dollar trading from July, marking a major step in efforts to improve market accessibility. Seoul authorities approved revisions to the code of conduct for the onshore forex market at a meeting held Friday, the Finance Ministry announced through a statement released Sunday. The change will take effect from July 6. Under the revised code, won-dollar trading hours, currently set from 9 a.m. to 2 a.m. the following day, will be e

2026-05-31 17:55:16:00

Foreign investors unload record $30b from Kospi in May

Foreign investors offloaded a record 45 trillion won ($30 billion) worth of Kospi shares in May, marking the largest monthly sell-off on record, as they locked in gains from a sharp rally in the country's top chipmakers, Samsung Electronics and SK hynix. Overseas investors net sold stocks amounting to 44.71 trillion won on the benchmark Kospi in May, according to data from the Korea Exchange. The figure marks the largest monthly sell-off, surpassing the previous record of 35.75 trillion won set

2026-05-31 15:10:45:00

Hana Financial holds group-wide wealth management seminar

Hana Financial Group hosted the Hana Financial Money Show on Thursday, a group-wide wealth management seminar showcasing integrated asset management solutions from across its banking, securities and insurance affiliates. The event marked the first time the group's affiliates had come together to host a joint seminar on asset management. While such events had previously been organized separately by each affiliate, this year's seminar brought experts from the group together under one roof. The gro

2026-05-31 11:43:35:00

New BOK chief signals coming rate hikes as inflation pressure builds

South Korea's central bank on Thursday kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged, raising its growth forecast for 2026 to 2.6 percent and signaling a pivot toward tighter monetary policy as early as July. The Monetary Policy Board held the key rate steady at 2.5 percent, extending the rate freeze that had been in place since May 2025. However, hawkish signals became more pronounced, with two of the seven board members calling for a 25-basis-point rate hike. "Whether looking at inflation, growth

2026-05-28 15:35:30:00

New BOK chief extends rate freeze amid inflation pressures

South Korea's central bank kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged on Thursday, signaling that a shift toward a tighter monetary policy stance could come soon. The Bank of Korea decided to hold the benchmark rate steady at 2.5 percent, extending its rate freeze that has been in place since May 2025. Prior to the pause, the central bank had been on an easing cycle. Thursday's rate-setting meeting marked the first under new BOK Gov. Shin Hyun-song, who took office in late April. Inflationary pr

2026-05-28 09:58:11:00

Are foreigners really ditching Kospi — or doubling down?

Foreign investors may be selling South Korea hard, but they are sitting on a bigger slice of the market than before. The benchmark Kospi has been on a dizzying rally in recent sessions, hitting a fresh closing high of 8,228.7 and an intraday record of 8,457.09 on Wednesday. Yet foreign investors remained net sellers, unloading 449 billion won ($300 million) worth of shares during the session. The trend extends well beyond a single trading day. Over the past months, overseas investors appear to b

2026-05-27 15:00:55:00