South Korea’s central bank said Tuesday that foreign reserves in June saw the sharpest decline since November 2008, when the country was dealing with the global financial crisis, feeding concerns of the weakening value of the Korean won against the US dollar. “Korea’s official foreign reserves as of end of June 2022 amounted to $438.3 billion,” the BOK said in a statement. It was down $9.43 bill...

South Korea’s key stock index plummeted to a fresh low for the year in morning trade on Monday as recession fears grew ahead of the Bank of Korea’s rate-setting meeting scheduled next week. The benchmark Kospi opened 0.23 percent higher from the previous closing at 2,310.73, but soon fell below the 2,300-mark to hit a new low of 2,288.92 in morning trade. Kospi has plummeted some 22 percent sin...

Saving money is never fun. But when combined with a digital pet that grows alongside the size of your savings, it can be more motivating. South Korea’s three internet-only banks -- KakaoBank, K bank and Toss Bank -- have launched unique products such as Tamagotchi-like savings accounts, mobile joint accounts and digital piggy banks to lure customers attracted to the trends. Toss Bank, launched ...

South Korea’s top court on Thursday cleared Shinhan Financial Group Chairman Cho Yong-byoung of unethical hiring charges, putting an end to a four-year legal battle and allowing a possible third term for Cho. The Supreme Court upheld the Seoul High Court’s decision in November last year to side with Cho on allegations that he had exercised his influence by accepting hiring requests from lawmaker...

KB Kookmin Bank, South Korea’s top lender said Wednesday that it will join other financial institutions in a $6.6 billion syndicated loan package to finance the John F. Kennedy International Airport’s Terminal One redevelopment project in New York. KB Kookmin will contribute $300 million of the $6.6 billion loan, alongside Japan’s Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. and...

When South Korea’s key stock index surpassed the 3,000-mark for the first time in its 40-year history in January 2021, it seemed the bull market would last forever. But risks stemming from high inflation, fears of recession and the global supply bottleneck this year has beaten down the index down to some 2,400 points as of this week, with analysts warning investors that they are unlikely to feel ...

Risks stemming from South Korea’s investor debt binge is a key reason behind the local benchmark stock index’s recent lackluster performance, analysts said Monday. This fueled concerns of a possible market crash as the US Federal Reserve’s aggressive rate hikes have been increasing debt burden on retail investors. “Following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, Korea saw a sharp gain in househ...

South Korea’s key stock index and its secondary bourse both saw the biggest drop among 40 global indexes, including inflation-hit Argentina’s Merval S&P, data showed Sunday, prompting concerns of a possible market crash. From the end of last month to Friday, the nation’s main bourse, Kospi, fell 11.89 percent from 2,685.90 to 2,366.60, while the secondary, tech-heavy Kosdaq dropped 15.01 percent...

South Korea’s financial authorities on Thursday warned of a “perfect storm” approaching the nation’s economy, while pledging to pump liquidity into financial institutions to cushion them from growing risks, if needed. The concerns come as the US Federal Reserve’s aggressive rate hikes, a strong dollar trend, high inflation and ongoing global supply chain bottlenecks have been rattling the Korean...

Citigroup’s South Korean subsidiary has said it will cooperate with local financial giant KB Kookmin Bank and the internet-only Toss Bank on transferring its unsecured personal loan portfolio worth some 8 trillion won ($6.1 billion). The move is part of Citibank Korea’s decision announced in October last year to shut down its retail banking operations in phases, after its monthslong attempt to f...

South Korea’s cryptocurrency-related stocks have been nosediving in recent weeks, weighed down by the growing liquidity crisis in the global virtual currency market, data showed Tuesday. According to the nation’s sole bourse operator Korea Exchange, Vidente, the largest shareholder of Bithumb Holdings and the company behind one of top crypto exchanges here, nearly halved from the beginning of th...

Samsung Electronics shares, which account for some 18 percent of South Korea’s benchmark Kospi’s market capitalization, closed at a 52-week low on Friday hit by the prolonged global memory chip supply shortage coupled with concerns of an economic slowdown. The market bellwether closed at its lowest price since Nov. 4, 2020 and 1.81 percent lower from the previous day’s trading at 59,800 won ($46...

South Korea’s key stock index plunged below the 2,400-point threshold for the first time in 19 months on Friday, weighed down by risks stemming from the US Federal Reserve’s boldest rate hike in nearly two decades. The benchmark Kospi opened 1.7 percent lower from its previous closing of 2,409.72, but fell to 2,396.47 at one point in early morning trade. This marked the first time the index fell...

Retail investors who enjoyed record-low borrowing costs and abundant market liquidity during the COVID-19 pandemic have quickly come to face growing risks from plummeting stock and crypto markets hit by 40-year high inflation in the US and the rapid rate hikes that have followed. The benchmark Kospi on Thursday closed at 2,451.41, 0.16 percent higher from the previous close, when it dipped to it...

Shares of Hybe, the agency behind K-pop sensation BTS, fell almost 25 percent on Wednesday, rattled by the boy band’s announcement that it will take time off from group activities to pursue solo projects. Hybe shares closed 24.87 percent lower from the previous session at 145,000 won ($112.5). It had opened at 168,000 won after closing at 193,000 won in the previous session. Within the first ho...