South Korean stocks traded 0.26 percent higher late Wednesday morning, led by gains in financial firms and shipbuilders, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added 5.20 points to 2,021.81 as of 11:20 a.m.No. 2 lender KB Financial Group rose 1.8 percent, with Hyundai Heavy Industries, the world's largest shipyard, jumping more than 3 percent. In contrast, auto-related shares trended lower. Kia Motors, a Hyundai Motor affiliate, slid 2 percent, with Hyundai's auto

The first-ever shipment of beef from Chile arrived in South Korea last month, a government agency said Wednesday, raising expectations imports will likely grow steadily due to a bilateral free trade deal.A 25.84-ton shipment of Chilean beef arrived here early last month, according to the Animal, Plant and Fisheries Quarantine and Inspection Agency.South Korea and Chile implemented a bilateral free trade agreement in 2004, under which Seoul agreed to completely remove import taxes on up to 400 to

South Korean stocks started off sharply higher Wednesday on an overnight Wall Street rally fueled by heightening anticipations of economic recovery, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) soared15.84 points, or 0.79 percent to 2,032.45 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Shares moved upward across the board, with tech blue-chips and brokerage houses fueling the main index. Top-cap tech giant Samsung Electronics rose 1.23 percent and leading brokerage firm KDB Daew

South Korean electronics giant Samsung is set to buy a three-percent stake in struggling Japanese rival Sharp via a capital increase, a press report said Tuesday, a deal that would give Samsung greater access to smartphone and tablet computer screens.The Japanese economic newspaper Nikkei said in its online edition that Sharp would sell Samsung new shares worth around 10 billion yen (83 million euros, $108 million), and use the funds it earned to bolster its bottom line.An official announcement

South Korea's central bank said Wednesday it increased its holding of gold in three months in February in a bid to diversify the portfolio of its foreign exchange reserves worth more than US$320 billion.The Bank of Korea (BOK) said it bought 20 tons of gold, raising the central bank's gold holdings to 104.4 tons valued at US$4.79 billion as of end-February.The move marked the BOK's fifth purchase of the yellow metal since July 2011 when the bank bought gold for the first time in 13 years. It als

Securities companies downsize units, staff

Lotte Liquor BG Co., a South Korean alcoholic beverage maker, said Tuesday that it has filed a 10 billion won ($9.2 million) damages lawsuit against its rival Hite Jinro Co. for harming its image and causing sales losses. According to Lotte Liquor BG, Hite Jinro spread slanderous gossip about “Cheoumcheorum,” the flagship soju brand of Lotte Liquor BG, after an Internet broadcasting station aired false information saying that the product is harmful to humans in March 2012. Soju is South Korea’s

The Financial Supervisory Service said Tuesday that it has issued an “institutional warning” against Korea Exchange Bank for raising interest rates on loans to the corporate sector via “irregular practices.”Its irregular rate hikes were mostly conducted when U.S.-based Lone Star Funds was holding the majority stake in the commercial bank as the biggest shareholder.“Glossing over lending terms, KEB raised the rates on loans to small- and mid-sized enterprises. The hikes ranged between 0.2 percent

Korean Air Lines Co., South Korea’s top air carrier, has submitted a bid for a 44 percent stake in the troubled Czech Airlines as part of efforts to strengthen its network in Europe, a company official said Tuesday.Korean Air has said it plans to spend “several million dollars” to acquire the stake, though it will not include managerial control of the Czech Republic’s flag carrier.“We submitted a letter of intent earlier in March,” the Korean Air official said. He did not elaborate and asked not

Following is the fifth and last in a series of stories featuring economic issues facing the Park Geun-hye government that was inaugurated on Feb. 25. ― Ed.When executives of Korean exporters shared their concern with President Park Geun-hye over the volatility of the Korean won during the transition period, the nation’s 18th chief executive said then that her government will aim to maintain foreign exchange stability through “preemptive measures.”The president said she was well aware that Korea

Latest smartphone to feature eye-scroll technology

SPC, which runs the nation’s largest bakery franchise Paris Baguette and makes Shany and Samlip brand bread, on Tuesday retracted its price hikes for 66 Samlip products amid the government’s high vigilance on processed food prices. Having raised the prices of products such as chocolate roll cakes and chestnut manju supplied to supermarket chains by 100 won or 200 won ($.09, $.18) on Feb. 21, SPC decided to take it back less than two weeks later upon negative news coverage. “We concluded that thi

More big firms undergo liquidity problems amid low profitability