[THE INVESTOR] Prosecutors have found evidence that embattled Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering illegally raised money amounting to 10 trillion won ($8.6 billion) through accounting fraud, according to local news reports on Thursday. The prosecutors have placed travel bans on two former chief executives Nam Sang-tae and Koh Jae-ho of the world’s second-largest shipbuilder. The prosecution’s special force for anticorruption had secured evidence after raiding 10 organizations on Wednesday i

South Korean stocks closed 0.14 percent lower Thursday as individual investors opted to lock in gains from the previous day's increase despite earlier gains led by the central bank's surprise interest rate hike. The local currency inched up against the U.S. dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 2.91 points to finish at 2,024.17. Trading volume was moderate at 591.4 million shares worth 7.58 trillion won ($6.57 billion) with decliners far outpacing advancers 525 to 300.The

[THE INVESTOR] The Bank of Korea on Thursday slashed the key interest rate to a new historic low in a surprise move that came one day after the government finalized measures to support corporate restructuring. The seven-day repurchase rate has been cut by 0.25 percentage point to 1.25 percent, the lowest on record. The BOK last reduced the borrowing cost in June 2015 amid the outbreak of the deadly Middle East respiratory syndrome virus here. A reduction was seen coming, but not this month. Near

[THE INVESTOR] The nation’s fair trade authorities said Thursday it would ease a key regulation to ban excessive expansion of conglomerates by raising the asset ceiling for its conglomerate watch list for the first time in seven years.In an economy-related ministers meeting held in Seoul, the Fair Trade Commission said it would boost the minimum asset criteria to 10 trillion won ($8.65 billion) from 5 trillion won. Fair Trade Commission in Sejong City (Yonhap)Mobile messaging giant Kakao and bio

South Korean shares closed at their highest level of this year on Wednesday on the back of foreign buying, helped by market kingpin Samsung Electronics' rally on its robust outlook. The local currency rose against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index gained 15.45 points, or 0.77 percent, to 2,027.08, the highest closing level this year. Trade volume was moderate at 490 million shares worth 5.7 trillion won ($4.92 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 411 to 395.Fo

Shares of Samsung Electronics Co. rose for the sixth consecutive session Wednesday as local analysts unleashed optimism on the top-cap company's earnings for the second quarter.Samsung closed up 0.57 percent at 1,406,000 won ($1,216.40) on South Korea's main bourse on the back of strong foreign buying, ending above the 1,400,000 won level for the first time in 13 months. At one point in morning trade, Samsung's stock price hit a fresh 52-week high of 1,419,000 won.The company's market value came

Korea’s big three shipyards will seek to raise 10.3 trillion won through self-rescue plans

Prosecutors raided debt-ridden Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering’s head offices on Wednesday in a search for evidence related to accounting fraud to conceal massive losses partly caused by poor management. Some 150 investigators had marched into the country’s leading shipbuilders’ headquarters in central Seoul and its Okpo Shipyard on Geoje Island off the southern coast, according to the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office. The raids come as DSME’s audit committee had voluntarily submitted petiti

Korea faces an increasing need to ensure a balance between exports and domestic demand, which is crucial for the sustainable growth of its economy, economists say.They note changes in global economic conditions make the need more urgent but government policymakers are not yet fully up to the task.The country’s outbound shipments fell for the 17th consecutive month in May, though the pace of decline decelerated from the preceding months.The National Assembly Budget Office said in a report release

Creditors of Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co. may approve the embattled shipbuilder's self-restructuring plan worth 5.2 trillion won ($4.47 billion) Wednesday, industry sources said Tuesday.The shipbuilder has been under pressure from its creditors, led by state-run Korea Development Bank, to come up with a stronger rehabilitation scheme to tide over a protracted slump in the global shipbuilding segment and mounting losses.Under the plan presented to the creditors, Daewoo Shipbuildin

South Korean stocks soared to surpass the 2,000-point mark on Tuesday as weaker than expected job data in the U.S. reduced the chance of an imminent rate hike in the world's largest economy. The Korean won sharply rose against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index jumped 25.79 points, or 1.3 percent, to close at 2,011.63. Trade volume was thin at 472 million shares worth 5.46 trillion won ($4.69 billion), with losers outnumbering winners 506 to 307.The local stock marke

Unlike Korea’s shipping and shipbuilding industries, the domestic steelmakers may not face immediate credit risks given that their problems have more to do with overcapacity in the market.The government, therefore, put the steel industry on a different watch list last April, urging the companies to voluntarily and preemptively improve their finances by reducing costs associated with equipment and inventories to offset overcapacity. The financial regulator also suggested them to restructure via m

Lotte Chemical, the petrochemicals unit of South Korea’s Lotte Group, said Tuesday that it has made an offer to buy U.S.-based chemicals producer Axiall Corp. with aims to expand its business portfolio and strengthen its footing in North America.The company said it submitted its bid to take over Axiall Corp. last Saturday. No further details were disclosed, including its offering price.Axiall Corp. is an Atlanta-based chemicals firm that specializes in producing integrated chlorovinyls and vinyl

Merger and acquisition deals in Korea, previously expected to flourish thanks to industry-wide corporate restructurings, are actually dragging on due to little interest from potential buyers, industry sources said Tuesday.Early in January, mobile messaging app operating giant Kakao Corp.’s 1.87 trillion won ($1.57 billion) acquisition of Loen Entertainment, the top operator of online music in the local market, was expected to prompt the M&A market later this year.However, major deals that draw k