South Korean futures firms and brokerage houses have declined sharply in the recent seven years due to a deep slump in the local derivatives market, industry data showed Friday.The number of futures firms stood at five as of September last year, more than halving from 11 tallied in 2009, with their employees shrinking to 395 from 683, according to the data compiled by the Korea Financial Investment Association. (Yonhap)Over the same period, the number of brokerages also fell to 56 from 62, while

The Cayman Islands may be little known to ordinary Koreans, but inward and outward investments between South Korea and the British overseas territory located in the western Caribbean Sea have been on the rise, according to government data. As of the end of January, the amount of investment from the island reached 9.96 trillion won ($8.72 billion), up from 8.22 trillion won in January 2015. The figure in 2008 was 3.67 trillion won.  With a population of less than 60,000, the Caribbean isl

Foreign currency deposits held by banks operating in South Korea rose 9.7 percent in January from a month earlier as exporters increased their US dollar deposits, central bank data showed Thursday.Outstanding foreign currency deposits held by domestic and foreign banks here reached $64.65 billion in January up from $58.91 billion a month earlier, the Bank of Korea said. (Yonhap)Foreign currency deposits held by domestic banks rose 7.7 percent to $53.36 billion from $49.52 billion during the same

The South Korean government has sent a letter of protest to international daily newspaper Financial Times over its recent news report that Seoul has intentionally devalued its currency, a government official said Thursday.In the article titled "Donald Trump's anger at Asian currency manipulators missed target" moved on Monday, the FT said that South Korea and Taiwan are the "obvious culprits" of currency manipulation. (Yonhap)"Neither Seoul nor Taipei clearly declares their currency intervention

KB Financial Group said Wednesday it has opened a third bank branch in Cambodia in the latest move to strengthen its business in the Southeast Asian country.The opening of the KB Kookmin Bank branch earlier in the day drew some 100 local and South Koreans, including KB Financial Chairman Yoon Jong-kyoo, according to KB Financial. KB Financial Chairman Yoon Jong-kyoo (2nd from left) attends a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the opening of the third branch of KB Kookmin Bank in Toul Tom Poung in southw

South Korea’s jobless rate inched up in January, as job conditions in the manufacturing sector continued to deteriorate and more young people stopped looking for work, government data showed Wednesday. The jobless rate in January stood at 3.8 percent, up 0.1 percentage point from a year earlier, data from the Ministry of Strategy and Finance showed. It marks the highest since April 2016, when the tally was 3.9 percent.  The number of jobless people exceeded the 1 million mark in Ja

The assassination of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s half-brother, Kim Jong-nam, is likely to have a minimal impact on the South Korean stock market.Lee Kyung-min, a researcher working for Daishin Securities, said to local media, “Kim Jong-un’s aggressive action may shrink the investor’s confidence, but the effect will be limited, since Kim Jong-nam did not have a specific role in the relationship among the two Koreas and China.” (Yonhap)Although investor confidence may drop due to potential d

South Korea's household loans jumped 12 percent last year from a year earlier as people borrowed more from financial institutions to buy homes and invest in businesses, the central bank said Wednesday.The outstanding loans extended to households came to 1,154.6 trillion won ($1.01 trillion) as of the end of December last year, compared with 1,030.6 trillion won from a year earlier, the Bank of Korea said in a report submitted to the parliament. (Yonhap)South Korean officials view an increase in

One out of four employees in South Korea's financial sector earned more than 100 million won ($87,000) last year, a report showed Wednesday.The report submitted to the Financial Services Commission by the Korea Institute of Finance said 24.8 percent of employees at 1,389 financial firms earned more than 100 million won last year. (Yonhap)In comparison, the ratio came to 9.9 percent in 2012 before jumping to 16.5 percent in 2013 and 19.2 percent in 2014.The report said 32.9 percent of those who w

The Industrial Bank of Korea, which focuses on corporate lending for small and medium sized companies, said its net profit slightly rose 1.2 percent on-year to 1.16 trillion won in 2016, mainly due to growth of SME loans.If its subsidiaries IBK Capital and IBK Investment & Securities are excluded, the bank’s net profit increased 0.3 percent last year from 2015, the bank said in a public filing.The state-run bank’s net interest margin was 1.91 percent in 2016, unchanged from the previous year.The

South Korea's financial watchdog said Tuesday that the total amount of dormant financial assets reached 4.38 trillion won ($3.8 billion) last year as customers forgot to withdraw their deposits or redeem rewards points.Among them, credit card rewards points accounted for half with 2.19 trillion won as of the end of September, according to the Financial Supervisory Service. (Yonhap)Credit card rewards points usually expire after a certain period unless customers redeem them.Unclaimed assets from

A state-backed ship financing firm will buy stocks and debts to be sold by Hyundai Merchant Co., a major shipping firm here, as part of efforts to help jack up its financial status, a senior financial regulator said Tuesday.Korea Shipping Co. was established this month with an initial capital of 1 trillion won ($878 million) to help local shipping lines buy new vessels. (Yonhap)The measures aim to support local shipping firms, as well as shipbuilders, struggling with falling new orders and mount

Standard Chartered Bank Korea said Tuesday it has launched a new smartphone app, Self Bank, to allow customers to open new SC Bank accounts without visiting its branches. The app’s services also encompass deposits, credit and check card subscriptions as well as internet banking. Consumers can also use it to check their personal lending limits and interest rates for various loans, the British bank’s Korean unit said.To open an account, a user must first download the app, take a picture of his or

The Donald Trump administration’s massive support to build energy infrastructure in the US and a recovery of global oil prices will boost the performance of MLP funds for the next several years, a chief investment officer of a US asset management firm has said.MLP funds are those investing in US companies called master limited partnerships, which operate energy pipe lines and transportation and storage firms for shale gas and oil. In Korea, there are two MLP funds operated by Korea Investment Ma

South Korea's state pension fund is expected to receive over 1 trillion won ($869 million) in stock dividends from the country's top 30 conglomerates, sharply up 20 percent from last year's tally, industry data showed Tuesday.Industry tracker CEO Score analyzed dividend payments planned by the conglomerates-affiliated 97 companies in which the National Pension Service has stakes of over 5 percent. (Yonhap)Of the surveyed firms, 65 firms announced their stock dividend payment plans, with the stat