South Korean stocks closed 0.2 percent higher Wednesday as abated concerns such as the Greece debt issue, together with rising expectations about an extra budget, continued to boost investors' sentiment here, analysts said. The South Korean won lost ground against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 4.33 points to 2,085.33. Trading volume was moderate at 393.6 million shares worth 5.26 trillion won ($4.76 billion), with gainers outpacing losers 530 to 290.Analys

South Korean banks are turning their eyes to new business targeting foreign investors as they are struggling from falling interest income amid a low rate trend at home, industry sources said Wednesday.Kookmin Bank, the country's No. 1 commercial bank by assets, will open a foreign direct investment center in downtown Seoul next month to give comprehensive investment consulting services and payment settlement services to foreign investors."So far, we have been passive in engaging in the foreign i

Weak consumer sentiment has pulled up Korea’s savings rate to the highest in more than 16 years, official data showed Tuesday.According to the Statistics Korea and the Bank of Korea, the nation’s savings rate came to 36.5 percent in the first quarter, compared with 35 percent and 34.7 percent, in the corresponding period in 2014 and 2013, respectively.On a quarterly basis, this is the highest since the rate peaked at 37.2 percent in the third quarter of 1998.The savings rate is calculated by sub

South Korean stocks rallied 1.27 percent Tuesday as investors' sentiment was boosted by eased uncertainties from home and abroad, analysts said. The South Korean won lost ground against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 26.04 points to 2,081.20. Trading volume was moderate at 324.1 million shares worth 5.21 trillion won ($4.74 billion), with gainers outpacing losers 532 to 264.Analysts said Seoul shares closed higher amid eased concerns over the outbreak of Mi

South Korean institutional investors own more than 20 percent of Samsung C&T Corp., which could serve as the swing vote on its high-stakes fight with a U.S. hedge fund over a controversial merger plan, market sources said Tuesday.The state-run National Pension Service, the biggest institutional investor in South Korea, and other institutions owned 21.6 percent of Samsung C&T common shares as of June 16, according to the sources. The NPS is the largest shareholder with a 10.15 percent stake, with

South Korea's top financial regulator said Tuesday that it will cut the interest rate ceiling for subprime loans in order to ease burdens of low-credit borrowers.The upper limit rate levied on such loans will be lowered to 29.9 percent later this year from 34.9 percent, according to the Financial Services Commission.The upper rate for such loans is set in accordance with related regulations. The subprime loan rate has been on a steady decline since it fell to 49 percent from 66 percent in 2007.T

NongHyup Bank will shut down low-profit branches to enhance the margin rate, its holding company NongHyup Financial Group said Monday.The group said it will shut down, integrate or transfer around 30 branches with low profitability, as part of the annual “branch efficiency booster plan.” “We enforced the branch efficiency booster plan to 30-some branches last year, and we are expecting to do the same to a similar number this year as well,” a spokesperson of NongHyup Financial Group said. The num

South Korean stocks closed 0.4 percent higher on Monday as investors' concerns over the Greek debt issue weakened, analysts said. The South Korean won gained against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 8.20 points to 2,055.16. Trading volume was low at 260.5 million shares worth 4.24 trillion won ($3.86 billion), with gainers outpacing losers 471 to 338.Analysts said Seoul shares gained ground as investors are increasingly paying keen attention to the prolonged

Global asset manager Blackrock on Monday painted a rosy forecast for the South Korean stock market in the second half of the year, saying it plans to increase its holdings of local shares going forward."Valuations in Korea are at a cheap level and positive earnings surprises have characterized performance in the year to date," Andrew Swan, Head of Asian Equities, said in a statement, adding the company will snap up shares "to capture an expected positive environment for the second part of the ye

South Korea's top financial regulator said Monday it will lift a set of barriers for large banking groups to diversify their business portfolios as part of its broader deregulation drive in the financial industry.The Financial Services Commission  said a bank affiliate of a financial holding company can sell financial products offered by its sister securities and insurance firms starting later this year.The bank groups can also set up a bank-brokerage office that provides private financial consu

The South Korean government will make its fifth attempt to sell a controlling stake in state-owned Woori Bank next month, following its previous failures to put the lender in private hands, industry sources said Monday.The Public Fund Oversight Committee, a government-run body in charge of privatizing the country's No. 3 bank, will unveil a new plan in mid-July after wrapping up a feasibility review.Four previous auctions to sell Woori Bank have fallen through due to a lack of bidders, including

South Korea's third bourse has sharply grown in terms of turnover and the number of players since its launch but has not properly achieved its mission of serving as an incubator for startups, experts said Monday. The Korea New Exchange was launched in July 2013 to help fund young businesses and small firms, an addition to the main bourse KOSPI and the tech-laden KOSDAQ market. Starting with 21 companies, the third exchange now has 75 whose combined market value amounted to 2.82 trillion won ($2.