The Korea Herald

[Newsmaker] Will new BOK chief pass the first test?

Mar 4, 2014

Nominee Lee Ju-yeol expected to undergo tough confirmation hearing
Financial companies eye Middle East

Mar 4, 2014

Korea’s financial firms are poised to expand their presence in the Middle East as part of efforts to diversify foreign direct investment sources. Previously, the nation mainly resorted to funds from Europe and the United States.Targeting royal societies in countries such as Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, the financial sector is seeking to establish high-level communication channels with royal families and sovereign wealth funds in the Middle East. As the initial step, senior executives of m
FSS to ease rules for foreign financial firms

Mar 4, 2014

Seeking partnerships in implementing the government’s slogan of “creative economy,” the nation’s financial regulator pledged to eliminate regulatory obstacles for foreign financial companies operating in Korea.“We will work to identify and remove even invisible barriers that hinder the creative and productive activities of foreign financial companies,” Financial Supervisory Service Gov. Choi Soo-hyun said in a communication forum with foreign financial firms on Tuesday.His remark came at the FSS
S. Korea to intensify monitoring of instability sparked by unrest in Ukraine

Mar 4, 2014

South Korea said Tuesday it will step up alert against instability in the global financial market from the unrest in Ukraine and tension from North Korea's recent firing of short-range missiles.Russia's financial market roiled on Monday as the international community denounced its intrusive move on Ukraine. The tension later spilled over into other European financial markets whose stock markets markedly lost ground.The North added to the market anxiety by launching short-range missiles on Monday
Former senior deputy chief named to head BOK

Mar 3, 2014

President Park Geun-hye appointed a former senior deputy governor of the Bank of Korea as the central bank’s new governor Monday.The presidential office said that Lee Ju-yeol, who had worked for the BOK since 1977 and retired as deputy chief in 2012, was chosen to succeed Kim Choong-soo as BOK governor.Kim’s four-year term expires at the end of March. Kim has been regarded as a close confidant of former President Lee Myung-bak.Nominee Lee is “more versed than anybody else in BOK business” and ha
Hana Financial chief tightens direct control

Mar 3, 2014

Hana Financial Group chairman Kim Jung-tai has decided to downsize the group’s organization and seize direct control over affiliated subsidiaries.On Monday, the group announced that it would scrap the CEO post for its holding company and would not replace current CEO Choe Heung-sik, whose term expires at the end of March.Instead, group chairman Kim will gain direct control over the holding company, officials said.Further, the group’s total number of executive members will be reduced from 12 to n
Korean bonds post best month in a year on China concern

Mar 2, 2014

South Korea’s 10-year government bonds posted the biggest monthly rally in almost a year as slowing growth in the nation’s largest export market prompted investors to seek the relative safety of sovereign debt.Manufacturing in China in February may have contracted for the second straight month, according to a preliminary gauge released by HSBC Holdings Plc and Markit Economics on Feb. 20 before official figures are released tomorrow.South Korea’s industrial output shrank 3.8 percent in January f
Gov't beefs up monitoring of emerging markets

Mar 2, 2014

South Korean officials said Sunday they have been strengthening their monitoring of changes in emerging markets amid growing political and financial unrest that may affect the global economy."We are closely watching the situation (in emerging markets) with vigilance," an official at the finance ministry said, demanding anonymity. "Concerns over emerging economies are spreading as financial instability in Argentina and Turkey, and political unrest in Ukraine, Thailand and Venezuela have been grow
S. Korean banks' foreign-currency loans dip in 2013

Mar 2, 2014

Foreign-currency loans extended by South Korean banks declined last year from a year earlier, as a stronger won helped borrowers repay their outstanding debts, mostly yen-denominated ones, the financial watchdog said Sunday.The amount of foreign currency-denominated loans extended by local banks reached $25.17 billion at the end of last year, down $4.77 billion from a year ago, according to the Financial Supervisory Service.The decline was attributable to the Korean won's ascent to the Japanese
Indices signal recovery: Hyun

Feb 28, 2014

Upbeat outlook based on manufacturer survey, industrial output
Yuanta offers W125b for Tong Yang

Feb 28, 2014

Taiwan-based Yuanta Securities has reportedly offered 125 billion won ($118 million) to purchase a 27.06 percent stake in Tong Yang Securities, industry sources said Friday.Yuanta was the only bidder for the cash-strapped Tong Yang Group’s brokerage house, which was allegedly involved in underwriting and issuing fraudulent bonds of its affiliates to retail investors to offset the group’s liquidity crunch.Group chairman Hyun Jae-hyun has been imprisoned as prosecutors further investigate to charg
Banks’ bad loan ratio marks 3-year high

Feb 28, 2014

The banking sector saw its bad loan ratio rise to its highest level in three years in 2013 due mainly to insolvency in some manufacturing segments including shipbuilding and construction.According to the Financial Supervisory Service, the bad loan ratio at 18 first-tier banks in Korea posted 1.77 percent last year, marking the highest since it reached 1.9 percent in 2010. The figures for 2011 and 2012 were 1.36 percent and 1.33 percent, respectively.“While delinquent bank or credit card loans to
Seoul shares close flat on Yellen’s optimistic remarks

Feb 28, 2014

South Korean stocks closed almost flat Friday as investors had mixed reactions to remarks by U.S. Fed Chair Janet Yellen, analysts said. The Korean won closed higher against the greenback.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index edged up 1.56 points, or 0.08 percent, to 1,979.99. Trading volume was low at 247.1 million shares worth 4.8 trillion won ($4.51 billion), with gainers outpacing losers 414 to 394.Analysts said hopeful remarks by Yellen, who attributed the latest weak U.S. data to
Koreans' overseas card spending hits record high in 2013

Feb 28, 2014

South Koreans' overseas credit card spending rose to a record high last year as the number of outbound travelers increased amid the local currency's ascent, the central bank said Friday.Overseas credit card bills totaled $10.55 billion in 2013, up 11.8 percent from the previous year, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK).Last year, the number of outbound travelers gained 8.1 percent on-year to 14.9 million. The Korean won appreciated 1.4 percent against the U.S. dollar in 2013 with the surplus ru
Korea's industrial output edges up 0.1 pct on-month in Jan.

Feb 28, 2014

South Korea's industrial output continued to grow on-month in January, but its growth rate slowed sharply from a month earlier amid worries that economic conditions might not be improving fast, a government report showed Friday.According to the report by Statistics Korea, production in mining, manufacturing, gas and electricity industries expanded 0.1 percent last month from December. This marked the fourth straight month that the output has increased on a month-to-month basis.The growth rate, h