South Korea made a pitch Thursday for its financial technology, or fintech, in China under the government's campaign to support related startups here seeking to do business abroad.The state-funded Fintech Center held the "Fintech Demo Day in Beijing" event, joined by five South Korean firms and potential business partners in China, said the Financial Services Commission.The companies showcased robo-adviser, mobile wallet, biometric identification and other advanced services, followed by one-on-o

South Korea has room for additional monetary easing policy next year, despite the latest US rate hike, according to the head of the central bank.Bank of Korea Governor Lee Ju-yeol has said that the US rate increase does not necessarily mean the central bank will immediately raise its interest rates, and on Wednesday, he reiterated the policy bank's earlier position."I don't think that our room for monetary policy has been exhausted," Lee said in a meeting with reporters Wednesday.In the July-Sep

The trade volume of South Korean shares has markedly dropped on-year in 2016 amid a barrage of setbacks including political turmoil at home and uncertainty over the US interest rate hike, data showed Thursday.A total of 90.4 billion stocks were traded in the main KOSPI market as of Tuesday, according to the Korea Exchange and the Korea Financial Investment Association.It marks a 20-percent decline from a year earlier. Trade value also decreased 18 percent to 1,091 trillion won ($912 billion).The

About 20 businesses are planning to go public on South Korea’s main stock trading board Kospi next year, for the combined value of about 7 trillion won ($5.86 billion), the index operator said Wednesday. Netmarble Games, Korea South-East Power, Korea East-West Power and ING Life Insurance are among the expected Kospi entrants which will lead the initial public offering market next year, according to a survey by the Korea Exchange. The total value of IPOs will reach 7 trillion won in 2017, outstr

South Korean shares traded higher late Wednesday morning, led by gains in top market cap Samsung Electronics and other market heavyweights, set to extend their winning streak to two second consecutive days.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added 4.29 points, or 0.21 percent, to 2,046.23 as of 11:20 a.m.Market bellwether Samsung Electronics rose 0.29 percent. A day earlier, the tech giant gained 0.95 percent to 1,812,000, closing at a new record high.  Samsung C&T, Samsung's

More than 5,500 South Koreans have their credit ratings lifted this year by paying utility bills and communication service fees on time, government data showed Wednesday.Starting in 2016, the financial authorities introduced a system to tie personal credit ratings with such nonfinancial transaction information as the payment of phone and Internet service fees, as well as utility and state health care bills.A total of 65,396 people offered related payment records to credit bureaus as of end-Novem

South Korea’s financial and medical authorities announced Tuesday guidelines for more affordable but smaller-coverage fee-for-service health insurance in order to curb moral hazards called “medical shopping” sought by some consumers and doctors. The Financial Services Commission unveiled the plans, which include the launch of insurance schemes with premiums that are about 25 percent lower than existing ones from April next year, in a joint announcement with the Ministry of Health and Welfare and

Foreign direct investment pledged to South Korea's free economic zones is expected to reach a four-year high in 2016 on the government's efforts to attract more overseas investment, data showed Tuesday.Fresh FDI committed so far this year to the country's eight FEZs stood at $2.42 billion, soaring 66 percent from $1.46 billion tallied a year ago, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.The 2016 figure marked the highest since 2012 when it hit a record $2.56 b

South Korea's demand deposits have reached a record high, central bank data showed Saturday, amid an apparent lack of investment opportunities, while the return on long-term bank deposits has also dipped due to record low rates.As of end-October, demand deposits held by local banks and financial institutions here came to some 201.76 trillion won ($169.97 billion), up 3.4 percent from a month earlier, according to the data from the Bank of Korea.The October tally marked the first time demand depo