The Korea Herald

Weak won means good time to invest

Apr 15, 2013

Since the beginning of this year, the won has lost more than 4 percent of its value against the U.S. dollar. Among Asian currencies ― some of which have strengthened ― only the yen has weakened more.Is there something serious going on?The short answer is no. What economists call the fundamentals ― inflows and outflows for trade and investment, equity values, interest rates and so on ― are all sound enough. It’s more to do with general investor unease about what Japan is doing to reboot its econo
Seoul shares edge down on Chinese growth data

Apr 15, 2013

South Korean stocks closed a tad lower Monday, as worse-than-expected Chinese growth data weighed down investor sentiment, analysts said. The local currency sharply gained against the U.S. dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added 3.78 points to finish at 1,920.45. Trading volume was moderate at 323.1 million shares worth 4.14 trillion won (US$3.69 billion) with gainers outnumbering losers 457 to 343. "China's lower-than-expected growth weighed down on the KOSPI,
Seoul shares down 0.82 pct in late-morning trade

Apr 15, 2013

South Korean stocks traded 0.82 percent lower late Monday morning, dented by losses in large-cap exporters, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) slid 15.81 points to 1,908.42 as of 11:20 a.m. Shares of top-cap Samsung Electronics lost 0.53 percent, with flat panel giant LG Display dipping more than 2 percent. Local blue-chip zinc smelter Korea Zinc plunged 13 percent on a market forecast of gloomy quarterly results. In contrast, telecom shares gained groun
Number of per capita credit cards marks first fall in five years

Apr 15, 2013

The number of credit cards held by South Koreans moved down in 2012 from a year earlier, data showed Monday, apparently as the protracted economic slump undermined consumer sentiment.The country’s economically active population held 4.6 credit cards per person in 2012, industry data showed. The number compares to 4.9 tallied a year earlier, marking the first drop since 3.7 tallied five years ago.Local credit firms have issued a total of 117.1 million cards as of end-2012. South Korea’s economica
Five big firms disqualified from FTC’s fair trader list

Apr 14, 2013

Five big enterprises saw their “certification of excellence in fair trade” withdrawn after being named to have engaged in irregular practices including price fixing.The Fair Trade Commission said Sunday that it has downgraded the fair trade assessments on POSCO, POSCO C&C, Samsung Construction & Trade Corp., Hyundai Mobis and Shinsegae.While 27 companies were granted the certification from the antitrust regulator at the end of last year, the five players have been excluded from the fair trader l
[Graphic News] Import car repair costs average $2,300

Apr 14, 2013

Repair costs for import cars produced by companies such as BMW and Mercedes-Benz average 2.6 million won ($2,300), far exceeding the average of 840,000 won for the five Korean-made brands.Over the weekend, the Korea Insurance Development Institute released the import car repair costs paid by nonlife insurance companies in 2011.The institute’s report showed that import car repair charges were three times higher than those for domestic cars.Further, components of import cars were five times more e
NTS to check spending of unreported incomes

Apr 14, 2013

Tax agency says much of undeclared incomes used for illegal purposes or ininheritance schemes
Woori Financial chief Lee offers to resign

Apr 14, 2013

Woori Financial Group said Sunday that its chairman Lee Pal-seung expressed his willingness to resign before the end of his term. Lee, regarded as a close confidant of former President Lee Myung-bak, has been under pressure to step down from his high-profile post under the new government.In a statement, the outgoing chairman said he hopes that “privatization of Woori Financial would be achieved as soon as possible for the development of the nation’s financial industry.” Lee also said he did his
Samsung Electronics shares may take a hit in Q2: analysts

Apr 14, 2013

Shares of South Korea's tech heavyweight Samsung Electronics Co. may take a hit some time before the second half of this year, stoking concerns the local stock market could reel from the fall, if realized, given the company'sbig market proportion, analysts said Sunday. Shares of the world's largest mobile phone maker closed at 1,517,000 won (US$1,342) on Friday, down 1.49 percent from the previous session, according to the Korea Exchange (KRX). The market bellwether had dropped to the 1,180,0
Builders face big restructuring amid dim earnings outlook

Apr 14, 2013

Fears of a massive restructuring are again lingering in the local construction industry as leading contractors are known to have logged steep losses in the first quarter amid a protracted industry downturn, data showed Sunday. The combined operating profit of eight listed construction companies here is estimated at 197.7 billion won (US$174.9 million) for the January-March quarter, down 75.2 percent from a year ago, according to the data compiled by local corporate information tracker FnGuid
KOSPI to reach 2,000 mark in two weeks: analysts

Apr 12, 2013

Korea’s benchmark KOSPI index is expected to gradually rebound toward the 2,000 mark in about two weeks, as few downside risks remain that can undermine investor sentiment in the short term, analysts said.“We expect to see a gradual rebound in share prices. I think it will be possible (for the KOSPI) to reach 2,000 in the short term of one to two weeks,” said Samsung Securities analyst Kwak Joong-bo. The KOSPI fell from 2,004.89 on March 29 and has yet to recover. He added that most negative fac
BOK freezes key rate despite forecast of low growth

Apr 11, 2013

Central bank lowers GDP growth forecast to 2.6%
NTS unveils plans for 5-year underground economy crackdown

Apr 11, 2013

The National Tax Service on Thursday vowed to focus on tax collection from the nation’s underground economy to secure funds needed to promote the government’s welfare programs.Revealing its 2013 policy direction at a meeting of heads of NTS’ local offices in Seoul, the tax agency said it hopes to secure an extra 28.5 trillion won ($25.2 billion) in the five-year plan to secure an increased welfare budget, aside from its usual tax collection activities. The tax agency said it would focus its inve
BOK boosts credit supply for small firms

Apr 11, 2013

The Bank of Korea said Thursday that it has decided to ease its credit policy to increase its supply of low-interest loans through commercial banks to small and medium enterprises.The central bank raised its aggregate credit ceiling to 12 trillion won ($10.6 billion) from 9 trillion won, which has been maintained since October 2012.Loans will be extended to SMEs and start-ups that have “exceptional” technology with interest rates of 0.5-1.25 percent, down from 1.25 percent through a rise in the
Seoul shares gain 0.73 pct on stimulus hope

Apr 11, 2013

South Korean stocks closed 0.73 percent higher Thursday, buoyed by the United States Federal Reserve's decision to maintain stimulus measures, analysts said.The local currency gained against the greenback. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) climbed 14.22 points to finish at 1,949.80. Trading volume was moderate at 380.3 million shares worth 4.71 trillion won (US$4.17 billion) with advancers far outpacing decliners 552 to 244."The Federal Reserve's decision to maintain its s