South Korean stocks opened higher Wednesday, tracking overnight gains on Wall Street, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) increased 5.21 points, or 0.26 percent, to 2,005.22 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Shares gathered ground across the board, with market behemoth Samsung Electronics adding 0.75 percent and top chipmaker SK hynix gaining 0.75 percent. No. 1 carmaker Hyundai Motor moved up 0.47 percent.U.S. stocks ended higher Tuesday on reports that the Fe

Local chaebol and financial groups are engaging in another round of heated competition in the saturated credit card market.The excessive rivalry between the conglomerates and the banking groups over the money-spinning business stemmed from a credit card fiasco about 10 years ago.The 2003 woes from the reckless doling-out of credit cards led to a record-high number of credit defaulters and the downfall of then-No. 1 issuer LG Card.The latest competition looms large between the card units of Samsu

Korea’s birth rate increased for the third consecutive year in 2012, while its death rate reached a 30-year high.According to Statistics Korea, the number of newborns reached 484,300 last year, up 2.8 percent from a year earlier.This marks the highest since 2007 when Korea had 493,200 babies.Its crude birth rate increased by 0.2 to 9.6 births per 1,000 people.Also, Korea’s total fertility rate bounced back to 1.30 births per woman throughout her lifetime.The fertility rate began to dive in 2001

South Korean stocks closed 0.47 percent lower on Tuesday due to rising uncertainties over the eurozone following Italy’s election, analysts said. The local currency fell against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index moved down 9.51 points to 2,000.01. Trading volume was moderate at 422.2 million shares worth 3.5 trillion won ($3.22 billion) with losers outpacing gainers 479 to 336.“Investor sentiment was dented by the outcome of Italy’s elections,” said Bae Sung-young,

South Korean stocks closed 0.47 percent lower on Tuesday due to rising uncertainties over the eurozone following Italy's election, analysts said. The local currency fell against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) moved down 9.51 points to 2,000.01. Trading volume was moderate at 422.2 million shares worth 3.5 trillion won (US$3.22 billion) with losers outpacing gainers 479 to 336."Investor sentiment was dented by the outcome of Italy's elections," said Bae Su

South Korean stocks traded 0.31 percent lower late Tuesday morning, dented by losses in techs and logistics, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) edged down 6.15 points to 2,003.37 as of 11:20 a.m.Big-cap tech names led the decline, with top chipmaker SK hynix falling 0.38 percent and leading flat panel manufacturer LG Display losing 0.81 percent. No. 1 steelmaker POSCO shed 0.56 percent.Logistics shares also traded lower, with Hyundai Glovis decreasing 1.76 perc

South Korean stocks got off to a weak start on Tuesday, tracking overnight losses on Wall Street, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 11.02 points, or 0.55 percent, to 1998.50 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Shares lost ground across the board, with market behemoth Samsung Electronics falling 0.72 percent and No. 1 carmaker Hyundai Motor moving down 0.47 percent. Top steelmaker POSCO decreased 0.7 percent.U.S. stocks ended lower Monday on rising concerns

The controversial policy direction toward achieving a fairer market has come under the spotlight again, as President Park Geun-hye referenced “economic democratization” during her inaugural speech Monday.The term of economic democratization, aimed at weeding out unfair practices of big enterprises, was not included in the list of five major policy goals unveiled by the Park government last week.While opposition parties and civic groups criticized Park for omitting her campaign pledge from the li

Households spend up to 40 percent of monthly paychecks to pay interest plus principal on loans to local banks according to the Bank of Korea.Citing a survey of 2,119 Korean households, the Bank of Korea said about 8 percent responded that they use 40 percent of their salaries a month to repay their debt.More than 60 percent said that they are struggling to meet deadlines in repaying their loans, indicating that rising household debt needs to be urgently resolved.Household debt was the biggest sy

Despite the global economic slowdown, Korean banks are increasingly determined to set up more branches overseas to boost trade financing and diversify sources of profit, a report showed.The report released by the Financial Supervisory Service on Monday said that securing more foreign currency assets was the key objective of the 2013 expansion plans of banks here.Banks here opened a total of 11 branches abroad in 2012, largely in Southeast Asian countries including Vietnam, Myanmar and Indonesia.

South Korea’s financial regulator said Sunday it will ease rules for foreign companies wishing to be listed on the local bourse as part of a broader move to boost the stock market.The Financial Services Commission (FSC) will exempt overseas firms from listing evaluation if they meet certain criteria that qualifies them to be considered as blue-chip companies.Under the envisioned measures, candidates that have been listed for more than five years in offshore markets under an exchange agreement wi

Bank hit by tax probe and allegations of squeezing smaller firms

South Korean stocks are expected to trade higher this week on the back of rising hopes for the country’s economy following the upcoming inauguration of President-elect Park Geun-hye, analysts said Saturday.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) closed up 37.71 points, or 1.9 percent, to 2,018.89 on Friday from the previous week.Earlier last week, the KOSPI moved up as the investor sentiment was heightened by a G20 meeting of finance ministers and central bankers, where officials