The Korea Herald

KB Kookmin CEO visits Chinese arm

Jun 10, 2012

KB Kookmin Bank said Sunday its chief executive Min Byong-deok visited Beijing last week to check on the bank’s efforts to establish a new Chinese corporation and meet with Chinese financial authorities.KB Kookmin received preliminary approval from the Chinese government in January to set up a corporation and a Beijing branch, and plans to get a final endorsement in the second half of this year to begin operation in November. The corporation will overlook the bank’s existing branches in Guangzho
Cost to lunch with Warren Buffett: $3.5 million

Jun 9, 2012

The cost to dine with investor Warren Buffett has apparently spiked in value, with one deep-pocketed bidder forking over nearly $3.5 million during a charity auction Friday night.The annual auction for a private lunch with the Nebraska billionaire closed following a flurry of activity in the final hours. In the end, the highest bid was a record-breaking $3,456,789.The auction benefits the Glide Fo
Shares fall on lack of U.S., European stimulus action

Jun 8, 2012

South Korean stocks fell 0.67 percent Friday after neither U.S. nor European central banks unveiled detailed stimulus programs to bolster growth, analysts said. The local currency fell against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index gave up 12.31 points to 1,835.64, snapping a two-day gaining streak.Trading volume was light at 355 million shares worth 3.39 trillion won ($2.88 billion), with losers outpacing gainers 478 to 330.“Heads of the U.S. Federal Reserve and the Eur
BOK freezes key interest rate for 12th month

Jun 8, 2012

Central bank sees U.S. slowdown, eurozone crisis casting shadow over Korean economyThe Bank of Korea kept its key interest rate unchanged the 12th month in a row, maintaining its cautious monetary policy due to external macroeconomic factors of the eurozone crisis and the U.S. slowdown.The central bank’s monetary policy committee froze the seven-day repurchase rate at 3.25 percent on Friday, unwilling to apply the brakes as it did in the first half of last year, despite stable exports and growth
BOK holds key rate steady at 3.25% for June

Jun 8, 2012

The Bank of Korea held off from altering borrowing costs for a 12th straight month as easing inflation gave policy makers room to wait and see how Europe's debt crisis and China's slowdown affect the economy. Governor Kim Choong-soo and his board kept the benchmark seven-day repurchase rate unchanged at 3.25 percent as predicted by all 15 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News. South Korea
Shares jump 2.56% on global stimulus hopes

Jun 7, 2012

South Korean stocks jumped 2.56 percent Thursday on predictions that Europe and the United States may make a concerted effort to tackle fiscal woes and implement measures to boost growth, analysts said. The local currency rose against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index soared 46.10 points to 1,847.95, marking the second straight session of gains. Trading volume was light at 377 million shares worth 5.81 trillion won ($4.96 billion), with gainers clearly outpacing los
FSC chief confident of Seoul win over Lone Star

Jun 7, 2012

Kim Seok-dong, chairman of the Financial Services Commission, said Thursday he was “100 percent” confident the Seoul government would win a case against Lone Star Funds over its claim for damages regarding the sale of Korea Exchange Bank.Lone Star Funds said last month it will initiate arbitration for its claim against the Korean government for delaying the sale of the Dallas-based private equity firm’s controlling stake in KEB. “The Korean government will win under any circumstance, even if it
KDB said to start sale of Samurai bonds

Jun 6, 2012

Korea Development Bank started marketing a sale of as much as 50 billion yen ($635 million) of Samurai bonds planned for next week, according to a person with direct knowledge of the matter.KDB told investors it plans to price the two-year notes to yield 60 basis points to 75 more than the yen swap rate as soon as June 13, said the person, asking not to be identified because the information is private.The lender is following Export-Import Bank of Korea, in selling yen-denominated debt as the ben
Overseas account holders required to report to NTS

Jun 6, 2012

People who have held more than 1 billion won ($850,000) in overseas accounts even for a day in the past year are required to report to the nation’s tax agency by the end of this month.Up to 100 million won in rewards will be given to others who report them.The National Tax Service said Wednesday it will receive reports from residents of Korea or domestic legal entities that own a total of more than 1 billion won in listed stocks or accounts in foreign financial institutions.The overseas financia
Financial firms’ household loans up in April: BOK

Jun 6, 2012

Household loans offered by South Korean depository institutions rose in April, despite ongoing government efforts to curb private debt. the central bank said Wednesday, Household lending by local banks and non-bank institutions totaled 639.58 trillion won ($541.09 billion) as of the end of April, up 2.46 trillion won from the preceding month, according to the Bank of Korea.The monthly total is the second highest after 639.60 trillion won tallied in December 2011. The gains also come after loans
Trading volume plunges on eurozone woes

Jun 6, 2012

KOSDAQ market cap dips below W100tr for first time since SeptemberThe market capitalization of local bourses and the value of daily stock trading plunged recently on growing investor angst as the European debt crisis continues to drag down the global economy. Rising concerns of a Greek exit from the eurozone and a bank run in Spain, along with slowing growth in the world’s two largest economies ― the U.S. and China ― have weakened investor sentiment.The aggregate market value of the benchmark KO
European fiscal crisis ‘worse than Depression’

Jun 5, 2012

KDB Financial chief says IPO does not mean privatization of his groupKDB Financial Group chairman Kang Man-soo said Tuesday that the current European economic condition is a more difficult situation than the Great Depression and would last longer.Speaking at a meeting with reporters, the former finance minister also said the Korea Development Bank will only go for Initial Public Offering this year, stressing that privatization is a matter that should be decided in the next government. “An IPO is
Outside directors to make up half of boards

Jun 5, 2012

More than half of financial company boards will be made up of outside directors who meet stricter qualifications, according to a new bill. The government reviewed and approved on Tuesday a proposal regarding the governance structure of financial companies at a Cabinet meeting presided over by President Lee Myung-bak. If the bill passes into law, financial companies will have to fill more than 50 percent of their boards with directors that come from outside the company. The role of the board will
Korean name for Standard Chartered CEO

Jun 5, 2012

Richard Hill, chief executive of Standard Chartered Bank Korea, obtained the Korean name “Koo Je-il” last week.Industrial Bank of Korea chief executive Cho Jun-hee suggested the name after Standard Chartered Bank’s former name “Jeil,” which means “first,” during a dinner meeting of the chiefs of 14 banks on May 29.“Koo” is the Korean pronunciation of the Chinese character for “hill.” Cho presented the Korean name to Hill in appreciation of the British CEO’s constant efforts to understand the Kor
Moody’s: No big change in Korea’s outlook

Jun 5, 2012

Credit rating agency says its outlook for Korea’s banking system remains stableThere have been no fundamental changes in Korea’s economic prospects since Moody’s Investors Service raised its outlook for the country in April amid the European debt crisis, a senior vice president for the company in Asia said Tuesday.“Nothing fundamental has changed since we raised the outlook,” Tom Byrne, senior vice president of Moody’s sovereign risk group for Asia, told reporters here.“The drop in demand from E