South Korean stocks fell 1.04 percent on Monday as lingering concerns over the eurozone debt situation overshadowed hopes for positive U.S. economic data, analysts said. The local currency slipped against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) slumped 19.14 points to 1,820.03. Trading volume was moderate at 296.6 million shares worth 3.93 trillion won ($3.45 billion), with decliners outnumbering gainers 543 to 292.“Persistent worries over Europe’s debt debacle li

The prosecution is expected to investigate Financial Services Commission Chairman Kim Seok-dong and seven other regulatory officials for their allegedly light action on Lone Star Funds.The Minbyun, or Lawyers for a Democratic Society, in coordination with the People’s Solidarity for Participatory Democracy filed a complaint with the prosecution against the eight FSC officials on Monday, citing their allegedly “neglecting duties” and “abusing authority.”The seven other FSC officials are vice chai

HONG KONG ― South Korean securities firms’ investment in China rose nearly six-fold on-year in the first half of this year due to China’s growing importance as the world’s No. 2 economy, Seoul’s financial regulators said Monday.Investments made in mainland China by South Korean brokerages totaled 197.8 billion won ($ 31.1 billion) as of the end of June, up 598.9 percent from the previous year, said Financial Supervisory Service officials in Hong Kong.The tally includes money spent on purchasing

South Korean banks need to strengthen their balance sheets through more deleveraging in order to survive a set of new global capital requirements, a former Basel committee official said Monday. “Complex securities and derivatives are proven less profitable for banks ... they need to turn to another direction and deleverage their balance sheets and comply with the Basel requirements,” Nout Wellink, the former chairman of the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS), said an interview with Yo

The Bank of Korea chose one of its own officials to manage the nation’s $311 billion in foreign- exchange reserves after its first public recruitment campaign for the job.Choo Heung-sik, currently director at the bank’s Reserve Management Group, will replace Hong Taeg-ki as the group’s director-general, the central bank said on Monday. The decision followed the central bank’s announcement in September the three-year position will be open to both central bank officials and outsiders, with work ex

South Korea’s household credit rose to near 900 trillion won ($789.5 billion) in the third quarter, but quarterly growth slowed on the regulator’s move to curb home debt, the central bank said Monday.Household credit totaled a record 892.5 trillion won as of the end of September, up 16.2 trillion won from three months earlier, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK).Third-quarter growth slowed from the 18.9 trillion won on-quarter expansion tallied in the second quarter, but the aggregate household

Korea Deposit Insurance Corp., South Korea’s state-run deposit insurer, is pushing to float up to 14 trillion won ($12 billion) worth of unsecured bonds in a bid to brace for an overhaul of savings banks, financial sources said Monday.KDIC plans to issue 300 billion won worth of unsecured bonds every week starting next month in a bid to prepare funds totaling 14 trillion won, according to the sources.The move is expected to help government efforts to salvage the fragile sector.In March, a specia

SEOUL, Nov. 21 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's finance minister said Monday that there is a need to take measures to lessen the fallout from excessive cross-border capital flows in order to help the global economy move forward.Speaking at a forum arranged by the Asian Development Bank and the Institute fo

The antitrust watchdog launched a probe into banks and credit card companies for possible manipulation in their service charges, industry sources confirmed Sunday, intensifying its push to slash fees further. The Fair Trade Commission is said to have launched their investigation into 17 local banks and more than 13 credit card firms to see if they conspired to fix prices to ease competition. Charged guilty, the case be a major blow to their balance sheet where the fines could add up to several h

South Korean stocks are forecast to move in a tight range next week as fiscal debt problems in Europe and the United States will weigh on investor sentiment, analysts here said Saturday.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index closed at 1,839.17 on Friday, down 1.27 percent from a week earlier.The market suffered ups and downs throughout the week, affected by news coming from the debt-ridden eurozone economy.Foreign investors sold a net 595.9 billion won ($523.2 million) worth of stocks h