Listed units of South Korea's top 10 conglomerates account for slightly over half of the country's stock market capitalization, data showed Wednesday, pointing to their huge clout in Asia's fourth-largest economy.According to the data by corporate tracker CEO Score, 181 listed subsidiaries of the 10 largest family-controlled business groups, known as chaebol here, had a combined market capitalization of 778.5 trillion won ($700 billion) as of end-July, or 51.2 percent of the value of all shares

Samsung Group, the country's top conglomerate, saw its affiliates log weaker than expected earnings during the second quarter of the year, while No. 2 Hyundai Motor Group managed to rack up decent bottom lines, data showed on Wednesday.According to the data compiled by market researcher FnGuide, 35 companies affiliated with the nation's top five conglomerates reported their second-quarter earnings and 22 of them posted market forecast-beating profits.In the case of Samsung, four out of its 11 af

Hyundai Motor Co. and its smaller affiliate, Kia Motors Corp., saw their combined sales in the United States rise 6 percent in July, thanks in large part to strong sales in sport utility vehicles, data showed Tuesday.The two South Korean auto giants sold a combined 134,972 units in the U.S. last month, up from 127,324 units in the same month last year, the data showed. Hyundai's sales rose 5.6 percent from last year to 75,003 while Kia's totaled 59,969 units, up 6.4 percent compared with a year

Home-backed mortgage loans extended by local banks rose in July, due mostly to the recovery of the sagging housing market, according to banking industry officials Tuesday.

[THE INVESTOR] Kang Man-soo, the former head of Korea Development Bank, has come under scrutiny in the expanding Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering probe, with the prosecution raiding his home and office on Tuesday.Kang, a former finance minister and former presidential advisor, is one of the closest aides of former President Lee Myung-bak. Kang Man-sooAccording to reports, the prosecution believes that Kang was involved in the wrongdoing of two former DSME CEOs -- Nam Sang-tae and Ko Ja

South Korean equity funds investing in Brazilian shares yielded much higher than other overseas stock funds in July ahead of the Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, a market tracker said Tuesday.According to fund rating and consulting firm KG Zeroin, Brazilian equity-related funds posted the highest return of 8.33 percent among overseas stock funds here as of July 29.Funds for healthcare stocks trailed with 6.69 percent, followed by German equity funds with 6.39 percent and funds for basic materi

South Korean stocks opened lower Tuesday as falling oil prices pressured down chemical stocks and gave pause to rallies in local equity prices. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 6.3 points, or 0.31 percent, to 2,023.31 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Petrochemical shares slid as U.S. crude on Monday fell below $40 per barrel for the first time since April on concerns over a supply glut. Top refiner SK Innovation decreased 1.33 percent, and No. 3 S-Oil retreated 1.41 percent

The power of gaming content is evident nowadays as a growing number of smartphone users seek quality and entertaining content whenever and wherever. Just look at Nintendo and its affiliate Niantic, which recently hit the jackpot with the augmented-reality mobile game “Pokemon Go” based on the animated character series. Similarly, Korea’s listed gamer SundayToz expects to see growth with its flagship puzzle game “Anipang.” The success of its new “Anipang” game series will be reflected in its earn

LG Uplus Corp., South Korea's third-largest mobile carrier, said Monday its net profit for the second quarter rose 12.8 percent from a year earlier, thanks to curbs in marketing spending. LG Uplus reported a net profit of 130.7 billion won ($117.4 million) for the April-June period, compared with a profit of 115.9 billion won for the same quarter last year, according to the company's regulatory filing. South Korean telecom firms have benefited from a 2015 law that kept fierce competition to woo

South Korean shares traded 0.67 percent up in late Monday morning as strong foreign buying boosted local shares.  The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index scored 13.43 points to 2,029.62 as of 11:20 a.m.Tech shares led the gains. Market kingpin Samsung Electronics surged 2.14 percent, continuing its rally after posting robust second-quarter earnings, and chip giant SK hynix advanced 1.31 percent.Auto shares were in the positive terrain. Industry leader Hyundai Motor increased 1.89 percent

Share buybacks by South Korea's listed companies increased 244.8 percent on-year to 6.31 trillion won ($5.6 billion) in the first seven months of this year from a year earlier, data showed Monday.A total of 64 companies -- listed on the main bourse and the tech-heavy Kosdaq market -- had announced the share buybacks in regulatory filings as of July 27, compared with 1.83 trillion won by 47 firms from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by the bourse operator Korea Exchange.By market,

South Korean stocks opened higher Monday, taking its cue from gains in Wall Street.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 10.32 points, or 0.51 percent, to 2,026.51 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Tech shares led the gains. Market kingpin Samsung Electronics surged 2.14 percent, continuing its rally after posting robust second-quarter earnings, and chip giant SK hynix advanced 1.74 percent.Auto shares were in the positive terrain. Industry leader Hyundai Motor increased 1.14 pe

Workers in finance and insurance earned the most at a monthly average of 5.37 million won ($4,830) in May, followed by employees working at electricity, gas and water supply services with 4.89 million won, according to the Labor Ministry. The average monthly wage of a regular worker at a business with more than five employees stood at 3.13 million won, up 2.9 percent from a year ago.

South Korean shares are expected to remain in a tight range this week as investors are forecast to take the sidelines ahead of key economic events around the globe, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index closed at 2,016.19 points on Friday, up 0.40 percent from a week ago.The index started almost unchanged this week as investors took to the sidelines waiting for the U.S. Federal Open Market Committee meeting results. This week, investors are forecast to await the release o

The ratio of South Korean workers exempt from paying earned income taxes reached 48.1 percent in 2014, higher than numbers found in other advanced economies, a local report said Sunday.According to the July edition of the Finance Forum released by the Korea Institute of Public Finance (KIPF), the percentage of Korean workers who did not pay taxes on their income has been falling from 47.6 percent in 2006 to 32.4 percent in 2013, but jumped sharply the following year. The sharp increase in 2014 f