South Korean stocks opened lower Thursday, taking a cue from overnight losses on Wall Street that stemmed from concerns about aggressive rate hikes. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) had slipped 9.74 points, or 0.44 percent, to 2,227.7 points as of 9:16 a.m. Stocks got off to a weak start as investors expected further hikes in the policy interest rates at home and in major economies. Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.33 percent and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Com

SoftBank-backed South Korean financial technology startup Qraft Technologies highlighted the role of artificial intelligence in equity asset allocation, as AI plays a complementary role to boost productivity and efficiency of human's tasks. An AI engine can pursue above-average returns with the capability to analyze massive amounts of financial data and discover relationships that humans hardly find, according to Qraft Technologies Chief Product Officer Alan Jo at The Korea Herald Biz Forum

South Korea plans to seek a structural change in the labor market of its shipbuilding industry, the finance ministry said Wednesday, amid growing criticism over shipbuilders taking advantage of subcontractors. "Recently, the overall conditions for our shipbuilding industry have been improving, with the number of orders rising following the recovery of the global shipbuilding market, coupled with higher prices," Finance Minister Choo Kyung-ho said during a meeting with economy-related m

South Korean stocks opened nearly flat Wednesday as investors took to the sidelines amid earnings reports and woes over aggressive rate hikes. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) had inched up 0.49 points, or 0.02 percent, to 2,250.44 points as of 9:20 a.m. Auto and steel companies advanced, while chemical and financial shares declined. Market bellwether Samsung Electronics traded flat, and chip giant SK hynix lost 1.67 percent. Top automaker Hyundai Motor added 0.3 percent,

Labor minister pledges to speed up reform of labor market at AmCham luncheon meeting

Labor minister pledges to speed up reform of labor market at AmCham luncheon meeting

South Korean stocks ended sharply higher on Tuesday as institutions and foreigners picked up issues ahead of corporate earnings of major companies this week. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 30.24 points, or 1.36 percent, to close at 2,249.95 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 572.65 million shares worth some 7.13 trillion won ($5 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 800 to 88. Overnight, the Dow Jones Industr

South Korea’s cryptocurrency exchange Upbit is set to replace its fast login service via KakaoTalk next month, while in damage control mode from the recent Kakao data center fire fiasco. Dunamu, the operator of Korea’s No.1 crypto exchange by trading volume, will end its login service via KakaoTalk, fully replacing it with its own login system from Nov. 21, the firm’s spokesperson said Tuesday. “The new service will be adopted on Oct. 31 and fully kick off on Nov. 21 af

South Korean shares opened higher Tuesday, tracking rallies on Wall Street that jumped ahead of corporate earnings announcements by major firms this week. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 25.84 points, or 1.16 percent, to 2,245.55 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.86 percent and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite jumped 3.43 percent as investors geared up for third-quarter corporate earnings of such big-name firms as N

South Korea's stock market advanced for a second consecutive session on Monday as investors went on the hunt for undervalued stocks. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. After choppy trading, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added 7.16 points, or 0.32 percent, to close at 2,219.71 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 487 million shares worth some 6.4 trillion won ($4.5 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 538 to 322. Foreigners bought a net 264 bil

South Korea’s financial watchdog launched a probe into the overall contingency plan of Kakao’s financial arms and how they dealt with a service disruption over the weekend caused by a fire at a data center, officials said Monday. The Financial Supervisory Service requested Kakao Bank, Kakao Pay and Kakao Pay Securities to file a report on their hourly countermeasures against the server disruption that lasted more than 30 hours, on top of its existing contingency plan. The FSS noted

SEJONG -- Shipping costs for container cargo bound for the west coast of the United States inched down in September from a month earlier amid mounting worries over a US economic downturn, government data showed Monday. The average freight rate for a 40-foot container from Asia's fourth-largest economy to the US west coast fell 0.4 percent on-year to 13.88 million won ($960,000), according to the data from the Korea Customs Service (KCS). From a year earlier, however, the rate rose 19.1 perc

South Korea plans to overhaul a set of business regulations as part of efforts to bolster investment, the finance ministry said Monday, amid growing fears over an economic slump. The decision was made during a meeting of economy-related ministries presided over by Finance Minister Choo Kyung-ho, according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance. South Korea plans to overhaul 24 business-linked regulations, which is expected to help the country raise investment worth 1.5 trillion won ($1.03 billio

South Korean stocks opened steeply lower Monday as the recent plunge on Wall Street spooked local investors. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) had dropped 29.1 points, or 1.32 percent, to 2,183.45 as of 9:17 a.m. On Friday, the Nasdaq Composite tumbled 3.08 percent and the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.34 percent amid woes over higher inflation. The S&P 500 retreated 2.37 percent. In Seoul, market bellwether Samsung Electronics shed 0.53 percent, and chip giant SK

Both tech rivals suffer almost 30 percent fall in share prices amid skepticism about future growth drivers