South Korea’s Hana Financial Group has nominated Vice Chairman Ham Young-joo to be the next chairman of the banking group. On Tuesday, firm’s chairman nomination committee tapped Ham as the sole nominee for the position, citing his performance in generating profit and bolstering stability in business. Ham has also shown “extraordinary leadership” in managing the group and is expected to lead Hana into the future with digital transformation, the committee said in a statem

SEJONG -- Gasoline prices in South Korea climbed for the 30th consecutive day in tandem with international crude prices, adding to the burden on households and businesses. According to the Korea National Oil Corp., the price of gasoline rose to 1,688.19 won ($1.41) per liter on Tuesday. This marked a rebound stretching 30 consecutive days, starting from Jan. 10 after posting 1,621.3 won on Jan. 9. The current level marked the highest in more than two months -- since Nov. 22, when it reached 1,

South Korean stocks closed nearly flat Tuesday, paring most earlier gains, in the face of elevating trade tensions between the world's two largest economies. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) edged up 1.41 points, or 0.05 percent, to close at 2,746.47 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 555 million shares worth some 11.6 trillion won ($9.7 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 544 to 313. Foreigners sold a net 97 b

Some 400,000 people were found to have left Seoul to move to neighboring metropolitan areas last year, government data showed Tuesday, with surging housing prices being cited as the key reason behind the exodus. According to Statistics Korea, a total of 406,975 people submitted change-of-address requests from Seoul addresses last year. Of the total, 362,116 moved to Gyeonggi Province, while 44,859 left for Incheon. The latest data corresponds with the Seoul city government’s data relea

South Korea's finance minister said Tuesday global credit appraisers are concerned about the growth pace of the country's national debt, which could negatively affect its sovereign rating over the medium term. Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki also reiterated his opposition to political parties' push for sharply jacking up a proposed extra budget of 14 trillion won ($11.7 billion), citing concerns about fiscal soundness. Ahead of the March presidential election, political parties are calling for a

South Korea and Britain have agreed to launch talks this year to upgrade their free trade deal in a move to deepen ties in digital trade and other new issues, Seoul's trade ministry said Tuesday. The agreement was made during an initial meeting of the South Korea-Britain free trade agreement (FTA) committee in London on Monday. The meeting was attended by South Korea's Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo and Britain's Secretary of State for International Trade Anne-Marie Trevelyan. The two nations cli

South Korean oil refiners' key profitability measure has been rising sharply this year on a global economic recovery, boding well for their earnings, industry sources said Tuesday. The benchmark Singapore complex gross refining margin (GRM) stood at $7.5 per barrel for the first week of this month, up sharply from the $1-2 range a year earlier. Usually, South Korean refiners turn a profit if the refining margin is above at least $4 per barrel. Hit by a plunge in oil demand due to the coronavi

South Korea’s top financial regulator has contracted COVID-19, the Financial Services Commission said Monday. Financial Services Commission Chairman Koh Seung-beom tested positive for the novel coronavirus before noon despite having received three doses of a vaccine, the FSC said in a statement. Koh has no plans to be hospitalized at the moment and is currently self-isolated at home. He has yet to show any signs of severe symptoms, according to the FSC. The financial regulator has supp

SEJONG -- The average yearly wage for foreign workers in South Korea is estimated to have surpassed 30 million won ($25,000) for the first time in 2021, state data showed. The prediction is based on the year-end tax adjustments of foreign employees for their earnings in 2020 and 2019. According to the National Tax Service, about 545,000 foreign employees in the nation carried out year-end tax adjustments for their earnings in 2020. Their average wage posted 29.26 million won per annum, with th

South Korean stocks ended their three-day winning streak on Monday, largely as investors attempted to cash in profits from recent stock rallies. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) retreated 5.2 points, or 0.19 percent, to close at 2,745.06 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 410 million shares worth some 11.1 trillion won ($9.2 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 467 to 385. Institutions sold a net 834 billion

Korean investors are pulling out money from their investment accounts to reallocate it to safer options such as money market funds as they seek to ride out volatility gripping the local stock market, data showed Sunday. As of Thursday, credit-backed loans for stock investments stood at 21 trillion won ($17.5 billion), down about 4 trillion won from a record high of 25 trillion won in September last year. Since then, the deposit borrowed from brokerages on investors’ credit has been shri

The nation’s top chaebol leaders saw their stock assets fall sharply in January, as the nation’s benchmark Kospi entered a bear market, while some firms grappling with controversies also took a beating. The total value of stocks owned by the nation’s top 33 chaebol owners was estimated at 55.43 trillion won ($46.19 billion) in January, down 13.8 percent from a month ago, according to data from market tracker Korea CXO Institute Monday. Hyundai Development Co. Chairman Chung

South Korea’s Woori Financial Group said Monday it has nominated Senior Deputy President Lee Won-duk to lead its flagship commercial bank. The firm’s CEO recommendation committee last month had shortlisted three candidates for the position -- Lee, Park Hwa-jae, deputy president of Woori Bank‘s credit support unit and Jeon Sang-wook, deputy president of the bank’s risk management unit. Lee was tapped due to his “broad understanding” of the group’s core

The market saw a record high of 19.7 trillion won ($16.4 billion) flowing in to initial public offering deals last year, a 333.9 percent increase on-year from 4.5 trillion won the previous year, data from the nation’s financial watchdog showed Monday. Buoyed by the surge in local stock prices and ample liquidity, the number of firms that debuted on the market last year increased 27.1 percent to 89, according to the Financial Supervisory Service. Of the firms, 14 debuted on the main bour

The amount of money South Korean firms raised through initial public offerings (IPOs) more than quadrupled to hit a record high last year thanks to ample liquidity and the overall bullish stock market sentiment, data showed Monday. A total of 89 companies went public in 2021 by listing stocks on the benchmark KOSPI and secondary tech-heavy KOSDAQ markets and raised a combined 19.7 trillion won ($16.4 billion), according to the data from the Financial Supervisory Service. The money raised from