South Korea will begin its annual meeting with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) this week on the country's overall economic situation as well as the response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the finance ministry said Monday. An IMF team, led by Martin Kaufman, Korea missions chief at the Washington-based organization, will hold a video conference with the Ministry of Economy and Finance on Tuesday before holding similar virtual meetings with officials of the central bank, and other financial and

A campaign pledge by ruling party presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung has sent jitters through the finance sector as he vowed to hand the nation’s financial watchdog stronger legal authority to side with consumers when settling disputes with insurers. The ruling party’s presidential election campaign committee on Friday announced that Lee seeks to ban insurers from not conceding to orders from the Financial Supervisory Service to financially compensate their customers without a &ld

Next to Canada, Korea ranks 18th of 38 members in 2020

Sales of short-term corporate bonds in South Korea jumped more than 20 percent in 2021 from a year earlier amid the coronavirus pandemic, data showed Monday. Local companies issued 1,243.7 trillion won ($1.04 trillion) worth of short-term bonds, up 20.6 percent from a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Securities Depository (KSD). Short-term bonds refer to those that come due within one year, with the minimum amount of 100 million won or more per issue. Sales of general short-

Foreign direct investment (FDI) pledges made to South Korea surged 42.3 percent in 2021 from a year earlier to reach an all-time high, data showed Monday. Foreigners pledged to invest $29.51 billion in South Korea in 2021, compared with $20.7 billion a year earlier, according to the data by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The 2021 figure hit an all-time high, beating the previous record of $26.9 billion logged in 2018, it added. The amount of investment that actually arrived in So

South Korean stocks opened lower Monday as investors took to the sidelines in the wake of the US Federal Reserve minutes last week that signaled possibilities of aggressive tapering policy. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) fell 24.17 points, or 0.82 percent, to 2,930.72 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite lost 0.96 percent and the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.01 percent amid concerns that the Fed may push harsher-than-expe

Foreigners continued to be net buyers of South Korean stocks and bonds in December, data showed Monday. According to the data from the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS), foreigners picked up a net 4.36 trillion won worth of stocks listed on the Kospi and secondary Kosdaq markets last month. Foreigners continued to buy more shares than they sold for the second straight month since November. As of end-December, foreigners owned 785.23 trillion won worth of local stocks, which accounted for 28

Experts remain divided over whether Korea’s central bank will carry out a rate hike at its first rate-setting meeting of the year set for Friday. The upcoming monetary policy board meeting comes as the Korean economy continues to struggle with high inflationary pressure and the US Federal Reserve’s recent signal of a sooner-than-expected rate hike. A majority of experts see a rate hike coming Friday or next month, and the Bank of Korea is expected to raise its benchmark interest

South Korea's exports of kimchi hit an all-time high last year thanks to its growing popularity, data showed Sunday. Outbound shipments of the spicy Korean traditional side dish came to a record $159.9 million in 2021, resulting in a trade surplus of $19.2 million in the sector, according to the data from the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. It is the first time in 12 years that South Korea registered a surplus in the kimchi trade. Kimchi is a traditional Korean side dish norm

The South Korean economy faces heightened downside risks, as the country has tightened antivirus measures to curb the spread of COVID-19 cases and the global economic recovery has slowed down, a state-run think tank said Sunday. Since December, the recovery of private spending has been constrained by tighter social distancing measures to tackle the spike in COVID-19 infections, the Korea Development Institute (KDI) said in a monthly economic assessment report. "On the external side, globa

South Korea's bourse operator said Sunday that it will launch a domestic capital market information portal in English this week to provide more information to foreign investors. The service, dubbed Market Data System, will be provided through the website (http://global.krx.co.kr) starting Monday, the Korea Exchange (KRX) said. The KRX said the website will improve information accessibility and convenience for foreign investors whose influence in the domestic capital market has continuously inc

South Korean stocks are likely to come under downward pressure next week amid concerns that the US Federal Reserve's tapering policy may be harsher than expected, analysts said Saturday. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) closed at 2,954.89 points Friday, down 0.76 percent from last Thursday, the final session of last year. Stocks traded bearish this week, as investors are worried that the Fed's latest minutes supported aggressive rate hikes and a contraction of its balan

K-Bank, a South Korean internet-only bank, said Friday it has begun the process of an initial public offering (IPO) as part of efforts to raise funds to strengthen its foothold as a major digital financial platform. K-Bank sent a request for proposal to local and foreign securities firms earlier in the day, the first step of a company going public. It also plans to select a lead manager for an IPO by next month, according to company officials. "Details on IPO timelines will be determine

Seoul shares ended higher Friday spurred by gains in tech shares, though investors remain concerned about the Fed's looming tapering move. The Korean won fell against the US dollar.  The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 34.36 points, or 1.18 percent, to close at 2,954.89 points. The KOSPI rebounded from a 2.3 percent drop in the previous two sessions. The decline was attributable to Fed meeting minutes that suggested the US central bank may raise interest rates s

Woori Bank, one of five major local banks, said Friday it had stopped selling funds involving Osstem Implant, whose shares were suspended from trading on the Kosdaq after an employee was arrested for having allegedly stolen funds equal to 91 percent of the company’s equity as of last year. “It’s a precautionary measure to protect our investors and we do not know at this point when we will begin selling the funds again,” a Woori Bank official said, adding five funds