South Korean mobile payment app operator Kakao Pay has priced its initial public offering at 90,000 won ($76.60) per share, at the top end of its indicative price range of 60,000-90,000 won, the company said in a regulatory filing Friday. Kakao Pay, a 55:45 joint venture of internet giant Kakao Corp. and China’s Ant Group, wrapped up its book building on Thursday. While institutional investors placed their bids to obtain new shares for the IPO, a total of 1,545 domestic and overseas insti

Dear U, a company under S.M. Entertainment that provides a platform service connecting K-pop stars and their fans, is looking to launch a metaverse platform with funds to be raised through its initial public offering. “We are looking forward to establishing a solid foothold as the No. 1 global communication platform provider through listing on the country’s secondary Kosdaq market. We are planning on expanding our services such as a metaverse platform,” Dear U Vice President L

South Korean stocks closed nearly flat Friday as investors took a wait-and-see mode over the debt crisis of Evergrande Group, a leading Chinese property developer. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) slipped 1.17 points, or 0.04 percent, to close at 3,006.16 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 684 million shares worth some 8.9 trillion won ($7.6 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 546 to 296. Foreigners sold a net 107

South Korea's central bank will likely raise its policy rate at least twice next year as it will continue to normalize its eased monetary policy intended to prop up the pandemic-stricken economy, an analyst said Friday. Last week, the Bank of Korea kept the rate unchanged at 0.75 percent for October after conducting a quarter-percentage hike in August from 0.5 percent, a record low level put in place for years to bolster the economy under heavy strain from the coronavirus pandemic. Gov. Lee Ju

The amount of “jeonse” loans for homes extended to Koreans in their 20s and 30s surged by nearly 60 trillion won ($50.9 billion) in the last five years, raising alarm over the growing household debt burden among young borrowers, a lawmaker said Friday.  Jeonse is a housing lease system unique to Korea whereby tenants pay a lump-sum deposit instead of monthly rent on a two-year contract. The outstanding balance of jeonse loans at five major lenders here -- KB Kookmin Bank, Shin

South Korea will temporarily cut fuel taxes to soften the blow of skyrocketing gasoline prices, which put upward pressure on inflation, First Vice Finance Minister Lee Eog-weon said Friday.  “The government will temporarily lower fuel taxes. We’ll finalize further details, including the extent of fuel tax cuts and when the envisioned measure will take effect, as soon as possible,” Lee said, adding that the formal announcement will be made during a government meeting nex

Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum said Friday hard-hit businesses and low-risk facilities will be the first to benefit from eased COVID-19 restrictions starting next month. Kim made the remark during a meeting of a government-civilian panel overseeing the transition to life after COVID-19. "The return to normal will proceed in stages and systematically," he said. "We will take drastic and active steps to ease the virus restrictions starting with businesses and neglected groups that ha

South Korea plans to temporarily cut fuel taxes in a bid to ease upward pressure on inflation amid surging oil prices, a senior government official said Friday. First Vice Finance Minister Lee Eog-weon also said the government plans to additionally cut import tariffs on liquid natural gas (LNG), currently at 2 percent, as part of efforts to ease people's burdens on a hike in energy costs. "The government will unveil details about fuel tax cuts, including the timing and the scope, next wee

South Korean stocks opened slightly lower Friday amid concerns about a debt crisis of Evergrande Group, a leading Chinese property developer. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) slipped 3.11 points, or 0.1 percent, to 3,004.22 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Stocks got off to a weak start amid the uncertainties surrounding Evergrande, largely as the firm has to pay some $80 million worth of bond coupons by Saturday. Overnight, the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite added 0.62

Incheon International Airport, the main gateway to South Korea, has seen a sharp recovery in the number of inbound and outbound travelers over the past two months amid the country's push for a "Living with COVID-19" plan. According to Incheon International Airport Corp., the state-run operator of the airport, the number of international travelers departing or landing via Incheon jumped 44 percent, compared with a year earlier, to some 338,000 in August. It was the first monthly figur

South Korea’s KB Financial Group said Thursday its net profit in the January-September period came to 3.7 trillion won ($3.14 billion), eclipsing last year’s annual net profit. KB’s net profit in the first nine months of the year jumped 31.1 percent on-year and surpassed last year’s annual net profit of 3.4 trillion won, hitting a record high for the cited period. Onlookers said that the banking group is likely to see a record high for fiscal 2021 as well, likely surpas

Blackstone-backed handbag maker Simone Acc Collection said Thursday it has dropped its plan to go public, dashing hopes for the New York-based private fund investor’s exit from its South Korean portfolio firm. According to the filing with the Financial Supervisory Service, Simone has canceled the upcoming plans for an IPO and listing on the Korea Exchange. Its lead underwriters were Samsung Securities and Mirae Asset Securities. The news came after its two-day book building targeting in

Along with rally, exchanges expected to make robust profits: lawmaker

Despite policymakers’ assurance of home prices having reached their peak, the government appears to have set tax revenue on a scenario of housing values rising further next year. Rep. Yoo Gyeong-joon of the main opposition People Power Party on Thursday, quoting a state-funded study, said that the government’s tax revenue next year has been drafted based on its own estimation of housing prices in Seoul and the surrounding area growing 5.1 percent, According to the study conducted

KB Financial Group Inc. on Thursday reported its third-quarter net profit of 1.3 trillion won ($1.1 billion), up 9.3 percent from a year earlier. The company said in a regulatory filing that it posted 1.78 trillion won in operating profit for the quarter, compared with 1.41 trillion won a year ago. Sales rose 56.4 percent to 16.47 trillion won. The operating profit was 7.1 percent higher than the average estimate, according to the survey by Yonhap Infomax, the financial data firm of Yonhap New