Korea Development Bank to inject W800b into megadeal to help Korean Air acquire Asiana

South Korean stocks surged to a nearly three-year high Monday despite the spreading coronavirus woes, buoyed by a rally in chipmakers and vaccine hopes that fueled investor appetite for risky assets. The Korean won rose to the highest in nearly two years against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 49.16 points, or 1.97 percent, to close at 2,543.03. The reading marks the highest closing since 2,568.54 points on Feb. 1, 2018. Trading volume was high at a

SEJONG -- South Korea's antitrust regulator is likely to give conditional approval to a $4 billion deal by Germany's Delivery Hero to acquire the nation's top food delivery app operator, Woowa Brothers, Delivery Hero officials said Monday. Delivery Hero officials in South Korea said the Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) informed them that it would grant permission for the deal on the condition that the German firm sells its food delivery affiliate here, Yogiyo. Officials at the KFTC were not

More than 100,000 residential units likely to be supplied in Seoul and surrounding areas

Bank of Korea Gov. Lee Ju-yeol attended a videoconference with central bank representatives from 11 Asia-Pacific nations, the nation’s central bank said Monday. Key topics included the effects of COVID-19 on the economy. The 25th Executives’ Meeting of East Asia-Pacific Central Banks was a follow-up to a similar meeting held Aug. 19. The long-term effects of the pandemic on the economy, GDP outlooks and the digitalization of central banks were among the topics discussed, the BOK s

Opinions divided on whether BOK should adopt US Fed’s ‘dual mandate’ under current pandemic

Samsung Electronics shares hit all-time high, up more than 17 percent in Nov.

South Korea’s government and the ruling Democratic Party of Korea have decided to lower the maximum legal lending rate to 20 percent from the current 24 percent starting next year to ease financial burdens on beleaguered debtors, the nation’s top financial regulator said Monday. Through the rate cut, nearly 87 percent or 2.08 million of 2.39 million borrowers across the country -- being charged with 20 percent interest rate per annum or more -- are expected to see their debt shrin

South Korea's exports of automobiles fell 3.2 percent on-year in October after rebounding briefly the previous month, as the resurgence of COVID-19 cases around the globe hurt consumer sentiment.   Local carmakers shipped a combined 200,666 units of automobiles overseas last month, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. In terms of value, auto exports edged up 5.8 percent to $4 billion.   During the January-September period, the countr

South Korea will hold the fourth round of negotiations with Chile this week on revising their bilateral free trade agreement (FTA) that went into effect in 2004, Seoul's trade ministry said Monday. The two-day videoconference talks, which are set to begin Tuesday, will focus on expanding the scope of free trade and updating terms of the 15-year-old FTA, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The two sides will also hold discussions on five categories -- goo

South Korea's outbound shipments of information and communication technology (ICT) products rose 6 percent in October from a year earlier due to global demand for the country's semiconductors and displays, data showed Monday. Exports of ICT products stood at $16.4 billion last month, according to data from the Ministry of Science and ICT, marking an on-year rise since June this year. ICT imports stood at $10.2 billion in October, up 9.2 percent over the cited period, leading to a trade surplus

Korean Air Lines Co., South Korea's biggest carrier, said Monday that it will acquire Asiana Airlines Inc. in a deal valued at 1.8 trillion won ($1.6 billion) that would create the world's 10th-biggest airline by fleets. Korean Air plans to raise 2.5 trillion won via rights offerings early next year. Of the proceeds, it will spend 1.5 trillion won to buy new shares to be sold by Asiana and 300 billion won worth of Asiana perpetual bonds, the company said in a statement. "The company mad

South Korean stocks opened sharply higher Monday on strong advances by chip and auto heavyweights, despite concerns over the spreading coronavirus pandemic in the global markets. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 21.86 points, or 0.88 percent, to 2,515.73 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Investor sentiment remained strong in the wake of the vaccine rally that elevated the KOSPI to an over 2-year high and the S&P 500 to a pre-pandemic high. The strong local c

South Korea's exports fell 3.8 percent on-year in October on fewer working days and the fallout of the new coronavirus outbreak, customs data showed Monday. The country's overseas shipments stood at $44.9 billion last month, compared with $46.6 billion the previous year, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service. The October tally snapped a brief rebound in September, when the country's exports rebounded for the first time in seven months by growing 7.3 percent on-year amid the COVI

Loans to accommodation and food services sectors have jumped due to a recent resurgence of the novel coronavirus, central bank data showed Monday. Outstanding loans to lodging and eating businesses totaled 71.1 trillion won ($64.2 billion) as of September, up 21.5 percent from a year ago, according to the data by the Bank of Korea (BOK). The BOK measured the sectors' production index at 79.7 at the end of September, the lowest since February 2007. The index rebounded to 99.8 in July but beg