Sheraton Seoul Palace Gangnam Hotel, the first five-star hotel in Seoul’s posh district of Gangnam, is up for sale again after a sales deal earlier this year fell through due to the new coronavirus pandemic, according to reports Friday. Seojoo Industry Development, a local developer and the current owner of the high-end hotel, has reportedly appointed local brokerage Samsung Securities and real estate services firm CBRE Korea as lead managers of the planned deal. The local developer

South Korean asset management company Mirae Asset Global Investments said Friday that two new exchange traded funds focused on semiconductors, robots and artificial intelligence businesses in China have been listed on the Hong Kong Exchange and Clearing, the sole securities and derivatives exchange in Hong Kong. The Chinese chip sector has been fast growing in recent years in tandem with the growth of IT and internet platform businesses in the local market. Many Chinese companies, especially

South Korean shares opened higher Friday on high expectations about the US stimulus package. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 9.5 points, or 0.41 percent, to 2,352.11 in the first 15 minutes of trading. The index got off to a strong start, set to continue its winning streak since Monday. Investor sentiment remained high, largely on expectations that the US stimulus package is nearing an accord. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.68 percent to close at 27,2

South Korea’s sole bourse operator said Thursday that it would further review possible delisting of biotechnology firm SillaJen. SillaJen submitted its business normalization scheme to the bourse operator last month. The KRX’s Kosdaq Market Committee was to decide whether to lift the company’s trading suspension or delist it from the nation’s tech-heavy Kosdaq market. Officials said the committee would resume discussion without setting a date, but that it would be some

Kospi surges 60% to nearly 2-year high, some forecast reaching 2,400 points in H2

BOK still hopeful of trade surplus reaching its annual goal of $57b

South Korean beauty video app Zamface said Thursday that it has raised 5.5 billion won ($4.64 million) in series A funding from multiple investors to expand into the Southeast Asian market. STIC Ventures and Timewise investment as well as existing investors Korea Investment Partners joined the round. Series A refers to the first stage of fundraising for a startup after its foundation, as it gears up for full-fledged business operations. Launched in June last year, total downloads of the m

South Korean brokerage firm Mirae Asset Daewoo posted a second-quarter operating profit of 387.1 billion won ($327 million) and net profit of 304.1 billon won on Thursday on the back of a stock market rally. The operating profit marked a 47.9 percent on-year increase, a 179.2 percent jump from the previous quarter. The figure stood at an all-time quarterly high since its merger with Mirae Asset Securities at the end of December 2016, officials said. It was even 37.1 percent higher than market

South Korea’s financial watchdog said Thursday it will hold a sanctions committee later this month concerning Hanwha Group’s insurance unit’s financial support for the conglomerate’s duty-free business, posing a threat to the company‘s digital transition drive.  According to the Financial Supervisory Service, Hanwha Life Insurance paid for the interior decoration of Hanwha TimeWorld’s duty-free shop at the 63 Building in Yeouido in Seoul in 2016. 

South Korea's economy is expected to contract 1 percent in 2020 from a year earlier due to the coronavirus pandemic, a private think tank said Thursday. The latest growth projection by the LG Economic Research Institute (LGERI) is much lower than its previous estimate of 1.8 percent expansion made in September last year. The think tank, affiliated with South Korea's fourth-largest conglomerate LG Group, predicted Asia's fourth-largest economy will recover and grow 2.5 percent on-year in 2021

South Korean shares opened sharply higher Thursday, taking a cue from overnight gains on Wall Street over economic rebound hopes. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 22.26 points, or 0.96 percent, to 2,334.12 in the first 15 minutes of trading. The index came to a strong start after closing at a nearly two-year high in the previous session. Investor sentiment remained high despite the nationwide downpour and concerns about the coronavirus pandemic. Stocks lifted

South Korea’s largest internet-only bank said Wednesday that its number of monthly active users in June surpassed 11 million — the highest in the nation’s entire bank industry. Kakao Bank’s increasing number of users also boosted its earnings in the first half with its net profit standing at 45.3 billion won, nearly five times higher than the 9.6 billion won it posted a year earlier. In the second quarter alone, the net profit came in at 26.8 billion won. Increased

In a bid to calm real estate prices, South Korea’s ruling party said Monday it would seek legislation to levy a heavier tax on property speculation by foreign nationals. The Democratic Party of Korea and the government said the bill would impose a 20 percent acquisition tax on home purchases by foreign nationals if the buyers do not reside there for more than six months out of the year without an acceptable reason. The current law states that taxes for foreign nationals buying real est

South Korea’s main bourse Kospi on Wednesday rose 31.89 points, or 1.4 percent, to 2,311.86, recovering above the level of 2,300 after nearly 22 months, on retail investors’ buying spree for a sixth consecutive session as signs of economic recovery improved investor sentiment. It was the first time the index moved above the 2,300-point mark since Oct. 4, 2018, when it marked 2,311.06. The closing also marked the highest since 2,338.88 on Oct. 1 in the same year. The index hit an i

Fiscal chief vows stern watch on expediencies, dismisses discord with Seoul City over redevelopment