South Korea’s credit default risk has dropped to its lowest point in over 12 years, to a level last seen before the 2008 global financial crisis, government data showed Wednesday.The credit default swap premium on the country’s foreign exchange stabilization bonds with a five-year maturity came to 27 basis points as of Tuesday on the New York market, according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance. The spread on CDS reflects the cost of hedging credit risks on corporate or sovereign

South Korea's total supply in manufacturing edged up 1.4 percent in the third quarter from a year earlier on increased imports, government data showed Wednesday.The manufacturing domestic supply index -- which measures both goods produced locally and brought into South Korea -- stood atn 102.8 during the July-September period, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. South Korea's total supply in manufacturing declined 3.9 percent and 0.8 percent in the first and second quarter, respe

Asset manager Mirae Asset Global Investments has been a trailblazer among South Korean financial institutions in entering global markets. According to the asset management unit of Mirae Asset Financial Group on Wednesday, it was the first among its peers to establish a Hong Kong subsidiary in 2003. The move marked its first foray overseas. In 2005, it became the first Korean asset manager to launch an offshore fund and provided local investors early opportunities to make overseas investments.In

Kwon Yong-won, chairman of the self-regulatory organization Korea Financial Investment Association, was found dead Wednesday, according to local news reports.The Bangbae Police Station said the unnatural death of the financial officer was reported during the day, adding that the detailed cause of death has yet to be identified.The financial officer’s reported death came in the wake of a recent allegations of his verbal abuse against staff -- behavior dubbed “gapjil” in Korean.L

Elderly South Koreans' medical spending covered by the state health insurance program exceeded the 30-trillion-won ($25.9 billion) mark to reach a record high in 2018, data showed Wednesday. Medical expenses for people aged 65 and older came to an all-time high of 31.8 trillion won last year, according to the data by the National Health Insurance Service. The figure was up 12.4 percent from the previous year and 2.1 times from 2011. It took up 40.8 percent of last year's total medical spending o

South Korea on Wednesday adopted a scheme to cap presale prices of privately built apartments in its extended efforts to stabilize real estate markets.Seoul revised related laws last month to execute the "presale price cap system" for apartments to be built by private builders amid signs of escalating home prices."Demand for new homes in (the capital city of) Seoul has risen sharply due to record-low rates and ample liquidity in the markets.Presale prices of newly built apartments

South Korea's current account surplus reached an 11-month high in September, although its amount narrowed from a year earlier due to slowing exports, central bank data showed Wednesday.The country's current account surplus reached $7.48 billion in September, compared with a surplus of $11.01 billion a year earlier, according to the preliminary data from the Bank of Korea.The figure represents a surplus for five months in a row. The current account is the biggest measure of cross-border trade.The

The number of private funds in South Korea has fallen sharply over the past three months amid controversies over derivative-linked funds and a liquidity crisis at a major company, data compiled by a market operator showed Tuesday.According to the Korea Financial Investment Association, the number of private funds -- including private equity funds and hedge funds -- in the country tallied 11,177 as of the end of October, down 302 from three months earlier.October marked the third consecutive mont

The Korea Herald is looking for domestic financial firms that are seeking to play a leading role in global markets.As South Korea’s No. 1 English daily newspaper, The Korea Herald has established the Global Finance Awards to give wider publicity to financial firms who have shown outstanding performance and further promote their global competitiveness. For a fair and thorough evaluation, a judging committee consisting of renowned industry experts will screen candidate companies and the

South Korea’s foreign exchange reserves reached a new high last month, mostly due to the impact of the weakening US dollar, central bank showed Tuesday.As of end-October, the country’s forex reserves stood at $406.32 billion, up $3 billion from a month earlier, according to the Bank of Korea.“The increase is largely due to the profits from forex assets and dollar-equivalent forex reserves held in other currencies as the US dollar has weakened,” the BOK said. Last month, t

South Korean credit card companies have recently been tapping into and expanding their business in Vietnam, eyeing the Southeast Asian country’s growing economy while seeking to diversify due to a sluggish domestic market.The credit card unit of Hyundai Motor Group, Hyundai Card, announced last month that it has signed a deal worth 49 billion won ($41.9 million) to acquire a 50 percent stake in Vietnamese retail bank Finance Company Limited for Community. FCCOM is a wholly-owned subsidiary

Despite a weak economy, the South Korean currency has soared against the greenback over the past month due mainly to optimism about US-China trade talks, data showed Tuesday. The local currency closed at 1,159.20 won against the US dollar Monday, up 6.4 won from the previous session and as much as 37 won from the end of September. Market watchers said the won's recent strength stems largely from the growing prospect of a trade deal between the world's two largest economies, not from economic fun

A business-friendly think tank here suggested Monday that tax reduction is more effective for economic growth than fiscal spending, raising objections to the government’s expansionary policies.According to a recent report from the Korea Economic Research Institute, South Korea’s gross domestic product would on average climb 102 won ($0.09) for every 100 won in tax reduction.The institute, affiliated with the nation’s largest business lobby, Federation of the Korean Industries,

Mirae Asset Daewoo said Monday that its Hong Kong branch has become the first South Korean brokerage to become an initial public offering underwriter on the US’ Nasdaq exchange for German biotechnology firm BioNTech. BioNTech raised $150 million in its IPO last month and started trading on Oct. 10. The firm’s shares were trading at $16.52 on Monday and its market value currently stands at around $3.7 billion.  Established in 2008, it specializes in so-called messenger RNA or mRN

Despite their disappointing earnings results so far, major South Korean listed firms are likely to see a robust performance next year in line with the recovery in the global chip industry, data compiled by a local market tracker showed Monday.According to FnGuide, the combined operating profit of 279 publically traded companies is projected to climb 26 percent next year on a consolidated basis to 165.8 trillion won ($142 billion) from 131.6 trillion won this year.Their net profit and sales are p