The Korea Herald

Korean stock market on bull run on signs of trade war thaw

MarketsDec 13, 2018

South Korea’s stock market benchmark indexes were moderately higher Thursday on signs of abating trade strife between the United States and China. The top-tier benchmark Kospi inched up 0.6 percent higher than the previous trading day’s close, while the second-tier Kosdaq ticked up 0.8 percent. On the main bourse, foreign investors net purchased shares worth 484.4 billion won ($431.3 million). Domestic institutional investors net sold stocks worth 311.7 billion won, ending a net buyi
Woori Bank to set up fund for innovative firms

EconomyDec 13, 2018

Woori Bank said Thursday it will set up a fund of 300 billion won ($266.5 million) to help channel more money to innovative firms. The bank will launch the fund next year and it will be expanded to 3 trillion won over the next three years, Woori Bank said. Woori Bank said it will invest 150 billion won into the fund and the bank's affiliates will invest the remaining 150 billion won into the fund. So far this year, Woori Bank, South Korea's third-largest commercial lender, has invested 10
Korea to build 30,000 smart factories by 2022

EconomyDec 13, 2018

The South Korean government said Thursday it will greatly expand the number of smart factories and industrial complexes that adopt advanced technologies by 2022 to upgrade the nation's manufacturing industry. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and the Ministry of SMEs and Startups jointly announced support measures for the local manufacturing industry, which has lost growth momentum amid toughening global competition with emerging rivals. The government said it will create 30,000 s
[Monitor] Fewer South Korean companies make it into ‘1 trillion won club’

EconomyDec 13, 2018

While the number of South Korean companies with at least 1 trillion won in annual revenue has increased 2.5-fold in the 20 years since the financial crisis, the number has decreased in recent years, a report by local market research firm Korea CXO Institute showed.Based on annual performance figures, 187 firms were part of the so-called “1 trillion won club” in 2017, down from 192 in 2012.With the combined revenue of the nation’s top conglomerates also declining, the report sai
Corporate sales slow, profit margin grows in Q3

EconomyDec 13, 2018

South Korean companies saw their profitability continue its solid growth in the third quarter of this year, but their sales gains slowed slightly, central bank data showed Thursday.The ratio of operating profit to sales of non-financial firms in the country reached 7.6 percent in the July-September period, up from 7.4 percent tallied a year ago, according to the data by the Bank of Korea.At the same time, the pretax net profit margin of South Korean companies rose on-year to 7.2 percent from 6.4
Listed firm sales, operational profits fall in 2018: think tank

EconomyDec 13, 2018

Nearly half of the country's listed firms reported declines in their sales in the three quarters this year ending September, an analysis by a think tank indicated Thursday.The Korea Economic Research Institute looked into the performances of 578 listed companies during the nine months and found sales at 268 of them, or 46.4 percent, fell compared with the same period last year. The figure is higher than the 32.5 percent in 2017. More firms fared worse in operational profits, with 344 companies,
[Monitor] More and more married couples having no children

EconomyDec 12, 2018

Nearly 38 percent of couples who have been married for five years or less had no children as of November last year, according to government data.Among 11.03 million married couples, 37.5 percent were childless, up 1.2 percentage points from the previous year, Statistics Korea said.Among dual-income couples, 43.3 percent had no children, while the figure was 32 percent for single-income couples.Of couples where the wives were economically active, 43.7 percent had no children, while the figure was
[New Focus] Korea’s 3rd phase of new towns: Remedy or repetition?

EconomyDec 12, 2018

SEJONG -- The average unit price of an old apartment complex built 31 years ago in Seocho-gu, Seoul, jumped to 1.64 billion won ($1.46 million) in November 2018 from 1.13 billion won in November 2016.The price increased 45 percent in only two years. Other apartment complexes in the district in southern Seoul and neighboring wards also saw their prices surge in the period.Although there have been signs of prices declining after reportedly peaking last summer, many households still appear skeptica
Foreigners turn to net buyers in Korean bond market in Nov.

MarketsDec 12, 2018

Foreign investors turned to net buyers in the South Korean bond market last month amid eased concerns over the US-China trade disputes, the central bank said Wednesday.Foreigners purchased a net $370 million worth of South Korean bonds in November, shifting from a net selling of $230 million in the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea. The November figure also ended their two-month selling mode, which started in September when foreigners dumped a net $1.98 billion.In the stock market,
Mortgage loans increase at fastest pace in 2 yrs in Nov.

EconomyDec 12, 2018

Home-backed loans from South Korean banks increased at the fastest pace in two years in November despite the government's anti-speculation measures, central bank data showed Wednesday.The total value of outstanding mortgages extended by banks came to 603 trillion won ($535 billion) as of the end of last month, up 4.8 trillion won from a month earlier, according to the data from the Bank of Korea. The gain marked the largest on-month growth since November 2016, when mortgage lending rose 6.1 tril
Korea's money supply accelerates in Oct.

MarketsDec 12, 2018

The money supply in South Korea grew at its fastest pace in 21 months in October on a steady rise in corporate lending, central bank data showed Wednesday.The country's M2 totaled 2,674.5 trillion won ($2.37 trillion) in October, up 6.8 percent from 2,504.6 trillion won a year earlier, according to the data from the Bank of Korea. The on-year gain was the largest since January last year, when it jumped 6.9 percent.The growth rate of South Korea's M2 has remained at the modestly high level of bet
Average daily no. of births in Seoul falls below 200 for 1st time

EconomyDec 12, 2018

The number of infants born in Seoul came to an average of 179 per day last year, dipping below the threshold of 200 for the first time as more people are delaying or shunning marriage, data released Wednesday by the Seoul metropolitan government showed.According to the Seoul Statistics Annuals, the number of babies born per day in the South Korean capital reached the lowest level since the government began compiling data in 1961, compared with 257 in 2012, 230 in 2013 and 206 in 2016. A governme
Fee cut to cost credit card firms about W700b per year in lost revenue

EconomyDec 12, 2018

The government's plans to cut credit card commission fees will cost credit card firms about 700 billion won ($619.8 million) per year in lost revenue, a government report showed Wednesday. Financial authorities unveiled two plans this year to reduce credit card commission fees for small merchants in a move to support self-employed business owners at a time when the nation's economy is showing signs of sluggish growth amid weaker consumption.Under the plans, credit card processing fees for small
Regulator to help financial firms make inroads into overseas markets

MarketsDec 12, 2018

South Korea's financial regulator said Wednesday it will provide more information to help local financial firms make inroads into overseas markets. The information includes the latest regulations and data on financial markets in 32 countries, the Financial Supervisory Service said in a statement. The FSS also published a report on Vietnam's financial regulations, as part of the government's efforts to bolster ties with Southeast Asian nations. At the end of September, 36 South Korean finan
Nonbank loans rise for SMEs, shrink for conglomerates: dataconglomerates

EconomyDec 12, 2018

Small businesses increasingly rely on loans, big players refrain from investment