The Korea Herald

SMEs struggling with difficult conditions, has high hopes for new govt.

EconomyJun 4, 2017

South Korea's small and medium enterprises have high hopes for the new Moon Jae-in administration as they struggle with difficult times, industry sources said Sunday.The Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business, or K-Biz, said its Chairman Park Sung-taek met with 25 regional SME business representatives in Yeosu, 455 kilometers south of Seoul, and exchanged views on the state of the regional economy. "Business leaders said at the gathering on Saturday that while export figures we
Seoul stocks set to rise next week

MarketsJun 3, 2017

South Korean stocks are expected to rise further next week on improved investor sentiments and solid fundamentals, local analysts said Saturday.Market watchers predicted the country's benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) to maintain its upward momentum in the coming days as there are no negative factors that could weigh on the bourse.The broader index closed at 2,371.72 points Friday, up 0.7 percent from a week ago.KB Securities analyst Bae Sung-young said the main index has furth
Q1 GDP growth revised up to 1.1 percent

EconomyJun 2, 2017

South Korea’s gross domestic product grew faster than expected in the first three months of this year, mainly due to stronger construction and exports, the Bank of Korea said Friday.Asia’s fourth-largest economy grew 1.1 percent in the first quarter from the previous quarter, the central bank said, updating seasonally-adjusted data from the previous estimate of 0.9 percent.The 1.1 percent quarterly growth was the fastest in six quarters, driven mainly by the private sector, not the g
Kospi chalks up fresh historic high

MarketsJun 2, 2017

South Korea’s main stock market chalked up a fresh historic high Friday, a week after it hit 2,355.3 the previous Friday, on strong foreign buying riding on world rallies.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index closed at 2,371.72 Friday, up 1.16 percent from previous trading day.Opening strong at 2,353.77, up 0.39 percent from Thursday’s closing at 2,344.61, the Kospi topped 2,370 for the first time at around 2:20 p.m. The index hit intraday high at 2,372.65 at around 3 p.m.
FSS vows measures for savings banks

MarketsJun 2, 2017

The Financial Supervisory Service said Friday it would seek pre-emptive measures to protect savings banks against side effects from the government’s anticipated move to lower the limit on their maximum interest rates.The FSS said in a press release that a lower ceiling for lending rates may dent savings banks’ financial health. The regulator said the stricter lending rate ceiling would pull down the profitability of the banks, which had shown sound financial health in the first quart
Seoul stocks up 1.16% on foreign buying

MarketsJun 2, 2017

South Korean stocks ended slightly higher Friday as foreign investors scooped up large-cap stocks. The Korean won rose against the US dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index gained 27.11 points, or 1.16 percent, to 2,371.72.On Friday, foreigners turned net buyers of domestic stocks worth more than 448 billion won ($398 million) after shedding local shares in the past three sessions. Kim Ye-eun, an analyst at Cape Investment & Securities, said a rally in US stocks gave a b
Seoul shares extend gains on foreign buying

MarketsJun 2, 2017

South Korean stocks extended gains late Friday morning as foreign investors scooped up large-cap stocks.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index gained 22.02 points, or 0.94 percent, to 2,366.63 as of 11:20 a.m.On Friday, foreigners turned net buyers of domestic stocks worth 239 billion won ($213 million) after shedding local shares in the past three sessions. Their net buying appears to be affected by two factors, analysts said. A rally in US stocks and expectations of an economic recove
Samsung's Bixby joins forces with local banks

MarketsJun 2, 2017

Samsung Electronics Co. said Friday it has reached an agreement with three local banks to allow users to use banking services via its voice command program, Bixby.The South Korean tech giant said under the project with Shinhan Bank, Woori Bank and KEB Hana Bank, users can ask the artificial intelligence program Bixby to display bank accounts or make financial transactions through voice. Users with a Woori account can also make currency exchanges via Bixby. The program was first adopted on S
Half of top 30 groups trim workforces in 2016

EconomyJun 2, 2017

Nearly half of South Korea's top 30 family-controlled conglomerates slashed their workforces in 2016 from a year earlier, data showed Friday, amid unfavorable market conditions at home and abroad.The combined workforce of the 30 leading business groups came to 1,305,939 as of the end of last year, down 1.1 percent, or 15,069, from a year earlier, according to the data from market tracker Chaebul.com.Of the total conglomerates known as chaebol here, Samsung, Hyundai Heavy Industries, POSCO, LG an
Korean bourse fares best worldwide in May

MarketsJun 2, 2017

South Korea's stock market was white-hot on massive foreign buying in May, emerging as the top performer among bourses in major advanced and emerging countries, data showed Friday.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index closed at 2,347.38 Wednesday, up 6.4 percent from a month earlier, according to the data by the Korea Exchange and the Korea Center for International Finance.The Hong Kong Hang Seng Index came next with a 4.2 percent increase, followed by India's Mumbai Index with 4.1 per
Savings banks see Q1 profits gain 13.6% on higher interest income

MarketsJun 2, 2017

The combined net profit of South Korea's 79 savings banks rose 13.6 percent on-year for the first quarter of this year, thanks to higher interest income, data showed Friday. Preliminary net profit of savings banks stood at 249.6 billion won ($222 million) for the January-March period, according to the data by the Financial Supervisory Service. During the quarter, their interest income jumped by 135.5 billion won, while loan-loss provisions increased by 52.9 billion won, the data showed. The
Stocks open higher on US gains

MarketsJun 2, 2017

South Korean stocks opened higher Friday, tracking overnight gains on Wall Street.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 15.33 points, or 0.65 percent, to 2,359.94 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Large-cap stocks were mixed across the board.Market bellwether Samsung Electronics advanced 1.34 percent, No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix gained 1.24 percent and leading cosmetics company AmorePacific was up 0.44 percent.Among losers, top carmaker Hyundai Motor declined 3.02 percent on profit-
YG shares nosedive on reports of Big Bang’s T.O.P marijuana charge

MarketsJun 1, 2017

YG Entertainment’s stock slid 4.2 percent as it was reported that Big Bang’s T.O.P is being investigated after testing positive for marijuana.YG, the agency which Big Bang is signed to, saw share prices drop sharply around 2:40 p.m., when the first report of T.O.P’s use of the illegal substance was released. Prices closed at 33,000 won ($30), down 4.2 percent from a trading session earlier.Trade volume of YG stocks, which ranged between 30,000 and 40,000 during the first five t
Korea to sell W7.7tr state bonds in June

MarketsJun 1, 2017

South Korea plans to sell a combined 7.7 trillion won ($6.86 billion) of state bonds this month, the finance ministry said Thursday.The government will issue 1.8 trillion won in bonds with a maturity of three years, and 1.9 trillion won in five-year bonds in June. It also plans to sell 1.8 trillion won worth of 10-year Treasurys and a combined 2.2 trillion won of bonds with a maturity of between 20 and 30 years.In May, a total of 9.94 trillion won worth of Treasurys, including inflation-indexed
Seoul stocks slip on profit-taking

MarketsJun 1, 2017

South Korean stocks ended lower Thursday as foreign investors and institutions cashed in recent gains following a month-long rally amid US uncertainties, analysts said. The Korean won fell against the US dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 2.77 points, or 0.12 percent, to close at 2,344.61. Trade volume was moderate at 331 million shares worth 5.28 trillion won ($4.7 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 449 to 355.Institutional investors and foreigners offloaded a n