South Korea's foreign exchange reserves rose slightly in April from a month earlier due to a hike in the value of non-dollar currencies when converted into the US greenback, central bank data showed Thursday.As of the end of April, the country's foreign exchange reserves came to $376.57 billion, up $1.27 billion from the previous month, the Bank of Korea said in a statement.Foreign exchange reserves consist of securities and deposits denominated in overseas currencies, as well as International M

Conspicuously missing from the five major presidential candidates’ campaign pledges is how they would address increasing external trade pressures on the country, particularly the protectionism pursued by US President Donald Trump, upon winning next week’s election.During their debate on economic issues last week, the audience was apparently let down by their unfocused approaches to a rising US demand for renegotiating the bilateral free trade agreement that took effect in 2012.A day

The return of high denomination 50,000 won notes hit a four-year high early this year, the Bank of Korea (BOK) said Wednesday.The central bank said it retrieved 4.59 trillion won ($4.06 billion) worth of the notes in the first quarter of this year, while printing 6.96 trillion won in new bills.This represents a return rate of roughly 66 percent, up from 57.5 percent in the last three months of last year.The return rate of the notes first issued in June 2009 has been on the decline since 2013 fal

The head of Korea's central bank will attend three major policy meetings set to take place in Japan later in the week, the Bank of Korea (BOK) said Wednesday.BOK Gov. Lee Ju-yeol plans to participate in the 20th ASEAN-plus-three finance ministers and central bank chiefs meeting Friday, the 50th ADB annual gathering Saturday and the BIS meeting from Sunday to Monday, the bank said. At the meetings, Lee is expected to discuss pending issues in the financial markets and touch on measures to expand

South Korea and China will both be hurt economically by the fallout caused by the deployment of the advanced US missile defense system on the Korean Peninsula, a local think tank said Wednesday.According to the Hyundai Research Institute (HRI), Beijing's retaliation against Seoul's decision to station a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery here could cost Asia's fourth-largest economy 8.5 trillion won ($7.5 billion) in losses in 2017. This translates into the country's gross domes

Korea's incoming president is expected to help push up the country's stock prices to record high levels, local market watchers, citing past trends, said Wednesday.Analysts said the prediction is based on the recent rise in share prices fueled by generally good earnings reports by big name companies in the first quarter and forecasts that the global economy is on the mend. They also said that the country's stock market has almost always moved up during the first two years of a new president's ter

Offshore investors' holdings of Korean stocks hit an all-time high last week, as the nation's benchmark index has gained on better-than-expected corporate earnings, according to the Korea Exchange on Wednesday. Foreign investors' holdings of Korean stocks stood at 522.8 trillion won ($463.1 billion) as of last Friday, compared with 408.3 trillion won on May 2, 2011, when the index closed at an all-time high of 2,228.96.Foreign holdings accounted for 36.5 percent of the KOSPI's market capitalizat

Samsung Electronics Co.'s presence on the main bourse is anticipated to edge down after the company completes its plan to cancel its treasury shares, market watchers said Wednesday.NH Investment & Securities Co. said Samsung Electronics' presence on the KOSPI200, the basket of 200 blue chip firms' shares listed on the main bourse, will drop by 1.3 percentage points if the company completes the write down."If there is no change in the price, the combined market capitalization will fall i

South Korea’s exports to the United States are expected to suffer losses of as much as $17 billion over five years if the two nations renegotiate their bilateral free trade deal, according to a report. The Korea Economic Research Institute, a private think tank in Seoul, said in the report that South Korea’s auto, machine and steel sectors would suffer the most if tariff rates are revised upon renegotiation.In another possible scenario, if the two agree to delay the tariff eliminatio

Stocks in South Korea’s main bourse traded higher again, though earlier sharp gains evaporated in the afternoon Tuesday. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index ended at 2,219.67 on Tuesday, up 14.23 points, or 0.65 percent, over Friday, when it closed at 2,205.46 to end seven consecutive gains. The stock market did not open Monday for a public holiday.The first-tier stock market hit its intraday high at around 11:47 a.m. at 2,229.74, approaching its all-time high mark of 2,231.47,

Financial authorities in South Korea have yet to decide on whether to exempt blockchain technology from regulations on financial privacy, which may hurt Korea’s move to pursue the fintech-led fourth industrial revolution, a news report said Tuesday.Blockchain is expected to be a key feature of financial technology infrastructure in Korea, as it offers enhanced security from tampering. But it requires records in a block of transactions to remain permanent, with no option to alter them retro

South Korean stocks closed higher on robust gains of blue chip shares, including market behemoth Samsung Electronics, analysts said Tuesday, posting the second-highest closing figure. The Korean won gained against the US dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index gained 14.23 points, or 0.65 percent, to close at 2,219.67. Trade volume was low at 290 million shares worth 4.72 trillion won ($4.17 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 429 to 363.The latest figure marks the second-h

Foreign investors have snapped up South Korean bonds with their holdings exceeding 100 trillion won ($88.6 billion) again, industry data showed Tuesday. Offshore investors were net buyers of South Korean bonds worth 692.1 billion won last week, raising their holdings to 100.1 trillion won as of last Friday, according to the data and NH Investment & Securities.Foreign investors have been buying South Korean bonds, with the won showing strength against the US dollar. Kang Seung-won, a research

North Korea policies proposed by Moon Jae-in, the front-runner in South Korea’s presidential race, may have a positive impact on the sovereign credit rating of the fourth-largest economy in Asia, said a report from Moody’s on Tuesday. The international credit rating agency said South Korea could undergo a change in its geopolitical risks after the upcoming election that falls on Tuesday, considering Moon’s North Korea-friendly policies that have been likened to the “Sunsh

South Korea’s trade surplus with the US fell roughly 34 percent on-year in the first four months of 2017, amid the new US administration’s repeated threats to rewrite a bilateral trade deal with Seoul. According to the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Energy on Tuesday, the country’s trade surplus with the US totaled $6.03 billion from January to April. The figure is down by $3.11 billion, or 34 percent, from $9.15 billion surplus a year earlier. While exports to the US showe