South Korean stocks opened higher Friday, largely backed by gains in tech, auto and bio shares. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 22.29 points, or 0.76 percent, to 2,947.21 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Market bellwether Samsung Electronics increased 0.52 percent, No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix advanced 1.4 percent, and pharmaceutical giant Samsung Biologics added 0.37 percent. Hyundai Motor, the country's largest carmaker, moved up 1.22 percent, and elect

KB Financial Group Chairman Yoon Jong-kyoo shared the banking group’s plans in combating climate change at an invitation-only meeting of senior officials across global sectors and governments held Wednesday at the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Glasgow, Scotland, the firm said Thursday. At the 9th High-Level Meeting of Caring for Climate, held online and offline simultaneously, Yoon was invited on behalf of the global finance sector to speak on the topic of achieving a j

South Korean stocks opened lower Thursday, taking a cue from the estimate-beating inflation data in the United States that fanned concerns about faster than expected rate hikes. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) decreased 15.85 points, or 0.54 percent, to 2,914.32 in the first 15 minutes of trading. The key stock index retreated as US consumer prices grew at the fastest pace since 1990. Overnight, the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite plunged 1.66 percent, and the Dow Jones In

South Korea's leading securities companies posted record earnings in the first nine months of this year on a stock market boom, industry sources said Thursday. The country's top 10 brokerage housed are estimated to have registered a combined net profit of around 7 trillion won ($5.9 billion) for the January-September period, with their full-year bottom line likely to exceed 10 trillion won. Their record net profit comes as the local stock market has been on a roll this year on the back of acti

Kakao Pay said Wednesday that it logged a net loss in the third quarter due to increased expenses and investments. The company’s third-quarter revenue rose 73 percent on-year to 331.2 billion won ($280 million) on the growth of transaction volume and financial business. With an operating loss of 1.01 billion won, however, its net loss came to 1.8 billion won in the July-September period, data from the company showed. Kakao Pay, the financial technology arm of mobile giant Kakao Corp.

Woori Financial takes lead in extending loans to ESG-oriented companies

South Korean stocks slumped more than 1 percent Wednesday amid concerns about the rising inflation pressure. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) decreased 32.29 points, or 1.09 percent, to close at 2,930.17 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 559 million shares worth some 9.5 trillion won ($8 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 807 to 86. Institutions sold net 236 billion won, while retail investors bought 235 bill

South Korea has suffered continuous capital outflows of foreign stock funds amid the recent lackluster performance of the domestic market. Thanks to their selling spree, Asia’s fourth-largest economy has seen a further decrease in foreign ownership, data showed Wednesday. Offshore investors sold a net 31 trillion won ($26.2 billion) of local stocks from January to October, having already surpassed last year’s combined net sales of 24.3 trillion won, according to data from the Financ

South Korean stocks opened lower Wednesday, tracking losses on Wall Street that stemmed from rising inflation pressure. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) decreased 11.3 points, or 0.38 percent, to 2,986.06 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Stocks came off to a lackluster start, as investors are worried the rising inflation pressure may advance the Federal Reserve's tapering timeline. Overnight, the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite lost 0.6 percent, and the Dow Jones Industr

Foreign investors turned net sellers of South Korean stocks in October and their net investment in local bonds also shrank, data showed Wednesday. Foreigners sold a net 3.34 trillion won ($2.84 billion) worth of local stocks last month, compared with their net purchase valued at 2.51 trillion won in September, according to the data from the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). As of end-October, foreigners held 742.17 trillion won worth of local stocks, down 27 trillion won from a month earlie

South Korean stocks edged up Tuesday after a choppy session, led by institutional buying. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) added 2.26 points, or 0.08 percent, to 2,962.46 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 699 million shares worth some 9.6 trillion won ($8.1 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 540 to 317. Institutions bought a net 274 billion won, while foreigners sold 138 billion won. Retail investors offloade

South Korea’s exchange-traded fund market is getting very competitive and growing in a healthy way, in line with local asset management firms’ fierce competition, an executive from S&P Dow Jones Indices said Tuesday. “The Korean ETF market’s 10-year compound annual growth rate is around 25 percent, which is way above the global market’s rate of growth of 16 percent,” John Davies, global head of exchange-traded products at S&P Dow Jones Indices, said

Despite grand plans, banking giants take baby steps towards ESG at the moment, according to critics

South Korean stocks opened higher Tuesday as investor sentiment was uplifted by overnight gains on Wall Street. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) rose 24.47 points, or 0.83 percent, to 2,984.67 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.29 percent amid market optimism that the economic recovery is able to accommodate the inflation risks. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite rose 0.07 percent. In Seoul, top cap Samsung Electr

South Korean full-service law firm Yoon & Yang said Monday it has partnered with US-based consulting service company Cadmus Group to address the new demand for legal services in the wake of Korea’s toughening regulation over occupational safety. The partnership will allow Yoon & Yang to assist Korean companies with identifying risks and help them be better prepared for their disaster response mechanism, Yoon & Yang said in a statement. Under a memorandum of understanding si