South Korean stocks retreated Friday amid inflation uncertainties, as investor sentiment weakened from an overnight hike in long-term US Treasury yields. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 26.48 points, or 0.86 percent, to close at 3,039.53 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 1.1 billion shares worth some 15.9 trillion won ($14.1 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 447 to 378. Foreigners sold a net 584 billio

The money supply in the market has reached a record high, with companies increasingly issuing corporate bonds amid lower interest rates, data released by the Bank of Korea showed Friday. The nation’s M2 money supply increased by 41.9 trillion won ($37 billion), or 1.3 percent, to an all-time high of 3,233.4 trillion won in January, according to the BOK. The 41.9 trillion won increase also marked the largest monthly growth since the central bank began compiling related data in 2001.

South Korean stocks opened lower Friday, tracking an overnight tech plunge on Wall Street that stemmed from a hike in the long-term US Treasury yields. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 40.99 points, or 1.34 percent, to 3.025.02 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Tech stocks, sensitive to inflation, dropped as spiking yield rates fueled concerns over earlier-than-expected post-pandemic inflation. Overnight, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite tumbled 3.02 perce

Global credit rating agencies S&P Global Ratings and Moody’s have forecast stable growth for South Korean internet giant Naver, respectively assigning the firm ratings of A- and A3. S&P said its rating reflected the Korean internet firm’s strong position in the search engine and e-commerce segments in Korea, adding that even tech behemoth Google had only recently made headway in the Korean market with video platform YouTube due to the Korean firm’s formidable leadersh

Suwon in Gyeonggi Province has the highest number of male retail traders in their 40s, outpacing Gangnam, a posh residential district in Seoul, data showed Thursday. The city having the largest number of male traders perhaps has something to do with South Korean tech giant Samsung, which is headquartered in the city, observers say. According to the state-run Korea Securities Depository, a total of 34,463 male day traders in their 40s lived in Suwon as of the end of 2020, while southern Seoul&rs

South Korean stocks rebounded Thursday on strong foreign buying, following the US Federal Reserve's reiteration that rates will remain at near zero through 2023. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) gained 18.51 points, or 0.61 percent, to close at 3,066.01. Trading volume was moderate at about 1.2 billion shares worth some 14.8 trillion won ($13.2 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 503 to 329. Foreigners bought a net 483 b

After shares spiking to daily permissible ceiling on first day trading, investors anticipate continuing bullish run

South Korean stocks opened higher Thursday, following the US Federal Reserve's reiteration that rates would remain at near-zero through 2023. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 32.5 points, or 1.07 percent, to 3,080 points as of 9:23 a.m. Stocks started strong as the results from a Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting partially soothed market concerns of earlier-than-expected post-pandemic inflation. In Seoul, top cap Samsung Electronics advanced 1.22 percent

Kakao, the operator of South Korea’s top mobile messenger KakaoTalk, saw its shares soar on the nation’s Kospi market Wednesday, with market watchers predicting the online giant will benefit from the Bitcoin craze. Shares of Kakao jumped 2.51 percent to 491,000 won ($433) in early morning trading, falling short by only 28,000 won per share from its 52-week high set on Feb. 16. The stock pared part of its earlier gains, but maintained the overall upward movement in the day to close a

South Korean stocks finished lower Wednesday on selling by foreigners and institutions amid rising uncertainties ahead of the US Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 19.67 points, or 0.64 percent, to close at 3,047.5 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 803 million shares worth some 13.2 trillion won ($11.7 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 430 to 409. Foreigners s

South Korean banks’ average capital adequacy ratio inched up last year from the previous year, indicating improved financial health amid the COVID-19 pandemic, data from the financial watchdog showed Wednesday. The average ratio of 19 commercial and state-run lenders gained 1.08 percentage points to 15 percent on-year as of end-2020, according to the Financial Supervisory Service. The capital adequacy ratio, based on the Switzerland-based Bank of International Settlements’ guidel

South Korean vaccine maker SK Bioscience Co. is set to go public on the local bourse this week and will probably emerge as the top bio pick by investors amid the coronavirus pandemic, according to brokerage houses. The offering price of SK Bioscience, the pharmaceutical unit of major conglomerate SK Group, was set at 65,000 won ($57.47) per share for its market debut Thursday. Brokerage houses predicted that the maker of AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccines will jump upon its market debut, probably

South Korean stocks opened lower Wednesday amid rising uncertainties ahead of the US Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 10.09 points, or 0.33 percent, to 3,057.08 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Stocks fell as investors continued to wonder if the Federal Reserve would step up to sooth market concerns of the earlier-than-expected post-pandemic inflation. Top cap Samsung Electronics lost 0.24 percent, and No. 2 c

A sanction committee under the Financial Supervisory Service over the Optimus scandal will likely have to delay its upcoming meeting as one executive facing punitive measures has tested positive for the coronavirus, according to officials Tuesday. NH Investment & Securities’ chief executive Jeong Young-chae tested positive for the virus and is being placed under quarantine, according to the company. Jeong was to attend the third round of the sanction committee’s meeting on Mar

For a 36-year-old Seoulite surnamed Kang, who owns her own home in the capital, following the trends in apartment transaction prices is far from a happy experience. Over the past year, the value of Kang’s apartment rose by more than twice her annual salary. She has no plans to cash out the property anytime soon. But she may have to pay more taxes than she did last year because her house is worth over 900 million won ($796,073), according to the government’s appraisal. “Som