The novel coronavirus has accelerated demand for investment in South Korea’s grade-A logistics assets, beyond demand for prime offices and other safe assets, top officials from CBRE Korea said Thursday. Logistics centers, including fulfillment centers and cold storage warehouses, have been more resilient in Korea than any other commercial real estate in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic in the first half of 2020, Claire Choi, head of research at CBRE Korea, said in a teleconference with

South Korean shares opened sharply higher Thursday, on the back of tech gains spurred by an overnight Wall Street rally. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 22.1 points, or 0.93 percent, to 2,386.47 in the first 15 minutes of trading. The strong start has the KOSPI poised to extend its winning streak for a third session. Investor sentiment was boosted by advances of tech and health care heavyweights in the US stock markets. The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped

TOKYO (AP) -- Asian shares were mixed Wednesday after another US rally spurred by positive economic data, even while the coronavirus pandemic has regions around the world battling recessions. Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 edged up 0.5 percent to finish at 23,247.15. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rose 1.8 percent to 6,063.20, although the nation reported its worst drop in GDP ever, with a 7 percent contraction in the April-June quarter. South Korea's Kospi rose 0.5 percent to

Big Hit Entertainment, the company behind K-pop sensation BTS, on Wednesday filed an application for initial public offering, according to its regulatory filing. The company said in the filing that it would offer 7.13 million shares at a price between 105,000 won ($88.50) and 135,000 won. It will carry out the book building procedure to gauge demand on Sept. 14-25 for global investors and Sept. 24-25 for the domestic market. NH Investment & Securities, Korea Investment & Securities,

South Korean commercial bank KB Kookmin Bank said Wednesday that it has launched a mobile app to help churchgoers manage the donations they give to their local churches. Amid the emergence of a new strain of the novel coronavirus, the service has been launched to help Protestants donate without physically visiting a church. The digital offering envelope resembles actual envelopes used at local churches. Christians can also send prayers with their donations. Starting with an app for Protes

Toss Lab, an operator of Slack-like team collaboration platform JANDI, said Wednesday that it has newly raised 14 billion won ($11.8 million) from a group of investors. The investors include Softbank Ventures, SV Investment, Atinum Investment, Must Investment and Spark Labs. Along with the new investment, the company also named big-name figures in the startup and investment sectors as outside directors, including Shin Hyun-sung, founder of ecommerce firm TMON, Lee Joon-pyo, chief of inves

South Korean stocks extended their winning streak to a second consecutive session Wednesday as retail investors scooped up stocks amid a letup in spiking virus cases. The Korean currency fell against the US dollar. After choppy trading, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 14.82 points, or 0.63 percent, to finish at 2,364.37. Trading volume was heavy at 1.4 billion shares worth 15.5 trillion won ($13.1 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 590 to 245. "South

Amid high market liquidity, investors flock to largest IPO on Kosdaq this year

Top officials of US investment firm Barings said Wednesday that stocks appear to be an attractive destination for investors, propelled by the US central bank’s dovish stance to support monetary expansions coupled with signs of recovery in the economy. Foreign investors can take advantage of a currency hedging premium thanks to the dovish US Federal Reserve and following weaker US dollar when investing in emerging market stocks including ones in Korea, the officials noted. During a teleco

South Korean stocks opened higher Wednesday, taking a cue from overnight gains in US markets. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) gained 10.1 points, or 0.43 percent, to 2,359.65 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Seoul shares closed up 1.01 percent Tuesday on investors' bargain hunting and the government's record budget proposal for next year. Wall Street ended higher Tuesday on the back of a tech rally. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.7 percent, and the tec

Commercial bank Shinhan Bank said Tuesday that it has joined forces with mobile network firm SK Telecom to develop financial services based on 5G mobile edge computing technology. The mobile edge computing, or MEC, is a core 5G technology that helps reduce network latency and process data efficiently by installing small-sized data centers at base stations. Through the partnership, the two companies will launch R&D projects to design advanced financial services based on the 5G technology,

South Korean shares rebounded Tuesday from a decline of over 1 percent the previous session, largely due to investors' bargain hunting for undervalued heavyweights and the government's record budget proposal for next year. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 23.38 points, or 1.01 percent, to close at 2,349.55. Trading volume was high at about 1.1 billion shares worth some 16.1 trillion won ($13.6 billion), with gainers outnu

Bills to deter illegal short selling ready as offenders blame it on human error

South Korean shares opened higher Tuesday on overnight tech gains on Wall Street, despite a surge in new coronavirus cases here. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 16.1 points, or 0.69 percent, to 2,342.27 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Trading kicked off bullish after a 1.17 percent plunge in the previous session amid virus woes. Investor sentiment was boosted after the tech-savvy Nasdaq Composite advanced 86.75 points, or 0.76 percent, to close at 11,466.47

South Korean shares dipped more than 1 percent Monday, as foreign sell-offs soared to an all-time high amid the spreading new coronavirus fears. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) lost 27.63 points, or 1.17 percent, to close at 2,326.17. Trading volume was high at about 1.6 billion shares worth some 19 trillion won ($16 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 498 to 350. The index set out strong on the Fed's dovish signal but t