South Korean stocks will likely move upward next week as big global events may ease the uncertainties that have bothered the financial market, analysts said Saturday.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index closed at 2,161.85 on Friday, down 105.67 points, or 4.7 percent, from the previous week. Seoul shares started weaker on the first day of the week on a foreign selling binge. Investors were worried about lingering trade tensions between the United States and China and a faster-tha

South Korea‘s finance minister said Friday that his country should not be regarded as a currency manipulator as it strives to enhance transparency in its currency market.Kim Dong-yeon made the argument during a meeting with US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on the Indonesian resort island of Bali on the sidelines of G-20 meeting of finance ministers and central bankers, according to the finance ministry.Kim cited latest trends in the foreign currency market, efforts by the Seoul governm

The financial regulator said Friday it will conduct more inspections into accounting practices at big companies as part of its efforts to toughen rules on corporate accounting standards.In a report for a parliamentary audit, the Financial Supervisory Service said big firms with assets worth more than 1 trillion won ($880 million) accounted for 7 percent of the watchdog's annual inspections into accounting practices last year.The ratio rose to 20 percent this year, the FSS said. In the first eigh

South Korea’s stock markets were routed Thursday following a plunge in stocks at Wall Street amid surfacing doubts about current tech stock valuations in the United States and fears on lingering US-China trade war threats.Analysts said the market correction in the US triggered a ripple effect on Korean stock markets along with other Asian stocks, drawing concerns about what they call “the biggest external market risk.”Both the top-tier Kospi and the second-tier Kosdaq suffered

The government plans to gradually cut the maximum interest rate that private lenders can charge to 20 percent per annum, the financial regulator said Thursday. In a parliamentary audit meeting, Financial Services Commission Chairman Choi Jong-ku said the plan is aimed at further easing the financial burdens on people.  Choi said the government will review market interest rates and other economic factors before it cuts the maximum legal lending rate. In February this year, the government low

The South Korean startup 8Percent, dedicated to peer-to-peer financing to individuals and small-sized business owners, announced Wednesday it had drawn a combined 6 billion won ($5.3 million) in investments from three venture capital firms. The investments will be used to develop new credit analysis models, advance banking system and improve the profitability of lenders -- or investors into notes of borrowers -- the company said. One of the venture capital firms involved was DSC Investment, whil

Debate persists over need to raise market liquidity versus concerns about excessive workload

Woori Bank, South Korea‘s fourth-largest commercial bank by assets, said Monday it has created an office in Singapore to streamline loan evaluation of offshore units across Asia. The office, dubbed “Asia Credit Analysis & Approval Debt Center” is designed to “improve loan approval (of offshore units) and expedite the decision-making process” of corporations in China, Vietnam and Indonesia, as well as branches in Hong Kong, India and Middle East nations, the bank

The state-run Industrial Bank of Korea launched a consulting service platform to support small firms and startups last week, bank officials said.IBK said it opened IBK ChangGongong at its Guro branch in southwestern Seoul on Oct. 1.The platform provides select startups with free offices, mentoring from experts, patent, tax and legal services, according to officials.In addition, they said, the bank will support their loans, investment relations and business networking. In the opening ceremony, IB

The National Pension Service (NPS), the country's top institutional investor, lost a whopping 9.9 trillion won (US$8.7 billion) from stock investments through July this year, a lawmaker said Saturday.According to the data presented by Rep. Yoo Jae-jung of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party, the combined value of local shares held by the investor came to 123 trillion won as of end-July, down from 131.5 trillion won estimated at the end of last year.The NPS newly invested 1.5 trillion won in

South Korea’s peer-to-peer financing startup Lendit said Thursday that it plans to allow investors and borrowers to trade notes that are not mature by establishing an online secondary market. P2P financing refers to a loan crowdsourced from investors seeking midrange interest rates, between 5 and 10 percent per year. The interest comes from borrowers’ debt servicing. Korea is home to 175 P2P financing platforms licensed as of end-August.The new system, dubbed the “Lendit Market

South Korea's central bank chief on Thursday gave a strong signal for a possible rate hike later this month aimed at reducing the adverse effects from years of low borrowing costs."Recently, the South Korean economy has pulled off modest growth on the back of exports, but it is now experiencing an imbalance in many sectors as we have put less significance on investment in the future," Bank of Korea (BOK) Gov. Lee Ju-yeol said in a breakfast meeting with business leaders in Seoul."

South Korea’s financial authorities are reinforcing regulations to dissuade homeowners in Seoul from taking out loans to purchase additional residences, part of ongoing efforts to bring housing prices under control and subdue household debt. The Financial Services Commission recently revised its banking oversight regulations, which now restrict anyone who owns a home in the Seoul metropolitan area from taking on additional mortgages, officials said Wednesday.The new restrictions on lending

The Korea Herald is publishing a series of interviews on promising startups in the financial technology industry. This is the 22nd installment. -- Ed.Foreign short selling activities on South Korea’s stock market have recently been growing, and with such a trend, there is a Korean startup offering a more comprehensive look into the short selling market landscape in Korea.Short selling refers to the act of selling stocks without owning them in hopes the value goes down. To do so, a short se

Longer-than-expected financial audits are posing hurdles to privately-held companies seeking initial public offerings on South Korea’s stock markets, amid a sharp fall in the volume of total investments through IPOs this year through the third quarter. Following the withdrawals of lubricant oil maker SK Lubricant and game software developer Kakao Games from plans to go public in April and in September, respectively, investors’ attention is on whether refiner Hyundai Oilbank, projecte