South Korean stocks opened higher Tuesday, as investors expect strong earnings from major companies. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index climbed 2.97 points, or 0.12 percent, to 2,493.02 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Retail investors bought stocks worth more than 35 billion won ($31 million), offsetting 34 billion won sold by foreigners and institutions.Large-cap stocks were mixed across the board, with market bellwether Samsung Electronics Co. leading the gains. The tech giant

South Korean stocks turned lower Monday morning after a brief rise, as institutions dumped stocks on profit taking. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 2.00 points, or 0.08 percent, to 2,487.54 as of 11:15 a.m.Institutions offloaded 258 billion won ($228 million) worth of stocks, exceeding a combined 225 billion won by foreigners and individuals.  Market bellwether Samsung Electronics Co. rose 0.74 percent and No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix Inc. advanced 2.59 percent.Among declin

South Korean stocks opened higher Monday as foreigners scooped up technology stocks. The won fell against the dollar.  The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index climbed 2.25 points, or 0.09 percent, to 2,491.79 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Market bellwether Samsung Electronics Co. gained 0.71 percent, and SK hynix, a major chipmaker, advanced 2.0 percent. Top carmaker Hyundai Motor Co. moved up 0.33 percent, and leading chemical firm LG Chem Ltd. rose 0.52 percent.In contrast,

Default rates for peer-to-peer loans have risen at an alarming rate, nearly tripling in September from a month earlier, market sources said Monday.According to Korea P2P Finance Association, aggregated lending by its 60 member companies totaled 1.47 trillion won ($1.29 billion) as of end-September. The current loans come to 730 billion won.The average default rate, which counts loans unrepaid for over 30 days but under 90 days, came to 2.99 percent last month, almost triple from 1.04 percent a m

The number of stock-rich persons with their stock holdings valued at 1 trillion won ($883 million) or more rose to the highest ever as the local stock market continued to renew its all-time highs on the back of sound corporate earnings and ample liquidity, industry data showed Sunday.According to industry tracker Chaebul.com, the number of persons with 1 trillion won or more worth of stocks stood at 27, up five from 22 at the end of last year.The country's benchmark index, the KOSPI, closed at a

South Korea's bourse operator is set to decide this week on whether to allow the resumption of trading of Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co. on the local stock market, industry sources said Sunday.The trading of Daewoo Shipbuilding stocks have been halted since July last year, due to its impaired capital base, and the shipyard was given a one-year rehabilitation period to improve its financial status for the resumption of stock trading.According to the sources, the Korea Exchange w

The combined market capitalization of South Korean firms listed on the main and secondary bourse ranks 11th among global peers, claiming 1.77 percent of the total, on the back of a rise in market heavyweights, such as Samsung Electronics, data showed Sunday.The combined market cap of the world's stock markets reached a record high of $88.59 trillion as of Thursday, increasing 35 percent from a year ago, as optimism over a global economic recovery fueled a rally in advanced and emerging stock mar

The net value of foreign investment fund assets held by South Koreans exceeded 120.2 trillion won ($105.9 billion), a local capital market association said Sunday.According to data by the Korea Financial Investment Association, foreign investment funds assets, including private equity funds, was up a sharp 10 trillion won as of Tuesday, compared with three months earlier. The numbers also represent a surge from just 51.3 trillion won tallied in late 2012. The findings showed numbers began rising

Shares of Samsung Electronics Co. held by the chairman's family rose 1.55 percentage points this year, mainly due to the cancellation of treasury shares, official data showed Sunday.Data by the Financial Supervisory Service and the tech giant showed that shares held by chairman Lee Kun-hee, his heir apparent Lee Jae-yong and "specially related people" accounted for 20 percent of all ordinary shares issued by the world's leading smartphone and computer chip producer.The chairman, who re

South Korea has been offering permanent residencies to foreigners who buy and keep real estate in designated areas as part of its push to foster nonmetropolitan zones, but it has so far benefited only a handful of popular destinations, lawmakers said during a parliamentary audit this week.Since 2010, under the former Lee Myung-bak administration, the government has allowed investors to buy land and build facilities for tourist accommodations in 10 authorized zones including Jeju Island.Over 99 p

Record market rallies in South Korea, mainly spurred by large-cap stocks such as Samsung Electronics on their upbeat earnings forecast, have highlighted that investors are less drawn to small cap stocks -- relatively more exposed to potential risks -- even in their attempt to unwind from overweight tech sectors here.  The main bourse index Kospi rose 3.4 percent for the past seven trading days until Wednesday, while scaling the record earlier this week, according to data by the Korea Exchan

South Korean stocks finished lower Thursday, as investors opted to cash in recent gains amid a bullish run, market analysts said. The Korean won fell against the US dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 9.85 points, or 0.40 percent, to close at 2,473.06.Trade volume was moderate at 232 million shares worth 6.75 trillion won ($5.96 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 467 to 326.The local stock market opened higher on overnight gains in Wall Street, but went south on p

The state-run Korea Development Bank unveiled Thursday plans to partner with Korea Venture Business Association to enhance investments in venture firms. KDB will finance venture firms recommended by the association, according to the plan. In addition, the nation’s largest state-run bank will seek ways to stimulate the emergence of local unicorns, or startups valued at over $1 billion, and ramp up investor relations programs for local startups. KDB called the partnership an acceleration of

South Korean stocks traded slightly higher Thursday morning, recouping earlier losses, on the back of foreign buying.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 2.98 points, or 0.12 percent, to 2,485.89 as of 11:15 a.m. Market kingpin Samsung Electronics was 1.35 percent down, and SK hynix, a major chipmaker, dipped 0.49 percent.In contrast, Naver, the country's top Internet portal operator, advanced 0.98 percent, and Hyundai Motor, the No. 1 automaker, surged 1.33 percent.No.1 steelmak

South Korean stocks opened slightly higher Thursday, taking a cue from overnight gains on Wall Street.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index climbed 2.70 points, or 0.11 percent, to 2,485.61 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Market kingpin Samsung Electronics shed 1.35 percent , and SK hynix, a major chipmaker, fell 0.99 percent.In contrast, Hyundai Motor, the No. 1 automaker, moved up 1.66 percent, and top chemical firm LG Chem rose 0.91 percent.POSCO, the steelmaker, advanced 3.44 p