The Korea Herald

Kim Yon-se

안녕하세요 Kim Yon-se 기자입니다.

Articles by Kim Yon-se

KB Financial not to bid for Woori Financial

Jan 16, 2012

Euh stresses banks’ role change for upgrade of Korea’s financial marketKB Financial Group clarified its position that it will not bid to take over the state-run Woori Financial, at least for 2012.“This year, we have no plan to acquire any financial company including Woori Financial Group and the group’s subsidiaries,” KB Financial chairman Euh Yoon-dae told The Korea Herald on Monday.His stance comes as government officials and Woori Financial chairman Lee Pal-seung are striving to revitalize th
Hyundai Motor ranks 2nd in Russian market

IndustryJan 15, 2012

South Korea’s top automaker Hyundai Motor Co. was the No. 2 seller of vehicles in the Russian imported car market last year, with its affiliate Kia Motors Corp. ranking fourth, industry data showed Sunday.Hyundai Motor sold a total of 163,447 passenger cars and light commercial vehicles in the Russian market last year, trailing only General Motors Co., according to the data.In the overall Russian car market, including foreign and domestic brands, Hyundai Motor placed third, after Russian carmake
Foreigners shift to net sellers in Korea: data

Jan 15, 2012

Overseas investors became net sellers of South Korean equities last year as they opted to buy safer assets amid global economic uncertainties, the financial watchdog said Sunday.Foreign investors offloaded a net 9.6 trillion won ($8.4 billion) worth of stocks in 2011, compared with a net purchase of 22.9 trillion won in the previous year, according to the Financial Supervisory Service.Overseas investors’ holdings of local stocks stood at 351.5 trillion won, or 30.4 percent of domestic stock owne
Insurance M&As to be vitalized

Jan 15, 2012

Several insurance firms, such as ING Life and Tongyang Life, will likely be auctioned off this year.Netherlands-based ING recently clarified its business policy to sell its insurance operations in the Asia-Pacific region, citing global economic uncertainties.Market observers state the possibility that the Korean life insurance unit may also be included in the group’s sale target.As ING Life holds the position of fifth or sixth in the local market, heated competition is expected if it is put up f
Half of financial firms expect weak results in 2012

Jan 15, 2012

Nearly half of all South Korean financial firms are expecting weaker performances in 2012 primarily due to the global economic slowdown and rising household debt, a poll showed Sunday.The survey on 250 financial firms by the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry showed 48.8 percent of the respondents saying they are bracing for lower results compared to 2011, with 26.8 percent forecasting conditions would remain unchanged from the year before. Regarding companies that held pessimistic views, 2.
Korea’s exports grow nearly 20% in 2011

Jan 15, 2012

South Korea’s exports grew nearly 20 percent in 2011 from a year earlier, primarily driven by robust sales of ships, vehicles and oil-related products, customs data showed Sunday.Exports came to a record high of $556.5 billion last year, up 19.3 percent from $466.4 billion a year earlier, according to the data by the Korea Customs Service. It made South Korea the world’s seventh-largest exporter for a second year.Imports also grew 23.3 percent on-year to $524.4 billion, bringing the nation’s ann
Foreign investment banks warn of higher bank loan default

Jan 15, 2012

Foreign investment banks have warned that domestic banks could see their loan delinquency rates rise this year due to the increased possibility of household defaults on their debts, data showed Sunday.Bank of America, Merrill Lynch and other major global IBs expect the uptrend in South Korean banks’ loan delinquency rate, which started during the second half of last year, to gain further ground this year, according to data by the Korea Center for International Finance.The overall delinquency rat
Eximbank to invest more despite global slowdown: CEO

Jan 12, 2012

The Export-Import Bank of Korea has unveiled its policy to increase its investment in developing natural resources in overseas markets by 900 billion won ($789 million) this year.The state-run bank will pour 2.8 trillion won into enterprises’ exploitation of overseas natural resources in 2012, its chairman and president Kim Yong-hwan told a news conference on Thursday.The figure for the project is a sharp increase from the bank’s investment of 1.9 trillion won in 2011.“European banks are expecte
Citigroup CEO to visit Korea early next month

Jan 12, 2012

Pandit may meet with regulatory officials to discuss investmentCitigroup Inc. chief executive Vikram Pandit plans to visit Seoul early next month as part of the global investment bank’s expansion policy in Asia, a source said Thursday. “On the occasion of the U.S.-based financial group’s 200th anniversary of its foundation, CEO Pandit will pay a visit to Korea and several other Asian countries in early February,” the source said.While his coming trip is seemingly focused on the group’s expanding
Hana Financial CEO to quit

Jan 11, 2012

Hana Financial Group president & CEO Kim Jong-yeol expressed his intent to resign on Wednesday, even though his term was not to expire until the end of February.The sudden resignation of the group’s No. 2 figure is drawing interest as the financial group has been striving to acquire Korea Exchange Bank from Lone Star Funds.Kim was quoted by a news provider as saying that he “does not want to be a hurdle for the realization of the KEB takeover deal.”There is a possibility that the relations betwe
Korea’s yearly aid to emerging countries tops $1 billion

Jan 11, 2012

Korea’s financial aid to underdeveloped and developing countries has surpassed $1 billion per annum.The Export-Import Bank of Korea said Wednesday that the yearly amount of “official development assistance” has reached $1.17 billion.This means each Korean offered an average of 27,730 won to underdeveloped and developing countries, according to the state-run bank.Asia was the main target of the ODA, accounting for 65.2 percent, followed by Africa with 15.5 percent, and South & Central America wit
Life insurance firms post poor stock investment return

Jan 11, 2012

Life insurance companies reported poor performances in their stock investments through equity-linked insurance products.Equity-linked insurance products, also known as variable insurance, invest part of customers’ premiums in the stock market.According to the Korea Life Insurance Association, life insurance firms posted -12.87 percent in combined rate of return in their stock investments through the variable insurance products last year.The figure is lower than the KOSPI’s year-on-year drop of 1
Woori Financial eyes three overseas M&A deals

Jan 10, 2012

Woori Financial Group has been pushing for takeover deals in three overseas markets simultaneously, its chairman Lee Pal-seung told reporters Tuesday.“We have been in mergers and acquisitions talks in two regions (countries) in Southeast Asia. One of the two negotiations has seen good progress,” he said.He added that Woori Financial is also carrying out merger talks with a financial company in a country linking Asia and Europe.Group executives had said they were considering increasing the compan
Avante wins top award in Detroit

Jan 10, 2012

Hyundai edges out Ford, Volkswagen for North American Car of the YearHyundai Motor’s Avante, dubbed the Elantra in overseas markets, has been named the 2012 North American Car of the Year.The winner was confirmed at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit after the compact sedan polled the highest number among a group of 50 motoring journalists from the U.S. and Canada. The Avante has been in a tight race with its fellow finalists ― the Volkswagen Passat and the Ford Motor Focus. T
Korea big player in global M&A market

Jan 9, 2012

Local firms’ cross-border takeover deals surge in value 51-fold in 5 yearsKorea has become the 10th-largest acquirer in the cross-border mergers and acquisitions markets, overtaking Germany and France.According to data of the Korea Capital Market Institute, Korean companies’ takeover of foreign players in the M&A markets was equivalent to $11.2 billion (12.7 trillion won) in combined asset value for the first 10 months of 2011.In 2010, Korean firms spent a net $9.9 billion on the overseas M&A de