Korea braces for oil price spikes following OPEC+’s output cut
EconomyOct 6, 2022
SEJONG -- South Korea’s economic policymakers are likely to adopt another round of contingency plans to minimize possible instability in consumer prices, as the OPEC+ has decided to curb oil production. The oil cartel’s decision comes after some local policymakers and market insiders claimed that Korea’s inflation was considered to have peaked in July, when consumer price growth posted 6.3 percent. At a meeting in Vienna on Wednesday, the OPEC+ publicized its plan to reduce c
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Seoul shares rise for 3rd day on tech gains, foreign buyingMarketsOct 6, 2022South Korean stocks made solid gains Thursday as investors picked up big-cap tech shares on hopes for a recovery in a semiconductor industry cycle. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added 22.64 points, or 1.02 percent, to end at 2,237.86, extending its winning streak to a third consecutive session. Trading volume was moderate at 631.62 million shares worth 6.67 trillion won ($4.75 billion), with gainers outpacing losers 776 to 118. Foreigners bought shares worth 252.05 bill -
Korea posts biggest drop in dollar reserves since 2008 as won plungesEconomyOct 6, 2022South Korea’s foreign exchange reserves shrank by nearly $20 billion in September, the biggest monthly decline in 14 years, as authorities double down on efforts to prop up the quickly depreciating won that is now at a 13-year low against the US dollar. According to Bank of Korea data on Thursday, the reserves stood at $416.77 billion at the end of September, down $19.66 billion from $436.43 billion in August. That is the largest monthly dip since October 2008, when reserves fell by $27.4
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Financial regulator considers disclosing IDs of short-selling abusersMarketsOct 6, 2022South Korea’s top financial regulator said Thursday that it is actively considering to disclose the identity of illegal short sellers amid growing criticism that the practice has been disrupting the local stock market. The remark comes amid growing anger from retail investors that have been witnessing the value of their stock investments dropping sharply in recent months. Many are blaming illegal short selling, claiming that they are the victims in a market vulnerable to such practices by -
Seoul shares open higher on tech gainsMarketsOct 6, 2022South Korean stocks opened higher Thursday despite overnight US losses, on the back of solid gains in big-cap tech shares. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added 18.93 points, or 0.85 percent, to 2,234.15 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 0.14 percent, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite went down 0.25 percent, following strong gains of the previous two sessions. Some expect a softer tone from the Federal Reserve on moneta -
Foreign reserves shrink at fastest pace in 14 yrs in September amid strong dollarEconomyOct 6, 2022South Korea's foreign reserves shrank at the fastest pace in about 14 years last month as authorities unloaded dollars to stall the local currency's excessive slide against the greenback, central bank data showed Thursday. The Bank of Korea (BOK), however, dismissed worries that the country's foreign reserves might not be sufficient enough to defend the won down the road and brace for a financial crisis. The country's foreign reserves had stood at $416.77 billion as of end-Se -
Lone Star, other investor-state disputes cost Korea W68.5bFinanceOct 5, 2022South Korea has spent nearly 68.5 billion won ($48.1 million) in total to fight and settle investor-state dispute settlements since 2013,#including its battle with US-based private equity firm Lone Star, data showed Wednesday. The majority of the money was spent to hire overseas attorneys or pay compensation in a total of 10 cases overseen by the US-based International Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes and other dispute settlement bodies, data from the Ministry of Justice, National T -
Pivot to big rate hike looms large as prices remain elevatedEconomyOct 5, 2022South Korea’s consumer prices eased in September for a second straight month, but the annual price increase is expected to stay as high as three times what the Bank of Korea sees as acceptable, the central bank said Wednesday, sharply increasing expectations of another 50 basis point rate hike next week. According to Statistics Korea data on Wednesday, the September consumer price index rose 5.6 percent from the same month a year earlier, down from 5.7 percent in August, when it slowed for -
FDI pledges to S. Korea hit record high through September: dataEconomyOct 5, 2022Foreign direct investment (FDI) pledges to South Korea rose 18.2 percent on-year during the first nine months of this year on the solid growth in investment in such advanced sectors as chips and batteries, the industry ministry said Wednesday. The country received $21.52 billion worth of FDI commitments during the January-September period, compared with $18.21 billion logged a year earlier, according to the data by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. It marked the highest amount ever for -
Seoul shares open higher on US ralliesMarketsOct 5, 2022South Korean stocks opened markedly higher Wednesday, tracking overnight rallies on Wall Street, on solid demand for tech bargains. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added 22.39 points, or 1.01 percent, to 2,231.77 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 2.80 percent, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite advanced 3.34 percent, as US Treasury yields fell and the latest US jobs report raised hope that the Federal Reserve would bac -
S. Korea's exports outlook worsens for Q4EconomyOct 5, 2022South Korea's exports are expected to worsen in the fourth quarter of the year amid a global economic slowdown, a trade body said Wednesday. The Korea International Trade Association (KITA) said its export business survey index stood at 84.4 for the October-December period, down from 94.4 three months earlier and staying below par for three consecutive quarters. The index came to 96.1 in the second quarter of the year, falling below the benchmark 100 for the first time in two years. A readi -
Consumer prices grow at slower pace for 2nd month in Sept.EconomyOct 5, 2022South Korea's consumer prices grew at a slower pace on-year for the second consecutive month in September on the back of slowed growth in prices of oil and agricultural products, data showed Wednesday, in yet another sign that inflation may have peaked. Consumer prices, a key gauge of inflation, rose 5.6 percent last month from a year earlier, slowing from a 5.7 percent rise in August, according to the data from Statistics Korea. In July, consumer prices increased at the fastest pace in alm -
Seoul readies W10tr ‘stabilization’ fund to contain market volatilityMarketsOct 4, 2022South Korea’s finance authorities are preparing to replenish what they call a “stabilization fund” this month to curb volatility gripping the local stock market, led by investors pricing in a sharp US downturn. The fund, which the government last rolled out in 2020 to ride out the COVID-19 fallout but never actually used amid a market rebound, will make possible an injection of roughly 10 trillion won ($7 billion) into the Kospi 200 -- a select group of blue chips on the main b -
Seoul shares rebound from 2-year low on tech gainsMarketsOct 4, 2022South Korean stocks made a strong rebound Tuesday from more than a two-year low as investors picked up battered tech shares following solid gains on Wall Street. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added 53.89 points, or 2.5 percent, to end at 2,209.38. Trading volume was a bit slim at 412.58 million shares worth 7.37 trillion won ($5.16 billion), with gainers outpacing losers 815 to 90. Foreigners bought a net 216.89 billion won worth of shares in Seoul, while retail and ind -
Countries with high income inequality, debt suffer higher COVID deaths: reportEconomyOct 4, 2022Countries with high income inequality and national debt have reported more COVID-related deaths in the first year of the pandemic, a report showed Tuesday. Of the 38 Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development member nations, those with a high Gini coefficient -- a gauge of economic inequality such as levels of income -- and high national debt saw the most deaths from COVID-19 in 2020, a report released by the Korea Institute of Public Finance said. “Our research showed that if
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