Seoul shares close slightly lower on geopolitical concerns

South Korean stocks closed 0.13 percent lower Tuesday on concerns over North Korea's nuclear provocations, but the decline slowed compared to previous sessions as investors engaged in bargain hunting, analysts said. The Korean won sharply fell against the US dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index dropped 3.03 points, or 0.13 percent, to 2,326.62. Trade volume was moderate at 317 million shares worth 4.81 trillion won ($4.25 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers at 569 to 239

Sept. 5, 2017

Financial regulator urges tighter screenings in high-risk lending

Banks and other financial institutions should tighten screenings of lending applications by high-risk borrowers, the top financial regulator said Tuesday. Choi Jong-ku, chairman of the Financial Services Commission, made the remarks at a forum in Seoul, as financial authorities are scheduled to announce a fresh package of measures this month to curb the growth of household debt. Choi urged banks and other financial institutions to "break away from the practice of unconditionally extending l

Sept. 5, 2017

Korean stocks down late Tuesday morning

South Korean stocks traded lower late Tuesday morning as investors took a wait-and-see stance on the geopolitical tension on the Korean Peninsula sparked by Pyonyang's nuke provocations.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 3.11 points, or 0.13 percent, to 2,326.54 as of 11:20 a.m.Financial shares lost ground, with Shinhan Financial moving down 2.95 percent and Samsung Life Insurance dropping 0.89 percent. KB Financial plunged 4.08 percent. Top carmaker Hyundai Motor lost 0.7

Sept. 5, 2017

Korea's FX reserves hit record high in August

South Korea's foreign exchange reserves hit a record high in August due to a hike in the value of non-dollar currencies when converted into the US greenback, central bank data showed Tuesday.As of the end of August, the country's foreign exchange reserves came to $384.84 billion, up $1.08 billion from the previous month, the Bank of Korea said in a statement.Foreign exchange reserves consist of securities and deposits denominated in overseas currencies, as well as International Monetary Fun

Sept. 5, 2017

Kakao Bank implements W500b capital hike

Kakao Bank, South Korea's second Internet-only bank, implemented a 500 billion won ($441.9 million) capital increase on Tuesday as a part of a refinancing plan to bolster its lending business. Kakao Bank, launched in late July with paid-in capital of 300 billion won, has attracted about three million accounts and extended loans worth 1.4 trillion won as of Aug. 27. The capital hike was made by issuing 100 million new shares worth 5,000 won each.Major shareholders of Kakao Bank, including Korea I

Sept. 5, 2017

Seoul stocks open higher on techs, autos

South Korean stocks opened higher Tuesday after suffering a sharp decline in the previous session following Pyongyang's nuclear provocations. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index gained 6.74 points, or 0.29 percent, to 2,336.39 in the first 15 minutes of trading.On Sunday, Pyongyang claimed it successfully conducted a test of a hydrogen bomb that can be loaded on an intercontinental ballistic missile. Tech shares led the recovery, with top cap Samsung Electronics advancing 0.13 p

Sept. 5, 2017

Markets in red on NK downward momentum

Markets in South Korea took a downturn Monday in the wake of the most powerful nuclear bomb test by North Korea on Sunday, drawing a mixed forecast on the aftereffect from local analysts.The main bourse index Kospi closed at 2,329.65, down 1.19 percent, while the tech-heavy secondary Kosdaq tumbled 1.68 percent to 650.89. 　 Market bellwether Samsung Electronics‘ stock price fluctuated, starting 2.02 percent lower in the opening and closing at 0.95 percent lower.Of the Kospi-listed top 20 p

Sept. 4, 2017

Seoul shares shed over 1% on N. Korean nuke provocation

South Korean stocks sank by more than 1 percent Monday as the escalating geopolitical tension following Pyongyang's nuclear test soured investor sentiment, analysts said. The Korean won sharply fell against the US dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index dropped 28.04 points, or 1.19 percent, to 2,329.65. Trade volume was low at 244 million shares worth 4.32 trillion won ($3.81 billion), with losers far outnumbering gainers at 715 to 124.On Sunday, North Korea claimed it had succes

Sept. 4, 2017

S. Korean stocks down late Monday morning on NK threat

South Korean stocks traded lower late Monday morning apparently as investors sought after safer assets on Pyongyang's sixth nuclear test staged over the weekend.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 16.47 points, or 0.7 percent, to 2,341.22 as of 11:20 a.m.On Sunday, Pyongyang announced it had successfully conducted a test of a hydrogen bomb that can be mounted on an intercontinental ballistic missile. Market behemoth Samsung Electronics shed 0.56 percent, and top chipmaker S

Sept. 4, 2017

Seoul stocks open sharply lower on Pyongyang's nuke test

South Korean stocks opened sharply lower on Monday after North Korea conducted its sixth nuclear test a day earlier, escalating geopolitical tension in the Northeast Asian region.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index plunged 26.87 points, or 1.14 percent, to 2,330.82 in the first 15 minutes of trading.On Sunday, Pyongyang claimed it successfully conducted a test of a hydrogen bomb that can be loaded on an intercontinental ballistic missile. Tech giants lost ground, with top cap Sa

Sept. 4, 2017

[Stock Preview] North Korea risks loom over Kospi

Security tension is most likely to return to focus in South Korea’s stock markets this week following the North’s sixth nuclear test Sunday, further dampening investors’ sentiment.A 5.7 magnitude tremor was detected in northeastern North Korea on Sunday at around 12:29 p.m., which North Korea claimed to be a test of a hydrogen bomb that can be loaded into its intercontinental ballistic missile.“The news would bring noise in investor sentiments and stock markets in South K

Sept. 3, 2017

Korea seeks to regulate digital currencies

South Korea's top financial regulator said Sunday it will step up monitoring and carry out probes into money laundering, unauthorized financing and other illicit transactions of digital currencies. Joining Japan, China and other Asian nations in trying to regulate crypto-currencies, the Financial Services Commission  warned that the recent transaction volume and volatility of digital currencies are "excessive." The move by the FSC comes as the price of a bitcoin, the best-known di

Sept. 3, 2017

Ex-Seoul chief of U.S. equity fund released: ministry

The former Korea branch chief of U.S. equity firm Lone Star has been released in Italy, Seoul‘s justice ministry said Friday, dimming the prospects of his return to Korea for an inquiry into alleged irregularities surrounding the 2003 sale of a local bank.　The ministry said that a Milano-based court has recently set free Steven Lee, the Korean-American who headed the Seoul office between 1998 and 2005, apparently because the statute of limitations of the charges against him had expired.Lee

Sept. 1, 2017

Finance minister vows to clarify scope of ordinary wage

Deputy Prime Minister for economic affairs and Finance Minister Kim Dong-yeon said on Friday the government intends to propose revisions to Korea’s Labor Standards Act in an effort to further clarify the legal scope regarding ordinary wages, amid intensifying legal confrontation between the labor and the management.　“We plan to further strengthen business roadmaps and add support to the wage system restructuring in order to prevent any unnecessary labor-management disputes,“ Ki

Sept. 1, 2017

Seoul stocks down on institutional sell-offs

South Korean stocks finished lower Friday, as investors continued to remain cautious in betting on risky assets. The Korean won rose against the US dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 5.5 points, or 0.23 percent, to close at 2,357.69.Trade volume was a moderate 277 million shares worth 4.67 trillion won ($4.16 billion), with gainers slightly outnumbering losers 405 to 401.The local stock market opened higher as market sentiment was boosted by overnight gains on Wall Stree

Sept. 1, 2017

Korean stocks down late Friday morning on foreign selling

South Korean stocks traded slightly lower Friday morning as foreign investors continued to unload local shares.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 3.33 points, or 0.14 percent, to 2,359.86 as of 11:15 a.m.Bourse heavyweights traded mixed, with market kingpin Samsung Electronics up 0.39 percent. SK hynix, a major chipmaker, fell 0.44 percent, and POSCO, the No. 1 steelmaker, declined 0.58 percent.Naver, the country's top Internet portal operator, lost 0.26 percent, while Hyu

Sept. 1, 2017

Credit card firms urged to cut costs, offer new payment services

South Korea's top financial regulator on Friday urged credit card firms to cut marketing spending and provide safer and more convenient payment services. Choi Jong-ku, chairman of the Financial Services Commission, made the remark at a meeting with top executives of credit card companies as the industry has been under pressure over competition with online payment services and a cut in credit card processing fees for small merchants. Choi said credit card firms "need to revamp their high-cos

Sept. 1, 2017

Banks' loan delinquency rate edges up in July

The delinquency rate of South Korean banks' won-denominated loans edged up in July, due to a slight rise in people who could not pay off their debts, government data showed Friday. The rate for bank loans more than 30 days overdue stood at 0.48 percent at the end of July, up 0.05 percentage point from a month earlier, according to the data by the Financial Supervisory Service.Compared to a year ago, however, the rate was down 0.3 percentage point, it said.  "In July, newly delinquent l

Sept. 1, 2017

Seoul stocks open higher on US gains

South Korean stocks opened slightly higher Friday, taking a cue from overnight gains on Wall Street.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 5.97 points, or 0.25 percent, to 2,369.16 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Market kingpin Samsung Electronics was up 0.60 percent, while SK hynix, a major chipmaker, fell 0.15 percent.Hyundai Motor, the No. 1 automaker, opened flat, while AmorePacific, the country's top cosmetics maker, advanced 0.69 percent.The local currency was trading at 1

Sept. 1, 2017

K-Bank posts loss of W40.5b in H1

Internet-only bank K-Bank said Thursday it posted a net loss of 40.5 billion won ($35.9 million) in the first-half of this year, hit by a jump in spending as it launched operations in April. K-Bank said it attracted deposits worth 643 billion won and made loans worth 600.3 trillion won as of the end of June. K-Bank, which is led by KT Corp., the nation's biggest fixed-line Internet operator, spent about 90 billion won in setting up infrastructure for its Internet banking system, the lender

Aug. 31, 2017