Residents' FX deposits hit new high in Oct. on hopes of strong dollar

Foreign currency deposits at banks in South Korea surged to a record high in October on expectations for a strong dollar, central bank data showed Tuesday. Residents' outstanding foreign currency-denominated deposits had stood at a fresh record of $100.77 billion as of end-October, up $6.57 billion from the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK). It marks the first time the country's foreign currency deposits have surpassed the $100 billion level. It also represents the third con

EconomyNov. 16, 2021

Doosan Logistics Solutions to provide logistics robots from local firm

System integrator Doosan Logistics Solutions Co. (DLS) said Tuesday it has signed a deal with a local autonomous mobile robot (AMR) manufacturer KN to provide more logistics robots. "As orders for AMRs have increased in recent months, we have diversified the supply chain of AMRs to meet growing demands for them," the company said in an emailed statement. With the latest deal, DLS will be provided with AMRs by two AMR makers -- Chinese AMR maker Geek+ and KN. In November last year

TechnologyNov. 16, 2021

Hyundai Rotem wins W207.8b railway deal in Taiwan

Hyundai Rotem Co., a South Korean railway system and plant equipment maker, said Tuesday it has obtained a 207.8 billion won ($176 million) railway project in Taiwan. Hyundai Rotem formed a consortium with Taiwan's ST Engineering Electronic Ltd. to receive the deal from the Kaohsiung Mass Rapid Transit Bureau, the company said in a statement. Under the deal, Hyundai Rotem will supply electric multiple units, electricity and railway systems in the project to extend the existing Kaohsiung Red L

IndustryNov. 16, 2021

Tax revenue up W4.1tr in Sept. amid economic recovery

South Korea's tax revenue increased 4.1 trillion won ($3.5 billion) in September from a year earlier amid an economic recovery and a boom in asset markets, the finance ministry said Tuesday. The government collected 26.3 trillion won in taxes in September, compared with 22.2 trillion won a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance. The government said tax revenue has increased so far this year as corporate tax income has risen in line with the economic recovery, while capi

EconomyNov. 16, 2021

[Graphic News] Number of travel agencies dips 6% in 2 years amid pandemic

　The number of travel agencies in South Korea has declined nearly 6 percent over the past two years in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, industry data showed. 　There were 21,231 travel agencies in Asia’s fourth-largest economy as of end-September, down 6.1 percent from two years earlier, according to the data from the Korea Tourism Association. 　The number fell to 21,540 a year earlier from 22,609 in September 2019 and continued to go south this year. 　The decrease came as pandemic

BusinessNov. 16, 2021

Vietnam OKs Korean Air-Asiana combination

Korean Air Lines Co. said Tuesday it has received regulatory approval from Vietnam for its integration with smaller local rival Asiana Airlines Inc. Korean Air expects the latest approval to help speed up its process to acquire Asiana Airlines. In January, Korean Air submitted documents to anti-trust regulators of 14 countries for the review of its business combination with Asiana.  As of Tuesday, it had received approvals from six countries -- Vietnam, Thailand, Turkey, Taiwan, Malay

IndustryNov. 16, 2021

Seoul stocks open lower on profit-taking

South Korean stocks opened lower Tuesday as investors attempted to cash in gains from the recent rally. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 4.66 points, or 0.16 percent, to 2,994.86 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. The KOSPI got off to a lackluster start amid losses in tech and auto heavyweights. Overnight, the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite and the Dow Jones Industrial Average both retreated 0.04 percent amid lingering inflation concerns. Top cap Samsung E

MarketNov. 16, 2021

Finnair to open Busan-Helsinki route in March

Finland's flag carrier Finnair said Tuesday it will open the Busan-Helsinki route early next year, being the first European carrier that offers flight services from the port city to the Finnish capital city. Finnair plans to inject an A350 plane to operate three flights a week in late March, the company said in a statement. "On top of the existing Incheon-Helsinki route, the Busan-Helsinki route will be able to meet rising transfer passengers heading for Asian and other European cities, a

IndustryNov. 16, 2021

Small shareholders in Samsung Electronics top 5 million

The number of small shareholders in global tech giant Samsung Electronics surpassed 5 million amid massive stock investment by local retail investors, data showed Monday. Some 5.18 million investors held shares in the top-cap company as of the end of September, triple the tally a year earlier, according to the data from Samsung. Market watchers said a considerable number of local retail investors had bought into Samsung Electronics this year, given foreigners' continued selling of the mos

MarketNov. 15, 2021

SC Bank Korea sees quarterly profit jump 87-fold

Standard Chartered Bank Korea saw its quarterly net profit jump 87.2 times on-year to 79.4 billion won ($67.3 million) on a decrease in its future bad debts, filings showed Monday. The surge is attributable to a shrink in provision for credit losses -- an indicator of a financial institution’s future bad debt -- during the third quarter, as well as the increased interest income, according to filings submitted to the Financial Supervisory Service Monday. Notably, the provision for credi

MarketNov. 15, 2021

Real estate services startup Rsquare snaps up $72m funding

South Korean commercial real estate services startup Rsquare said Monday it has raised $72 million in series C funding from private equity firm STIC Investments. The proceeds will be used to enhance its property technology that powers its real estate services, strengthen its foothold in the Vietnamese market with a new business launched in June, expand its presence in other Southeast Asian countries including Singapore and Indonesia and hire new talents. STIC Investments is the sole investor

MarketNov. 15, 2021

Korea’s household debt-GDP ratio highest among major economies

The ratio of South Korea’s household debt in comparison to its economy has become the highest among major economies, a report showed Monday, sparking concerns over its impact on an already sluggish consumption and the nation’s fiscal soundness. Asia’s fourth-largest economy was the only country that saw its household debt exceeding its gross domestic product among the 37 countries reviewed by the US-based Institute of International Finance. Debt grew at one of the fastest pace

EconomyNov. 15, 2021

Chicken joints brewing beer to complete chimaek appeal

Fried chicken and beer -- known locally as “chimaek” -- is a food pair beloved by many Koreans.    In a new development in South Korean chimaek scene, major chicken brands are coming up with their own beer brands, in order to give this popular food combo a special appeal.  KFC confirmed Monday to The Korea Herald that it was preparing to launch its own craft beer.  The US fried chicken franchise has formed a partnership with independent brewery Kabrew, and

ConsumerNov. 15, 2021

Celltrion’s Truxima posts 46 percent market share in major European countries

South Korean pharmaceutical giant Celltrion’s Truxima, the first biosimilar of Roche’s blockbuster cancer drug Rituxan (rituximab), has a market share close to 50 percent in major European countries, the company said Monday. According to Celltrion Healthcare, which is in charge of Celltrion’s overseas business, the combined market share of Truxima in the UK, France, Italy, Germany and Spain reached 46 percent as of the second quarter this year. The five countries account for

TechnologyNov. 15, 2021

More Korean REIT debuts garner investor attention

South Korea is poised to welcome a series of listings of real estate investment trusts by the end of this year, with their underlying assets increasingly diversifying, filings showed Monday. A REIT refers to a vehicle designed to offer dividend returns to its investors through incomes from securitized real estate assets, largely perceived as a risk-averse strategy. Seeing stronger investor demand for public REIT stocks this year, Korea will move onward to welcome at least three new REITs bef

MarketNov. 15, 2021

S. Korea to import more urea solution to ease supply shortage

South Korea said Monday local firms have inked deals to import urea solution from other countries, including Malaysia and Mexico, a move expected to help ease a supply shortage of the key fluid needed in diesel cars to cut emissions. Three Korean firms have signed contracts to import a combined 1.28 million liters of urea solution from Malaysia, Mexico and Australia, according to the government. South Korea needs 600,000 liters of the solution for diesel cars per day. A fourth South Korean fir

IndustryNov. 15, 2021

Seoul stocks close just shy of 3,000 on foreign and institutional buying

The South Korean stock market closed just shy of the 3,000-point mark Monday after a bullish session, led by strong foreign and institutional buying. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) rose 30.72 points, or 1.03 percent, to close at 2,999.52 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 631 million shares worth some 11.2 trillion won ($9.5 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 626 to 238. Foreigners bought a net 397 billion w

MarketNov. 15, 2021

Game companies’ shares surge amid growing hype over NFTs

South Korean game companies with new business plans to develop games using nonfungible tokens saw their share prices surge Monday, despite concerns over the market being overheated without actual plans laid out to materialize such a big agenda, experts said Monday. Nonfungible tokens refer to the digital counterparts of real-world assets, largely visual art or music, that guarantee ownership through the blockchain technology. Game developers enjoying a sudden spike in stock prices have announ

MarketNov. 15, 2021

Fractional trading of overseas stocks to expand soon

Fractional share trading of overseas stocks is expected to be in full swing by the end of the year, according to the Korea Securities Depository on Monday. The KSD said it has completed a system that supports fractional share trading for 20 brokerages after it was designated by the Financial Services Commission, the country’s financial regulator, as an innovative financial service in a sandbox program last week. In a fractional transaction, when an investor orders to buy less than one

MarketNov. 15, 2021