Seoul shares may rebound next week on ECB's rate cut

South Korea's stock market may rebound next week as the key rate cut by the European Central Bank (ECB) could prompt foreign investors to buy local shares, analysts said Saturday.The ECB cut its benchmark rate by a quarter percentage point to 0.5 percent earlier this week, adding to hopes for an economic stimulus in Europe.European investors have gone on buying sprees on the Seoul bourse for two to three months in the past when the European Central Bank has lowered its benchmark rate.The benchma

May 4, 2013

Samsung chief leaves for U.S. to accompany Park

Lee Kun-hee, the chairman of Samsung Electronics Co., the world's largest supplier of smartphones and memory chips, left for the United States on Saturday to accompany President Park Geun-hye during her trip to the U.S.Lee is one of a 52-member high-profile business delegation that will also accompany Park, who is scheduled to visit the U.S. from May 5-10 for talks with U.S. President Barack Obama.It is the first time for Lee to join an overseas trip by a South Korean president since 2004 when h

IndustryMay 4, 2013

FTC in final stage of probe into Google

SEJONG (Yonhap News) ― South Korea’s corporate watchdog is expected to soon announce the results of its deliberation into an antitrust case against Google Inc. for its alleged involvement in activities that hurt fair market competition, industry sources said Friday.Some sources also speculate that the Fair Trade Commission might be considering dropping the charges against the U.S. Internet search engine giant as it is in the final stage of its deliberation into the case.In 2011, NHN Corp. and Da

TechnologyMay 3, 2013

Credit appraisers downgrade ratings on builders, shippers

South Korea’s credit appraisers slashed ratings on corporate bonds floated by local builders and shipping firms last year, data showed Friday, apparently due to the protracted slump in the industries.Among 22 firms which suffered credit downgrades in 2012 by the Korea Investors Service Inc., construction companies and shippers accounted for eight, or 36 percent of the total, industry data showed.The KIS slashed ratings on local builders including Samwhan Corp., Doosan Engineering & Construction

May 3, 2013

BOK warns against expansion of yen carry trade

South Korea’s central bank warned on Friday that the so-called yen carry trade might expand, citing prospects for the yen’s weakness and investors’ reduced bets on safer assets.The yen-funded carry trade refers to the borrowing of yen at low interest rates to invest in higher-yielding and riskier assets.Usually, the yen carry trade tends to increase when the yen goes through a period of prolonged weakness and the interest-rate gap among countries rises or global market jitters ease.The Bank of K

May 3, 2013

Financial firms set W700b in Gaeseong relief fund

Financial companies will offer bailout funds worth 700 billion won ($636 million) to the 123 financially troubled South Korean companies operating in the suspended Gaeseong industrial complex in North Korea, financial regulators said Friday.Their emergency relief loans, aimed at preventing the firms from experiencing a liquidity crisis, were fostered after the North suspended operations of the complex by pulling out most of its 53,000 workers about a month ago in protest against a joint military

May 3, 2013

4 STX units apply for creditors’ management

STX Group has applied for joint management of its four financially distressed subsidiaries by creditor banks, the state-run Korea Development Bank said Friday.The main creditor KDB also said STX Group is considering selling two units of STX Europe ― STX France and STX Finland ― as part of efforts to improve the group’s overall financial soundness.The shipbuilding conglomerate’s application for creditors’ comanagement is seen as a desperate effort to overcome the financial crisis facing STX Heavy

May 3, 2013

Korean Air Q1 net loss sharply widens due to foreign exchange loss

 Korean Air Lines Co., South Korea's top air carrier, said Friday its net loss sharply widened in the first quarter of 2013 from a year earlier due to foreign exchange loss.   Consolidated net loss reached 300.6 billion won ($285 million) in the January-March period, up from a 64.2 billion won loss a year earlier, the carrier said in a regulatory filing.    The figures also represent a sharp decline from a profit of 140.1 billion won in the fourth quarter of last year.   The carrier said its for

IndustryMay 3, 2013

Seoul shares gain 0.44 pct on U.S. jobs data

South Korean stocks closed 0.44 percent higher Friday, as five-year low jobless data in the United States cheered investor sentiment over an improving economy, analysts said. The local currency rose against the U.S. dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) advanced 8.57 points to 1,965.78. Trading volume was light at 306.8 million shares worth 4.13 trillion won (US$3.75 billion) with gainers outnumbering decliners 499 to 299. "U.S. labor data give us a sense of where we ar

May 3, 2013

FTC in final stage of deliberation on Google in antitrust case: sources

South Korea's corporate watchdog is expected to soon announce the results of its deliberation into an antitrust case against Google Inc. for its alleged involvement in activities that hurt fair market competition, industry sources said Friday.Some sources also speculate that the Fair Trade Commission (FTC) might be considering dropping the charges against the U.S. Internet search engine giant as it is in the final stage of its deliberation into the case.In 2011, NHN Corp. and Daum Communications

IndustryMay 3, 2013

Samsung Galaxy S4 wins security approval from Pentagon

Samsung Electronics Co., the world's top maker of smartphones, said Friday it has received security approval for its new Galaxy S4 smartphone from the U.S. Department of Defense, making it the first Korean smart device to earn such approval.The winning of security approval indicates that Samsung is allowed to make a foray into the market for security-concerned U.S. defense agencies, which has been largely dominated by BlackBerry."The Galaxy S4 has won security approval from the U.S. Department o

IndustryMay 3, 2013

Seoul shares down 0.04 pct in late-morning trade

South Korean stocks traded 0.04 percent lower late Friday morning after opening higher, dented by losses in blue-chip tech firms, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) shed 0.8 points to 1,956.41 as of 11:20 a.m. Top-cap tech giant Samsung Electronics lost 0.13 percent, with chipmaker SK hynix falling 1.36 percent. In contrast, autos gained ground, with Hyundai Motor rising 1.8 percent and its smaller affiliate Kia Motors soaring 2.5 percent. The local currency w

May 3, 2013

Seoul shares open higher on U.S. data, ECB rate cut

South Korean stocks got off to a strong start Friday, buoyed by upbeat economic data in the United States and the policy rate cut by the European Central Bank (ECB), analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) gained 4.77 points, or 0.24 percent, to 1,961.98 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Telecom companies and metal manufacturers drove up shares, with No. 1 mobile carrier SK Telecom jumping 2.5 percent and zinc smelter Korea Zinc hiking nearly 5 percent. The U.S.

May 3, 2013

KT Q1 net profit down 47.6 pct

KT Corp., South Korea's top fixed-line and No. 2 mobile operator, said Friday its first-quarter net profit fell 47.6 percent from a year earlier due to increased marketing costs on long-term evolution (LTE) service and one-off costs.The company's consolidated net profit reached 212.6 billion won ($193 million) in the January-March period, down from 405.6 billion won a year earlier, the Seoul-based company said in a regulatory filing.KT attributed the weaker bottom line to an increase in marketin

IndustryMay 3, 2013