Shares to follow eurozone developments in tight range

South Korean stocks will likely move within a tight range next week as they will continue to be influenced by the eurozone economic woes, local analysts said Saturday.The country’s key stock index, the Korea Composite Stock Price Index, closed at 1,848.68, up 1.06 percent or 19.52 points higher from a week earlier.Foreign and institutional investors scooped up a net 1.53 trillion won ($1.35 billion) worth of shares with individuals offloading a net 1.95 trillion won worth of shares.The KOSPI onc

Aug. 5, 2012

Low-income households have higher default risks: report

The ratio of “debt-risk” households among low-income brackets are significantly higher than the national average, a report showed Sunday, confirming that poor families are more vulnerable to worsening economic and financial conditions.According to the report by the state-run Korea Development Institute, the ratio of households deemed to have insufficient ability to pay back their debt among the nation’s poorest 20 percent is about four times higher than the average.The amount of the poor househo

TechnologyAug. 5, 2012

Rice-growing households shrink

The number of rice growing households in South Korea fell 3.5 percent on-year in 2011, affected by declining demand for rice in the daily diets of its people, a report showed Sunday.Rice growing households totaled about 750,000 last year, down from 777,000 a year earlier, according to the report by the farm ministry. It is down 30.4 percent from 1.08 million tallied in 2000.The decline is attributable to less demand for rice among Korean citizens who tend to replace the staple crop in their diet

Aug. 5, 2012

Sales rise for online oil products

Online market transactions on imported petroleum products have rapidly increased due to the government’s tariff-lifting policy and other measures.The Ministry of Knowledge Economy lifted the 3-percent tariff on imported petroleum goods that are traded online in July 2012, three months after launching the online trade of imported oil goods on March 30. According to the ministry, the new tax policy boosted the average volume of daily trade of these goods by over eight-fold from April to July.The a

Aug. 5, 2012

Market uncertainties prompt flight to safer assets

A growing number of South Korean investors are fleeing to safer assets as a safe haven from the uncertainties of the global economic slowdown, industry sources said Sunday. The outstanding value of term deposits at five local lenders reached 418 trillion won ($368.7 billion) as of the end of July, up 15 trillion won from 403 trillion won tallied in December 2011, according to financial sources. The corresponding figure for household debts, however, grew a mere 0.78 percent to 2.4 trillion won in

Aug. 5, 2012

Yeonggwang nuke plant restarts after shutdown

A nuclear power plant in Yeonggwang, South Jeolla Province, resumed operations on Sunday, six days after the plant came to a halt due to technical malfunctions. The Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power Co. announced that the Yeonggwang-6 nuclear power plant went back into operation at 8:40 a.m., following the official inspection and approval from the Nuclear Safety and Security Commission the day before. The Yeonggwang-6 unit is expected to reach its normal power-generating capacity by midnight on Mond

Aug. 5, 2012

NPS’ direct investment profits 3.48%

National Pension Service outperforms assets managers on profitsDirect investments made by the National Pension Service are marking steady profits in the fluctuating stock market, according to NPS officials. The accumulative profit rate of the service’s direct investment in local stocks marked 3.48 percent for the five first months of the year, they said. The figure is far higher than the profit rate of the KOSPI, which marked 0.97 percent. Direct investment in the KOSPI made by the NPS was more

Aug. 5, 2012

Low-income households face higher default risks on debts: report

The ratio of "debt-risk" households among low-income brackets are significantly higher than the national average, a report showed Sunday, confirming that poor families are more vulnerable to worsening economic and financial conditions.According to the report by the state-run Korea Development Institute, the ratio of households deemed to have insufficient ability to pay back their debt among the na

Aug. 5, 2012

Korea’s per-capita GNI to reach all-time high in 2012: data

South Korea's per-capita gross national income (GNI) will likely reach an all-time high this year despite gloomy global economic conditions, data showed Sunday.The country's nominal GNI are forecast to reach about US$23,159 this year, up 3 percent from $22,489 reported a year earlier, according to the data provided by the Finance Ministry.The figures are based on the ministry's 3.3 percent economi

Aug. 5, 2012

Samsung defeats Apple bid for sanctions over evidence

Samsung Electronics Co. defeated a bid for judicial sanctions sought by Apple Inc. over a release of evidence in the iPhone patent dispute now on trial in San Jose federal court in California. U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh today dismissed Apple’s request to punish a Samsung lawyer’s public disclosure of evidence excluded from trial. Koh polled jurors on the matter and concluded they could remain in

TechnologyAug. 4, 2012

Foreigners dump local stocks for 4th month

Foreign investors offloaded local stocks for a fourth consecutive month in July mainly due to continuing external uncertainties stemming from the debt-mired eurozone, the financial regulator said Friday.Overseas investors sold off a net 710 billion won ($627.2 million) worth of local equities last month, with their shareholdings reaching 379.9 trillion won as of the end of July, the Financial Supervisory Service said.Foreign stock ownership inched up to 31.6 percent of the market cap last month

Aug. 3, 2012

KEPCO seeks 4.9% hike in electricity bill

The Korea Electric Power Corp. announced Friday that its board of directors has agreed to increase electricity charges by an average of 4.9 percent from as early as September, with additional hikes being considered within the year.The fee hikes, implemented differently across industries, would amount to 7 percent for businesses, 3 percent for homes and 3 percent for the agricultural sector, according to the state-run power company KEPCO. KEPCO, calling the long freeze in electricity prices the m

IndustryAug. 3, 2012

Average monthly import car sales top 10,000

Import car sales in the local market continued their boom last month although Korean automakers and three foreign companies that operate production factories in Korea are still suffering sluggish vehicle sales.According to the Korea Automobile Importers & Distributors Association, the nation’s import car sales exceeded 10,000 units for the fifth consecutive month.“Sales of import cars came to 10,768 units in July, up 21.5 percent from a year before,” a KAMA spokesman said on Friday. “After posti

IndustryAug. 3, 2012

Bill cuts capital gains tax for multiple homeowners

The Finance Ministry on Friday unveiled a revised tax bill which removes the additional capital gains tax burden on multiple homeowners as part of efforts to stimulate the property market. Multiple homeowners, with the exception of those possessing three or more homes in speculative regions, will be applied the same capital gains tax rates as those who own a single home when selling their houses. The bill also includes raising the minimum tax rate for large companies that receive various tax ben

Aug. 3, 2012