Foreign carmakers' earnings in S. Korea soar in 2014

Earnings of overseas carmakers in South Korea surged nearly 2.5-fold in 2014 on the back of the rising popularity of foreign-made automobiles here, data showed on Monday, with a large chunk of the profits paid out back home as dividends.The 10 largest foreign carmakers by sales posted a combined net profit of 197.7 billion won ($182.55 million) in South Korea last year, up 147.8 percent from the 79.8 billion won registered in 2013, according to the data compiled by market researcher Chaebul.com.

April 20, 2015

Foreign ownership of S. Korean stocks slips this year

Foreign investors saw their ownership ratio of South Korean stocks inch down this year from the end of last year due mainly to a drop in their holdings of large caps, data showed Monday.Foreigners held 466.2 trillion won ($431 billion) worth of shares traded on the main KOSPI market and the tech-laden KOSDAQ market as of Thursday, or 30.89 percent of the total market capitalization, according to the data compiled by the Korea Exchange.The percentage was down 0.7 percentage point from end-2014, t

April 20, 2015

Producer prices down for 8th straight month in March

South Korea's producer prices fell for the eighth straight month in March as global oil prices continued to remain weak amid still sagging domestic demand, central bank data showed Monday.The producer price index, a barometer of future consumer inflation, reached 101.80 in March, tumbling 3.7 percent from the previous year, according to the preliminary data from the Bank of Korea. The March result was largely attributed to a sharp drop in oil prices.Prices of coal and petroleum products fell 32.

April 20, 2015

Keangnam dissolution hurts banks

The fallout from a snowballing graft scandal involving businessman Sung Woan-jong and Keangnam Enterprises is hitting the builder’s creditor banks hard due to an inability to collect their debts.The combined damage confirmed so far is estimated at about 80 billion won ($74 million) and is likely to exceed 1 trillion won once the company’s workout process is completed, according to industry analysts.The Export-Import Bank of Korea and Shinhan Bank suffered the largest losses, with 20 billion won

April 17, 2015

IBK issues $700m global bond

The state-run Industrial Bank of Korea issued a global bond worth $700 million with a maturity of five years, officials said Friday.The bond has a fixed-interest rate of 2 percent, the lowest among foreign currency bonds issued by South Korean banks this year.The rate is 15 basis points lower than the initial offering price and was determined by adding 75 basis points to the five-year U.S. government bond interest rate.“We increased the amount outstanding from $500 million to $700 million, spurr

April 17, 2015

S. Korea ranks 11th worldwide in stock market cap

The combined market capitalization of South Korean firms listed on the main and secondary bourse has increased more than 10 percent this year to rank 11th among global peers, data showed Friday.The combined market cap of South Korean firms reached $1,341 billion as of Wednesday, the 11th highest in the world, up one notch from the end of 2014, according to the data by the bourse operator Korea Exchange (KRX) and Bloomberg. The Wednesday figure marks a 13.4 percent jump from the end of last year

April 17, 2015

Stock investors rush to take loans in bullish market

The number of people taking out loans to purchase stocks reached a record eight-year high, as investors rush to participate in a strong local stock market, data showed Thursday.Margin debts, which refers to how much securities companies loan to customers to buy stock, reached 6.97 trillion won ($6.4 billion) as of Wednesday, according to the Korea Financial Investment Association. This is a record high since the figure hit 7.1 trillion won in June 2007, and a significant jump from the 5.77 trill

April 16, 2015

Gasoline, diesel prices likely to surge

Gasoline and diesel prices for retail consumers are expected to climb sharply during the second quarter, as global crude oil prices hit the highest level so far this year after touching the estimated bottom in late January.South Korea’s benchmark gasoline prices, which traded at 1,505.35 won ($1.36) per liter on Thursday, are likely to exceed this year’s record of 1,516.49 on March 19 in the coming weeks, according to research analysts.They cite a number of external factors, which could shore up

April 16, 2015

Credit raters punished for engaging in sales

Financial authorities said Wednesday it has punished the chiefs of the nation’s three largest local credit raters over illegally allowing employees to engage in both sales and running credit assessments.The sanctioned chiefs include Yoon In-sub of Korea Rating, Cho Wang-ha of Korea Investors Service Inc., and Lee Sang-kwon of NICE Investors Service Co.The three were banned from engaging in the financial sector for three years, said officials from the Financial Supervisory Service.The officials s

April 15, 2015

Korea ranks 29th in well-being: Deloitte

South Korea was ranked 29th in the world in terms of well-being, according to an index published by global accounting group Deloitte. Norway was ranked No. 1.Social Progress Imperative, a U.S.-based nonprofit research organization affiliated with Deloitte Global, said in its yearly report that Korea got 77.7 points in the Social Progressive Index. It was ranked 29th among 133 countries, a one-notch fall from last year.In its detailed assessment, Korea was the highest in nutrition and medical car

April 14, 2015

JTI Korea unveils new Mevius

Japan Tobacco International Korea rolled out Mevius LSS Option Evo1, the latest brand from its flagship Mevius lineup, on Tuesday in a bid to increase its presence in the local market for super-slim cigarettes. JTI said the Mevius LSS Option Evo1 had the same distinctive flavor as the rest of the products in the LSS special series. The product also includes a purple capsule inserted into each cigarette to reduce the amount of smoke and smell it gives off, according to the tobacco maker. The Mevi

April 14, 2015

FSS conducts regular audit on Shinhan Financial

The Financial Supervisory Service is carrying out a regular inspection on Shinhan Financial Group and its flagship Shinhan Bank, but said that it will not look into the group’s alleged connection with the disputed Keangnam Enterprises.The regulator started a three-week inspection on the nation’s largest banking group this week, to revise its management situation and financial soundness, according to officials.It is the first comprehensive audit since governor Zhin Woong-seob took office in Novem

April 14, 2015

Banks asked to adopt personality test for lending

A private financial think tank has recommended banks to adopt a personality test in evaluating the credit rating of loan borrowers and their repayment capacity.The KB Financial Group Research Institute said in a report on Monday that by using psychological analytic techniques and big data, one can measure how consistently loan borrowers pay back their debts.Under this system, loan applicants should first answer a questionnaire by computer or smartphone, which can then calculates a credit rating.

April 13, 2015

KRX all out to revive derivatives market

South Korea’s stock operator Korea Exchange is determined to give a boost to its long-stalled derivatives market by reaching out to potential investors overseas.This is also part of the KRX’s long-term plan to expand its overseas business after it was reprivatized in February after six years of government control.“We may no longer sit back and blame (the government’s excessive) regulations for holding back our derivatives market,” said Kang Ki-won, director of the KRX derivatives market division

April 12, 2015

Japanese lenders dominate local private market

Japanese capital has increasingly penetrated Korea’s private money lending business despite its high interest rate, reaching over 40 percent of the market, data showed Sunday.The assets of Japan’s top four private money lenders ― Apro Financial Group, Sanwa Money, Miz Sarang and KJI Capital ― totaled 4.3 trillion won ($3.9 billion) as of the end of June last year, according to a report submitted by the Financial Supervisory Service to the National Assembly.This accounted for 42.2 percent of Sout

April 12, 2015

Watchdog vows fight against financial scams

South Korea's financial watchdog said Sunday that it will do its best to root out all kinds of financial scams, including voice phishing, as part of its efforts to beef up consumer protection and restore public trust in the financial industry.  The Financial Supervisory Service said it will suspend transactions of unused and borrowed-name bank accounts, or bogus accounts that are widely used for financial frauds, from the latter half of this year.   It will also introduce a reward system of up t

April 12, 2015