KOSPI to hit record high this year: brokerages

South Korea's benchmark stock index is expected to reach an all-time high this year, propelled by ample liquidity around the globe and other favorable conditions, securities companies said Sunday.   The local stock market could undergo a temporary correction during the first half of this year, but will likely stage an overall bull run in the second half, they said.   According to a survey of industry leader Samsung Securities Co. and nine other brokerages, the Korea Composite Stock Price Index i

April 12, 2015

S. Korea becomes founding member of China-led infra bank

South Korea has been accepted as a founding member of the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, China's finance ministry said Saturday.    The approval was made by existing members, including China, Britain and France, the Chinese ministry said in a statement posted on its website.    Austria and Spain were also accepted as founding members of the AIIB on Saturday, according to the statement, bringing the number of founding members to 41 nations.    On March 27, South Korea applied to

April 12, 2015

S. Korea does not intentionally intervene in FX market: official

South Korea does not intervene in the foreign exchange market to artificially keep its currency weak, a finance ministry official said Friday, stressing that Seoul only engages in smoothing operations to counter volatility.The official, who did not wish to identified, said the government does not have a set goal when it comes to exchange rates, responding to yet another U.S. request for cutbacks in South Korea's currency interventions."Foreign exchange is determined by the market, with the gover

April 10, 2015

Watchdog vows to stamp out financial ‘evil’ practices

The nation’s top financial watchdog has vowed to root out what it called the “five evil financial practices” including financial fraud.The other four are illegal private loans, illegal credit collection, forced purchases of financial products and insurance swindling.“Unless we cut out these financial malpractices right now, (consumers) will continue to feel uneasy about financial transactions and consequently distrust financial services in general,” Seo Tae-jong, senior deputy governor for coord

April 8, 2015

Top 30 chaebol creating fewer jobs

The country’s major conglomerates created fewer jobs last year in a reflection of the lackluster economy, market research firm CEO Score reported Wednesday. The firm, which specializes in chaebol data, revealed that 274 subsidiaries of the top 30 conglomerates, including LG, Hyundai, Samsung and SK, recruited just over 1 million employees as of late 2014, down 0.3 percent from a year ago. Last year’s hiring accounted for only a 1.3 percent rise in the total number of employees. “It is very worri

April 8, 2015

Financial regulator to allow mobile-only credit cards

South Korea's top financial regulator said Wednesday it will allow local credit card firms to issue mobile-only credit cards, rather than conventional plastic ones, to clients later this month as part of efforts to improve convenience and speed in electronic transactions.  Under the current law, mobile cards have played second fiddle to conventional magnetic strip-based credit cards due to person-to-person authentication and authorization regulations.  The Financial Services Commission said cred

April 8, 2015

KOSPI gains momentum, remains undervalued

The South Korean stock market has advanced sharply this year on increased appetite for risky assets, but it remains undervalued due to a lack of confidence in corporate earnings and economic fundamentals, data showed Tuesday.   The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index ended at 2,045.4 points as of April 3, up 6.8 percent from the start of this year, as it made some gains after having been outshone by the tech-laden KOSDAQ earlier this year, according to data compiled by the Korea Exchange

April 7, 2015

Financial indices gaining momentum on Iran deal

South Korean stocks and currency are making a strong showing after Iran reached a provisional nuclear deal with the United States and several major economies on April 2.Financial market insiders share the view that their favorable performance is attributable to eased worries over the recent bounce-back of international oil prices ― as high prices usually undermine both industries and private consumer sentiment.The KOSPI surpassed 2,050 points for the first time this year during the Monday sessio

April 6, 2015

Regulator seeks to bring down microfinance interest rates

The government is planning to lessen the financial burden of low-income households by slashing the interest rate on microfinance products. The Financial Services Commission, the country’s financial regulator, said Monday that it is seeking measures to lower the interest rate on several trademark loan products for young adults and the low-income households, such as Smile Microcredit Program, Sunshine Loan and New Hope Loans. The plan aims at helping the low-income debtors, who borrowed money from

April 6, 2015

Loan transfer program weighs on banks

A recently implemented loan transfer program may alleviate the interest burden for mortgage loan borrowers but is also expected to considerably cut back on banks’ annual profits, financial analysts said Monday.Taxpayers, too, may eventually suffer the consequences, as the state-run Korea Housing Finance Corporation will inevitably increase its capital in order to meet loan transfer demands.Under the government-backed loan scheme which closed last Friday, 33.9 trillion won is to be converted from

April 6, 2015

BOK expected to hold key rate in April: poll

South Korea’s central bank is forecast to keep its benchmark interest rate unchanged this month following a surprise rate cut in March that sent the policy rate to a record low of 1.75 percent, analysts said Monday.Nineteen out of the 20 analysts and economists surveyed by Yonhap Infomax, the financial news arm of Yonhap News Agency, projected the Bank of Korea to hold the base rate at 1.75 percent at its upcoming policy meeting on Thursday. The respondents said that while room for another rate

April 6, 2015

BOK expected to hold key rate in April: poll

South Korea's central bank is forecast to keep its benchmark interest rate unchanged this month following a surprise rate cut in March that sent the policy rate to a record low of 1.75 percent, analysts said Monday.Nineteen out of the 20 analysts and economists surveyed by Yonhap Infomax, the financial news arm of Yonhap News Agency, projected the Bank of Korea to hold the base rate at 1.75 percent at its upcoming policy meeting on Thursday.The respondents said that while room for another rate c

April 6, 2015

Investors expected to tap more nonlisted stocks

Financial authorities and the securities industry predict small investors will increase their participation in the stock market, as officials are poised to open a registered space to trade over-the-counter stocks and vitalize funds for overseas investment.The optimism is backed by the recent improved performance of overseas equity funds, which is seeing its highest investment levels in seven years, and the scheduled widening of the scope of nonlisted share trading.In cooperation with the operato

April 5, 2015

Seoul shares likely to remain rangebound next week

South Korean stocks are expected to move in a tight range next week as investors wait for the upcoming earnings season that will start with Samsung Electronics' earnings estimate later in the week, analysts said.The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) closed at 2,045.42 on Friday, up 1.3 percent from a week earlier. The index started off on a positive note on anticipation that Beijing will take additional measures to spur growth. It slipped on Thursday as both institutions and foreigners u

April 4, 2015