Dividend growth crucial for stock growth: Barings

Companies should increase their dividends if Korea wishes to activate its stock market and attract foreign investments, according to Baring Asset Management.The London-based investment management firm also predicted that the U.S. Federal Reserve will hike its key rate in the second quarter this year, possibly in late May or June.“Once foreign investors are convinced that Korean companies have decided to expand their dividends, the local stock market will turn bullish,” said Khiem Do, head of the

Jan. 8, 2015

Shares surge on U.S. gains

South Korean stocks jumped by more than 1 percent on Thursday as investors were cheered by overnight gains on Wall Street and growing expectations of an extended stimulus in the eurozone, analysts said. The South Korean won rose against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 20.82 points, or 1.11 percent, to 1,904.65, rising for a second consecutive session. Trading volume was moderate at 259 million shares worth 4.17 trillion won ($3.8 billion), with gainers beatin

Jan. 8, 2015

Euro weakens in Asia on ECB stimulus expectations

- The euro slid in Asia Thursday as falling prices in the eurozone boosted the prospect of European Central Bank (ECB) stimulus, while the Fed appears on track to hike interest rates by mid-year.The single currency slipped to $1.1825 and 141.51 yen in Tokyo against $1.1842 and 141.70 yen in New York. The euro dropped to 1.1802 at one point on Wednesday, its lowest since January 2006. "The inflation data is taking a toll on the euro," Naohiro Nomoto, an associate for currency trading at Bank of T

Jan. 8, 2015

Korean firms cite weak yen as risk to exports

Nearly 30 percent of South Korean companies worry that intensifying currency volatility will negatively affect their exports this year, a survey showed Thursday.According to the survey of 654 local companies by the Korea International Trade Association (KITA), 27 percent expressed concerns over more currency fluctuations that could weigh down their exports. A weak yen, in particular, was cited as a serious threat to their overseas sales outlooks. Of those surveyed, 34.9 percent said that they ha

Jan. 8, 2015

Seoul shares sharply up in late morning trade

South Korean stocks traded sharply higher late Thursday morning, with most market heavyweights remaining in positive terrain on overnight gains on Wall Street, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 18.99 points, or 1.01 percent, to 1,902.82 as of 11:20 a.m.Tech and auto shares led the overall market advance, while some defensive shares retreated.Top market cap Samsung Electronics climbed 0.84 percent as its estimated fourth-quarter operating income beat marke

Jan. 8, 2015

Money inflows continue into high-yield funds with tax favors

South Korean investors are putting more money into funds that invest in low-grade bonds amid low market interest rates, data showed Thursday.Inflows to such funds amounted to 3.19 trillion won (US$2.9 billion) as of the end of December, just nine months after their market debut in early April last year, according to the data compiled by the Korea Financial Investment Association (KOFIA). In March last year, the country's regulator allowed local financial firms to sell a new type of high-yield fu

Jan. 8, 2015

S. Korean banks closing down ATMs on mobile banking trend

Local banks have been closing down their automated teller machines (ATMs), pulling out of the high-cost service to transfer resources to more promising mobile banking, industry watchers said Thursday.The top seven commercial banks led by market No. 1 Shinhan Bank and Kookmin Bank ran a combined 32,256 ATMs nationwide as of September last year, down 3.6 percent from 33,459 at the end of 2013, according to data from the industry. The other five banks are Woori Bank, Hana Bank, Foreign Exchange Ban

Jan. 8, 2015

Finance sector loses most jobs in 5 years

The country’s finance industry suffered its largest job losses in five years last year, state researchers said in a report released Wednesday. In last year’s January-November period, the average number of jobs in the finance industry fell to 840,000, down 2.8 percent from a year ago, according to the report by Statistics Korea.About 24,000 jobs vanished from the financial sector, dragging its share of the nations jobs to down 3.13 percent. This is the largest job loss since 2009, when about 55,0

Jan. 7, 2015

Hana-KEB merger could face delay

Hana Financial Group’s ambitious plan to merge its two flagship banks ― Hana Bank and Korea Exchange Bank ― is likely to face another delay due to their discord on how to convert the banks’ contract workers into regular employees.A news report said the management-labor talks had gone astray and the plan to promote some 3,400 contract workers returned to square one. The number includes 2,000 KEB employees and 1,400 Hana employees.But the financial group denied the report, calling it groundless.“H

Jan. 7, 2015

Shares rebound on auto, tech gains

Korean stocks slightly rebounded from their 16-month low on Wednesday, aided by gains in autos, utility and tech shares as investors saw recent sell-offs on the local bourse as excessive, analysts said. The Korean won fell against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 1.38 points, or 0.07 percent, to 1,883.83, snapping a seven day loss. Trading volume was moderate at 277 million shares worth 3.69 trillion won ($3.36 billion), with losers beating gainers 482 to 326.

Jan. 7, 2015

Job loss in finance industry hits 5-year high

As low inflation and growth pummeled profit, South Korea's finance industry has shed the largest number of jobs in five years, a statistics agency said Wednesday.There were 840,000 jobs on a monthly average in the local finance and insurance sectors in the January-November period, down 2.8 percent from the same period a year earlier, according to Statistics Korea.The figure translates to a loss of 24,000 jobs over the one-year period, marking the steepest fall since 55,000 jobs were erased off t

Jan. 7, 2015

Auto recalls down 27% in Korea: data

The number of automobile recalls in South Korea shrank 27.2 percent in 2014 from a year earlier, a car safety agency said Tuesday, on the back of a decline for local carmakers.A total of 755,501 vehicles registered here were recalled for safety reasons last year, down from 1.04 million units in 2013, according to the data compiled by the Korea Transportation Safety Authority. The number of models affected, however, jumped 80.5 percent on-year to 352 from the previous 195.There were fewer recalls

Jan. 6, 2015

Korean fund inflows up 14% in 2014: data

South Korean funds saw a sharp rise in net inflows last year as investors turned to indirect instruments amid record-low interest rates, while stock funds stayed weak from the tedious equity market, data showed Tuesday. The net asset value of stocks, bonds and real estate-related funds reached a combined 385.16 trillion won ($346.7 billion) at the end of 2014, up 13.93 percent from a year earlier, according to data by the Korea Financial Investment Association. The net asset value refers to the

Jan. 6, 2015

Shares dip 2% on oil slump, eurozone woes

South Korean stocks dropped almost 2 percent Tuesday as a prolonged slump in oil prices and revived woes over the eurozone economy prompted broad market sell-offs, analysts said. The South Korean won rose against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 33.3 points, or 1.74 percent, to 1,882.45. Trading volume was moderate at 299 million shares worth 4.66 trillion won ($4.24 billion), with losers beating gainers 577 to 233. Major market heavyweights remained in negati

Jan. 6, 2015

Korea to invest $400m to develop new growth engines

Korea will invest over $400 million this year to help develop new and indigenous products and technologies that will help boost the country’s economy and exports, the government said Tuesday.The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said the government seeks to develop 13 new industrial growth engines that include smart wearable devices, self-driving vehicles and a high-speed unmanned aerial vehicle that can take off and land vertically.For their development, the government will invest 254.8 bi

Jan. 6, 2015

Combined sales of Hyundai, Kia in U.S. hit record high

LOS ANGELES (Yonhap) ― Hyundai Motor Group, the world’s fifth-largest automaker, said Monday that its U.S. sales reached an all-time high in 2014 despite lingering worries over slowing global economic recovery and intensifying competition from Japanese rivals supported by the weak yen.Hyundai Motor America and Kia Motors America, the distribution and marketing arms of the group’s flagship companies, said that they sold 725,718 cars and 580,234 vehicles last year, up 0.7 percent and 8.4 percent f

Jan. 6, 2015