15 million clients’ data believed stolen

The victims of a recent information leak from three credit card companies are believed to number about 15 million, officials and sources said Sunday. The prosecution announced on Jan. 9 that it has charged three people with stealing private data of customers from three major card issuers ― KB Kookmin Card, NongHyup Card and Lotte Card ― in what is seen as the nation’s largest financial information leak. The Financial Supervisory Service said that regulatory inspectors suspect that private inform

Jan. 19, 2014

Seoul shares likely to move in tight range next week

The South Korean stock market is expected to move sideways next week due to investors' jitters over the fourth-quarter corporate earnings, analysts said Saturday.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) gained 0.9 percent from the previous week to close at 1,944.48 Friday.Earlier this week, Seoul shares gathered ground as the weaker-than-expected U.S. jobs data curbed concerns that its central bank may speed up the tapering of its quantitative easing.The U.S. added 74,000 jobs in

Jan. 18, 2014

EXIM Bank Korea sells South Korea’s first formosa bond as market augments

The Export-Import Bank of Korea has become the first Korean company to sell a non Taiwan dollar- denominated note in Taiwan as the so-called Formosa bond market gathers pace.Kexim, as the state-owned bank is known, sold 500 million yuan ($82.6 million) of 10-year notes listed in Taiwan, or Formosa bonds, to yield 4.5 percent and 500 million yuan of five-year Dim Sum securities to yield 3.625 percent, according to a person familiar with the matter. Chinatrust Commercial Bank, a unit of Taiwan’s f

Jan. 17, 2014

Hanwha not to join race for LIG acquisition

Hanwha Group, a South Korean chemical conglomerate, said Friday that it will not join the race to buy LIG Insurance Co., the country's fifth-largest non-life insurer."It is not true that Hanwha Group is seeking a takeover of LIG Insuarance," it said in a regulatory filing.LIG Group, a mid-sized local business group, put up a 20.9 percent stake in its non-life insurance unit, LIG Insurance, to secure cash to compensate investors for losses incurred from its 2011 financial fraud scandal.The sale o

Jan. 17, 2014

Emerging countries need to be wary of spillover from QE tapering: BOK head

Emerging countries should wisely cope with spillover effects from the Federal Reserve's tapering of its quantitative easing steps, South Korea's central banker said Friday.Bank of Korea Governor Kim Choong-soo said in a meeting with heads of local banks that it was a good decision for the U.S. central bank to start reducing its monetary stimulus, adding that there is confidence about the recovery of the U.S. economy."But emerging countries are vulnerable to changes in the global financial market

Jan. 17, 2014

Seoul shares close higher on improved economic outlook

South Korean stocks closed higher Thursday following improved economic assessments by the World Bank and the U.S. Federal Reserve, analysts said. The Korean won closed lower against the greenback.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index gained 4.04 points, or 0.21 percent, to 1,957.32. Trading volume was moderate at 373.2 million shares worth 3.37 trillion won ($3.17 billion) with gainers outpacing losers 447 to 338.Analysts said Seoul shares gathered ground as investors’ sentiment got a

Jan. 16, 2014

Korean banks to increase SME lending in 2014

South Korean banks plan to increase lending for smaller firms by 34.6 trillion won ($32.5 billion) this year, as their funding demand is expected to rise upon a moderate economic recovery, the financial regulator said Thursday.Local banks have recently notified the Financial Services Commission, the country’s financial watchdog, of their lending plan for small and medium enterprises in 2014, the FSC said in a press release.The amount of increase is up 25.4 percent from the 27.6 trillion won bank

Jan. 16, 2014

Banks to increase SME lending by 35 trillion won in 2014

South Korean banks plan to increase lending for smaller firms by 34.6 trillion won ($32.5 billion) this year, as their funding demand is expected to rise upon a moderate economic recovery, the financial regulator said Thursday.Local banks have recently notified the Financial Services Commission, the country's financial watchdog, of their lending plan for small and medium enterprises in 2014, the FSC said in a press release.The amount of increase is up 25.4 percent from the 27.6 trillion won bank

Jan. 16, 2014

Seoul shares close higher on recovery hopes

South Korean stocks closed higher Wednesday as investor sentiment rose on the back of improved retail data from the United States, analysts said. The Korean won closed lower against the greenback.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index gained 7.21 points, or 0.37 percent, to 1,953.28. Trading volume was low at 247.3 million shares worth 3.77 trillion won ($3.54 billion) with gainers outpacing losers 508 to 297.Analysts said Seoul shares closed higher on the back of the improved U.S. reta

Jan. 15, 2014

Economic ministers vow to revamp public firms

Economic policymakers pledged to turn up the heat on state-controlled agencies for their irregularities in their unveiling of a three-year vision for market innovation on Wednesday.The three-year vision features “weeding out some state-run firms’ negligent management and irregular business practices,” Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Hyun Oh-seok said during the economy-related ministers’ meeting.“Policymakers will build up the economy with solid fundamentals by normalizing misconduct

Jan. 15, 2014

S. Korean builders hit with bid rigging probe

South Korean builders are coming under increasing pressure as they undergo investigation for suspected bid rigging amid difficult market conditions, industry sources said Wednesday.Insiders said the Fair Trade Commission is examining all large-scale public construction projects undertaken during the previous Lee Myung-bak administration. If builders are found to have rigged bidding prices, they could be fined and barred from participating in future projects.The FTC has not confirmed the investig

Jan. 15, 2014

S. Korean mutual funds' sizes smaller than overseas peers: data

South Korea manages the largest number of mutual funds, but their sizes are smaller compared to those under management in overseas countries, data showed Wednesday.The number of investment funds under operation came to 9,857 at the end of September, topping the list of 44 countries worldwide surveyed by the U.S.-based Investment Company Institute, according to the data compiled by the Korea Capital Market Institute.But South Korean funds' net assets averaged $28.6 million at the end of September

Jan. 15, 2014

Brokerages trim Q4 corporate earnings outlook

South Korea’s brokerage houses are slashing their fourth-quarter earnings outlook for listed firms this month, as the prolonged slump in the local economy and a stronger local currency are presumed to have eaten into their profitability, data showed on Tuesday.The operating profit outlook for firms listed on the main bourse was cut by 2.9 percent for the October-December period as of Tuesday from an estimate made a week earlier, according to the data compiled by Shinyoung Securities Co.The outlo

Jan. 14, 2014

Korea Eximbank awarded for high-end fund-raising

The Export-Import Bank of Korea said Tuesday that it was recognized by a global financial magazine for its developed skills in fundraising.The Asset, a leading financial monthly in Asia, has picked state-run Korea Eximbank as “Issuer of the Year,” “Quasi-Sovereign Bond” and “The Best Deal in Korea.”Eximbank spokespeople estimated that The Asset highly appraised the agency’s innovative financial skills despite mounting uncertainties from the U.S. economic policymakers’ action to taper its quantit

Jan. 14, 2014