KOSPI, key rate expected to rise in 2014: Goldman Sachs

Goldman Sachs said on Tuesday that the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index is expected to rise to 2,350 points and the key interest rate to 3 percent by the end of 2014, amid the economic recovery of its largest trading partners. “Korea is expected to surpass the world average in growth rate (in 2014),” said Kwon Goo-hoon, managing director and chief Korea strategist at the Korean operation of Goldman Sachs, in a press briefing in Seoul.Kwon pointed out that the accelerating economic gro

Nov. 26, 2013

Seoul shares end 0.33 pct up amid currency woes

South Korean stocks closed 0.33 percent higher Tuesday, as renewed fear over local currency's rise against major global currencies weighed down investor confidence, analysts said. The Korean won gathered ground against the U.S.dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added 6.66 points to finish at 2,022.64. Trading volume was light at 269.7 million shares worth 3.39 trillion won ($3.19 billion) with gainers outpacing losers 408 to 386.The KOSPI started off the session shar

Nov. 26, 2013

Seoul shares open lower on bearish steelmaker, financial losses

South Korean stocks began lower Tuesday, led by a bearish steelmaker and banking firms, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 15,78 points, or 0.78 percent to 2,000.20 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Leading steelmaker POSCO slid 1.7 percent, with No. 2 lender KB Financial Group dipping 2.7 percent. The local currency was trading at 1,059.95 won against the U.S. dollar as of 9:15 a.m., up 1.95 won from Monday's close. (Yonhap News)

Nov. 26, 2013

Iran deal raises Korean hopes for auto, petrochemicals trade

Hopes for South Korea restarting trade with Iran have been raised following a landmark nuclear deal between the Middle Eastern nation and a group of six powers led by the U.S.Key sectors such as automobiles and petrochemicals, which are blocked from trade with Iran under sanctions by the U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, are expected to be revitalized, analysts said.As an initial lightening of curbs, the deal would suspend economic sanctions on Iran’s auto and petrochemical indus

Nov. 25, 2013

Seoul shares gain 0.5 pct on eased policy woes

South Korean stocks closed 0.5 percent higher Monday, as eased woes about an early U.S. stimulus tapering and growing expectations from the end-of-year shopping season boosted investor confidence, analysts said. The local currency fell marginally against the U.S. dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) advanced 9.75 points, or 0.49 percent to finish at 2,015.98.Trading volume was light at 286.8 million shares worth 3.02 trillion won ($2.94 billion) with gainers far outnum

Nov. 25, 2013

Top 10 conglomerates' foreign-exchange losses top 760 billion won

South Korea's 10 largest conglomerates saw their net foreign-exchange losses reach 760 billion won ($716 million) through September this year, amid the won's appreciation against the greenback, data showed Monday.The country's 83 listed firms under the top 10 local business groups lost 16.7 trillion won from foreign-exchange volatilities over the cited period, while gaining 15.9 trillion won, the data compiled by Chaebul.com showed.The latest number marked a sharp decrease from the previous year

Nov. 25, 2013

Seoul shares open higher on builder, tech gains

South Korean stocks got off to a strong start Monday led by bullish construction and tech companies, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) shot up 18.74 points, or 0.93 percent to 2,024.97 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Shares gathered ground across the board, with builders and tech blue-chips leading the climb. Major construction firm Hyundai Engineering & Construction soared 4 percent, with chip giant SK hynix hiking 3.7 percent. The local currency was tra

Nov. 25, 2013

GDP growth likely to stay below 1% per quarter

More and more economic research institutes are raising the possibility that Korea’s economic growth will stay below 1 percent per quarter throughout 2014.Their gloomy outlook followed an earlier projection by the Finance Ministry that the GDP growth could continue to post less than 1 percent on a quarterly basis next year.The ministry’s forecast, unveiled in the first half of 2013, had been interpreted among market participants as adding pressure on the Bank of Korea to boost the economy by push

Nov. 24, 2013

Government in push to sell DSME

Financial authorities have begun an earnest push to sell Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering, with the aim of retrieving the taxpayers’ money injected into the shipbuilder by the second half of 2014.The scheduled auction plan was mapped out by the Korea Development Bank and the Financial Services Commission, the two main shareholders of DSME.In an initial step, the FSC ― through its executive arm, the Public Fund Oversight Committee ― reduced its stake in the company from 17.15 percent to 1

Nov. 24, 2013

Insurance organizations warned over customer data leaks

Financial authorities said Sunday that they issued a caution against three insurance-related associations for 8 million cases of customer information transfer due to lax supervision.The authorities said that between April 2009 and May 2012, the Korea Insurance Development Institute was found to have provided insurance companies with information in 4.2 million cases without customer approval.According to the local insurance act, a private entity can send personal data to insurance firms only afte

Nov. 24, 2013

Financial regulator to ramp up M&As of 10 brokerage houses

South Korea’s financial regulator will come up with measures within this year to promote mergers and acquisitions of local brokerage houses that have been put up for sale, officials said Sunday. About 10 brokerage houses, including I’M Investment & Securities Co., Golden Bridge Investment & Securities Co. and Tongyang Securities Co., have been put up for sale in the local M&A market, but any deal has not been made due to the sluggish stock market. “The government is pushing to offer incentives t

Nov. 24, 2013

Hyundai E&C’s cumulative overseas orders top $100b

Hyundai Engineering and Construction Co., South Korea’s largest builder, said Sunday that its cumulative overseas orders have topped $100 billion, 48 years after its first inroad into the offshore construction market.HDEC, now affiliated with the Hyundai Motor Group, said it recently won a $1.4 billion contract to build an oil refinery plant in Latin America, raising the amount of its cumulative overseas orders to $101.05 billion (107 trillion won).The milestone has been achieved 48 years after

Nov. 24, 2013

Steelmakers urge ASEAN to ease import regulations

South Korean steelmakers’ lobby group said Sunday that it has called on a body representing steelmakers of six Southeast Asian countries, including Indonesia, to relax their import regulations against steel products manufactured by its members. As of November, there have been 15 cases in which South Korean steel products were regulated and inspected by six members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations ― Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, the Philippines and Singapore. In the talks w

Nov. 24, 2013

Kookmin Bank comes under inspection

The Financial Supervisory Service on Sunday demanded that Kookmin Bank, one of South Korea’s largest lenders, rectify its internal control system, saying special inspections will be under way over three allegations of irregularities involving Kookmin Bank executives and employees.The FSS said it will launch two more special investigations this week into allegations of Kookmin Bank’s illegal interest earnings from guaranteed loans and a suspected embezzlement of 9 billion won ($8.48 million) by K

Nov. 24, 2013

Shares likely to move up this week

South Korean stocks are expected to climb at a moderate pace this week, as eased woes about an early U.S. stimulus cut and positive signs in the eurozone and China will spur stable demand for risky assets, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index closed up 1.97 percent to 2,006.23 last week from a week earlier. The main index was fueled by growing market expectations that the U.S. won’t start trimming the monthly $85 billion bond-buying following dovish remarks by Federal R

Nov. 24, 2013

Blue chips to take hit from QE tapering

The shares of Korean blue chips with significant foreign investment, such as Samsung Electronics, POSCO and Hyundai Motor, will be the first of many stocks to be hit by the tapering of U.S. quantitative easing, analysts projected.They will also be affected by Japan’s continued monetary stimulus, part of the so-called “Abenomics” aimed at reviving its economy that has led to the depreciation of the yen, the analysts said.“A psychological effect might drive foreign sell-offs and capital outflow on

Nov. 22, 2013

Seoul shares gain 0.62 pct on eased QE woes

South Korean stocks rebounded Friday from the previous session, as the U.S. Senate's nod on the motion to appoint Federal Reserve vice chair Janet Yellen as the next head relieved investors' fear about an early stimulus cut, analysts said. The local currency rose slightly against the U.S. dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) advanced 12.45 points, or 0.62 percent, to close at 2,006.23. Trading volume was moderate at 342.2 million shares worth 3.38 trillion won (US$3.18

Nov. 22, 2013

Seoul shares up 0.38 pct in late-morning trade

South Korean stocks traded 0.38 percent higher late Friday morning, as public firms and telecom companies extended gains, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 7.56 points to 2,001.34 as of 11:20 a.m.State-run electricity provider Korea Electric Power Corp. shot up nearly 3 percent, with top mobile carrier SK Telecom climbing 1.7 percent. In contrast, auto blue-chips lost ground. Industry leader Hyundai Motor shed 0.2 percent and its affiliate Kia Motors fel

Nov. 22, 2013

Seoul shares open higher on U.S. gains

South Korean stocks opened higher Friday, tracking its U.S. peers overnight with the Dow Jones industrial average rising to a record high on the back of economic data, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) gained 5.06 points, or 0.25 percent, to 1,998.84 in the first 15 minutes of trading. The Dow Jones industrial average closed above the 16,000 mark for the first time on fewer-than-expected jobless claims and getting inflation under control.Public companies and

Nov. 22, 2013