Seoul shares turn lower after strong start

South Korean stocks turned lower after starting a tad higher Monday, weighed down by concerns over the U.S. debt limit talks with the deadline only three days away, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) lost 0.63 points, or 0.03 percent, to 2,024.27 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Autos and insurers drove down the main index, with Hyundai Motor Group, the world's fifth-largest carmaker, slipping 0.2 percent and Samsung Life Insurance falling nearly 1 percent.

Oct. 14, 2013

Tong Yang woes reopen debate on chaebol limits

The liquidity crisis at Tong Yang Group has reignited the long-standing debate over the pros and cons of greater restrictions on conglomerates owning financial subsidiaries.The question of erecting a strict firewall between manufacturing capital and financial units has resurfaced amid mounting allegations that Tong Yang’s owners exploited the group’s financial units as behind-the-scenes funding sources for some of its distressed nonfinancial units.The nation’s top antitrust regulatory official,

Oct. 13, 2013

AmorePacific accused of bullying dealership

AmorePacific Corp. said it would disclose its official position on allegations that one of its employees tried to blackmail a dealership of the nation’s largest cosmetics maker.According to an audio clip file released by a broadcaster on Sunday, the employee of AmorePacific verbally abused a middle-aged owner of the regional dealership.In the clip, the employee appears to be pressuring the middle-aged man to relinquish his retailer ownership, scolding him with curse words for the dealership’s re

Oct. 13, 2013

FTC chief calls for toughening rule on separation of industrial, financial capital

South Korea needs to toughen its stance on separating industrial and financial capital as part of its efforts to prevent business group owners from using banks and other financial affiliates as their private coffers, the head of the country's antitrust watchdog said Sunday.Fair Trade Commission (FTC) Chairman Noh Dae-lae made the remarks, saying that such need is growing especially in the wake of allegations surrounding Tong Yang Group, which is accused of engaging in financial fraud and other i

Oct. 13, 2013

Seoul shares hit nearly 9-month high on eased U.S. default woes

South Korean stocks rose to the highest level in nearly nine months on Friday, cheered by hopes that Washington will soon work out ways to settle its political deadlock over the debt ceiling, analysts said. The local currency edged up against the U.S. dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) jumped 23.50 points, or 1.17 percent, to finish at 2,024.90, the highest since Feb. 20. Trading volume was light at 245.5 million shares worth 4.44 trillion won ($4.11 billion) with ga

Oct. 11, 2013

Seoul shares up 1.14 pct in late-morning trade

South Korean stocks traded 1.14 percent higher late Friday morning, as blue-chip financial shares widened their gains, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) soared 22.86 points to 2,024.26 as of 11:20 a.m.Shinhan Financial Group, the country's No. 4 banking firm, shot up 3.4 percent, with second-largest KB Financial Group surging 4.4 percent.But some auto and telecom shares fell. Hyundai Motor-affiliated Kia Motors was down 0.5 percent, and SK Telecom, top mobile

Oct. 11, 2013

Seoul shares open higher on eased U.S. default woes

South Korean stocks began higher Friday, as fear of a U.S. default eased after the Republicans offered the White House a proposal to break the logjam in their negotiations, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) shot up 18 points, or 0.9 percent, to 2,019.40 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Large-cap stocks gathered ground across the board, with Samsung Electronics rising 0.8 percent and Shinhan Financial Group climbing 1.4 percent. House Republicans proposed a

Oct. 11, 2013

S. Korea bank seeks sale of STX Europe: report

(AFP) The key creditor of South Korea's troubled STX shipbuilding group plans to sell the firm's European arm in an effort to reduce its massive debts, a report said Thursday.The state-run Korea Development Bank (KDB) will soon pick sale managers and draw up strategies for the sale of STX Europe, Yonhap news agency said.It quoted an unnamed KDB official as saying nothing has been decided yet on the scale of the sale, or how it will be carried out.The South Korean group acquired STX Europe, previ

Oct. 10, 2013

KDIC only recoups 7% of bad project financing loans

The state-run debt clearer has only recouped 7 percent of soured debts from project financing loans, largely due to the massive bankruptcies of local savings banks amid the protracted slump in the property market, data showed Thursday. The Korea Deposit Insurance Corp. retrieved 298.9 billion won ($277.7 million), or 6.9 percent of 4.32 trillion won worth of bad loans it bought between 2007 and July this year from infrastructure and industrial projects that defaulted, according to KDIC documents

Oct. 10, 2013

Korea’s IT exports jump 7.5% in Sept.

South Korea’s exports of information technology products rose from a year earlier in August, continuing their on-year growth for the 13th consecutive month, the government said Thursday.Outbound shipments of IT products reached $15.11 billion last month, up 7.5 percent from the same period last year, according to the Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning.South Korea’s trade surplus in the IT sector widened to $8.16 billion, the second highest in the country’s history, as its imports rose

Oct. 10, 2013

Shares close flat on U.S. woes

South Korean stocks closed almost flat Thursday as concerns over a possible default of the United States government dented investor sentiment, analysts said. The local currency gained against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 1.36 points, or 0.07 percent, to finish at 2,001.40. Trading volume was low at 218.7 million shares worth 3.85 trillion won ($3.58 billion) with losers outpacing gainers 459 to 324.Analysts said Seoul shares closed flat as the congressiona

Oct. 10, 2013

KDB working on sale of STX Group’s European unit

The state-run Korea Development Bank said Thursday it plans to sell the European arm of STX Group as part of efforts to quicken the ongoing restructuring process of the financially troubled conglomerate.The largest creditor bank of South Korea’s 13th-biggest conglomerate said it is preparing to sell STX Europe AS, although no detailed plans as to the scale of or means to carry it out have been decided yet, according to a KDB official with knowledge on the matter. STX Group, the shipping and ship

Oct. 10, 2013

Four telecom firms’ sales surge: report

The country’s four telecommunications companies saw their sales surge over the past five years amid growing calls for a reduction in phone bills, a report showed on Thursday.SK Telecom Co., KT Corp., LG Uplus Corp. and SK Broadband Co. logged a combined sales of 237.26 trillion won ($220 billion) since 2008 through the first half of the year, according to the report submitted by the Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning to Rep. Kang Dong-won.The figure compares with the nation’s budget of

Oct. 10, 2013

64 pension funds’ spending to exceed W500tr next year

Spending by the country’s 64 pension funds and other state operational funds is expected to reach a record of more than 500 trillion won next year amid increased welfare costs. In a report to the National Assembly on Thursday, the Ministry of Strategy and Finance said that such spending would reach 517.4 trillion won next year, up 4 percent from 497.5 trillion won this year.This comes as the government is not able to financially support various projects with its tax revenue as it faces a revenue

Oct. 10, 2013

Tong Yang under stock rigging probe

Financial regulators launched their inquiry into allegations that some affiliates of the embattled Tong Yang Group manipulated stocks before they filed for court receivership.Out of the five Tong Yang units that applied for the court’s control last week, three firms ― Tong Yang Inc., Tong Yang Networks and Tong Yang Cement & Energy ― are listed on the Korea Exchange.The main exchange issued a trading ban on equities of the three firms after they filed for the court’s control.Another listed unit,

Oct. 10, 2013

Seoul shares close flat on U.S. woes

South Korean stocks closed almost flat Thursday as concerns over a possible default of the United States government dented investor sentiment, analysts said. The local currency gained against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) shed 1.36 points, or 0.07 percent, to finish at 2,001.40. Trading volume was low at 218.7 million shares worth 3.85 trillion won ($3.58 billion) with losers outpacing gainers 459 to 324.Analysts said Seoul shares closed flat as the cong

Oct. 10, 2013

Seoul shares open higher on blue-chip gains

South Korean stocks opened higher Thursday on the back of gains in blue-chip shares, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) moved up 6.84 points, or 0.34 percent, to 2009.60 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Tech shares led the market gain, with leading chipmaker SK hynix adding 3.05 percent and local handset maker LG Electronics moving up 1.93 percent. Flat panel maker LG Display gained 1.65 percent.Carmakers also opened bullish, with No. 1 Hyundai Motor increasi

Oct. 10, 2013

Private banking deposits reach record high: FSS

Deposits by the rich in private banking accounts reached a record of over 150 trillion won ($139 billion) in the first half of this year.In a report to the National Policy Committee lawmakers of the National Assembly on Wednesday, the Financial Supervisory Service, the country’s financial regulator, said that some 2,600 people in the top income bracket deposited a total of 153.5 trillion won into their private banking accounts in the first half of 2013.Private banking deposits increased about 21

Oct. 9, 2013