South Korean stocks closed nearly flat on Monday as lingering concerns over a weakening Japanese yen weighed on major exporters, analysts said. The local currency fell against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) inched up 0.73 points, or 0.04 percent, to 1,981.91. Trading volume was moderate at 411.6 million shares worth 2.8 trillion won (US$2.6 billion) with decliners outnumbering gainers 412 to 383."The G-20 meeting kept mum on the weakening Japanese yen. Th

Feb. 18, 2013

South Korean stocks got off to a weak start on Monday due to losses in major exporters, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) slipped 2.87 points, or 0.14 percent, to 1,978.31 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Automakers were trading in negative territory, with Hyundai Motor falling 1.17 percent and Kia Motors losing 0.56 percent.Market bellwether Samsung Electronics lost 0.33 percent.The local currency was trading at 1,080.65 won to the U.S. dollar as of 9:15 a.

Feb. 18, 2013

The distressed savings bank industry is expected to face another round of business suspension for some players, as the overall secondary banking sector saw its financial status worsen last year.According to the Financial Supervisory Service, four of the 16 savings banks that publicized their 2012 financial statements declared “entire” capital erosion.The four banks in complete capital impairment, whose equity levels fell below zero under heavy losses, were Hyundai Swiss, Shilla, Youngnam and Woo

Feb. 17, 2013

Hanwha Life Insurance Co., South Korea’s second-largest life insurer, is expected to compete with No. 3 industry player Kyobo Life Insurance Co. to take over the local life insurance unit of ING Group, industry sources said Sunday.The race comes after the board of KB Financial Group Inc., South Korea’s No. 2 banking group, turned down a company plan to take over ING Life Korea on Dec. 18 last year, dealing a blow to the group’s push for business expansion.The two life insurance giants have begun

Feb. 17, 2013

Lotte Group’s financial affiliates ― Lotte Insurance, Lotte Card and Lotte Capital ― were found to have relied most on illegitimate support from the group to boost sales, compared with their financial rivals, sources said Sunday. Amid mounting calls for economic democratization and fair competition in business, Lotte affiliates have been marching in the opposite direction to bring larger profits to chaebol, or local conglomerates, the financial policy team of Citizens’ Coalition for Economic Jus

Feb. 17, 2013

South Korean stocks are expected to bounce between small rises and falls this week, paring gains from a nine-week high rally, amid continuing jitters over a weaker yen and U.S. spending cuts, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index closed up 30.28 points, or 1.55 percent, to 1,981.18 on Friday, the biggest weekly gain since Dec. 14 last year.The statement from developed nations on Tuesday warning about Tokyo’s competitive currency devaluation partly stemmed concerns over th

Feb. 17, 2013

BlackBerry, a Canadian smartphone maker, may pull out of the South Korean market in the first half of this year due to sluggish sales, industry sources said Friday.Speculation arose of BlackBerry’s possible exit from South Korea following its recent announcement that it plans not to unveil new products in Japan. Industry analysts took it as a move by BlackBerry to leave from South Korea and other countries in the region.Canadian-based Research in Motion changed its name to BlackBerry in January

Feb. 17, 2013

Foreign investors’ holdings of South Korean state bonds reached a record high last year due largely to the country’s relatively strong economic fundamentals and a stronger won, data showed Sunday.Foreign investors held state bonds worth $68.6 billion at the end of last year, the largest-ever amount, according to industry data. The figure compares with $56.9 billion at the end of 2011 and $37.3 billion at the end of 2010, the data showed.Their portion against combined state bonds listed on the lo

Feb. 17, 2013

WASHINGTON (Yonhap News) ― The U.S. government has decided to revoke antidumping and countervailing duties on corrosion-resistant carbon steel flat products from South Korea and Germany, industry sources said Saturday.The International Trade Commission voted unanimously to allow the duties, which have been in place since 1993, to expire after a mandatory five-year, or sunset, review of the issue.“Antidumping relief is not intended to be permanent,” said Don Cameron of the International Trade Gro

Feb. 17, 2013

More savings banks in South Korea are feared to face bankruptcies this year as continued losses wiped out their capital, industry sources said Sunday.   According to the Financial Supervisory Service and industry sources, four out of 16 savings banks reported that their capital base was fully impaired last year and six more players suffered capital erosion last year.   Of the ten savings banks, two players were already suspended and one is set to sell shares to boost their capital base, accordin

Feb. 17, 2013

Two more savings banks were added to the list of entities whose operations were suspended.The Financial Services Commission on Friday said it has decided to halt the operations of Seoul and Youngnam banks. However, the repercussions of the move are not expected to be severe, since following the move, the contracts from these two banks will be moved to two other banks, respectively, and will be operating under different names ―Yejoo and Yesol ― starting next week.These two banks were established

Feb. 15, 2013

Foreign banks operating in Korea appear to have scrapped their plan to offer more generous dividend payouts to main shareholders in the face of alleged opposition from the nation’s regulatory officials.Among the lenders are Standard Chartered Bank Korea and Citibank Korea, according to the Financial Supervisory Service.“Paying huge dividends to main shareholders ― more specifically to their parent groups in the U.S. and U.K. ― is spurring concerns about massive capital outflow and the local unit

Feb. 14, 2013

The Financial Supervisory Service has asked commercial banks to prevent customers with overdue payments from becoming credit delinquents via a pre-workout program.A pre-workout program is a debt rescheduling method, under which banks reduce heavy payment burdens on individuals and corporate customers, who suffer from cash flow problems.Key methods include rollover of payment dues and lower interest.Banks have run a pre-workout program worth about 10.3 trillion won ($9.5 billion) for about 150,00

Feb. 14, 2013

South Korean stocks closed 0.18 percent higher Thursday as a spate of negative factors began to fade, whetting investors’ appetite for risk, analysts said. The local currency rose against the U.S. dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index advanced 3.54 points to finish at 1,977.42. Trading volume was moderate at 330.5 million shares worth 3.36 trillion won ($3.09 billion) with gainers outstripping decliners 481 to 304. “North Korea’s nuclear test had little impact, currency worries

Feb. 14, 2013

SEJONG (Yonhap News) ― Global credit appraiser Fitch Ratings will maintain its sovereign ratings on South Korea despite heightened geopolitical tension following the recent nuclear test by North Korea, government officials said Thursday.The credit ratings agency officially notified the Seoul government of the decision through an email, according to the finance ministry. Fitch also said it will maintain its rating outlooks at “stable.”Last September, Fitch raised the ratings on South Korea from “

Feb. 14, 2013

South Korean stocks closed 0.18 percent higher Thursday as a spate of negative factors began to fade, whetting investors' appetite for risk, analysts said. The local currency rose against the U.S. dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) advanced 3.54 points to finish at 1,977.42. Trading volume was moderate at 330.5 million shares worth 3.36 trillion won (US$3.09 billion) with gainers outstripping decliners 481 to 304. "North Korea's nuclear test had little impact, curren

Feb. 14, 2013

South Korean stocks traded 0.13 percent higher late Thursday morning, buoyed by gains in steelmakers and tech shares, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 2.51 points to 1,978.58 as of 11:20 a.m.Leading steelmaker POSCO moved up 1.3 percent, with tech behemoth Samsung Electronics rising 0.07 percent. But telecom shares continued to trend downward from the previous session, with top mobile carrier SK Telecom dipping 1.7 percent. The local currency was changi

Feb. 14, 2013

Boo-Kang Tech, an environmental tech company, is seeking to list on the tech-heavy KOSDAQ possibly in the first half of this year with Mirae Asset Securities as its lead underwriter, a BKT official said.BKT is looking to raise around 30 to 40 billion won via an initial public offering. The IPO proceeds will be used to finance environment and energy plant engineering projects both at home and abroad.Also, the stock floatation will help the company secure funding from banks for further project inv

Feb. 14, 2013