Lottery ticket sales hit record

Korea’s lottery ticket sales hit an all-time high last year, exceeding the regulatory limit imposed by the country’s gambling watchdog for two consecutive years.Sales reached some 3.2 trillion won ($3 billion) in 2012, up about 3.4 percent from 3.08 trillion won a year earlier, according to the Lottery Commission, which is under the wing of the Ministry of Strategy and Finance, on Monday.An increase in consumer purchases of tickets for online lotteries, pension lotteries and traditional electron

Jan. 21, 2013

Seoul shares edge down 0.05 pct on earnings woes

South Korean stocks inched down 0.05 percent Monday as investors dumped large cap shares due to a pessimistic outlook on fourth-quarter earnings, analysts said. The local currency lost ground against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) shed 0.99 points to finish at 1,986.86. Trading volume was moderate at 440.75 million shares worth 3.76 trillion won (US$3.54 billion) with gainers outpacing decliners 459 to 352."The mood is quite positive in recent times. Chin

Jan. 21, 2013

Seoul shares down 0.42 pct in late-morning trade

South Korean stocks traded 0.42 percent lower late Monday morning due to concerns over the further weakening of the Japanese yen, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) shed 8.28 points to 1,979.57 as of 11:20 a.m.Most exporters traded in negative territory, with top steelmaker POSCO dropping 0.7 percent and biggest shipyard Hyundai Heavy Industries sliding 0.22 percent.No. 1 carmaker Hyundai Motor fell 0.7 percent and its smaller affiliate Kia Motors lost 1.85 per

Jan. 21, 2013

Savings banks' liquidity hits over 5-year low

South Korean savings banks' liquidity has hit the lowest point in more than five years as the ongoing restructuring of bankrupt players dampens deposits amid a still large amount of problem loans, data showed Monday. The average balance of savings banks' money supply, known as M2, came in at 41.1 trillion won ($38.8 billion) for local savings banks as of the end of November last year, the lowest since the 40.7 trillion won tallied in July 2007, according to data by the Bank of Korea and an indus

Jan. 21, 2013

Seoul shares trade lower after strong start

South Korean stocks started slightly higher but soon lost ground on Monday, led by losses in techs and carmakers, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) opened 0.01 percent higher but soon shifted to negative territory, losing 9.8 points, or 0.49 percent, to 1,978.05 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Market bellwether Samsung Electronics dropped 1.49 percent and LG Display, one of the biggest flat screen suppliers for Apple, fell 2.26 percent.Carmakers were also b

Jan. 21, 2013

Jeong promoted to Woori Card CEO

Woori Financial Group senior executive director Jeong Hyun-jin has been appointed CEO of Woori Card, with the new firm to be launched in March, group officials said Sunday.Jeong will lead the credit card firm, which is scheduled to be spun off from the financial group’s bank unit as an independent subsidiary.Born in Uiseong, North Gyeongsang Province, in 1952, he has worked mainly for Woori Bank and Hanil Bank, a former entity of the commercial lender, for 30 years.Though Woori Card (formerly Wo

Jan. 20, 2013

Shares may lose ground this week on Vanguard exit

The South Korean stock market is likely to be weighed down by the effects of a U.S. fund manager’s decision to gradually exclude Seoul shares from its benchmark index, analysts said Saturday.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index finished at 1,987.85 last week, down 0.44 percent from a week earlier. The KOSPI, which started this week on the 2,000 level, lost ground, dogged by concerns over U.S. debt ceiling talks and Vanguard Group’s move to switch into a benchmark index which excludes

Jan. 20, 2013

Cheap yen poses threat to exporters

The Korean won strengthening against major currencies is estimated to undermine exports from the information technology and automobile industries, a private research institute said Sunday.In particular, the Japanese yen’s weaker position against the won was identified as a serious threat to the price competitiveness of Korea’s IT and car producers by Hyundai Economic Research Institute.While the two sectors are the nation’s top growth engines, HERI estimated that Korea sees a drop in product exp

Jan. 20, 2013

Seoul shares gain 0.69 pct on China's growth data

South Korean stocks closed 0.69 percent higher Friday as the fourth-quarter growth in China raised anticipations that the slowdown in Asia's largest economy has bottomed out, analysts said. The local currency rose against the U.S. dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) advanced 13.59 points to finish at 1,987.86. Trading volume was heavy at 575.9 million shares worth 3.83 trillion won (US$3.63 billion) with gainers outpacing decliners 544 to 242. "It can be interpreted a

Jan. 18, 2013

Seoul shares up 0.37 pct in late-morning trade

South Korean stocks traded 0.37 percent higher late Friday morning, led by gains in share of financial firms and insurance companies, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added 7.28 points to 1,981.55 as of 11:20 a.m.No. 1 life insurer Samsung Life Insurance surged nearly 5 percent, with major financial firm Woori Finance Holdings jumping more than 4 percent. In contrast, tech and auto blue-chips lost ground. Top-cap Samsung Electronics edged down 0.3 percent an

Jan. 18, 2013

Seoul shares open higher on improved U.S. data

South Korean stocks got off a strong start Friday, tracking the gains seen in U.S. peers overnight on better economic data, analyst said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) climbed 9.21 points or 0.47 percent to trade at 1,983.48 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Most shares trended in positive terrain, with utilities and brokerage houses leading the gain. State-run electricity provider Korea Electric Power Corp. jumped about 2.5 percent with No. 2 player Woori Investment

Jan. 18, 2013

Credit card firms face probe over fees

The Financial Supervisory Service will dispatch inspectors to the headquarters of seven major credit card firms next week, in a bid to find out whether they charged retailers irregular service fees.“Starting on Jan. 21, the investigation into the overall credit card industry will be carried out over the next three weeks,” an FSS official said on Thursday.He said the financial regulator had demanded the seven issuers to tender a variety of documents on the card transaction fees on retailers befor

Jan. 17, 2013

Shares slip on foreign selloff

South Korean stocks closed marginally lower Thursday, as overseas investors continued to dump shares amid lingering economic jitters and a strong local currency, analysts said. The Korean won edged up against the U.S dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 3.18 points, or 0.16 percent, to finish at 1,974.27. Trading volume was heavy at 821.3 million shares worth 4.06 trillion won ($3.84 billion) with losers outnumbering gainers 450 to 342. “Investor sentiment has become more

Jan. 17, 2013

BOK to brief transition team on nation’s economic outlook

The Bank of Korea is expected to brief the transition team of President-elect Park Geun-hye on overall monetary policy and economic outlook on Friday.BOK officials said that the subjects presented would range from overviews of its monetary policy to household debt and its economic forecast for 2013. Although the team’s official policy briefing ended on Thursday with the statistics bureau, the team included the central bank at the last minute after it had omitted it from the seven-day briefing sc

Jan. 17, 2013

Seoul shares slip 0.16 pct on foreign selloff

South Korean stocks closed marginally lower Thursday, as overseas investors continued to dump shares amid lingering economic jitters and a strong local currency, analysts said. The Korean won edged up against the U.S dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) shed 3.18 points, or 0.16 percent, to finish at 1,974.27. Trading volume was heavy at 821.3 million shares worth 4.06 trillion won (US$ 3.84 billion) with losers outnumbering gainers 450 to 342. "Investor sentiment has b

Jan. 17, 2013

Seoul shares down 0.21 pct in late-morning trade

South Korean stocks traded 0.21 percent lower late Thursday mornings, as earlier gains in tech blue-chips and shipping lines pared down, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) shed 4.12 points to 1,973.33 as of 11:20 a.m.Tech heavyweight Samsung Electronics dipped 1.7 percent, with chipmaker SK hynix losing nearly 1 percent. The country's leading bulk shipping firm STX PanOcean slumped around 4 percent. In contrast, autos and brokerage houses advanced, with indust

Jan. 17, 2013

Brokerages split over BOK's rate policy

Analysts from South Korean securities firms cast mixed forecasts for the central bank's interest rate policy this year as they are divided over the overall strength of the economic recovery, a survey showed Thursday.In a split decision, the Bank of Korea (BOK) froze the key rate at 2.75 percent for the third straight month on Friday as some economic indicators show signs of improvement despite the protracted economic slowdown. The BOK also cut its 2013 growth outlook to 2.8 percent from 3.2 perc

Jan. 17, 2013

S. Korea's producer prices fall most in over 3 years in Dec.

South Korea's producer prices fell by the most in more than three years in December mainly because the local currency sharply appreciated to the U.S. dollar, the central bank said Thursday.The producer price index, a barometer of future consumer inflation, fell 1.2 percent in December from a year earlier, compared with a 0.9 percent on-year fall in November, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK). The December figure marked the largest fall since a 3.1 percent on-year fall in October 2009.Compared

Jan. 17, 2013

Seoul shares open higher on large-cap gains

South Korean stocks got off to a strong start Thursday, fueled by gains in large-cap shares, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) climbed 7.68 points, or 0.39 percent, to 1,985.13 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Top-cap Samsung Electronics inched up 0.13 percent, with No. 1 carmaker Hyundai Motor rising 1.6 percent. In contrast, utilities and textile firms lost ground, with state-run electricity provider Korea Electric Power Corp. sliding nearly 2 percent. T

Jan. 17, 2013