The Korea Herald

Overseas direct purchases dip on strong dollar in 2015

South Koreans' direct purchases from foreign countries fell on-year for the first time in 2015 due to unfavorable exchange rates and efforts to stimulate domestic consumption through large promotional sales events, the government said Wednesday.According to the Korea Customs Service, direct purchases of foreign goods reached $1.52 billion last year, down 1.4 percent from over $1.54 billion tallied in 2014.The drop is noteworthy because direct purchases of goods by South Koreans have been growing

Jan. 13, 2016

More credit card firms adopt wage peak system this year

A growing number of credit card companies are adopting the so-called wage peak system this year in line with the government's push as part of broader labor reforms, sources said Wednesday.Samsung Card, Hyundai Card and Lotte Card implemented the new wage system starting this year following the suit of KB Kookmin Card Co., which last year became the first credit card firm in South Korea to adopt the system.The public sector and big businesses with 300 or more employees will extend the retirement

Jan. 13, 2016

U.S. dollar deposits at major Korean banks jump in 2015

U.S. dollar-denominated deposits at South Korea's five mainstream banks surged nearly 25 percent last year as investors flocked to safer assets amid lingering market uncertainties and ahead of a U.S. rate hike, analysts said Wednesday.Local residents' U.S. dollar deposits at KB Kookmin, Shinhan, Woori, KEB Hana and NH Nonghyup Banks came to a combined $31.02 billion as of the end of last year, a 24.3 percent spike from 24.96 billion won logged at the end of January 2015, according to the banks'

Jan. 13, 2016

Korean equities on recovery track in 2016: Barings

Helped by low interest, low oil prices and the weak won, the Korean stock market is expected to recover this year despite negative market consensus, Baring Asset Management said Tuesday.“Taking account of the weak won, KOSPI (the main bourse) has room to rally. Capital outflows will ease at a faster pace in Korea than any other emerging markets,” John Park, chief investment officer at Barings, said during a press conference in Seoul. However, he noted that the equity market would not enter an up

Jan. 12, 2016

Korean equities on recovery track in 2016: Barings

Market volatility unlikely to get excessive: FSC

Financial Services Commission chairman Yim Jong-yong (Yonhap)Korea’s financial markets can expect more volatility as global risks persist, but chances of the gyrations hitting excessive levels are not high, the top financial regulator said Tuesday. “The latest spurt of volatility in local markets was to a degree unavoidable, as it stemmed from external factors. But according to experts, Korea is unlikely to see the volatility spike to an excessive level,” Yim Jong-yong, chief of the Financial Se

Jan. 12, 2016

Market volatility unlikely to get excessive: FSC

Finance minister resigns, gears up for April election

Finance Minister Choi Kyung-hwan resigned from his post on Tuesday, in preparation for running in the April general elections. “I am returning to the political field to change the economy, just as I did 12 years ago for my political debut,” Choi said in his good-bye address at Sejong Government Complex. Finance Minister Choi Kyung-hwan delivers a good-bye address at Sejong Government Complex on Tuesday. (Ministry of Strategy and Finance)Choi, who doubled as deputy prime minister, showed confiden

Jan. 12, 2016

Finance minister resigns, gears up for April election

Seoul shares up 0.32% in late morning trade

South Korean shares traded 0.32 percent higher late Tuesday morning, led by gains in techs and automakers.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 6.06 points to 1,900.90 as of 11:20 a.m.Market heavyweights traded mixed.Top market cap Samsung Electronics gained 0.52 percent, while top portal operator Naver surged 2.71 percent.Top automaker Hyundai Motor lost 0.36 percent after opening in positive terrain, but its smaller affiliate Kia Motors edged up 0.1 percent.The local currency w

Jan. 12, 2016

MSCI chief to visit Korea on advanced market index

The chief of global index provider MSCI Inc. plans to visit South Korea this week for talks on the country's possible inclusion in its advanced market index, officials here said Tuesday.During his stay here, Henry Fernandez plans to meet with key government officials, including Financial Services Commission Chairman Yim Jong-yong, to discuss whether the country's benchmark index should be added to the MSCI's developed market index.While the MSCI categorizes 78 countries into three benchmark indi

Jan. 12, 2016

Top financial regulator warns of more market volatility

South Korea's top financial regulator warned of greater financial market volatility on Tuesday, vowing to properly deal with it with a sense of alertness in order to ensure market stability.The local market has suffered a setback, facing the double whammy of China's stock market rout amid concerns over its economic slowdown and resurfaced geopolitical risks over North Korea's fourth nuclear test. "Since the beginning of this year, a variety of external uncertainties have rendered the local marke

Jan. 12, 2016

BOK likely to lower 2016 growth forecast

The Bank of Korea’s monetary policy board will meet Thursday for its monthly review of interest rates, but all eyes are on the central bank’s outlook on the local economy this year, expected to be unveiled on the same day. With a rate freeze seen as a near certainty this month, investors are waiting for the central bank’s revised outlook for economic growth, with many predicting a downward revision from its previous 3.2 percent estimate. In October, the BOK revised its growth estimate for Asia’s

Jan. 12, 2016

BOK likely to lower 2016 growth forecast

Most KOSDAQ CEOs downbeat on Korean economy in 2016

Six out of 10 chief executive officers of tech-savvy KOSDAQ-listed firms expect the South Korean economy to go downhill in 2016 amid a slowdown in China and weak domestic consumption, a poll showed Tuesday.According to the survey conducted by the KOSDAQ Listed Companies Association, 80 of 124 respondents, or 64.5 percent, said that they think Asia's fourth-largest economy will get worse this year compared to the previous year.Only 11 people, or 8.9 percent, expected a recovery in the economy.The

Jan. 12, 2016

Seoul shares open higher on Wall Street gains

Foreign currency dealers work in front of a monitor displaying the Korea Composite Stock Price Index in a dealing room of KEB Hana Bank in Seoul. (Bloomberg)South Korean share prices opened slightly higher on Tuesday following overnight gains on Wall Street. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index gained 12.24 points, or 0.65 percent, to 1,907.08 in the first 15 minutes of trading.The index was trading about half a percent higher as of 9:56 a.m. Analysts say sentiment is recovering from

Jan. 12, 2016

Seoul shares open higher on Wall Street gains

Samsung Card CEO denies sale rumors

The chief executive of Samsung Card on Monday denied market rumors that the company is up for sale, stressing the firm’s strategic importance in Samsung Group’s business portfolio. Won Gee-chan, CEO of Samsung Card. (Samsung Card)“Samsung Card, with its strength in retail finance, holds an important place in the group’s financial business portfolio,” Won Gee-chan, CEO of Samsung Card, said in a special message to employees. “It is unthinkable that (Samsung Card) could be sold to another company

Jan. 11, 2016

KOSDAQ could outshine main bourse this year

Korea’s secondary bourse is expected to be bullish in the first half of this year as investors turn their eyes to biotech and pharmaceutical companies, although the momentum will be weaker than last year, according to market analysts. A man looks at a monitor displaying stock prices at the Daishin Securities headquarters in Seoul. (Bloomberg)Investors are likely to try to lean toward companies on the tech-heavy KOSDAQ market to hedge risks from adverse global business conditions, local strategis

Jan. 11, 2016

KOSDAQ could outshine main bourse this year

Car insurance premiums likely to rise

(123RF)Insurers are moving to raise motor insurance premiums as the government has vowed to relax its tight control on prices. 　Hyundai Marine & Fire Insurance Co. is slated to raise motor insurance prices for individual, corporate and business users by 2 percent within January, the latest in a chain of price hikes for small and medium-sized car insurance companies.　Hyundai Marine & Fire had been suffering from a high loss rate in the auto insurance sector, undermining the company’s overall perf

Jan. 11, 2016

Seoul shares down 0.77 pct in late morning trade

South Korean stocks traded 0.77 percent lower late Monday morning on losses in tech shares.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index lost 14.76 points to 1,902.86 as of 11:20 a.m.Market heavyweights traded mixed with tech giant Samsung Electronics losing 1.71 percent.Global chipmaker SK hynix shed 2.36 percent, while top mobile carrier SK Telecom lost 2.16 percent.No. 1 automaker Hyundai Motor gained 1.10 percent, and its smaller affiliate Kia Motors advanced 0.62 percent.The local currenc

Jan. 11, 2016

Finance minister nominee set to tackle downside risks

South Korea's finance minister said Monday that he will take all measures including frontloading of the state budget to counter possible downside risks in the first quarter in a bid to prop up the sluggish economy."If I take up duties as the deputy prime minister for economic affairs, I will do my best to bring the South Korean economy back on track and make it healthier," Yoo Il-ho, who was tapped last month as the minister of strategy and finance, said in his confirmation hearing."I will make

Jan. 11, 2016

Foreigners' heavy sell-off weighs on stock market

Foreign investors' selling binge of local shares has shown no signs of abating as they dumped risky bets amid concerns over China's economic slowdown and its aftereffects on emerging markets, analysts said Monday. According to the data compiled by the Korea Exchange, offshore investors have been on a selling mode since Dec. 2, except for a brief turnaround to a net-buying mode Wednesday, offloading a net 3.96 trillion won worth of shares traded on the main Korea Composite Stock Price Index marke

Jan. 11, 2016

Seoul shares open lower on U.S. losses

South Korean shares opened sharply lower on Monday, taking a cue from losses on Wall Street last week.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index lost 17.57 points, or 0.92 percent, to 1,990.05 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Most large caps opened in negative terrain with top market cap Samsung Electronics slipping 1.62 percent.No. 1 automaker Hyundai Motor lost 1.47 percent with its smaller affiliate Kia Motors shedding 1.96 percent.On Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average sank 1.02

Jan. 11, 2016

Average daily bond turnover hits fresh high in 2015

The average daily trading volume in the South Korean bond market hit an all-time high in 2015 amid an economic slowdown and prolonged uncertainties, data showed Monday.The daily turnover of the bond market came to 7.11 trillion won last year, up 26.8 percent from a year earlier, according to the data by the Korea Exchange. The figure has been on a steady rise for the past several years, except in 2013, from 2.32 trillion won in 2010 to 3.28 trillion won in 2011 and 5.45 trillion won in 2012, the

Jan. 11, 2016