Korea seeks to improve shipyards' accounting practices

The South Korean top financial regulator said Wednesday that it will seek to tighten monitoring of local shipbuilders' accounting practices amid their massive losses stemming from an industrywide slump.In the second quarter, the country's big three shipyards -- Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co. and Samsung Heavy Industries Co., -- racked up a combined loss of 3.78 trillion won ($3.3 billion) due largely to a rise in shipbuilding costs and losses from offs

Oct. 28, 2015

LG Uplus Q3 net jumps 38%

LG Uplus Inc., South Korea's No. 3 mobile carrier, said Wednesday its third-quarter net profit soared 38.4 percent from a year earlier due largely to a solid growth in its mobile business. Net income reached 113.6 billion won ($100.2 million) in the July-September period, compared with 82 billion won the previous year, the company said in a regulatory filing. The figure beat the market consensus of 106.3 billion won in a poll surveyed by Yonhap Infomax, the financial news arm of Yonhap News Agen

Oct. 28, 2015

Seoul shares down 0.31% in late-morning trade

South Korean stocks traded 0.31 percent lower late Wednesday morning, weighed down by a drop in builders and logistics firms, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 6.38 points to 2,038.27 as of 11:20 a.m.Hyundai Glovis, the logistic unit of top automaker Hyundai Motor, plunged more than 7 percent following a lackluster earnings report released earlier. Major builder Daelim Industrial retreated nearly 4 percent. In contrast, foodmakers trended higher. Confectionery m

Oct. 28, 2015

Hyundai Glovis Q3 net down 82%

Hyundai Glovis Co., the logistics unit of South Korean auto giant Hyundai Motor Group, said Wednesday that its third-quarter net profit plunged 82.3 percent on-year amid overall sluggish demand in the auto market. Net profit came to 15.69 billion won ($13.81 million) during the July-September period, down from the previous year's 88.51 billion won, the company said in a regulatory filing. Operating profit grew 13.4 percent on-year to 178.45 billion won during the third quarter, and sales expande

Oct. 28, 2015

Seoul shares turn lower on utility, shipyard losses

South Korean stocks turned lower after opening a tad higher Wednesday, led by losses in utilities and shipyards, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index inched down 1.87 points, or 0.09 percent, to 2,042.78 in the first 15 minutes of trading. State-run electricity provider Korea Electric Power Corp. fell more than 1 percent, with Hyundai Heavy Industries, a major shipyard, dipping nearly 3 percent. Insurances companies, however, started bullish. Samsung Life Insurance, the

Oct. 28, 2015

Seoul shares end a tad lower ahead of FOMC meeting

South Korean stocks closed marginally lower Tuesday as investors were wary ahead of the U.S. monetary policy meeting. The local currency rose against the U.S. dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index slid 3.43 points, or 0.17 percent to finish at 2,044.65. Trading volume was moderate at 436.2 million shares worth 4.0 trillion won ($3.53 billion) with decliners outpacing gainers 467 to 332. Analysts said local investors remained jittery over a possible U.S. rate hike that could hav

Oct. 27, 2015

Daewoo Shipbuilding swings to net loss in Q3

Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co., a major South Korean shipyard, said Tuesday that it swung to a net loss in the third quarter of the year due largely to increased costs stemming from a delay in the construction of low-priced ships and offshore facilities.Net loss came in at 1.36 trillion won ($1.2 billion) in the July-September period, compared with a net profit of 10 billion won a year earlier, the company said in a regulatory filing.The shipyard posted an operating loss of 1.22 tr

Oct. 27, 2015

Financial regulator urges speedy overhaul of ailing firms

The head of South Korea‘s financial watchdog called on local banks Tuesday to take preemptive action for an overhaul of financially troubled companies to head off any fallout from possible collapses.The government has been pushing to eliminate highly indebted and unprofitable companies, dubbed “zombie companies,” from the market as local banks and other financial institutions have been struggling from mounting bad corporate loans.“External risks, such as concerns over a Chinese slowdown and an i

Oct. 27, 2015

Korean firms' profitability improves despite slow sales gain in 2014

South Korean companies' profitability improved slightly from a year earlier in 2014 despite the pace of their sales growth slowing to a record low, central bank data showed Tuesday.In 2014, sales of local firms rose 1.3 percent from a year before, slowing from a 2.1 percent on-year gain in the previous year, according to the data from the Bank of Korea. The 2014 figure marks the lowest level since the central bank began compiling such data in 2002.The annual report is based on a survey of 530,64

Oct. 27, 2015

Korea to expand ETF, ETN markets

The South Korean bourse operator said Tuesday that it will expand the local exchange traded funds and exchange traded notes markets in a bid to attract rising demand for overseas direct investment by locals.The Korea Exchange said it will introduce various types of ETFs and ETNs to the local stock market, with those tracking overseas potential industrial sectors, foreign currencies and Treasurys, such as Chinese yuan and Japanese yen.It will also bring foreign big-name ETFs tracking precious met

Oct. 27, 2015

Seoul shares down 0.26 pct in late-morning trade

South Korean stocks traded 0.26 percent lower late Tuesday morning due mainly to losses in builders and steelmakers, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index slipped 5.25 points to 2,042.83 as of 11:20 a.m. Korea Development, a local construction firm, plunged nearly 13 percent after analysts revised down its outlook as the company fared worse than the market had expected in the third quarter.Hyundai Steel, a key steelmaker, also fell 1.6 percent. But autos moved in positiv

Oct. 27, 2015

Daewoo E&C Q3 net surges on booming property market

Daewoo Engineering & Construction Co., one of South Korea's major construction companies, said Tuesday that its third-quarter net profit skyrocketed from a year earlier on a recovery in the local housing market. Net profit came to 32.8 billion won ($29 million) during the July-September period, compared with a profit of 2.3 billion won posted a year earlier, the company said in a regulatory filing. Operating income jumped 24 percent to 121 billion won over the cited period, and sales inched up 0

Oct. 27, 2015

Seoul shares open lower on large-cap exporters

South Korean stocks got off to a weak start Tuesday, weighed down by a fall in key exporters, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 9.93 points, or 0.48 percent, to 2,038.15 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Market bellwether Samsung Electronics slipped 0.5 percent, with No. 2 Hyundai Motor retreating nearly 1 percent. Leading cosmetics firm Amore Pacific also lost 1.3 percent. In contrast, financial firms and mobile carriers gathered ground. Shinhan Financial, a

Oct. 27, 2015

Financial regulator urges speedy overhaul of ailing firms

The head of South Korea's financial watchdog called on local banks Tuesday to take preemptive action for an overhaul of financially troubled companies to head off any fallout from possible collapses.The government has been pushing to eliminate highly indebted and unprofitable companies, dubbed "zombie companies," from the market as local banks and other financial institutions have been struggling from mounting bad corporate loans."External risks, such as concerns over a Chinese slowdown and an i

Oct. 27, 2015

Seoul shares end 0.38% higher on China hopes

South Korean stocks closed higher Monday on hopes that China may come up with new stimulus measures to prop up its slowing economy, following its rate cut late last week. The local currency dropped sharply against the U.S. dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index gained 7.68 points, or 0.38 percent, to finish at 2,048.08. Trading volume was moderate at 449.8 million shares worth 4.26 trillion won ($3.76 billion) with advancers outstripping decliners 425 to 375. Analysts said inves

Oct. 26, 2015

Regulator set to overhaul 'zombie firms' by year-end

South Korea's financial regulator will make utmost efforts to complete the restructuring of unprofitable and highly indebted companies within the year to cushion any fallout on the economy from their sudden collapse, officials said Sunday.The number of "zombie companies," which can't generate enough operating profit to pay taxes and interest payments or require constant bailouts, reached 3,295 as of end-2014, up from 2,698 in 2009, according to recent data compiled by the Bank of Korea.The porti

Oct. 25, 2015

Korean banks' overseas earnings edge up 1.1 pct in H1

South Korean banks saw their combined net profit from overseas operations inched up 1.1 percent in the first six months of the year from a year earlier, the financial watchdog said Sunday.Earnings by 163 overseas units and branches of South Korean lenders totaled $377.6 million in the January-June, compared to $373.4 million the previous year, according to the Financial Supervisory Service.The overseas income accounted for 10.6 percent of the banks' total profit over the cited period, it added.E

Oct. 25, 2015