Prosecutors raid Kookmin Bank over computer system change

Prosecutors searched the computer center of South Korea's No. 2 lender Kookmin Bank on Tuesday as part of a probe into suspicions surrounding the bank's introduction of a new computer system, prosecution sources said.During the raid on the computer center in western Seoul, prosecution investigators secured company e-mails exchanged among employees in charge of the mainframe system change, according to the sources."We secured e-mails on a limited basis to know what opinions had been exchanged ins

Sept. 16, 2014

Korea logs trade surplus for 31st straight month

South Korea posted a trade surplus for the 31st consecutive month in August although the surplus shrank significantly from a year earlier on dwindling exports, customs data showed Monday.The country’s overall exports came to $46.2 billion last month, down 0.2 percent from the same month last year, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service.Imports gained 3.1 percent on-year to $42.9 billion.Earlier this month, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy estimated that exports would inch

Sept. 15, 2014

KB Financial in freefall on CEO risk

KB Financial Group Inc. plunged more than 5 percent on the South Korean stock market on Monday as the chief of the country's No. 2 banking group by market value comes under pressure from the company board to resign.KB Financial stocks were trading at 38,850 won on the main bourse as of 11:22 a.m., sharply down 5.59 percent from Friday's close, after KB Financial's board of directors recommended chairman Lim Young-rok to resign.Last week, the country's financial regulator suspended Lim for three

Sept. 15, 2014

Foreign stock funds suffer continuing outflows

Stock funds that invest in overseas securities have suffered massive outflows over the past five years as investors drawn by an earlier stock boom in emerging markets exited to reduce losses after being spooked by the financial crisis in late 2007, data showed Monday.Foreign stock funds posted a total outflow of 29.19 trillion won (US$28.09 billion) from July 2009 to August 2014. On a monthly basis, such funds have suffered a capital outflow for 62 straight months, according to the data compiled

Sept. 15, 2014

KDB to set up equity fund for Dongbu Power takeover

Korea Development Bank is expected to set up a private equity fund to take control of Dongbu Power Dangjin Corp. after talks to sell off the thermal electricity generation plant fell through last week, industry sources said Friday.The bank, in charge of arranging the sale of the plant to help bail out cash-starved Dongbu Group, is likely to take the step after Samtan, an energy and coal mining company that was tapped as the preferred bidder early last month, walked away after making a down payme

Sept. 12, 2014

BOK holds key rate at 2.25 percent

South Korea’s central bank on Friday held the base rate at 2.25 percent in a widely expected move, a month after it cut the policy rate for the first time in 15 months under government pressure.The decision is in line with a poll conducted by Yonhap Infomax, the financial news arm of Yonhap News Agency. All 16 analysts surveyed forecast the Bank of Korea would freeze the key rate to assess the policy effects of ongoing stimulus measures. “Given that the economy has not further deteriorated and t

Sept. 12, 2014

Government to fine cigarette hoarders

The government said Friday it will impose fines of up to 50 million won ($48,300) on those who hoard cigarettes in a bid to stabilize the market following its decision this week to hike tobacco prices.The penalty will go into effect as of noon Friday, according to the Ministry of Strategy and Finance. The government announced on Thursday that it plans to raise the price of cigarettes by 2,000 won per pack, an 80 percent increase, a move it said is aimed at lowering the country’s smoking rate, wh

Sept. 12, 2014

Insurers’ delinquency ratio edges down in June

The loan delinquency ratio for South Korean insurance firms edged down in June from a month earlier on decreases in both overdue corporate and household debts, the financial watchdog said Friday.The average bad debt ratio of local life and nonlife insurers stood at 0.53 percent at the end of June, down 0.08 percentage point from the previous month, according to the Financial Supervisory Service.Compared with a year earlier, the figure declined 0.19 percentage point, it added.A delinquent loan is

Sept. 12, 2014

Sales at department stores, discount chains up in August

Sales at local department stores and discount chains rose in August, preliminary government data showed Friday.According to the data by the Finance Ministry, department store sales increased 11.7 percent on-year in August, following a 2 percent gain tallied in July.Sales at discount chains also expanded 3.1 percent in August, rebounding from the previous month’s 4.6 percent decline, the report showed.Sales of domestically produced passenger vehicles, however, dropped 4.8 percent in August, while

Sept. 12, 2014

Financial regulator suspends KB Financial chairman

South Korea's top financial regulator on Friday suspended the chairman of KB Financial Group Inc., the country's fourth-largest banking group by assets, for management failures, upgrading the punishment proposed by the watchdog.The Financial Services Commission (FSC) said it decided on a "suspension" penalty for KB Financial Chairman Lim Young-rok for mishandling internal affairs over the group's selection of a new computer system.The penalty, the second-highest among five tiers that the FSC can

Sept. 12, 2014

Incheon airport faced two tax-dodging charges: NTS

Incheon International Airport Corp. was ordered to pay up to 228.8 billion won ($221 million) in back taxes over the past five years, according to the National Tax Service. The taxation authority asked the airport to pay an extra tax of 106.8 billion won in 2008 and 122 billion won in 2013 through two separate tax investigations. It is very rare for a public enterprise to be ordered to pay a colossal amount of extra tax after an NTS investigation. The nation’s top airport operator appealed again

Sept. 11, 2014

Japanese funds flooding into Korean stock market

Japanese investors have poured their money into South Korean stocks since April, partly fueled by Japan’s accommodative monetary policy, data showed Thursday. According to the Financial Supervisory Service, Japan-based investors sold more Korean stocks than they bought in the January-March period, but they purchased a net 1.57 trillion won ($1.52 billion) worth of them from April through Thursday. The influx of Japanese funds into the local equity market in the May-August period averaged around

Sept. 11, 2014

Alipay gets conditional OK for operations in Korea

The South Korean financial regulator has concluded that Chinese online payment firm Alipay does not need its approval to do business here, but on the condition that it only services Chinese nationals, financial sources said Thursday.The Financial Services Commission has notified Alipay, a non-bank Internet payment affiliate of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group, of its conclusion, according to the sources.The Chinese firm has promised to comply with the FSC’s condition, they said.Alipay star

Sept. 11, 2014

BOK likely to hold rate this month: poll

South Korea's central bank is expected to keep the base rate on hold in September as it measures the policy effect of last month's rate cut and watches out for risks of ballooning household debt, a poll showed Thursday.All 16 analysts surveyed by Yonhap Infomax, the financial news arm of Yonhap News Agency, forecast the Bank of Korea (BOK) to stand pat on the current policy rate of 2.25 percent at a board meeting on Friday.The latest result comes after the BOK cut the base rate in August for the

Sept. 11, 2014