Household savings growth lowest in 6 years

South Korean households’ savings increased at the slowest pace in six years in 2013 as they struggled to meet spending commitments and sought after investment vehicles offering higher returns amid low interest rates, data showed on Tuesday.Households’ deposits at banks stood at 501.7 trillion won ($469 billion) at the end of last year, up 6.6 percent from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by the Bank of Korea.Of them, savings deposits, which earn interests for a relatively long peri

March 5, 2014

KRX union files complaint against finance minister

Unionized workers of the Korea Exchange on Wednesday filed a complaint against Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Hyun Oh-seok with the prosecution for abuse of authority and neglect of duties.The KRX union continuously criticized the Finance Ministry’s recent decision not to privatize the main bourse and to maintain it in the public agency list. “It was a practice going against the law and principles,” the union said in a statement. The workers argued that the government is hampering gl

March 5, 2014

World markets under pressure

HONG KONG (AFP) ― Asian markets were mixed Tuesday after the previous day’s global sell-off, but investors remain on edge as they await world leaders’ response to Russia’s decision to send forces into Ukraine.While the international community anxiously watches events in Eastern Europe, analysts said the fact that the crisis had not worsened had provided a buying opportunity.The dollar and euro also clawed back some of Monday’s losses against the yen as a certain degree of confidence returned to

March 4, 2014

S. Korea to intensify monitoring of instability sparked by unrest in Ukraine

South Korea said Tuesday it will step up alert against instability in the global financial market from the unrest in Ukraine and tension from North Korea's recent firing of short-range missiles.Russia's financial market roiled on Monday as the international community denounced its intrusive move on Ukraine. The tension later spilled over into other European financial markets whose stock markets markedly lost ground.The North added to the market anxiety by launching short-range missiles on Monday

March 4, 2014

Hana Financial chief tightens direct control

Hana Financial Group chairman Kim Jung-tai has decided to downsize the group’s organization and seize direct control over affiliated subsidiaries.On Monday, the group announced that it would scrap the CEO post for its holding company and would not replace current CEO Choe Heung-sik, whose term expires at the end of March.Instead, group chairman Kim will gain direct control over the holding company, officials said.Further, the group’s total number of executive members will be reduced from 12 to n

March 3, 2014

Korean bonds post best month in a year on China concern

South Korea’s 10-year government bonds posted the biggest monthly rally in almost a year as slowing growth in the nation’s largest export market prompted investors to seek the relative safety of sovereign debt.Manufacturing in China in February may have contracted for the second straight month, according to a preliminary gauge released by HSBC Holdings Plc and Markit Economics on Feb. 20 before official figures are released tomorrow.South Korea’s industrial output shrank 3.8 percent in January f

March 2, 2014

Gov't beefs up monitoring of emerging markets

South Korean officials said Sunday they have been strengthening their monitoring of changes in emerging markets amid growing political and financial unrest that may affect the global economy."We are closely watching the situation (in emerging markets) with vigilance," an official at the finance ministry said, demanding anonymity. "Concerns over emerging economies are spreading as financial instability in Argentina and Turkey, and political unrest in Ukraine, Thailand and Venezuela have been grow

March 2, 2014

S. Korean banks' foreign-currency loans dip in 2013

Foreign-currency loans extended by South Korean banks declined last year from a year earlier, as a stronger won helped borrowers repay their outstanding debts, mostly yen-denominated ones, the financial watchdog said Sunday.The amount of foreign currency-denominated loans extended by local banks reached $25.17 billion at the end of last year, down $4.77 billion from a year ago, according to the Financial Supervisory Service.The decline was attributable to the Korean won's ascent to the Japanese

March 2, 2014

Yuanta offers W125b for Tong Yang

Taiwan-based Yuanta Securities has reportedly offered 125 billion won ($118 million) to purchase a 27.06 percent stake in Tong Yang Securities, industry sources said Friday.Yuanta was the only bidder for the cash-strapped Tong Yang Group’s brokerage house, which was allegedly involved in underwriting and issuing fraudulent bonds of its affiliates to retail investors to offset the group’s liquidity crunch.Group chairman Hyun Jae-hyun has been imprisoned as prosecutors further investigate to charg

Feb. 28, 2014

Banks’ bad loan ratio marks 3-year high

The banking sector saw its bad loan ratio rise to its highest level in three years in 2013 due mainly to insolvency in some manufacturing segments including shipbuilding and construction.According to the Financial Supervisory Service, the bad loan ratio at 18 first-tier banks in Korea posted 1.77 percent last year, marking the highest since it reached 1.9 percent in 2010. The figures for 2011 and 2012 were 1.36 percent and 1.33 percent, respectively.“While delinquent bank or credit card loans to

Feb. 28, 2014

Seoul shares close flat on Yellen’s optimistic remarks

South Korean stocks closed almost flat Friday as investors had mixed reactions to remarks by U.S. Fed Chair Janet Yellen, analysts said. The Korean won closed higher against the greenback.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index edged up 1.56 points, or 0.08 percent, to 1,979.99. Trading volume was low at 247.1 million shares worth 4.8 trillion won ($4.51 billion), with gainers outpacing losers 414 to 394.Analysts said hopeful remarks by Yellen, who attributed the latest weak U.S. data to

Feb. 28, 2014

Koreans' overseas card spending hits record high in 2013

South Koreans' overseas credit card spending rose to a record high last year as the number of outbound travelers increased amid the local currency's ascent, the central bank said Friday.Overseas credit card bills totaled $10.55 billion in 2013, up 11.8 percent from the previous year, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK).Last year, the number of outbound travelers gained 8.1 percent on-year to 14.9 million. The Korean won appreciated 1.4 percent against the U.S. dollar in 2013 with the surplus ru

Feb. 28, 2014

Korea's industrial output edges up 0.1 pct on-month in Jan.

South Korea's industrial output continued to grow on-month in January, but its growth rate slowed sharply from a month earlier amid worries that economic conditions might not be improving fast, a government report showed Friday.According to the report by Statistics Korea, production in mining, manufacturing, gas and electricity industries expanded 0.1 percent last month from December. This marked the fourth straight month that the output has increased on a month-to-month basis.The growth rate, h

Feb. 28, 2014