Seoul shares open lower ahead of U.S. jobs release

South Korean stocks opened lower Tuesday as investors sat on the sidelines ahead of the announcement of the United States' jobs data for September slated for later this week, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) moved down 3.11 points, or 0.15 percent, to 2,049.90 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Shares lost ground across the board, with market behemoth Samsung Electronics falling 1.02 percent and No. 1 carmaker Hyundai Motor losing 0.38 percent. Leading chipma

Oct. 22, 2013

KB, NongHyup, PineStreet vie to take over Woori securities unit

KB Financial Group, NongHyup Financial Group and PineStreet Group submitted their bids on Monday for the takeover of Woori Financial Group’s brokerage arm. Woori Financial Group officially closed the preliminary bidding for Woori Investment & Securities Co. at 5 p.m. on the day, fueling competition among the three local financial institutions. The price for the deal is estimated to be around 2 trillion won ($1.9 billion), according to analysts. Following the financial authorities’ decision to pr

Oct. 21, 2013

Seoul shares close almost flat amid weak momentum

South Korean stocks closed almost flat Monday as investors sat on the sidelines amid weak growth momentum on the main bourse, analysts said. The local currency traded lower against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) inched up 0.61 point, or 0.03 percent to finish at 2,053.01. Trading volume was light at 277.6 million shares worth 4.09 trillion won ($3.85 billion), with gainers outpacing losers 421 to 381."Although the Seoul bourse traded higher in the third q

Oct. 21, 2013

Won's volatility lessens in Q3 amid eased woes over Fed tapering

The daily volatility of the South Korean currency fell to the lowest in three quarters in the July-September period on eased concerns over the Federal Reserve's monetary stimulus tapering, the central bank said Monday.The average daily volatility of the local currency reached 5.3 won in the third quarter, compared with 6.6 won three months earlier, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK).The third-quarter data marked the lowest volatility since 2.9 won in the fourth quarter of last year.The on-day

Oct. 21, 2013

Seoul shares trade almost flat in late-morning trade

South Korean stocks traded almost flat late Monday morning due mainly to a lack of market momentum, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added 0.99 points, or 0.05 percent, to 2,053.39 as of 11:20 a.m.Tech shares lost ground, with market behemoth Samsung Electronics falling 0.2 percent and top chipmaker SK hynix losing 1.16 percent. Flat panel maker LG Display shed 0.6 percent.Carmakers traded mixed, with No. 1 player Hyundai Motor adding 2.14 percent and its aut

Oct. 21, 2013

Seoul shares open higher on stimulus hope

South Korean stocks opened higher Monday as investor sentiment got a boost from rising hope that the U.S. may delay the tapering of its quantitative easing moves, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) moved up 7.64 points, or 0.37 percent, to 2,060.04 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Blue-chip shares led the market gain, with tech giant Samsung Electronics adding 1.02 percent and the country's No. 1 portal operator NAVER advancing 5.16 percent. Oil refiner SK In

Oct. 21, 2013

Ministry to extend tobacco retailer restriction

The Ministry of Strategy and Finance said it would delay the expiration of the regulation limiting the distance between tobacco retail outlets to 2018.The regulation, which states that all stores selling tobacco products must be at least 50 meters apart, was slated to expire this year.Ministry officials said the government made the decision to alleviate heated competition among retailers and to prevent easy access for teens.News reports said about 40 percent of sales at convenient stores come fr

Oct. 20, 2013

Shares to continue upward trend on foreign buying

The South Korean stock market is expected to continue its upward trend this week as foreigners are anticipated to maintain their buying rally amid eased woes over the U.S. political impasse, analysts said Saturday.The country’s key stock index, the KOSPI, advanced 1 percent last week to close at 2,052.40 on Friday.Earlier last week, the local stock market was dented by concerns stemming from political tension in the U.S. over its debt limit.However, the market returned to growth later in the wee

Oct. 20, 2013

Korea, Malaysia sign currency swap deal

South Korea and Malaysia have signed a won-ringgit currency swap deal worth $4.7 billion as part of efforts to strengthen financial cooperation between the two nations, the Korean central bank said Sunday.Under the three-year currency swap facility, the two countries can exchange 5 trillion won for 15 billion ringgit or vice versa, which could also be used to settle payments linked to their bilateral trade, the Bank of Korea said in a statement.The BOK said that the deal can be extended upon agr

Oct. 20, 2013

‘4 groups may face same fate as Tong Yang’

The chief financial regulator said Friday that four more local conglomerates had been involved in dubious funding schemes similar to embattled Tong Yang Group. “We have documents on cases (of irregular funding) at four local business groups,” said Financial Supervisory Service Gov. Choi Soo-hyun during the National Assembly’s audit of the regulatory agency.Choi, however, declined to reveal the names of the four. His remarks came after Rep. Kim Young-hwan of the main opposition Democratic Party a

Oct. 18, 2013

10 bidders picked for shortlist for Woori's 2 smaller bank units

Ten financial firms including Shinhan Financial Group made the shortlist to acquire two smaller banks of state-invested Woori Finance Holdings Co., the financial watchdog said Friday. The Financial Services Commission (FSC) said that the committee on overseeing sales of public assets selected 10 bidders out of 11 candidates for the group's two smaller units -- Kwangju and Kyongnam -- after reviewing their proposals.Shinhan Financial, the country's No. 4 banking group, is seeking to buy Kwangju B

Oct. 18, 2013

Seoul shares up 0.13 pct in late-morning trade

South Korean stocks traded 0.13 percent higher late Friday morning on eased U.S. financial woes, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added 2.59 points to 2,043.20 as of 11:20 a.m.Tech shares continued to lead the gain, with market behemoth Samsung Electronics advancing 0.62 percent and top chipmaker SK hynix rising 2.07 percent. Flat panel maker LG Display gained 2.26 percent.Cash-strapped Tong Yang Group, in contrast, fell by its daily permissible limit of 14.8

Oct. 18, 2013

FSS vows to pursue corporate overhaul with preemptive approach

South Korea's financial watchdog said Friday that it plans to preemptively pursue corporate overhaul in a bid to prevent a potential default of ailing firms from weighing on the economy and the banking sector.The Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) said in a report for the annual parliamentary audit that it plans to select companies for corporate restructuring by taking into account their financial health as well as potential risks."The FSS plans to seek for corporate overhaul in a speedy and co

Oct. 18, 2013

Seoul shares open higher on U.S. hope

South Korean stocks opened higher Friday as investors' sentiment got a boost from a breakthrough in the U.S. debt ceiling talks, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) moved up 2.84 points, or 0.14 percent, to 2,043.45 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Tech shares led the market gain, with market behemoth Samsung Electronics adding 0.41 percent and leading chipmaker SK hynix rising 1.33 percent. Flat panel maker LG Display gained 2.88 percent.Mobile carriers trade

Oct. 18, 2013

Chief regulators to face lawsuit over negligence on Tong Yang

Chiefs of Korea’s Financial Services Commission and Financial Supervisory Service may face investigation by the prosecution over Tong Yang Group’s liquidity crisis. The Financial Consumer Agency said on Thursday that it would file a complaint with the prosecution against FSC Chairman Shin Je-yoon and FSS Gov. Choi Soo-hyun for their “incompetence and negligence” in preemptively dealing with the conglomerate and preventing investor losses.The agency added that the financial regulators had known a

Oct. 17, 2013

Foreign investment hits record

Korea’s stock market continued to see an inflow of overseas capital, hitting a record of 35 straight days of foreign investment in Seoul shares, according to the Korea Exchange on Thursday.A last-minute bipartisan deal over the U.S. federal debt-ceiling that also ended a government shutdown spurred foreign funds into Asia’s fourth largest economy where the benchmark KOSPI rose 0.29 percent to 2,040.61.The KOSPI surpassed 2050 points during intraday trading. Retail and institutional investors con

Oct. 17, 2013