Most Popular
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Actor Jung Woo-sung admits to being father of model Moon Ga-bi’s child
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Wealthy parents ditch Korean passports to get kids into international school
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Man convicted after binge eating to avoid military service
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First snow to fall in Seoul on Wednesday
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Industry experts predicts tough choices as NewJeans' ultimatum nears
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Final push to forge UN treaty on plastic pollution set to begin in Busan
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Nvidia CEO signals Samsung’s imminent shipment of AI chips
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Korea to hold own memorial for forced labor victims, boycotting Japan’s
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Opposition chief acquitted of instigating perjury
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Job creation lowest on record among under-30s
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KB Kookmin scores top in survey of custodian banks
KB Kookmin Bank received the highest marks to become among the “top rated” custodian banks for the seventh year in a row in an annual service evaluation by a British magazine. The Global Custodian has assessed the services of custodian banks worldwide since 1990, becoming a key trade journal for reference when global financial institutions and institutional investors choose their custodian banks.A custodian bank is a specialized financial institution responsible for safeguarding a firm or indivi
Oct. 18, 2012
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Korean banks resilient to household debt: Moody’s
HONG KONG (Yonhap News) ― South Korean banks are resilient to the country’s heavy household debt, as they have a solid capital buffer against possible debt defaults, Moody’s Investors Service said Thursday.Heavy household debt has often been cited as one of the major concerns for the South Korean economy, which could pose a serious threat to the already slowing economy.“One reason for this resilience is that the loan portfolios of Korean banks, which account for about half of the household credi
Oct. 18, 2012
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Shares edge up ahead of European meeting
South Korean stocks edged up 0.2 percent Thursday as investors sat on the sidelines ahead of a key policymaking meeting in Europe, analysts said. The local currency rose to a new yearly high against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index gained 3.97 points to 1,959.12. Trading volume was moderate at 490 million shares worth 4.22 trillion won ($3.82 billion), with losers outpacing gainers 540 to 277.“There are no bigger issues to push up the main index further following a
Oct. 18, 2012
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Self-employed people take hit from slump
The number of self-employed people shutting down their business last year jumped to a four-year high, suggesting that owners of mom-and-pop stores bore the brunt of the slowing economic growth, data showed Thursday.According to the data by the National Tax Service, business closures by self-employed people totaled 829,669 last year, up 3 percent or about 24,000 from a year earlier. It marked the largest number since 2007 when the figure was 848,000. By sector, the service sector including hair s
Oct. 18, 2012
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Seoul shares open higher on hopeful U.S. data
South Korean stocks opened higher Thursday, tracking overnight U.S. rallies on better housing data, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) climbed 4.88 points, or 0.25 percent, to 1,960.03 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Leading carmaker Hyundai Motor gained 0.22 percent and its affiliate auto parts maker Hyundai Mobis added 0.84 percent. Mobile phone maker LG Ele
Oct. 18, 2012
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Standard Chartered supports blind children, conservation of Korea’s wetland habitats
Following is the ninth in a series of stories about companies’ social contribution activities. ― Ed.Standard Chartered Korea offered a total of 1.5 billion won ($1.4 million), most of which it raised through a cross-country cycling relay campaign by employees and customers, to sponsor eye operations for blind children and to preserve a wetland.During a feast titled “Here for Good” to stress its commitment to Korean society on Saturday at Everland in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, the financial servi
Oct. 17, 2012
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Shares up on optimism about economy
South Korean stocks closed 0.7 percent higher Wednesday as signs of a recovery in the U.S. economy eased concerns over a possible recession, analysts said. The local currency rose to a fresh one-year high against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 13.61 points to 1,955.15. Trading volume was moderate at 493.9 million shares worth 4.16 trillion won ($3.76 billion), with gainers outpacing decliners 459 to 352.“Good news from overseas markets boosted investor senti
Oct. 17, 2012
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Korea seeks to protect SMEs from tech leaks
The government will step up its efforts to protect small and mid-sized enterprises from technology leaks as related damage has continued to increase in recent years, the top economic policymaker said Wednesday.“The government will stay at the forefront to prevent SMEs from being victimized by technology leaks,” Finance Minister Bahk Jae-wan told a crisis management meeting.Bahk said such damage sustained by SMEs has been increasing every year and they remain vulnerable to such problems. He also
Oct. 17, 2012
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Households’ pension, insurance assets hit record
Pension and insurance investments held by South Korean households reached a record high in the first half as they looked for safety amid a protracted economic slump, data showed Wednesday. The amount of pension and insurance assets held by local households and non-profit organizations stood at 629.4 trillion won ($569.5 billion) as of the end of June, accounting for 26.4 percent of the 2,384.8 trillion won total, according to the data by the Bank of Korea. It is the biggest portion tallied since
Oct. 17, 2012
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AmorePacific to complete 2nd Chinese plant in 2014
HONG KONG (Yonhap News) ― AmorePacific Corp., South Korea’s No. 1 cosmetics manufacturer, plans to complete construction of its second Chinese plant in 2014 in a bid to expand its capacity in the world’s most populous country, company officials said Wednesday. The factory, currently under construction in Shanghai, will manufacture cosmetics products worth 1 trillion won ($905 million) per year when it is completed, they said.The South Korean cosmetics maker runs another factory in Shanghai, whic
Oct. 17, 2012
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Eximbank sponsors teenage brass band from South Sudan
The Export-Import Bank of Korea said on Thursday that its staff including chief executive Kim Yong-hwan agreed to be personal mentors for about 30 members of a teenage brass band from South Sudan while providing them with regular scholarships.The brass band from the South Sudanese village of Tonj was created by the late Catholic priest Lee Tae-seok who devoted his life to healing people in the worn-torn country through both medicine and music. Lee had served as a clergyman, doctor, teacher and m
Oct. 17, 2012
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Banks’ foreign-currency deposits hit high in Sept.
Foreign currency deposits at South Korean banks rose to a fresh high in September on gains in the trade surplus and a rise in corporate sales of overseas bonds, the central bank said Tuesday.Outstanding foreign currency-denominated deposits held by local residents reached a record $39.26 billion as of the end of September, up $3.43 billion from the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea.Residents includes individual citizens and firms but does not cover foreign nationals with residency s
Oct. 16, 2012
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Shares up 0.83% on upbeat data
South Korean stocks rose 0.83 percent on Tuesday as investor sentiment got a boost from upbeat China and U.S. economic data as well as overnight gains on Wall Street, analysts said. The local currency gained against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index climbed 15.95 points to 1,941.54. Trading volume was moderate at 516.9 million shares worth 3.64 trillion won ($3.29 billion), with gainers outnumbering decliners 470 to 340.“It was mostly external factors, such as slowi
Oct. 16, 2012
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Eximbank backs projects to support Tanzania, Uganda
The Export-Import Bank of Korea said Tuesday it agreed to provide $50 million for an irrigation project in Tanzania and $26.8 million for a vocational training program in Uganda as part of its efforts to support African economies.Eximbank chief executive Kim Yong-hwan inked the agreements with finance ministers William Mgimwa of Tanzania and Maria Kiwanuka of Uganda on the sidelines of a biennial ministerial meeting for economic cooperation between Korea and Africa.The four-day Korea Africa Econ
Oct. 16, 2012
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‘14th century African king was the richest person of all time’
The wealthiest person ever to have lived is a 14th century king who ruled Malian Empire in Africa, a website claimed.Celebrity Net Worth, a website which keeps track of celebrities’ incomes, estimated the net worth of wealthiest people in history and sorted out the 25 richest people of all time, and found that Mansa Musa I of Mali ranks No.1.The website adjusted the respective wealth of rich people to incorporate the inflation: For example, $100 million in 1913 is equal to $2.3 billion in 2012.
Oct. 16, 2012
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Seoul shares open higher on foreign buying
South Korean stocks started higher on Tuesday as foreign investors scooped up local shares, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) increased 0.73 percent, or 14.13 points, to 1939.72 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Shares gathered ground across the board, with market bellwether Samsung Electronics rising 1.31 percent and flat panel giant LG Display gaining 2.59 pe
Oct. 16, 2012
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Shares drop 0.4% on global recession woes
South Korean stocks closed 0.4 percent lower Monday as investors’ sentiment was dampened by concerns over a global recession and persistent eurozone debt woes, analysts said. The local currency declined against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index lost 7.67 points to 1,925.59. Trading volume was moderate at 554.9 million shares worth 4.49 trillion won ($4.04 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 548 to 297.“There’s no big positive momentum to lead the index upward
Oct. 15, 2012
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Eximbank helps extend hallyu to South Sudan
The Export-Import Bank of Korea said it agreed to work together for cultural exchanges with South Sudan on Monday, as a biennial ministerial meeting for economic cooperation between Korea and African nations kicked off in Seoul.In a memorandum of understanding inked Monday, Eximbank and KBS agreed with the South Sudanese government delegation to provide the African country with Korean pop culture content such as television dramas, hoping to spread the “Korean Wave” across the continent.The MOU s
Oct. 15, 2012
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‘MOFIA’ keeps financial sector under thumb
Retired financial bureaucrats given lifelong privilege to lead public agencies, banks by noseIt is well known that former financial bureaucrats dominate top positions at Korea’s public financial institutions and banks controlled by public agencies.Recent history shows that only a fraction ― about 3 percent ― of former and incumbent chief executive officers at 11 public financial institutions and three “special” banks were chosen from the institutions’ ranks.Bureaucrats who built their careers an
Oct. 15, 2012
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KEB wins banking award from finance magazine
Korea Exchange Bank was selected as the best emerging market bank in Korea by an international financial magazine on Saturday. Global Finance, a U.S.-based financial magazine, awarded KEB in the World’s Best Emerging Market Banks in Asia 2012’s Korea category at the awards ceremony held at the Foreign Correspondents’ Club in Tokyo, Japan. The magazine awards banks in different countries every year to time with the IMF/World Bank Annual Meeting. Global Finance gave highest points to KEB in the as
Oct. 14, 2012