Demand for bank loans expected to shrink in Q2: poll

Demand for fresh bank loans by local companies and households is expected to dwindle in the second quarter, a survey showed Tuesday.The overall index measuring demand for fresh bank loans came to 3 for the April-June period, down from 4 for the previous quarter, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK). A lending section of a commercial bank branch in Seoul (Yonhap)A reading above zero means demand is expected to grow from three months earlier while a reading below the benchmark means demand will li

April 5, 2016

Samsung C&T denies split-merger of plant construction business

Samsung C&T on Tuesday denied a local report that it was seeking to split off its loss-making plant construction business and merge it with affiliate Samsung Engineering. Samsung C&T's headquarter buliding in Seoul (Yonhap)“We’re not considering any split-off or merger as suggested by the report,” the Seoul-based firm said in a regulatory filing. Chosun Ilbo, a daily newspaper, reported Monday that Samsung Group was pushing for the split and merger as part of its on-going efforts to realign its

April 5, 2016

Pacific Life Re to open branch in Korea

Pacific Life Re, a U.S.-based reinsurance firm, has received approval from Korea’s top financial regulator to open a branch here. “Following the approval, Pacific Life Re Korea may start its business in Korea immediately,” an official at the Financial Services Commission said. Pacific Life Re, which has offices in Europe, Asia and North America, provides various reinsurance products and services. It specializes in the reinsurance of life, critical illness, income protection, hospital cash, under

April 5, 2016

CJ CGV to buy Turkey’s top cinema chain

CJ CGV shares started off strong Tuesday morning after the company said it has decided to acquire Turkey’s largest cinema chain Mars Entertainment Group.The company’s share price rose as much as 4.1 percent to hit 101,000 won ($87.30) during Tuesday morning trading.The nation’s largest multiscreen operator said Monday it will takeover the Turkish company for 605 million euros ($688 million) in a consortium with other financial investors.“CJ CGV will hold a 38.12 percent stake and other financial

April 5, 2016

Korea's national debt up 53.5 tln won in 2015

Korea's national debt rose by 53.5 trillion won ($46.7 billion) in 2015 from a year earlier as the government managed an expansionary fiscal policy to pump-prime the sluggish economy, the finance ministry said Tuesday.The national debt that covers the central government's general and special accounts and funds reached 556.5 trillion won last year, up from 503 trillion won a year earlier, according to the 2015 settlement of accounts endorsed by the Cabinet.The Ministry of Strategy and Finance sai

April 5, 2016

Korea's FX reserves jump over $4 bln in March

Korea's foreign exchange reserves grew from a month earlier in March partly on an increase in the dollar-denominated value of non U.S. dollar assets, the central bank said Tuesday.The country's foreign exchange reserves came to $369.84 billion as of end-March, up 4.08 billion from $365.76 billion a month earlier, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK). Bank of Korea (Yonhap)The on-month rise marked a turnaround from four consecutive months of drop.Foreign exchange reserves consist of securities an

April 5, 2016

Korean shares open lower on U.S. fall

Korean stocks started lower on Tuesday as investors attempted to lock in gains following overnight falls in Wall Street.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) shed 8.78 points, or 0.44 percent, to 1,970.19 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Market heavyweights traded mixed, with top player Samsung Electronics shedding 1.23 percent.Hyundai Motor, the nation's leading automaker, rose 0.35 percent. State-run Korea Electric Power Corp. suffered 0.51 percent fall, and top steelmaker

April 5, 2016

Hyundai Merchant mulls over selling oil-carrier business

Hyundai Merchant Marine, South Korea's No. 2 shipping line by sales, said on Monday it was mulling over selling its oil-carrier business unit to improve its financial footing."We are considering selling the oil carrier division (composed of five to six oil carrier ships) to secure liquidity and improve financial health. But nothing has been decided yet," the company said in a regulatory filing. Hyundai steel products (Yonhap)Hyundai Merchant has stepped up its efforts to sell non-core assets and

April 4, 2016

CJ CGV purchases stake in Indonesian theater chain

South Korea's largest multiplex cinema chain CJ CGV said Monday that it has purchased a 7.8-percent stake in Indonesian movie theater chain, PT Graha Layar Prima Tbk.The deal, valued at 34.7 billion won ($30.1 million), will help CJ CGV to make inroads into the Southeast Asian country with high potential of growth in the film market, the company said. CJ CGV (Yonhap)With the purchase, CJ CGV will control 40.25 percent of the Indonesian firm's total stakes, it said. The company further forecast t

April 4, 2016

[KOSPI Watch] After brief rebound, banks to continue poor performance

Local commercial banks outperformed the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index last week, thanks to a recent regulatory decision that is positive for their bottom line. But that may have been only a brief rebound, analysts said, as uncertainties stemming from low interest rates, volatile foreign exchange rate and stock market will keep weighing on the lenders.  Shares of the local banks rose 0.4 percent on average during the trading week of March 28 to April 1, outperforming the KOSPI’s 0.5

April 4, 2016

M&A inevitable for tech sector convergence

The continuing convergence of industries -- with new technologies impacting everything from production to services -- is set to accelerate dealmaking here as companies seek to seize competitive advantage, a mergers and acquisitions expert said. “In this era of convergence when different areas of technology are merging everywhere, M&A is the only way for companies to survive,” said Lee Chang-hun, chairman of Korea M&A Exchange, an M&A matchmaking platform, in an interview with The Korea Herald at

April 4, 2016

Stocks close higher on foreigners after trading flat

Korean shares closed higher Monday on the back of foreigners, although the market traded sluggish earlier in the session as investors eyed the U.S. Federal Open Market Committee‘s March minutes to be announced later this week, analysts said. The local currency rose against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index moved up 5.4 points, or 0.27 percent to finish at 1,978.97. Trading volume was moderate at 357.9 million shares worth 4.21 trillion won ($3.73 billion), with gain

April 4, 2016

[KOSPI Watch] After brief rebound, underperformance to continue in banking

The Korea Herald is publishing a series of articles looking at the performance of various sectors on Korea’s main bourse, the KOSPI. The following is the sixth installment. -- Ed.Local commercial banks outperformed the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index last week, thanks to a recent regulatory decision that is positive for their bottom line. But that may have been only a brief rebound, analysts said, as uncertainties stemming from low interest rates, volatile foreign exchange rate and s

April 4, 2016

Hyundai Securities may sell stake in soon-to-launch internet bank

Hyundai Securities may have to dispose of its stake in one of Korea’s first two Internet-only banks, if and when KB Financial Group acquires it as planned, a group official said Monday. KB Financial has been chosen as the preferred bidder for a controlling 22.56 percent stake in Hyundai Securities and is now conducting due diligence on the firm.Hyundai Securities holds a 10 percent stake in K-Bank, one of the two Internet banks that Korea’s financial authorities approved last year. KB Financial

April 4, 2016

[Market Now] WeMade downgraded on lackluster games

WeMade Entertainment, a KOSDAQ-listed game developer and publisher, once made a name for itself with hit titles such as “Wind Runner” and “Legend of Mir” in both PC and mobile gaming.The company even garnered attention from the market for its investment in Kakao, Korea’s most used mobile messenger, for a strategic partnership in mobile games. WeMade has a 4 percent stake in Kakao, and holds equities in notable game companies including 4:33 and Joymax. However, currently with hardly any blockbust

April 4, 2016

FDI pledges jump 19.3% on-year in Q1

New foreign direct investment (FDI) pledged to Korea jumped 19.3 percent in the first three months of the year due to a sharp rise in investment from the European Union and China, the government said Monday.Fresh FDI committed to the country in the January-March period came to $4.24 billion, up from $3.55 billion a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.The amount of new FDI arriving here, however, tumbled 43.1 percent on-year to $1.83 billion over the cited period

April 4, 2016

Eugene’s takeover bid for Tong Yang fails

Eugene Group said March 31 that it will continue buying shares in its hostile takeover target Tong Yang, after suffering a defeat a day earlier in its first attempt to secure control of the building materials maker. “We respect the decision of other shareholders,” Tong Yang said, referring to the outcome of the previous day's shareholders meeting.At the meeting, minority shareholders, who as a whole control nearly 70 percent of Tong Yang, turned down Eugene’s proposal to add six new members to t

April 4, 2016

Korean shares open nearly flat ahead of FOMC minute

Korean stocks started nearly flat Monday as investors took a wait-and-see approach on the U.S. Federal Open Market Committee's March minutes to be announced later this week.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) edged down 1.46 points, or 0.07 percent, to 1,972.11 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Tech shares traded mixed, with Samsung Electronics adding 0.16 percent while chipmaker SK hynix lost 1.06 percent. LG Electronics moved up 1.48 percent.Mobile carriers were also divid

April 4, 2016

[Market Now] Hyundai Heavy Industries to face debt repayment burden

Hyundai Heavy Industries is expected to face increasing debt repayment burden stemming from its bond issues using its shares in unprofitable shipping company Hyundai Merchant Marine as collateral.To secure liquidity to revive its sluggish operations, the Korea-listed shipbuilding giant issued bonds worth $220 million exchangeable to HMM equities last year.However, with HMM going through debt structuring and losing share value on the global shipping downturn, investors in Hyundai Heavy’s exchange

April 3, 2016

Korean won gains fastest among Asian currencies

The Korean won gained the fastest among Asian currencies last month on the back of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s dovish stance on raising interest rates and slower depreciation of the Chinese yuan, according to data by Yonhap Infomax and Capital Economics.The Korean strengthened against the U.S. dollar by 8.15 percent in March, the highest gain followed by the Malaysian ringgit’s 7.97 percent appreciation; Singaporean dollar’s 4.32 percent; Taiwanese dollar’s 3.44 percent; Philippine peso’s 3.16 pe

April 3, 2016