S. Korea's money supply grows in March

South Korea's money supply continued to grow in March, as loans to households and firms increased amid the COVID-19 pandemic, central bank data showed Thursday. The country's M2 stood at 3,313.1 trillion won ($2.9 trillion) as of end-March, up 1.2 percent from a month earlier, according to preliminary data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). From a year earlier, M2 jumped 11 percent, the BOK said. A key economic indicator closely monitored by authorities, M2 is a measure of the money supply that co

May 13, 2021

Customs office seizes W7.2b worth of smuggled cigarettes

South Korea's customs office said Thursday it has seized around 1.79 million trafficked cigarette packs worth 7.2 billion won ($6.3 million) and arrested 41 smugglers and local distributors. The Korea Customs Service said the number of smuggled cigarettes more than doubled from about 754,000 packs a year earlier as it carried out a sweeping crackdown on tobacco trafficking in the first quarter. In particular, the number of cigarettes smuggled from China reached 890,000 packs, the largest-ever

May 13, 2021

Doosan Heavy teams up with state utility firm for hydrogen biz

South Korean power plant builder Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction Co. said Thursday that it has signed a deal with Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co. (KHNP) to cooperate on hydrogen-related business. Under the deal, Doosan Heavy and nuclear power plant operator KHNP will develop technologies to produce and store hydrogen by using small- and mid-sized nuclear reactors and water power systems. Doosan Heavy also said its fuel cell manufacturing affiliate Doosan Fuel Cell Co., which has

May 13, 2021

SK Innovation suffers loss in Q1 on EV battery settlement

SK Innovation Co., South Korea's refinery-to-battery company, said Thursday it continued to suffer losses in the first quarter despite its strong earnings from its petrochemical business as it reflected hefty settlement costs for a battery suit with its bigger rival LG Energy Solution Ltd. SK Innovation booked a net loss of 368.1 billion won ($325.3 million) in the January-March period, narrowing from 1.5 trillion won of loss from the pandemic-driven slump a year earlier. Its operating profit

May 13, 2021

[News Focus] Foreign ownership of Samsung Electronics hits 29-month low

SEJONG -- Foreign investors’ total stake in Samsung Electronics dipped to the lowest level in over two years Wednesday, with their daily trading of the nation’s flagship stock drawing close attention. The market’s interest comes as short selling -- which had been under a provisional ban for about 14 months -- has been allowed again in the local stock market since May 3. While most retail investors had called for the government not to lift the ban, or issue the ban perma

May 13, 2021

S. Korea to take steps if needed amid increased market volatility

South Korea plans to take measures to stabilize the financial market if needed, as it has been suffering increased volatility on fears that the Federal Reserve may hike a key rate sooner than expected on inflation woes, a senior government official said Thursday. First Vice Finance Minister Lee Eog-weon said there is no need for market players to sensitively react to US inflation data as its consumer prices are judged to have temporarily risen amid an economic recovery and a low base effect. &

May 13, 2021

Seoul stocks open lower on Wall Street plunge

South Korean stocks opened lower Thursday, taking a cue from heavy losses on Wall Street that stemmed from quick inflation concerns. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) fell 37.33 points, or 1.18 percent, to 3,124.33 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite fell 2.67 percent as the US consumer prices expanded in April by the most since 2009, increasing investor worries that the US Federal Reserve's tapering may come sooner than e

May 13, 2021

E-commerce giant Coupang logs record sales in Q1

South Korean e-commerce giant Coupang Inc. said Wednesday its first-quarter sales hit a new high, but operating losses widened sharply due to increased costs and investment. Sales stood at $4.21 billion in the January-March period, up 74 percent from a year earlier, Coupang said in a regulatory filing. The figure was the largest top line for the first quarter, the New York-listed company said. Yet Coupang registered an operating loss of $295 million for the last quarter, up a whopping 180 per

May 13, 2021

Samsung, LG to provide paid vaccine leave

   Samsung Electronics and LG Group decided Wednesday to offer paid leave to workers who receive a COVID-19 vaccine shot following health authorities' recommendation. Samsung's decision came one day after its labor union requested paid time off for COVID-19 vaccinations. Employees who take a day off to get vaccinated will be paid for that day. If an employee shows signs of side effects after the shot, the company will then grant paid leave for two more days. The union had demande

May 12, 2021

Samsung Heavy completes LNG-related R&D plant

South Korea's leading shipbuilder Samsung Heavy Industries said Wednesday that it has completed a research and development plant related to liquefied natural gas. The plant set up at its shipyard on Geoje Island, 398 kilometers south of Seoul, will develop and test key technologies needed to transport, store and supply LNG, Samsung Heavy Industries said. The R&D plant will help the shipbuilder widen the technological gap with other rivals in manufacturing LNG carriers and LNG-propelled sh

May 12, 2021

Samsung BioLogics denies report on Pfizer vaccine production

Samsung BioLogics on Wednesday denied a local report which said it was preparing to begin production of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine as early as August. The biotech arm of Samsung Group, headquartered in Songdo, Incheon, said the report from Korea Economic Daily was “not factual” in a filing to the Korea’s main stock exchange. The report in question said Samsung BioLogics was in talks for the contract-manufacturing deal with Pfizer and its Songdo production plant is capa

May 12, 2021

Mirae Asset gets approval for entry into short-term financing market

South Korea’s financial regulator Financial Services Commission has allowed Mirae Asset Securities to issue short-term financing bills after a rigorous review, according to sources on Wednesday. With the final approval, the brokerage firm will have more financial leeway to manage bigger funds than a regular securities firm, launching it one step forward to becoming a so-called mega investment bank. A mega investment bank can issue promissory notes with a maximum limit of 200 percent of i

May 12, 2021

[Top Bankers] Shinhan Financial looking to acquire e-commerce platform for Gen Z

This is a part of a series of interviews and analyses of South Korea’s top bankers, policymakers and investors leading the financial industry here. This is the sixth installment. -- Ed. Shinhan Financial Group is in talks with a handful of e-commerce companies over a potential acquisition or strategic investment to create an online commerce space where consumers can shop for financial services like any other retail products. “The limitation of mobile finance apps is that they can

May 12, 2021

6 out of 10 people in S. Korea worried about side effects of COVID-19 vaccines

More than 6 out of 10 South Koreans feel unsafe taking the COVID-19 vaccines being rolled out in the country, compared with fewer than 3 in 10 in the UK, a global survey has found. According to the comparative study conducted by Cigna, an international health care and insurance company, some 64 percent of 1,031 people surveyed in Korea answered that they were worried about the side effects of the jabs available in the country. This was slightly higher than the global average of 62 percent.

May 12, 2021

Woori donates $100,000 for COVID relief in India

South Korea’s Woori Financial Group said Wednesday that it was donating $100,000 to India to help the country win its battle to contain the COVID-19 pandemic. Joining forces with the Community Chest of Korea, the financial conglomerate will offer the donation to the United Way, a nonprofit organization. The donation will be used to procure medical supplies, including oxygen ventilators, build temporary hospitals, and provide food and daily necessities for communities in India. Woori Fina

May 12, 2021

S-Oil launches ESG committee

S-Oil said Wednesday that it has established an environmental, social and governance committee to step up its sustainability management. “The committee will conduct systematic, integrated management of ESG activities,” a company official said. The committee, which will convene a regular meeting every quarter, consists of seven members each in charge of business management strategy, corporate affairs, safety and environment, refinery innovation and coordination, finance, complia

May 12, 2021

Hanwha lands W5tr from KDB to finance green business

Hanwha Group has clinched a 5 trillion won ($4.4 billion) commitment from the Korea Development Bank to finance its environmental, social and governance efforts over the next five years, the company said Wednesday. According to South Korea’s seventh-largest conglomerate, the money will be used to acquire and operate eco-friendly solar and hydrogen businesses, as well as to invest in facilities. 　 “Hanwha Group will prepare the next decade as the green energy leader by advancing

May 12, 2021

Seoul stocks tumble on foreign sell-offs amid inflation concerns

South Korean stocks fell over 1 percent for the second straight session Wednesday as foreign investors dumped local shares amid growing worries over inflation. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) dropped 47.77 points, or 1.49 percent, to close at 3,161.66 points. Trading volume was high at about 1.4 billion shares worth some 22.2 trillion won ($19.83 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 705 to 178. Foreigners offloaded a net

May 12, 2021

Kakaobank lowers rates for mid-credit holders

Kakaobank, the country’s second internet-only bank, has cut interest rates for mid-range credit holders, the lender said on Wednesday, in the latest attempt to provide better services to customers with thin credit files. The banking arm of mobile giant Kakao said it has slashed rates by up to 1.2 percentage points for mid-range credit holders. The bank also expanded a loan limit from 50 million won ($44,518) to 70 million won for them while halving the limit for high creditors to 50 mil

May 12, 2021

FTC set to revise definition of ‘chaebol owner’

South Korea’s antitrust watchdog will take steps to revise the current regulatory definition of “conglomerate owner,” seeking to expand the range of the term. The move came in the wake of public disputes regarding an earlier decision that e-commerce platform Coupang’s founder and chief Kim Bom-suk could not be seen as the controlling shareholder due to his US citizenship. “(The regulations regarding the definition of controlling shareholder) should be applied t

May 12, 2021