Tesla stocks lose luster among Korean investors

South Korean investors’ appetite for shares in electric vehicle maker Tesla has been on the wane over the past few months, with many turning to vaccine-related stocks, including Moderna, data showed Monday. While Tesla remains a top pick for Korean investors, with combined holdings of $9.7 billion as of Aug. 10 -- the highest here among US-listed stocks -- there were signs that Koreans had begun selling off shares in the world’s largest electric car maker in June, according to data

Aug. 16, 2021

[Newsmaker] Blame game intensifies over Mergepoint fiasco

The blame game between financial authorities and discount app operator Mergeplus intensified Monday, leaving customers who bought coupons uncertain as to whether they would lose their money. Mergeplus launched Mergepoint, an electronic payment service, in 2018. Consumers can buy Mergepoints for 20 percent less than their face value, and use them in local retail franchises, convenience stores and coffee shops. The substantial discounts on offer have helped the service attract about 1 million u

Aug. 16, 2021

Samsung shares slump amid leader’s release on parole

Shares of Samsung Group’s major units lost ground just as its de facto leader Lee Jae-yong was released on parole Friday, seven months after being return to prison for bribery involving former President Park Geun-hye. Shares of Samsung Electronics, the group’s flagship company and world’s largest memory chip maker, closed at 74,400 won ($63.66), down 3.38 percent from the previous session’s close. The stock began trading at 1.43 percent lower and further dropped to hit i

Aug. 13, 2021

Seoul stocks suffer weeklong slump on extended tech losses

South Korean stocks plunged more than 1 percent Friday, extending their losing streak to a seventh session, as major chipmakers came under heavy sell-offs by foreign investors amid concerns of a fall in chip prices. The Korean won declined against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) retreated 37.09 points, or 1.16 percent, to close at 3,171.29 points, after hitting an intraday low of 3,146.76 points. Trading volume was high at about 684 million shares worth s

Aug. 13, 2021

Seoul stocks open lower on extended tech losses

South Korean stocks opened lower Friday as giant chipmakers suffered an extended slump amid concerns of a price fall of DRAM. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) fell 11.9 points, or 0.37 percent, to 3,196.48 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Stocks declined below the 3,200-point mark, largely on chip heavyweights' weeklong losses Foreigners continued to sell shares of large chip companies, following brokerage reports tat said demand for chips may decrease after t

Aug. 13, 2021

SK’s vaccine units, EcoPro BM join MSCI Korea index

Morgan Stanley Capital International announced Thursday that it has added three South Korean stocks -- SK ie technology, SK Bioscience and EcoPro BM -- to its global and regional equity index via August’s quarterly review. The US-based finance firm also removed KMW, the South Korean wireless communications devices producer, from the list. The changes will take effect after the market closes on Aug. 31, according to the company. The rebalancing result was based on the listed firms’

Aug. 12, 2021

NH NongHyup Bank sets up London branch

NH NongHyup Bank said Thursday it has launched a branch office in London to make inroads into the UK’s banking industry, as part of the lender’s overseas business strategies aimed at expanding its global presence.  “It is meaningful that (NH NongHyup Bank) has entered the UK market, Europe‘s major global finance center and the birthplace of financial cooperatives, in 2021, which marks its 60th anniversary. We will speed up efforts to become a global cooperative b

Aug. 12, 2021

Korea’s ESG bond issuance sets annual record

South Korea has floated more bonds associated with environmental, social and sustainability issues this year than in all of 2020, setting an annual record in the fast-growing market, data showed Thursday. Since January, 116 Korean entities issued green bonds, social bonds and sustainable development bonds worth a combined 60.6 trillion won ($52.3 billion), according to data compiled by the Korea Exchange. This beat the previous annual record of 58.9 trillion won floated by 23 entities in 2020

Aug. 12, 2021

Mobile messenger Line’s crypto to be listed on Bithumb

Naver’s mobile messenger Line’s blockchain subsidiary said Thursday its crytocurrecy Link will be listed on the country’s exchange Bithumb and start trading in the market on Friday. Line Blockchain and Bithumb said that the deposit and withdrawal address of the cryptocurrency account will be released soon. Link is a cryptocurrency issued by its Sinpapore branch Line Tech Plus, using “Link chain,” a blockchain mainnet made by Line itself, where the actual transact

Aug. 12, 2021

[SPECIAL] Dreaming of equal educational opportunity, local blockchain firm AMAXG launches virtual class platform on metaverse

South Korean Blockchain research company AMAXG has launched “BIZA-Metaversity,” a metaverse-based AI education platform, to tap into the fast growing virtual technology sector worldwide. 　 The metaverse refers to virtual worlds shared by people online. Users interact through digital avatars in the virtual environment while carrying out real life activities. AMAXG plans to gather education institutions in the BIZA-Metaversity and provide an all-in-one education service across borde

Aug. 12, 2021

[SPECIAL] Korean IT solutions provider 3K Group aims to lead in blockchain security, data

South Korean IT solutions and services provider 3K Group has opened a research center to further its research and business in AI, big data and blockchain. According to the company, the “3K AI Center,” a four story building located in Jamsil, southeastern Seoul, will play a key role in leading the company’s research and development. “The AI center is a stepping stone for enhancing efficiency in R&D between the group’s subsidiaries and their partners, and acce

Aug. 12, 2021

Samsung, SK hynix stocks plunge amid concerns of memory demand slowdown

Shares in Samsung Electronics Co. and SK hynix Inc. -- South Korea's two largest chipmakers -- plunged amid concerns of a slowdown in memory demand, analysts said Thursday. As of 10:30 a.m., Samsung was trading at 77,600 won ($67) after a 1.15 percent decline, while SK hynix slipped 3.79 percent to 101,500 won. On Wednesday, Samsung shed 2.1 percent to close at 78,500 won, moving under the 80,000 mark for the first time since Aug. 2. SK hynix finished at 105,500 won after losing 6.2 percent, i

Aug. 12, 2021

Seoul stocks open nearly flat on US tapering jitters

South Korean stocks opened nearly flat Thursday amid concerns about an early tapering in the United States and the resurgence of new coronavirus cases. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) fell 1.34 points, or 0.04 percent, to 3,221.96 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Stocks got off to a choppy start as investors took a wait-and-see mode against uncertainties about whether the estimate-beating consumer prices in July would hasten the timeline for the US Federal Res

Aug. 12, 2021

Seoul stocks extend losses to 5th session amid virus woes

South Korean stocks fell for the fifth consecutive session Wednesday as a record-high number of COVID-19 cases dented investor sentiment. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) retreated 22.57 points, or 0.7 percent, to close at 3,220.62 points. Trading volume was high at 608.3 million shares worth some 18.95 trillion won ($16.5 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 563 to 299. Foreigners offloaded a net 1.6 trillion won worth o

Aug. 11, 2021

Banks' H1 net jumps 59% on KDB's one-off gains

South Korean banks saw their first-half earnings jump 59 percent from a year earlier due largely to a one-off gain by state policy lender Korea Development Bank (KDB), data showed Wednesday. The combined net profit stood at 10.8 trillion won ($9.35 billion) in the January-June period, compared with a profit of 6.8 trillion won the previous year, according to the data from the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). The gains came as KDB reported a jump in valuation of its stock holdings and logge

Aug. 11, 2021

Banks' household loans jump in July

South Korean banks' household loans jumped in July, fueled by demand for home-backed lending and overdrafts for stock investments, central bank data showed Wednesday. Outstanding bank loans to local households came to 1,040.2 trillion won (US$902 billion) as of end-July, up 9.7 trillion won from a month earlier, according to the data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). It marked the largest on-month gain for any July since 2004 when the central bank began compiling related data. The BOK said July's

Aug. 11, 2021

Netmarble cashes in W430b upon KakaoBank listing

South Korea‘s gaming giant Netmarble has divested a 1.3 percent stake in KakaoBank to cash in 430.2 billion won ($372.8 million), a filing showed Wednesday. The disclosure came on the heels of the mobile-only lender’s blockbuster debut on the Korea Exchange on Friday, opening the doors for the early-stage investor in the lender to carry out a partial exit from its investment target. According to the filing submitted to the Financial Supervisory Service, Netmarble unloaded its 6 mi

Aug. 11, 2021

Seoul stocks open lower on virus concerns

South Korean stocks opened lower Wednesday as a spike in new coronavirus cases weighed on investor sentiment. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) fell 7.24 points, or 0.22 percent, to 3,235.95 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Stocks got off to a weak start as South Korea reported a record number of daily coronavirus cases above 2,200, stoking concerns of a growing nationwide outbreak despite toughened restrictions. Market bellwether Samsung Electronics fell 0.87

Aug. 11, 2021

Banks' crypto transaction fee revenues rise 140%

South Korea‘s banks saw a sharp increase in transaction fees from cryptocurrency exchanges in the second quarter, despite heavy fluctuation in the cryptocurrency market. The three banks in partnership with cryptocurrency exchanges -- K bank, NH Nonghyup Bank, and Shinban Bank -- made a total of 16.9 billion won ($14.71 million) from the transaction fees of the four cryptocurrency exchanges they provide real name accounts for -- Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone and Korbit -- according to data co

Aug. 10, 2021

Krafton market debut disappoints

Krafton, the South Korean game maker behind global smash hit PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds, suffered a disappointing market debut upon its landing on the country’s benchmark Kospi Tuesday, although it drew wide attention at home and abroad as the second largest in value in initial public offering market history here. Shares of Krafton closed at 454,000 won ($395.10), up 1.23 percent from its opening of 448,500 won determined between 8:30 a.m. and 9 a.m. in its first trading session.

Aug. 10, 2021