Seoul stocks down for 2nd day on weak data, US-China tensions

South Korean shares closed lower for the second straight day Thursday due to weaker-than-expected growth data and the rising US-China frictions. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) lost 12.47 points, or 0.56 percent, to close at 2,216.19. Trading volume was high at about 920 million shares worth some 16.1 trillion won ($13.4 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 597 to 271. Foreigners sold a net 210 billion won, and instituti

July 23, 2020

Watchdog accuses Optimus hedge fund of alleged fraud, embezzlement

The nation’s financial watchdog said Thursday its probe revealed that scandal-ridden hedge fund Optimus Asset Management faked the fund portfolio to its investors, misappropriated their money and obstructed the authorities’ investigation. “Optimus misguided fund investors to pool their money, which led to fraudulent transactions,” Financial Supervisory Service Deputy Governor Kim Dong-hoe, who is in charge of financial investment services supervision, said in a briefing

July 23, 2020

Local PEF zeroes in on Mr. Pizza acquisition

TR Investment has been given exclusive rights to negotiate with shareholders of MP Group, the operator of pizza restaurant chain Mr. Pizza, to buy a 41.39 percent stake for 35 billion won ($29.19 million), a disclosure showed Thursday. Under the binding memorandum of understanding, the South Korean private equity firm has agreed to buy 10 million existing shares of MP Group -- which operates pizza restaurants and coffeehouse chain -- from its current major shareholders including founder and e

July 23, 2020

Seoul stocks open lower on disappointing Q2 GDP growth

South Korean shares opened lower Thursday as investor sentiment worsened over the country's biggest economic contraction in the second quarter in over two decades. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 8.99 points, or 0.40 percent, to 2,219.67 in the first 15 minutes of trading. In the April-June period, South Korea's real gross domestic product (GDP) shrank 2.9 percent from the same period last year, marking the slowest growth since a 3.8 percent on-year contraction in

July 23, 2020

FSC OKs BC Card’s acquisition of controlling stake in K bank

South Korea’s financial regulator said Wednesday it has permitted BC Card to acquire a 34 percent controlling stake in internet-only K bank. With the Financial Services Commission’s approval, the credit card processing subsidiary of telecom giant KT will become the largest shareholder of the country’s first online-only lender. Earlier in May, the company had requested the FSC to review its eligibility to become K bank’s largest shareholder.  Initially, KT had so

July 22, 2020

'Korean investors’ growing interest in US tech stocks risky'

Persisting economic uncertainties due to the coronavirus outbreak appear to have only made blue chip tech stocks in the United States more expensive, while growing retail investors’ appetite for US stocks on global monetary expansion have left them prone to risks, said a strategist at global asset management firm AllianceBernstein. “On the issue of COVID-19 risk, we would just very simply say why bet on things that we don’t know?” David Wong, a senior investment strateg

July 22, 2020

Hospitality industry’s Q1 output contracts to 10-year low: BOK

South Korea’s lodging and dining industry’s revenue plummeted to a 10-year low in the first quarter with a surge in loan requests, the central bank said Wednesday.  According to data from the Bank of Korea, the industrial production index for the hospitality sector stood at 85.6, down 15.5 percent from the same quarter last year, marking the steepest fall since 2010. The IPA -- which measures current economic conditions -- is calculated based on sales figures in each busine

July 22, 2020

Seoul shares end almost flat on profit-taking

South Korean stocks closed flat Wednesday as investors cashed in profits as virus fears marred economic recovery hopes. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) declined 0.17 point, or 0.01 percent, to finish at 2,228.66. Trading volume was heavy at 839 million shares worth 15.3 trillion won ($12.8 billion), with gainers outpacing losers 423 to 412. The KOSPI closed up 1.4 percent Tuesday, buoyed by a European Union economic stimulus

July 22, 2020

‘Korean listed REITs are undervalued amid bio, tech rallies’

Despite a number of REITs attempting to make their market debuts on the nation’s main bourse Kospi in the second half, their value remains underestimated, according to the chief of the Korea Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts on Wednesday. “Beginning with IGIS Value Plus REIT’s list on the Kospi in July, 10 REITs have either been listed or waiting to be listed in the market in the second half. Unlike our expectation, nominal values of the REITs were underestimated,&

July 22, 2020

Korea's FX deposits climb to record high in June

Foreign currency deposits at banks in South Korea surged to a new record high in June, central bank data showed Wednesday, amid pandemic-caused uncertainties that pushed both businesses and individuals to boost their currency holdings. Foreign currency deposits held by local residents came to $84.53 billion as of end-June, up $3.61 billion from a month earlier, according to the data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). The amount marks the highest since the BOK began compiling such data in June 2012

July 22, 2020

State pension fund snaps up drug, tech stocks amid virus

South Korea's state pension operator has raised exposure to pharmaceutical and tech stocks this year amid the coronavirus outbreak while unloading retailers and other virus-hit issues, a corporate tracker said Wednesday. The National Pension Service (NPS), the biggest institutional investor in South Korea, newly bought stakes of 5 percent or more in 24 companies traded on the country's major and secondary bourses as of Friday, according to CEO Score. DoubleU Games Co. was the pension provider

July 22, 2020

Seoul shares open nearly flat on profit-taking

South Korean stocks opened nearly flat Wednesday as investors cashed in profits following a sharp gain in the previous session over economic recovery hopes. After choppy trading, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) gained 0.14 point or 0.01 percent to 2,228.97 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Seoul shares closed up 1.4 percent Tuesday as investor sentiment was boosted by a European Union economic stimulus deal and hopes for coronavirus vaccines. Overnight, Wall Street

July 22, 2020

Foreigners turn to net buyers of Samsung Electronics this month

Foreign investors have turned to net buyers of top-cap Samsung Electronics Co. this month following months of massive selling, data showed Wednesday. Offshore investors' net purchase of Samsung shares stood at 1.07 trillion won ($900 million) in the first 21 days of July, making the tech giant their most-bought issue, according to the data from the Korea Exchange. The figure represents a sharp turnaround from their previous selling binge. In the first five months of the year, foreigners sold

July 22, 2020

Scholars hold authorities responsible for hedge fund fiasco

Scholars in Seoul on Thursday lashed out at financial authorities, saying their policy drive to nurture local hedge funds five years ago was a hasty decision. Pointing to the dispersed monitoring power of the nation’s two financial regulators, the upper organization of the two, the Financial Services Commission, should be disbanded, they said. “To prevent more fraud cases involving homegrown hedge fund asset managers, a drastic change in local financial supervision system has to

July 21, 2020

Number of taxpayers for property ownership increases with price hike

The number of people subject to pay tax for residential property ownership increased by more than 110,000 last year, while the corresponding tax revenue neared 1 trillion won ($834 million) due to a price hike, government data showed Tuesday. As the given progressive tax rate is imposed on those who own high-priced residences, such expanded tax yields were seen to reflect the fast increasing housing price hike here. The number of individuals and companies subject to the comprehensive real

July 21, 2020

S. Korea to ease market bottleneck for retail stock investors

The Korean government on Tuesday reiterated vows to remove bottleneck problems faced by individual stock investors, according to the regulatory Financial Services Commission. “The active participation of individual stock investors shored up the (domestic) stock market in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak,” said FSC Vice Chairman Sohn Byung-doo, in a financial risk management policy meeting held at the Korea Federation of Banks headquarters in central Seoul. “(The governme

July 21, 2020

Seoul stocks spike by 1.4% on vaccine hopes, EU stimulus deal

South Korean shares closed up 1.4 percent on Tuesday after leaders of European Union (EU) member nations reached a massive stimulus package deal to support pandemic-hit economic activities. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 30.63 points, or 1.39 percent, to close at 2,228.83. Trading volume was high at about 906 million shares worth some 15.5 trillion won ($12.9 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 565 to 279. Foreign

July 21, 2020

Kurly founder named among world’s top female fundraisers

Founder of Seoul-based same-day deliery startup Kurly, Sophie Kim, was listed among the top 10 female founders in the world by fundraising, data showed Tuesday. The founder of Market Kurly had raised the eighth-most money on the list as of June, raking in a combined $282 million since Kurly’s inception in 2014, according to data compiled by Businessfinancing.co.uk, a research and information provider in UK. Kim was the only Korean and one of four from Asia. The list of Asian entreprene

July 21, 2020

Seoul's commercial properties market less affected by coronavirus: reports

South Korea‘s commercial real estate market has been relatively less affected by the pandemic as the demand for both prime offices and logistics assets remains stable partly thanks to high liquidity and profit-seeking investors, reports showed Tuesday. The higher market liquidity coupled with the resilience of the economy, has instead beefed up competition for deals involving “core assets,” or prime office buildings that offer investors a stable source of income. “The

July 21, 2020

Seoul stocks open higher on vaccine hopes

South Korean shares opened higher on the back of positive progress in the development of the new coronavirus vaccines. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 20.94 points, or 0.95 percent, to 2,219.14 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Investor sentiment improved, following reports on the progress shown in early data for the three potential COVID-19 vaccine candidates. Most large caps traded higher in Seoul. Market bellwether Samsung Electronics added 1.48 percent,

July 21, 2020