S. Korea's overseas direct investment hits all-time high in Q2

S. Korea's overseas direct investment reached a record high in the second quarter, thanks to a rise in spending on chip-making facilities in China, government data showed Friday.Investments made by South Korean companies came to $15 billion in the April-June period, up 13.3 percent from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Economy and Finance.The quarterly figure is the highest since 1981, when the government began to release data on overseas investments made by Sout

Sept. 27, 2019

Seoul stocks open lower on US political uncertainties

South Korean stocks opened lower on Friday, tracking overnight losses on Wall Street following a potential impeachment probe into US President Donald Trump.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index slid 10.95 points, or 0.53 percent, to 2,063.57 in the first 15 minutes of trading. On the Seoul bourse, top market cap Samsung Electronics plunged 1.52 percent, and No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix nosedived 2.76 percent. LG Display shed 0.75 percent. Financials also got off to a weak start. Shinhan Fi

Sept. 27, 2019

Pension funds net purchase Kospi stocks worth W2.5tr

South Korean pension funds net purchased nearly 2.5 trillion won ($2.2 billion) worth of stocks in companies listed on the benchmark Kospi this month as of Tuesday, Korea Exchange data showed Wednesday.Analysts say the move was fueled mainly by the state-run National Pension Service’s efforts to balance out its investment in domestic stocks in its asset portfolio amid a bear market. According to the KRX, institutional investors net purchased nearly 2.6 trillion won worth of Kospi shares fr

Sept. 25, 2019

Seoul stocks open lower ahead of US-China trade talks

Seoul stocks opened lower Tuesday as investors remain on edge ahead of next month's high-level trade talks between the United States and China.   The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 0.9 points, or 0.04 percent, to 2,092.61 in the first 15 minutes of trading. The main index ended in positive territory in the past 12 sessions.At the United Nations General Assembly on Sept. 23 (local time), US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said the trade talks would resume next week a

Sept. 24, 2019

19 Korean firms maintain stable operating profit since 2000: data

Nearly 20 South Korean firms have posted stable operating profits consecutively on a quarterly basis since 2000, data compiled by a local corporate tracker showed Wednesday, reflecting their ability to manage financial health effectively for nearly two decades. According to the data released by CEO Score, 19 firms here have successfully kept their operating profit margin in positive terrain for 78 consecutive quarters, as of the second quarter this year. The data took 277 nonfinancial listed fir

Sept. 18, 2019

Mirae Asset Daewoo included on DJSI for 8th consecutive year

South Korea’s Mirae Asset Daewoo appeared on the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index last week for the eighth consecutive year in recognition of its sustainable management efforts, the company said Tuesday.  “We feel honored for obtaining recognition from a globally reputable institution over Mirae Asset’s sustainable management related activities such as social contribution, (improvement) in corporate governance, human rights, the environment and responsible investment,&

Sept. 18, 2019

S. Korea’s oil stocks fluctuate after Saudi strikes

Shares of South Korean oil-related businesses posted mixed performances Tuesday, in the wake of Saudi Arabia’s decision to shut down nearly half of its oil production after a series of drone strikes on key installations. Shares of petroleum product distributor Joongang Enervis closed nearly 21 percent higher from the previous session, at 10,250 won ($8.61).  Hunggu Oil, which is engaged in the wholesale and retail sale of petroleum products, extended gains for the second day, and clos

Sept. 17, 2019

Robo-advisers outperform in bear market: data

Robo-advisers, or digital algorithm-based wealth management services provided by investment firms, outpaced major indexes here last month, reflecting their ability to build a strong portfolio amid a bear market, data provided by a state-backed IT firm showed Tuesday.According to the data compiled by Koscom, return rates for risk-seeking, risk-neutral and risk-averse investments made via robo advisors in August came in at 0.1 percent, minus 0.51 percent and minus 1.18 percent, respectively. The d

Sept. 17, 2019

[Graphic News] S. Koreans hold W61.5tr in overseas accounts

　South Korean individuals and corporations held a combined 61.5 trillion won ($51.5 billion) worth of wealth in overseas accounts this year, down 7.4 percent from a year earlier, the country’s tax agency said.　The National Tax Service said 696 corporate entities held 55.1 trillion won in June, compared with 551 companies with 59.5 trillion won in overseas accounts a year earlier.　The corporations held the largest amount, 14.81 trillion won, in their accounts in Japan, with their accounts i

Sept. 16, 2019

Samsung F&M Insurance launches long-term disability insurance

Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance said Monday it was granted a six-month exclusive license to offer long-term disability insurance in South Korea, making the firm the first to provide such a policy with a coverage period of more than three years. Long-term disability insurance allows workers to receive a portion of their salary if they are unable to work for a period deemed to be long by the insurance company, compared to short-term disability policies that usually require a waiting or elimina

Sept. 16, 2019

YG to return W67b investment to LVMH

YG Entertainment -- recently shaken by a police investigation into its former CEO Yang Hyun-suk -- is expected to return an investment worth 67 billion won ($56.5 million) related to redeemable convertible preferred shares to French luxury giant LVMH next month, local reports said Monday. According to reports citing financial industry sources, the repayment date set for LVMH’s holdings of 1,359,688 redeemable convertible preferred shares of the entertainment agency is slated for Oct. 16. L

Sept. 16, 2019

S. Korean hedge funds see steady growth this year

South Korea's homegrown hedge funds continued to soak up money while viable investment vehicles remain few in number, data showed on Saturday.Hedge funds here pulled in 600 billion won (US$509 million) over the past month, with their assets under management reaching 34.9 trillion won at the end of August, according to industry data.The end-August figure also marks a sharp rise from 23.3 trillion won at the end of last year, the data showed.The capital inflow into hedge funds averaged 1.4 trillio

Sept. 14, 2019

Korea Exchange to go paperless from next week

South Korea's stock exchange will introduce an electronic securities system next week, under which all listed stocks and bonds do not exist in paper form, according to the country's financial regulator.Under the new system, which will go into effect Monday, securities certificates of listed stocks and bonds are required to be recorded on an electronic register, the Financial Services Commission (FSC) said. The new system will allow investors to acquire, transfer and exercise subsequent rights el

Sept. 14, 2019

Mirae Asset buys 15 premium hotels in US

Mirae Asset Global Investments said Wednesday that it has acquired 15 premium hotels in the United States, marking the single highest number in overseas alternative investments by a Korean company.The asset management unit of Mirae Asset Financial Group recently signed a contract with China’s Anbang Insurance to acquire 15 five-star hotels and resorts in key US cities, officials said. The total figure on the package deal was not revealed. Competitors in the bid were top-tier global investo

Sept. 11, 2019

Korean brokerages see record-high H1 net profit

The combined net profit of South Korea’s major brokerages for the first half of the year inched up 5.7 percent on-year, data released by the Financial Supervisory Service showed Tuesday, marking a new record high. According to the financial watchdog, the combined net profit of 56 brokerages for the January-June period came to 2.8 trillion won ($2.35 billion), slightly up from the corresponding figure of 2.7 trillion won from the same period last year, which was also then a record high. The

Sept. 10, 2019

Samsung BioLogics stocks buoyed by top court decision

In the hours following the South Korean Supreme Court’s decision to reject an appeal by the Financial Service Commission on imposing disciplinary actions on Samsung BioLogics, the biopharma firm’s stocks rallied on Tuesday.The biopharma arm of Samsung Group closed 1.25 percent higher from the previous trading session at 283,500 won ($237.58). 　 The Securities & Futures Commission, a legal watchdog under the FSC, filed an appeal at the Supreme Court in May, after the lower co

Sept. 10, 2019

KDB-Eximbank merger needed for better policy financing: KDB chief

Lee Dong-gull, chairman of the state-run Korea Development Bank, suggested Tuesday that the government should consider merging the country’s two policy finance institutions -- KDB and the Export-Import Bank of Korea -- for state budget efficiency.“It is about time that we reshuffled the government’s policy finance functions so as to keep in step with the fast-changing market trends,” Lee said in a press briefing to mark two years in office in his three-year tenure.“

Sept. 10, 2019

8 firms fined 3.1 bln won over price fixing

South Korea's antitrust regulator said Monday it has fined eight logistics companies a combined 3.1 billion won ($2.6 million) for colluding to fix their bidding prices for a state-run utility firm and its three power generation units.Hanjin Transportation Co., CJ Logistics Corp. and six other logistics companies fixed their bids on 10 occasions between 2011 and 2016 to secure a stable quantity of goods for transportation from Korea Electric Power Corp. and avoid price competition, according to

Sept. 9, 2019

Credit card firms' H1 net dips on decline in commission fees

South Korea's credit card firms saw their combined earnings fall in the first half, hit by a decline in credit card processing fees, data showed Monday. The combined net profit of eight card issuers, including Shinhan Card Co., Samsung Card Co. and KB Kookmin Card Co., came to 940.5 billion won ($787 million) in the January-June period, down 2.7 percent from a year earlier, according to the data released by the Financial Supervisory Service. Earlier this year, the government cut credit card proc

Sept. 9, 2019

Seoul shares to further advance on abated trade tensions

South Korean stocks are expected to gain further ground next week as market sentiment remains upbeat over planned trade talks between Washington and Beijing, analysts said Saturday.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index closed at 2,009.13 points on Friday, up 2.1 percent from a week ago, on growing hopes that the world's two largest economies may find a compromise in their drawn-out trade talks. This month, the US imposed 15 percent import duties on a wide range of Chinese consumer good

Sept. 7, 2019