[MARKET EYE] S. Korea’s crypto market on path to gain more legitimacy

South Korea’s cryptocurrency market is on a solid path to becoming further legitimized with banks calling for authorization to enter the business and the incoming president pledging to ease regulations. Asia’s fourth-largest economy’s crypto market is booming, with Koreans having invested a total 52.8 trillion won ($43.6 billion) in the digital asset class last year in terms of the combined size of the accounts held by five major crypto exchanges, watchdog Financial Superviso

March 31, 2022

Seoul stocks open higher on financial, tech gains

South Korean shares opened higher Thursday, buoyed by financial and tech advances, despite overnight falls on Wall Street. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) had increased 9.89 points, or 0.36 percent, to trade at 2,756.63 points of 9:15 a.m. Most large caps traded higher in Seoul. KOSPI's top cap Samsung Electronics traded flat, and battery giant LG Energy Solution grew 0.45 percent. Financial heavyweight KB Financial Group increased 1.17 percent, and mobile messenger opera

March 31, 2022

Citibank Korea spent W1.2tr won on voluntary retirement last year

Citibank Korea Inc., the Korean unit of US banking giant Citigroup, said Wednesday it spent a total of 1.2 trillion won ($991 billion) on its voluntary retirement programs last year. Early-retiring employees were paid in advance the salaries that they would have earned until the legal retirement day, with an upper limit of 700 million won, the bank said. According to its regulatory filing, the bank registered a net loss of 796 billion won in 2021, compared with a net profit of 187.8 billion

March 30, 2022

Seoul stocks up for 2nd day on hope for Ukraine-Russia peace talks

South Korean shares closed a tad higher Wednesday, as investors focused on the recent round of Ukraine-Russia peace talks that ended earlier in the day. The Korean won steeply rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index advanced 5.67 points, or 0.21 percent, to close at 2,746.74 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 825 million shares worth some 10.9 trillion won ($9 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 432 to 416. Institutions bought a net 160 billio

March 30, 2022

Seoul stocks open higher on US gains

South Korean shares opened higher Wednesday, tracking overnight gains on Wall Street. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index had increased 13.99 points, or 0.51 percent, to reach 2,755.06 as of 9:17 a.m. Overnight, the tech-heavy Nasdaq climbed 1.84 percent and the Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 0.97 percent, as investors pulled hopes of easing geopolitical tensions amid the Ukraine-Russia peace talks. In Seoul, market bellwether Samsung Electronics went up 0.28 percent, and No.

March 30, 2022

KRX delays lifting trading halt on Osstem Implant

The Korea Exchange said Tuesday that it had decided to postpone its decision on whether to allow Osstem Implant to resume trading, after hours of deliberation that failed to reach consensus on the fate of the company, which had reported insider theft amounting to 221 billion won ($181 million). The largest dental implant maker in the Asia-Pacific region, which used to trade on the tech-heavy Kosdaq board, reported the theft on Jan. 3 and the KRX suspended trading that day.  A month l

March 29, 2022

Retail sales up 4.7% in Feb. on online consumption growth amid pandemic

Retail sales in South Korea rose 4.7 percent in February from a year earlier on the back of growing online consumption amid the worst COVID-19 wave, the industry ministry said Tuesday. The combined sales of 25 major offline and online retailers reached 12.19 trillion won ($9.99 billion) last month, up from 11.6 trillion won a year earlier, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The increased retail sales are mainly attributable to the growth in online consu

March 29, 2022

Seoul stocks open higher on US gains

South Korean shares got off to a strong start Tuesday, tracking overnight gains on Wall Street. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) increased 16.02 points, or 0.59 percent, to reach 2,745.59 as of 9:15 a.m. Overnight, the US stock market finished higher on hopes over peace talks between Russia and Ukraine. The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 0.27 percent, the S&P 500 increased 0.71 percent and the tech-heavy Nasdaq climbed 1.31 percent. On the Seoul bourse, most lar

March 29, 2022

Seoul stocks nearly flat amid Ukraine woes, hawkish Fed

South Korean stocks closed nearly unchanged Monday, as investors remained wary about the uncertainties related to the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the hawkish stance by the US Federal Reserve. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. After choppy trading, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) slipped 0.42 points, or 0.02 percent, to close at 2,729.56 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 755 million shares worth some 9.7 trillion won ($7.9 billion), with losers outn

March 28, 2022

Banks raise loan limits as household debt growth curbs

South Korean banks have started raising the maximum amount consumers can borrow under a loan to the level before financial regulators intervened to curb the nation’s household debt growth. The move comes as the nation’s household debt growth has recently shown signs of slowing down. As of Monday, the top four banks here – KB Kookmin, Shinhan, Hana and Woori – have either started raising the limits for its overdraft accounts or its most popular loans for customers who a

March 28, 2022

Seoul stocks open lower amid Ukraine woes, hawkish Fed

South Korean stocks opened lower Monday, as investors remained cautious about the uncertainties related to the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the hawkish stance by the US Federal Reserve. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index retreated 16.51 points, or 0.6 percent, to trade at 2,713.47 points as of 9:15 a.m. Stocks came off to a lackluster start as the Ukraine-Russian tensions continue to stoke concerns about high commodity prices and inflation growth. Most large caps traded lower in

March 28, 2022

Korean conglomerates delve into digital asset market

South Korean business giants are venturing into the fledgling digital asset market and blockchain-related operations as they seek new business opportunities. On Friday, Ryu Young-sang, chief executive of SK Telecom, said in a shareholders meeting that the company plans to “adopt an economic system” to its own metaverse platform called ifland, a sign that digital currency tradable in the virtual world ecosystem could play a role. The news is in line with an announcement earlier th

March 27, 2022

Union-backed outside director fails again to enter KB boardroom

Efforts by KB Financial Group union members to get an outside director recommended by them fell through for the fifth time on Friday, with the majority of the banking group’s shareholders voting against the plan. The proposal by the union members and KB’s group of employee shareholders – which owns a combined 1.73 percent stake in the firm – to push former Export-Import Bank of Korea Vice President Kim Young-su to become one of the group’s outside directors failed

March 25, 2022

Seoul stocks nearly flat despite Pyongyang's ICBM launch, Ukraine uncertainties

South Korean stocks closed almost flat Friday despite North Korea's intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) launch and the Ukraine-Russia war. The Korean won closed unchanged against the US dollar. After choppy trading, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index advanced 0.32 point, or 0.01 percent, to close at 2,729.98 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 590 million shares worth some 10.7 trillion won ($8.8 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 503 to 343. Institutions sold

March 25, 2022

Ham Young-joo named new chairman of Hana Financial Group

Shareholders of Hana Financial Group have officially elected Vice Chairman and sole chairman-nominee Ham Young-joo to lead the company for the next three years, the firm said Friday. Ham’s nomination was supported by the majority of the shareholders at Hana including its largest shareholder the National Pension Service, which owns 9.19 percent in the banking group. Foreign stakeholders, owning a combined 67.53 percent, also voted for Ham, according to Hana. The NPS is Korea’s large

March 25, 2022

Seoul stocks open tad lower amid Ukraine uncertainties

South Korean stocks opened a tad lower Monday as investors remain wary of the Ukraine-Russia war. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index had inched down 2.19 points, or 0.08 percent, to trade at 2,727.47 points as of 9:15 a.m. Stocks traded bearish as investors also took a wait-and-see mode after the US Federal Reserve's move to tighten its monetary policies to reign in rising inflation rates. In Seoul, large caps traded mixed. Market bellwether Samsung Electronics slipped 0.14 percent,

March 25, 2022

Seoul shares down on high global oil prices, Ukraine woes

South Korean stocks fell to end its two-day winning streak Thursday as investors weighed a fresh spike in global oil prices and lingering geopolitical concerns surrounding Ukraine. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) shed 5.39 points, or 0.20 percent, to close at 2,729.66 points. Trading volume was moderate at 927.75 million shares worth some 11.48 trillion won ($9.42 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 479 to 361. The Seoul s

March 24, 2022

Court temporarily suspends punishment imposed on Hana chairman-nominee

The Seoul High Court on Thursday temporarily suspended the punishment imposed by financial authorities on Hana Financial Group Chairman-nominee Ham Young-joo for improper sales of derivatives-linked products. The decision follows Ham’s move last week to file an appeal against a lower court’s ruling that found him guilty of the charges. The Seoul High Court accepted an injunction to delay the implementation of the Financial Services Commission’s punishment, imposed in 2020,

March 24, 2022

Seoul stocks open lower on Wall Street tumbles, inflation woes

South Korean shares opened lower Thursday, tracking overnight losses on Wall Street, led by declines in big-cap tech and auto shares, amid rising woes over inflation. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) had shed 18.15 points, or 0.66 percent, to reach 2,716.90 as of 9:15 a.m. Overnight, the US stock market tumbled amid renewed concerns over rising energy prices and inflation. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.29 percent, and the Nasdaq composite dropped 1.23 percent. On

March 24, 2022

Ahn stocks hit record high on bets he could be PM

Ahnlab founder Ahn Cheol-soo, the leader of the transition committee for President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol, saw his shares shoot up to a record high in 10 years on Wednesday on market expectations that he could be the prime minister when Yoon is sworn in on May 10. The stocks closed at 175,800 won ($144.76) Wednesday, breaking the previous intraday high of 167,200 won in January 2012. The net worth of the software mogul-turned-politician soared to 327 billion won. Ahn has a

March 23, 2022