Seoul stocks open higher on strong export data

South Korean stocks opened higher Monday, helped by robust economic data that fueled optimism for a quick economic rebound from the pandemic. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) rose 19.61 points, or 0.64 percent, to 3,080.12 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Stocks got off to a bullish start as South Korea's exports jumped 40.9 percent on-year in the first 20 days of August on high demand for chips, autos and petroleum goods. Top cap Samsung Electronics added 0.6

Aug. 23, 2021

Kyobo Life minority shareholders deny collusion with accountants

Minority shareholders of Kyobo Life Insurance denied having colluded with the company’s accountants to influence the pricing of shares as they sought to exit the company after its failed attempt to go public, one of its shareholders, Affinity Equity Partners, said Sunday. Legal representatives of the investor consortium led by the Hong Kong-based private equity firm argued in a statement that it abided by South Korea’s rules when estimating the strike price with the accounting firm

Aug. 22, 2021

Cash-rich Hyundai Engineering makes case for IPO at W10tr valuation: analysis

South Korean builder Hyundai Engineering’s anticipated initial public offering will bring its equity value to over 10 trillion won ($8.5 billion), as its market debut plan is considered a critical step for a full-fledged family business succession in Hyundai Motor Group. A booming housing construction market coupled with its net cash -- amounting to 2.3 trillion won as of end-June -- make the case for the 10 trillion-won mark in equity value of the company, analysts said. The company, d

Aug. 22, 2021

[ESG Talk] Embedding ESG into M&A strategy for post-COVID era

The year 2021 is seen as a period of transition as markets recover in the post-COVID rebound. Among the areas that will see an economic boost is the mergers and acquisitions market. What companies must recognize is that the M&A market in the post-COVID era is likely to unfold a slightly different reality than in the past. There will be a more explicit and extensive embodiment of environmental, social, and governance values in M&A deals. ESG and its impact on M&A The COVID-19 pande

Aug. 22, 2021

Foreigners’ net sale of Seoul stocks worth W31tr so far in 2021

While foreign investors extended their selling spree of South Korean stocks, the amount of massively offloaded shares by them so far in 2021 has already surpassed last year’s figure during the pandemic-hit market, data showed Sunday. Offshore investors sold a net 30.73 trillion won ($26.15 billion) worth of local stocks from the calendar year to Friday, according to data compiled by the Korea Exchange. It marked nearly a 25 percent increase from 24.71 trillion won in net selling for the

Aug. 22, 2021

Second-tier banks urged to tighten lending amid soaring household debt

South Korea’s financial watchdog has called on second-tier banks to tighten lending standards on their extension of personal unsecured loans, as part of a move to curb ballooning household debt, industry sources said Sunday. The Financial Supervisory Service had sent a message to the Korea Federation of Savings Banks on Friday urging its member companies, including savings banks and mutual financial cooperatives, to keep the maximum amount of credit loans allowed for individuals below th

Aug. 22, 2021

Korean banks temporarily halt mortgage lending over household debt worries

South Korean banks have started to temporarily halt their home-backed loans under pressure from financial authorities seeking to rein in the nation’s snowballing household debt, sources said Friday. NH NongHyup Bank, one of the country’s top five commercial banks, decided to suspend all mortgage lending from next week until Nov. 30. Switching and renewals of mortgages will be halted as well. Extension of personal loans will be tightened as well, with customers able to borrow up

Aug. 20, 2021

Seoul stocks slump more than 1% in US tapering worries

South Korean stocks retreated more than 1 percent Friday as concerns about the possibility of the US Fed's earlier-than-expected tapering pulled down the stock prices. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) dipped 37.32 points, or 1.2 percent, to close at 3,060.51 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 660 million shares worth some 16.1 trillion won ($13.6 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 829 to 70. Foreigners sold a

Aug. 20, 2021

KakaoBank outpaces Hyundai Motor in market cap

KakaoBank, South Korea’s largest digital-only bank, beat out Hyundai Motor, one of the world’s largest carmakers, in terms of market capitalization on Friday morning, becoming 8th most valuable company here. Shares of KakaoBank rose 1.85 percent to 92,300 won ($77.98) during the morning trade to surpass the 44 trillion won-mark before it closed at 1.09 percent lower to 91,000 won. Hyundai Motor shares, meanwhile, declined more than 1 percent to 204,000 won apiece, losing

Aug. 20, 2021

Seoul stocks turn to losses late Fri. morning on U.S. tapering worries

South Korean stocks turned to losses late Friday morning as concerns about the possibility of US Fed's earlier-than-expected tapering pulled down stock prices. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) retreated 20.52 points, or 0.66 percent, to 3,077.31 points as of 11:20 a.m. Stocks opened with mild gains after the Kospi retreated nearly 2 percent Thursday, marking the biggest daily loss since Feb. 26 and the lowest closing price since early April. But stocks fell back below t

Aug. 20, 2021

Seoul stocks open higher on bargain hunting

South Korean stocks opened higher Friday as bargain hunters sought oversold stocks after the benchmark index plunged by almost 2 percent the previous day. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) rose 5.68 points, or 0.18 percent, to 3,103.51 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Stocks rebounded after the Kospi retreated nearly 2 percent Thursday, marking biggest daily loss since Feb. 26, and the lowest closing price since early April. Investors remained wary for market j

Aug. 20, 2021

Tougher regulations cast shadow over crypto markets in S. Korea

Ko Kwang-nam invested 5 million won ($4,251) in cryptocurrencies but lost about half of his holdings as the nation's cryptocurrency markets showed signs of cooling down ahead of tougher regulations. As things stand, Ko, a 30-something office worker in Seoul, is likely to lose most of holdings because he made big bets on smaller or "alternative" coins. "I am not going to cut my losses because I believe that prices will go up again if regulatory issues are over," Ko said. Ab

Aug. 20, 2021

‘Mergepoint saga could speed up passage of e-payment act revision’

Politicians have started to look closely into a snowballing fiasco of prepaid discount service Mergepoint on Thursday, raising expectations that it could help speed up the passage of a revision to the controversial e-payment law. The revised Electronic Financial Transaction Act (EFTA) has been pending at the National Assembly for nine months. Park Wan-joo, the policy committee chairman of the ruling Democratic Party, said the government and the ruling party were taking the case very seriously

Aug. 19, 2021

Seoul stocks dip nearly 2 pct on US tapering jitters

South Korean stocks tumbled nearly 2 percent Thursday on concerns over the US Federal Reserve minutes that hinted at the possibility of an earlier-than-expected tapering timeline. The Korean won steeply fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) slumped 61.1 points, or 1.93 percent, to close at 3,097.83 points. The figure marks the index's biggest daily loss since Feb. 26, and the closing price marks the lowest since early April. Trading volume was mode

Aug. 19, 2021

NH NongHyup to work with Samsung Electronics for digital transformation

South Korea’s NH NongHyup Bank said Thursday it is collaborating with Samsung Electronics to accelerate digital transformation of its financial businesses. One of the country‘s top commercial banks and the global tech behemoth signed a memorandum of understanding on Wednesday that will help NH NongHyup efficiently utilize key emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, blockchain and the metaverse. Designing digital, yet consumer-friendly brick-and-mortar branches, de

Aug. 19, 2021

HHI acquires Doosan Infracore after Chinese arm dispute resolution

Hyundai Heavy Industries Group has closed an acquisition deal of a 30 percent stake in South Korean machinery manufacturer Doosan Infracore for 850 billion won ($722.5 million), a filing submitted to the Financial Supervisory Service showed Thursday. The business conglomerate‘s midtier holding company Hyundai Genuine has bought 23.4 million common shares in Doosan Infracore from the debt-saddled Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction, which will use about 690 billion won in proceeds t

Aug. 19, 2021

Retail investors’ ownership of Samsung Electronics stock doubles

Amid massive foreign sell-offs of Samsung Electronics, South Korea’s most valuable company, domestic retail traders’ stock ownership in the tech giant doubled this year, surpassing 13 percent for the first time, data showed Thursday. Individual investors’ stock holdings of Samsung accounted for an all-time high of 13.08 percent of the total as of Wednesday. The previous record -- set at end-December last year -- was 6.48 percent, according to data compiled by the Korea Securit

Aug. 19, 2021

Residents' FX deposits fall in July

Foreign currency deposits at banks in South Korea fell in July from the previous month as individuals withdrew their FX holdings, central bank data showed Thursday. Outstanding foreign currency-denominated deposits held by residents amounted to $92.13 billion as of end-July, down $910 million from June, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK). Residents include local citizens, foreigners staying here for more than six months and foreign companies. The data excludes interbank foreign currency depo

Aug. 19, 2021

Banks' loan delinquency rate falls in June

The delinquency rate for South Korean banks' won-denominated loans fell to a record low in June due to a decline in overdue corporate loans, the financial regulator said Thursday. The rate for bank loans more than 30 days overdue stood at 0.25 percent at the end of June, down from 0.32 percent the previous month, according to the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). Compared with a year earlier, the rate was down 0.08 percentage point in June. The delinquency rate for corporate loans declined

Aug. 19, 2021

Seoul stocks open lower on US tapering talks

South Korean stocks opened lower Thursday as investor sentiment weakened over the US Federal Reserve minutes that hinted at the possibility of an earlier-than-expected tapering timeline. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) fell 11.18 points, or 0.35 percent, to 3,147.75 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Stocks got off to a lackluster start, tracking the overnight Wall Street stock plunge. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 1.08 percent as Federal Reserve minute

Aug. 19, 2021