Seoul stocks open nearly flat amid virus woes

South Korean stocks opened nearly flat Monday amid concerns over rising new coronavirus cases around the world. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 0.69 points, or 0.02 percent, to 3,040.32 points in the first 15 minutes of trading amid foreign and institutional selling. Investor concerns grew as US COVID-19 cases moved back up, with the third wave of the virus spreading in Europe. New COVID-19 infections topped 126 million over the weekend around the world, with the death tol

March 29, 2021

[Herald Interview] IBK Securities eyes bigger opportunity, market trust as SME-specialized investor

IBK Securities, the brokerage arm of the state-run Industrial Bank of Korea, aims to cement its position as a leading medium-sized company by securing 1 trillion won ($886 million) of its own capital and expanding financial flow between SMEs in Korea and investors. CEO Suh Byung-ki, entering his second year this month, said in an interview that its goal of securing 1 trillion won of capital may lead the way for the company to raise its credit rating and its reputation as a trusted company in th

March 29, 2021

[News Focus] Seoul mayoral by-election campaign revolves around real estate plans

Real estate development schemes have taken center stage in the ongoing Seoul mayoral race, with candidates churning out a series of plans to woo voters angry about the central government’s strict regulations that have failed to curb soaring housing prices in the capital. Oh Se-hoon of the main opposition People Power Party said last week that he would lift restructuring and redevelopment regulations within a week if he is elected as Seoul mayor. He also pledged to supply 360,000 housing u

March 28, 2021

More Koreans inclined to invest in stocks in wake of COVID-19: survey

More South Koreans are becoming inclined to stock investing as they seek to take advantage of a turnaround from the COVID-19 financial market crisis, a survey showed Sunday. Of 1,000 respondents aged between 19 and 59, 67.8 percent said they were interested in investing via stocks, according to a survey conducted in February by Seoul-based market research firm Macromill Embrain Trend Monitor. Among them, 52.7 percent said they had begun to take an interest in stock investing since January 2020

March 28, 2021

Mirae Asset Global reaps record annual profit as diversification bears fruit

Mirae Asset Global Investments, an asset management arm of investment banking group Mirae Asset, reaped a record annual profit for 2020 as its efforts to diversify its product pipeline and beef up its global profile paid off. The latest filing by the second-largest asset management firm in South Korea, overseeing 112.1 trillion won ($99 billion) in assets as of end-2020, showed that its net profit throughout last year came to 256.4 billion won, up 66.2 percent from a year prior. The figure m

March 28, 2021

[Feature] Korean banks’ Myanmar ambition dashed by rising political unrest

The worsening turmoil in Myanmar is casting a shadow over South Korean banks’ rosy vision of gaining a foothold in the Southeast Asian region as the ongoing political unrest has either entirely or partially suspended their operations. South Korean banks have been gearing up to start business in the Myanmar market since 2012, as the quasi-civilian government undertook economic and political reforms. The administration that took power in 2011 institutionalized a new foreign investment law t

March 28, 2021

Major banking groups hint at higher dividends at shareholders meetings

South Korea’s major banking groups expressed a willingness to review various ways to increase their dividend payouts -- including interim dividends – amid government restrictions that have placed a cap on earnings distribution, in shareholders meetings held through Friday. In an apparent bid to quell shareholders’ growing complaints over the firms’ decision to heed the Financial Supervisory Service’s earlier “recommendation” to keep their dividend payo

March 26, 2021

YG Entertainment founder’s control shrinks after Chinese company exit

YG Entertainment founder Yang Hyun-suk’s grip on the firm has weakened after China’s ticket booking platform divested itself from the K-pop powerhouse this month. Shanghai Fengying Business Consultant Partnership has unloaded all of its 953,947 shares in YG Entertainment, dissolving a special relation status with Yang, a former CEO of the firm, a regulatory filing showed on Friday. The report showed that the combined stake owned by Yang and seven other related parties fell to 25.

March 26, 2021

Seoul stocks advance on oil prices, recovery hopes

South Korean stocks advanced more than 1 percent Friday, as vaccine distribution spurred expectations of an economic rebound amid stable oil prices. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 32.68 points, or 1.09 percent, to close at 3,041.01 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 1 billion shares worth some 15.4 trillion won ($13.6 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 544 to 291. Foreigners bought a net 296 billion won

March 26, 2021

Seoul stocks open higher on Wall Street gains

South Korean stocks opened higher Friday, taking a cue from overnight gains on Wall Street. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 13.34 points, or 0.44 percent, to 3,021.67 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 0.62 percent on improved jobless data, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite and the S&P 500 adding 0.12 percent and 0.52 percent, respectively. In Seoul, top cap Samsung Electronics gained 0.37 percent, and N

March 26, 2021

[Exclusive] Shinhan, Hana accused of indirectly financing Myanmar military businesses

Two of South Korea’s leading banks, Shinhan and Hana, have indirectly provided loans and investments to firms with links to Myanmar’s military, data exclusively obtained by The Korea Herald showed Thursday. In September 2019, Shinhan Bank’s branch in Yangon, Myanmar’s largest city, issued loans worth 847 million won ($750,000) to Myanmar Posco C&C. The coated steel company was jointly established by Posco Group’s steel sheet-making arm Posco C&C and Myanm

March 25, 2021

Seoul stocks rebound on eased valuation pressure, virus woes

South Korean stocks snapped their four-day losing streak Thursday as investors bought undervalued shares on expectations of a rebound amid eased virus concerns. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 11.98 points, or 0.4 percent, to close at 3,008.33 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 922 million shares worth some 13.1 trillion won ($11.6 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 460 to 374. Foreigners sold a net 82 b

March 25, 2021

[#WeFACE] Korea's fledgling market for ESG investment faces 'greenwashing' concerns

This article is part of analysis and interviews by The Korea Herald‘s finance desk staff exploring South Korea’s budding ESG investment market, as well as its potential, impact and challenges. -- Ed. The sprouting demand for responsible investing options is reshaping the capital market landscape in South Korea, as financial products associated with environmental, social and governance factors are showing fast-paced growth. The sharp upsurge in both demand and supply, on the other

March 25, 2021

Eximbank CEO named richest public servant in finance

The state-run Export-Import Bank of Korea CEO Bang Moon-kyu was named the richest public official in a financial institution, with net worth amounting to some 5.9 billion won ($5.2 million) as of end-2020, data by the public service ethics committee here showed Thursday. The data disclosed by the committee under the Ministry of Personnel Management also took assets owned by the officials’ family members into account. The value of Bang’s net assets, including real estate, gained 8

March 25, 2021

Female stock investors double in number in just 4 years

Amid the stock investment boom, the number of women investing in stocks in South Korea has doubled over the past four years, according to data compiled by the Korea Securities Depository on Thursday. While the number of stock investors in Asia’s fourth-largest economy recorded 9.19 million, the number of female stock traders came to 3.88 million as of the end of December last year, up from 1.94 million four years earlier, the data showed. The growth rate for female stock investors, 77.8

March 25, 2021

Real estate investment firm Mastern launches US arm

Seoul-based real estate investment firm Mastern Investment Management said on Thursday that its subsidiary in the United States, Mastern America, began operation earlier this week. The launch will help Mastern, which was overseeing 21.7 trillion won ($19.1 billion) worth of assets as of March, to streamline its onsite due diligence for its outbound investment into the US market, enhance its capability for deal-sourcing and portfolio property management in the US and foster partnerships with US

March 25, 2021

Number of female stock investors doubles in 4 years

The number of South Korean women investing in stocks has doubled over the past four years amid an equity investment craze, data showed Thursday. Asia's fourth-largest economy had 3.88 million female stock investors as of the end of December last year, compared with 1.94 million four years earlier, according to the data from the Korea Securities Depository (KSD). The growth rate is much higher than the 77.8 percent increase in the number of male stock investors to 5.21 million from 2.93 millio

March 25, 2021

Seoul stocks open higher on bargain hunting

South Korean stocks opened higher Thursday after four days of losses as investors bought on expectations of stock price hikes. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 8.38 points, or 0.28 percent, to 3,004.73 points in the first 15 minutes of trading amid foreign buying. Stocks rebounded to positive terrain after the first five minutes, as impacts from news reports that North Korea launched two projectiles into the East Sea rapidly subsided. Market kingpin Samsung Elect

March 25, 2021

Shareholders approve new Hana Financial chief, Mirae Asset name change

Hana Financial Investment shareholders approved the appointment of a new CEO on Wednesday -- a former vice chairman of global business at Hana Financial Group who has pledged to strengthen digital innovation and sharpen global competitiveness. As both shareholders and board members of the brokerage arm of Hana Financial Group agreed to welcome the new leader, 47-year-old Lee Eun-hyung is now the nation’s youngest chief within the securities industry. Hana Investment identified the CEO as

March 24, 2021

NPS seeks greater say at companies amid growing shareholder activism

In a bid to uphold shareholders’ rights, South Korea’s state pension fund is seeking a greater say in companies in which it holds considerable stake, drawing market attention toward decisions it would rarely have made before. The National Pension Service said Wednesday that it had decided to vote against the appointments of some board members at the nation’s largest airline, Korean Air, at the airline’s shareholders meeting scheduled for Friday. They include Cho Won-t

March 24, 2021