Loan maturity extended for 6 months

South Korea’s financial regulator said Tuesday it has extended the grace period for loan repayments until September as part of policy effort to support individuals and businesses reeling from the resurgence of the COVID-19 pandemic.  “In response to small-and medium-sized enterprises and merchants’ economic difficulties wrought by the prolonged social distancing rules amid the virus resurgence, the Financial Services Commission and financial circles have decided to exte

March 2, 2021

Seoul stocks open steeply higher on eased bond yield concerns

South Korean stocks opened steeply higher Tuesday, tracking an overnight Wall Street rally that stemmed from eased concerns about the impacts of a bond yield hike. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 81.62 points, or 2.71 percent, to 3,094.57 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Stocks got off to a bullish start after a three-day holiday weekend on strong institutional and foreign buying. Foreigners, who net sold a record 2.8 trillion won ($2.5 billion) the p

March 2, 2021

Average daily export volume hits new high in February

South Korea saw the volume of exports continue growing for a fourth consecutive month in February, showing signs of recovery from the coronavirus crisis, on the back of strong chip and automobile demand. According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy on Monday, outbound shipments came to $44.81 billion last month, up 9.5 percent from the previous year. The average daily export volume increased 26.4 percent to reach $2.3 billion -- the largest for the month. The on-year export growth

March 1, 2021

[Herald Interview] Tailored foreign investing advice gets new twist

Collector of Korean art, TV celebrity, motivational speaker and investment adviser -- those are just a few of the titles Mark Tetto, 40, has under his belt. After about 10 years of living in Seoul, the Italian American multihyphenate is taking on a new challenge in leading Topor & Co. Korea, one of the first investment advisers in South Korea that handles private wealth management for wealthy families. In the past five years as a partner at TCK, his primary focus was to manage a globally d

March 1, 2021

Pension funds extend stock selling streak to 42nd straight session

South Korean pension funds logged a record-long selling spree of local stocks, extending net selloffs to a 42nd consecutive session. While the unloading trend extended during a recent market correction period, experts predict their selling will likely to continue at least until June this year. The combined net sales of the pension funds came to 12.98 trillion won ($11.57 billion) so far this year. In February, they sold a net 4.58 trillion won -- 4.32 trillion won on the main bourse Kospi an

March 1, 2021

Asia markets stage rebound after last week's rout

HONG KONG (AFP) -- Equities rose in Asia on Monday as investors took a breather following last week's heavy selling, with a drop in US Treasury yields giving markets some much-needed stability, while the passage of Joe Biden's stimulus through the House provided some cheer. However, observers warned that trading floors were still gripped by fears the expected global economic recovery will fuel inflation and force a hike in interest rates earlier than previously thought, removing a key pillar of

March 1, 2021

Institutional investors bet on stock market decline

Amid lingering market uncertainties alongside rising US Treasury yields, local institutional investors seem to have started betting against the equity market, investing in inverse exchange traded funds. Inverse ETFs are designed to make money when target stocks or underlying indexes decline in value. According to data compiled by the nation’s sole securities exchange operator Korea Exchange, investment companies, including stock brokers, bought some 200 billion-won ($177.6 million) wor

Feb. 28, 2021

Demand for Seoul apartments down slightly: report

Demand for apartments in Seoul inched down last week, data showed, after the government rolled out a series of supply measures Feb. 4. According to data collected by the state-run Korea Appraisal Board, an index that gauges supply and demand for apartments dropped by 0.8 points to 109.8 last week, compared with 110.6 marked in the previous week. A rating above 100 means demand exceeds supply. After seeing bouts of fluctuations, the index had risen for 10 straight weeks since the last week o

Feb. 28, 2021

Korean REITs’ AUM rises 26% to W65tr

The combined assets under management by South Korea’s real estate investment trusts came to 65.3 trillion won ($58 billion) as of end-January, preliminary data showed Sunday. The total volume rose 26 percent from the previous year, indicating a moderately growing market, according to the Korea Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts. A REIT refers to a company designed to offer annual dividend returns to its investors in return for investment in securitized real estate. By asset t

Feb. 28, 2021

[Herald Interview] Avoiding regulatory overlap crucial for Seoul to become financial hub: BNP Paribas head

South Korea could be home to international financial behemoths if the government avoids regulatory overlap and takes a more flexible approach to operational issues faced by foreign banks in the rulemaking process, the head of BNP Paribas South Korea said.  In an interview with The Korea Herald, Philippe Noirot, head of territory for BNP Paribas South Korea, said “overlapping regulations” may pose hurdles for foreign financial institutions’ to enter into the South Korean m

Feb. 28, 2021

Retail buying approaches W100tr over 14 months as stocks face correction

South Korea’s retail investors have bought a combined net 99.2 trillion won ($88 billion) on the domestic stock markets since January 2020, Korea Exchange data showed Sunday, as the bourse faces a market correction on a surge in bond yield. The figure is a combination of individuals’ net buying on the main board Kospi and the development board Kosdaq, both operated by the KRX, from January 2020 until February this year. In the first two months of 2021, individual investors net pu

Feb. 28, 2021

Seoul stocks likely to remain choppy next week on inflationary woes

South Korean stocks are likely to face choppy trading next week following this week's highly volatile trading, as concerns about a US Treasury yields hike may continue to fuel heavy selling by foreign investors here. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) closed at 3,012.95 points Friday, down 3.05 percent from a week ago. Foreigners dumped a net 2.1 trillion won ($1.9 billion) at the main bourse this week as the yields of benchmark 10-year US Treasury fueled inflation worri

Feb. 27, 2021

Like hot tech shares, Bitcoin falls as US bond yields rise

Bitcoin declined Friday, falling below 53 million won ($48,100) in the week that the largest cryptocurrency is suffering its worst pullback in a year.   　 The digital currency fell to as low as 52.88 million won in the afternoon, plunging almost 20 percent from Sunday’s record high of 65.84 million won.  Bitcoin’s volatility coincided with a slump in stock markets with investors wary over a sharp rise in US bond yields, hurting steep valuations of tech companies. The te

Feb. 26, 2021

Financial authorities to inspect firms’ selling of foreign currency insurance

South Korea’s financial authorities plan to launch an industry-wide probe into insurers selling foreign currency insurance -- which has been gaining popularity here in recent years -- next month, on allegations of possible misselling of the high-risk products, sources said Friday. When customers subscribe to foreign currency insurance in Korea, they pay an insurance premium with foreign currency, the most popular being the US dollar, and receive payments with the same currency. The natio

Feb. 26, 2021

Kospi plunges nearly 3% on US bond yields hike

The South Korean key stock index dipped nearly 3 percent Friday, just managing to stay above 3,000 points. Affected by US inflation woes, foreign and institutional investors accelerated their selloffs of local shares. The main bourse Kospi began trading lower at 3,089.49 points then continuously moved downward throughout the day to close at 3,012.95 points, falling 2.8 percent from the previous session’s close. The index retreated below the 3,000-point threshold until around 3 p.m., but s

Feb. 26, 2021

Seoul stocks dip nearly 3% on US inflation woes

South Korean stocks dipped nearly 3 percent Friday on the back of an overnight Wall Street plunge that was spurred by a bond yield hike. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) lost 86.74 points, or 2.8 percent, to close at 3,012.95 points. Trading volume was high at about 1.3 billion shares worth some 21 trillion won ($18.7 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 729 to 153. Foreigners dumped a net 2.8 trillion won, institutions o

Feb. 26, 2021

Mirae Asset Daewoo looks to launch in-house ESG committee

South Korean brokerage firm Mirae Asset Daewoo said Friday that it plans to set up an in-house committee focused on environmental, social and corporate governance. The brokerage house’s new agenda will be put to a vote at the upcoming shareholders meeting set for March 24. The decision came to reinforce the company’s practices in ESG management. To take the lead in being a socially responsible firm, the committee will handle decisions related to ESG issues and open the results to

Feb. 26, 2021

Seoul stocks open steeply lower on US inflation woes

South Korean stocks opened steeply lower Friday, tracking an overnight Wall Street plunge that was spurred by a bond yields hike. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 84.03 points, or 2.71 percent, to 3,015.66 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Stocks deepened losses as investor worries grew globally over post-pandemic inflation, heralded by a bond yields hike. Overnight, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite tumbled 3.52 percent, with the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Ind

Feb. 26, 2021

[Herald Interview] NYSE hopes to see more Korean firms listing in US

E-commerce giant Coupang’s application this month to list on the New York Stock Exchange has given hope to Korean firms dreaming of listing on the “big board.” If Coupang’s initial public offering is successful, it will be the first Korean direct listing on the NYSE, and its attempt, often headlined as “the largest IPO by a foreign company after Alibaba,” has been drawing attention around the world. 　 But the NYSE does not want to stop at Coupang. Alexandre

Feb. 25, 2021

Seoul stocks shoot up 3.5% on US Fed chief's soothing comments over yield hike

South Korean stocks sharply rebounded to surge more than 3 percent Thursday as the US Federal Reserve chairman's comments soothed inflation worries. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) jumped 104.71 points, or 3.5 percent, to close at 3,099.69 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 1.3 billion shares worth some 16.9 trillion won ($15.3 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 807 to 80. Foreigners bought a net 968 billion

Feb. 25, 2021