Seoul stocks open up on technical rebound, Fed comment

Seoul stocks opened higher on Monday on a technical rebound and comments by the Federal Reserve chairman on a possible rate cut to reassure the markets hit by the spreading coronavirus outbreak.    The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 2.60 points, or 0.13 percent, to 1,989.61 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Investor sentiment appears to be somewhat buoyed after Fed Chairman Jerome Powell signaled on Friday (US time) that the central bank was open to

March 2, 2020

Credit card transactions dip amid coronavirus crisis

Credit card transactions nearly halved last month as the fast-spreading COVID-19 fears dampened consumer sentiment, according to latest data Sunday. The overall credit card payments from Feb. 1-23 stood at 28.2 trillion won ($23.5 billion), down 45 percent from 51.3 trillion won in January, as per eight credit card issuers, including Shinhan Card, Samsung Card, Hyundai Card and BC Card. The transactions declined 32 percent, when deducting a week’s average amount -- approximately 10 tri

March 1, 2020

Cashier-less tech on the rise

Just grab and go. This is what customers visiting a convenience store at BC Card’s head office in Seoul have to do. They don’t need a wallet, credit cards or cash. They don’t even have to encounter any cashier for payment. It is run autonomously, replacing human labor with the latest technology that features state-of-the-art sensors to track customers’ movements, and the weight of products on shelves. The convenience store, jointly operated by BC Card, its affiliat

March 1, 2020

KDB picks 2 external partners to back W120b for supply chain autonomy

State-run Korea Development Bank said Friday it had chosen two external partners to operate funds with a combined 120 billion won ($99.2 million) of public money to support South Korea’s drive for supply chain autonomy. The two partners are BNW Investment-Industrial Bank of Korea consortium and SKS Private Equity-Korea Investment Private Equity group. These were among nine applicants to manage the funds. Each group is mandated to attract at least 40 billion won investment from the priva

Feb. 28, 2020

Seoul stocks crumble on coronavirus-fueled selling spree

Stocks on South Korea’s main bourse Kospi plunged more than 3 percent Friday with investors dumping assets amid the rapid increase of COVID-19 virus cases. Market watchers are closely watching how long the selling pressure will continue despite aggressive steps being taken by the government to contain the virus spread. The benchmark Kospi opened sharply lower at 2,020.17 -- sinking 34.72 points, or 1.69 percent, from the previous session. The weak start continued through the day to clos

Feb. 28, 2020

Hanwha Asset to raise W510b capital in cross-border push

Hanwha Asset Management said Friday it planned to raise 510 billion won ($421.7 million) capital from its parent Hanwha Life Insurance, which would bring its total capital to over 700 billion won -- the second-largest for an asset management company in South Korea. The fresh capital will be used to enhance overseas alternative investment capacity through acquisitions of foreign asset management firms, expand its overseas units, create a digital infrastructure and nurture more investment opportu

Feb. 28, 2020

Korean IPOs in February defy coronavirus fears

The initial public offerings of South Korean firms in February were largely successful, despite the impact of the new coronavirus on the domestic stock market. This month through Friday, five companies -- Sunam, Lemon, Kencoa Aerospace, JNTC, Seoul Viosys -- wrapped up IPOs, raising a combined 192.1 billion won ($158.1 million). Four out of five, except for Kencoa Aerospace, were more than successful. The offered prices of the four companies were set at, or beyond, the upper cap of the price

Feb. 28, 2020

MMAA selects 8 external partners to back W130b

The Military Mutual Aid Association said Friday it has selected eight South Korean external partners dedicated to investment in private equities and venture capital to back a combined 130 billion won ($107.1 million) this year. The Korean institutional investor will invest a total of 100 billion won to blind pool funds managed by private equity houses KStone Partners, Aju IB Investment, SkyLake Investment, KTB Private Equtiy and Dominus Investment. In the meantime, a combined 30 billion won w

Feb. 28, 2020

Yeouido on guard after COVID-19 case confirmed at Eximbank

Yeouido, packed with financial companies and home to the National Assembly, was on its guard against the new coronavirus on Friday following news of confirmed cases in the area. The state-run Export-Import Bank of Korea said early in the morning that one of its employees was confirmed with COVID-19 around 7:30 p.m. the previous day. The bank immediately initiated emergency measures, shutting down its headquarters in west Yeouido and carrying out extensive quarantine. Some 800 employees w

Feb. 28, 2020

NPS harvests record yield in 2019

The National Pension Service, South Korea’s largest public pension fund, reaped record investment return in 2019 largely thanks to a bull run in overseas stock markets, its preliminary data showed Thursday. Its annual rate of return came to 11.31 percent last year, the highest since the launch of NPS Investment Management in 1999, followed by 10.39 percent in 2009 and 10.37 percent in 2010. Over the past year, it earned 73.4 trillion won ($60.4 billion) return, which is 1.5 times large

Feb. 27, 2020

Seoul shares fall, bonds gain over BOK key rate freeze

South Korean stocks dipped over 1 percent Thursday after the nation’s central bank decided to keep its policy rate steady for now despite the market’s widespread anticipation of a further cut. The benchmark Kospi opened lower at 2,073.87 -- down 2.90 points, or 0.14 percent, from the previous session. The index edged up in early morning then suddenly headed south after the Bank of Korea’s announcement. The weak trend continued throughout the day to close at 2,054.89 -- the l

Feb. 27, 2020

Mirae Asset Group donates W2b to support fight against coronavirus

Mirae Asset Financial Group has donated 2 billion won ($1.64 million) to the Hope Bridge Association of the National Disaster Relief to support medical personnel and provide relief goods amid the COVID-19 outbreak. The donation was made to provide items needed for medical and relief aid, such as protective outfits and masks, and daily necessities, especially for people in Daegu and North Gyeongsang Province, the company said. Mirae Asset has been helping its cooperative firms by making paym

Feb. 27, 2020

Price gap widens between jeonse, apartment cost

The price gap between the average jeonse -- a real estate term unique to South Korea that refers to property lease -- and average sale price of apartments in Seoul reached a record high in February in seven years, increasing the financial burden on potential home buyers, according to latest data Thursday. Jeonse refers to a two-year leasing system that requires tenants to pay a large deposit instead of monthly rent. The average jeonse price amounted to 55.6 percent of the average apartment

Feb. 27, 2020

Korea's private bad bank eyes 1st exit from distressed assets

South Korea’s private bad bank, United Asset Management Co. (UAMCO), is betting on exiting from an investment in a distressed company here -- highlighting its growing role in corporate restructuring here. Seha, an industrial paper maker based in Daegu, is inching closer to inviting a new group of controlling shareholders led by Hankuk Paper to take the place of UAMCO, after Samil PricewaterhouseCoopers selected it as the preferred bidder for Seha’s majority stake and its bonds. Up

Feb. 27, 2020

Daishin, KB Securities, Woori Bank raided in Lime scandal probe

  Prosecutors raided Daishin Securities, KB Securities and Woori Bank on Thursday as part of a probe into the snowballing Lime Asset Management fiasco. Investigators from the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors’ Office executed a search and seizure operation at the headquarters of Daishin Securities and KB Securities in central Seoul and KB Securities’ office in Yeouido in the morning. Prosecutors had raided Lime Asset Management and Shinhan Investment last week, after the f

Feb. 27, 2020

30-somethings major apartment buyers in Seoul

Property buyers in their 30s were the biggest players in the apartment market in Seoul in the last two months of last year, according to a report Wednesday. Of the entire 10,491 transactions of apartment units registered in January in the city, those aged 30-39 accounted for 30.4 percent, or 3,188 transactions, according to a report released by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transportation and the Korea Appraisal Board. Since transactions are reported to district offices within 60

Feb. 26, 2020

Seoul stocks slip after brief recovery

South Korean stocks headed south Wednesday -- after a brief rally a day earlier -- as the number of confirmed COVID-19 virus cases here reached over 1,000. The local currency also dipped against the US dollar, closing at 1,216.90 won -- down 6.60 won from the previous session’s close. The benchmark Kospi opened sharply lower at 2,064.07 -- sinking 39.54 points, or 1.88 percent, from the previous session. The weak start continued through the day, but rose slightly to close at 2,076.77. It

Feb. 26, 2020

Downside pressure on Kospi mounts as epidemic fears escalate

The unfettered spread of the new coronavirus in South Korea has sparked jitters both here and abroad, with most market observers noting that the spillover effects will continue through March, weighing down on the domestic stock market. For one, global investment bank JP Morgan, in its latest report, has forecast that the infection will peak at around 10,000 by late March. “According to the JP Morgan insurance team’s epidemiology model, Korea’s COVID-19 infection rate has not

Feb. 26, 2020

KB Financial to launch intraboard ESG committee

KB Financial Group said Wednesday that it plans to set up an intraboard committee focused on environmental, social and corporate governance. The group’s board of directors has decided to officially put the issue up for vote at the upcoming shareholders meeting scheduled for March 20. The committee will handle decisions related to environmental, gender and social issues, the group said. The launch comes after KB Financial Group Chairman Yoon Jong-kyoo vowed to shift to a ESG-centered

Feb. 26, 2020

PEF to buy IS Dongseo ceramics operation for W217b

E&F Private Equity has inked a deal to acquire the ceramics operation of concrete-to-construction business group IS Dongseo for 217 billion won ($178 million), according to a filing on Wednesday. The private equity firm, managing 342.2 billion won in assets as of 2019, agreed to buy a 100 percent stake in the operation on May 15. Prior to the transaction, the ceramics business will be split off from IS Dongseo earlier in May, which will be named Inus. The business, dedicated to making an

Feb. 26, 2020