Most Popular
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Chuseok still is a headache for couples
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Students suffer sleep deprivation, fatigue, suicidal thoughts
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N. Korea launches trash balloons toward S. Korea for 2nd day: JCS
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Yoon's approval rating hits new low: poll
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Heat wave watch issued for Seoul; latest on record
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Lime green plates deepen slump in Korea’s luxury car sales
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Popular tourist destinations beckon Chuseok holidaymakers
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Nearly 2,000 aging separated family members die in first 8 months of year: gov't data
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[AtoZ into Korean mind] Koreans do things quickly. Is it efficiency or lack of patience?
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Calories that stalk the Chuseok table
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Korea, World Bank agree to widen cooperation
South Korea's finance minister held a meeting with the president of the World Bank Group to discuss ways to expand the country's participation in the organization, the ministry here said Friday.Finance Minister Yoo Il-ho met with WBG President Jim Yong Kim in Washington on Thursday (local time) on the sidelines of the Group of 20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meeting. The gathering runs from Thursday through Friday.They agreed that the organization's Seoul office will play a leadi
April 21, 2017
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Internet banks poised to become a force to be reckoned with
Jang Hong-suk got a credit line for a deposit to buy an apartment. All he did was download an app on his smartphone and open an account before applying for a loan.It took about 20 minutes before Jang got approval for the loan from K-Bank, South Korea's first Internet-only bank."I opened a bank account with a 50 million won ($44,000) overdraft line of credit on my way home from work," said the 30-year-old salaried employee who handles accounting at a foreign company in Seoul.The simple
April 21, 2017
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Korean shares extend gains in late morning trade
South Korean stocks extended gains late Wednesday morning on a rebound in tech and telecom stocks. The won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index advanced 18.45 points, or 0.86 percent, to 2,167.60 as of 11:20 a.m.Foreign and institutional investors bought a combined 123.4 billion won ($108 million) worth of stocks, while individuals shed 115.26 billion won worth of stocks, keeping the KOSPI from rebounding further. Market bellwe
April 21, 2017
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Korea's fiscal spending on SOC projects creates more jobs in Q1: gov't
South Korea increased fiscal spending on infrastructure-building projects in the first three months of the year contributed to the creation of more jobs, the finance ministry here said Friday.The government spent 14.9 trillion won carrying out social overhead capital projects in the January-March period, up 200 million won from its earlier plan, according to the Ministry of Strategy and Finance. The move aimed to expand the state's role in leading economic recovery for Asia's fourth largest econ
April 21, 2017
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Banks urged to play 'responsible role' in normalizing Daewoo Shipbuilding
South Korea's top financial regulator on Friday called for heads of banks to play a "responsible role" in normalizing Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co., as the bailout plan for the troubled shipbuilder was cleared by its stakeholders. Zhin Woong-seob, governor of the Financial Supervisory Service, also asked banks not to aggressively collect debt from shipbuilders and their subcontractors, given their financial strains over a downturn in the shipbuilding industry. I
April 21, 2017
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Korean shares open higher on US gains
South Korean stocks opened higher Friday, tracking gains on Wall Street and ahead of major companies' first-quarter earnings reports. The Korean won rose against the US dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index gained 12.45 points, or 0.58 percent, to 2,161.60 in the first 15 minutes of trading.The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.85 percent on strong corporate earnings results, with the tech-heavy NASDAQ gaining 0.92 percent. Foreign and institutional investors increased their s
April 21, 2017
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KB Financial Group’s net profit soars nearly 60% in Q1 on-year
KB Financial Group, the second-largest banking group in net assets, posted 870.1 billion won ($763.7 million) of net profit in the first quarter, a 59.7 percent rise on-year, according to the group’s earnings report Thursday. The net profit of the holding company, which operates financial units including Kookmin Bank, the second-largest commercial lender in market cap, skyrocketed 91.7 percent compared to the previous quarter, the report indicated Thursday Kookmin Bank in the first quarter
April 20, 2017
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FSC to ease rules for debt-to-equity swaps
The Financial Services Commission of Korea announced Thursday it would ease regulations for lenders in streamlining the debt restructuring of financially troubled firms. By revising the enforcement ordinance of the Financial Holding Companies Act, lenders will be more easily able to exclude debt-ridden firms under their receiverships from their subsidiaries in the process of converting debt into equity.Currently, a lender, upon becoming the biggest financer of a debt-ridden company subject to re
April 20, 2017
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Seoul stocks end higher on institutional buying
South Korean stocks closed higher Thursday as institutions scooped up stocks on bargain hunting. The won rose against the dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 10.75 points, or 0.50 percent, to close at 2,149.15. Trade volume was moderate at 262.01 million shares worth 4.91 trillion won ($4.3 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 445 to 329.Institutional and foreign investors bought a combined 296 billion won worth of shares, offsetting 274.81 billion won in net sell-
April 20, 2017
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Shinhan’s net profit surges 29 percent in Q1
Shinhan Financial Group said its net profit rose to 997.1 billion won in the first quarter this year, a 29 percent gain from a year earlier, mainly due to improved net interest margins and reduced general and administrative expenses.The nation’s largest financials having banking, credit card, insurance and other financial units said its first-quarter net profit this year was the largest since the establishment of the holding company in 2001.“While banking and non-banking affiliates i
April 20, 2017
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Korea to support vulnerable borrowers
South Korea’s financial regulator said Thursday it planned to allow borrowers who cannot repay debts due to a job loss or the death of a relative, to suspend the repayment of the principal for up to three years.The Financial Services Commission announced a set of measures to help alleviate the debt burdens of vulnerable households after releasing new data on household debt. The growth of household debt slowed in the first quarter after quickly rising 11.7 percent on-year in 2016. Household
April 20, 2017
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Daewoo Shipbuilding files for debt restructuring
Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering filed a petition with the Changwon District Court on Thursday, seeking approval for its 2.9 trillion won ($2.5 billion) bailout plan. If DSME’s mass debt-restructuring proposal is approved, the cash-strapped shipbuilding firm will receive 2.9 trillion won in liquidity from its major creditors, including the Korea Development Bank and the Export-Import Bank of Korea. Upon the court’s approval, there will be a weeklong window for bondholders
April 20, 2017
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BOK launches pilot program to achieve coinless Korea
The Bank of Korea on Thursday launched a pilot program with major distribution giants to push forward its long-term goal of creating a coinless society in Korea by 2020.By partnering convenience store chains, department stores and supermarkets nationwide, the BOK is encouraging consumers to use their change from purchases for electronic prepayments. Participating store operators include CU, 7-Eleven, With Me, E-mart and Lotte Mart.For instance, the change that results from a purchase at a CU sto
April 20, 2017
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Dollar-won volatility widens in Q1
The volatility in the dollar-won exchange rates slightly increased in the first quarter from the previous three-month period as the US greenback weakened this year, central bank data showed Thursday.The average daily variation, showing the change from the previous session's closing price, came to 5.7 won in the January-March period, up from 4.9 won in the previous quarter, according to the Bank of Korea.The increased fluctuation in the dollar-won exchange rates came as the dollar has weakened si
April 20, 2017
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Korean shares turn higher in late morning trade
South Korean stocks turned higher late Wednesday as foreigners and institutions went bargain hunting.The won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index advanced 8.75 points, or 0.41 percent, to 2,147.15 as of 11:20 a.m.Foreign and institutional investors bought a combined 114.84 billion won ($100.56 million) worth of stocks, while individuals sold stocks valued at 108.99 billion won, keeping the KOSPI from rebounding further. The KOSPI ended in negati
April 20, 2017
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China Ocean Resources on verge of being dropped from Korean stock market
China Ocean Resources Co., a Hong Kong-based deep-sea fisheries company, is on the verge of being delisted from the South Korean stock market due to its false financial disclosures. If China Ocean Resources is dropped, it will become the latest Chinese firm that is booted from the local bourse after grappling with lower valuations and a lack of investor confidence.A total of 22 Chinese companies were allowed to trade their shares on the Korean stock market since 2007, but seven Chinese firms hav
April 20, 2017
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Korean shares open lower on US losses
South Korean stocks opened lower Thursday, tracking losses on Wall Street, ahead of major companies' first-quarter earnings releases. The Korean won fell against the US dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 1.65 points, or 0.08 percent, to 2,136.75 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Investors took to the sidelines as major companies such as Samsung Electronics and Hyundai Motor are set to announce their first-quarter earnings results later this month, analysts said. T
April 20, 2017
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Seoul stocks end lower on US slump, foreign selling
South Korean stocks closed lower Wednesday as foreigners offloaded stocks on profit-taking in the face of overnight losses on Wall Street. The won rose against the dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 10.06 points, or 0.47 percent, to close at 2,138.40. Trade volume was moderate at 337.71 million shares worth 4.71 trillion won ($4.1 billion), with decliners outnumbering advancers 412 to 376.Foreign investors sold 238.11 billion won worth of shares, offsetting net purchase
April 19, 2017
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Tightened acquisition rules eyed for savings banks
South Korea's financial watchdog on Wednesday unveiled a set of new regulations on the acquisition of a savings bank by a consumer credit service company in a bid to improve transparency.Under the new rules, a consumer credit service firm is required to present a plan to shut down its retail lending business if it applies to acquire a savings bank in South Korea, according to the Financial Supervisory Service.The new rules also ban a major shareholder from owning a majority stake in more than th
April 19, 2017
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Samsung to build $480m PEF for infrastructure
South Korean investment firm Samsung Asset Management announced Wednesday that it would build a $480 million worth private equity designed to fund infrastructure, by teaming up with the Australian investment company IFM Investors. The fund is slated to be earmarked by four Korean institutional investors, but a target for injection has yet to be chosen, according to the deal sealed in Seoul on Wednesday. The Seoul-based investment arm under the nation’s largest conglomerate will m
April 19, 2017