Korea’s exporters are likely to face growing uncertainties after the Prime Minister Shinzo Abe-led ruling coalition won a crushing victory in the Japanese parliamentary upper house elections.Market insiders predict that the Sunday election result in Japan will solidify or be used to vindicate the “Abenomics” program, which has weakened the Japanese yen versus major currencies to make its products more competitive overseas.The Institute for International Trade said in a statement on Monday that t

July 22, 2013

A German brewer has spurned a request by North Korean leader Kim Jong-un to open a beer garden and brewery in his isolated communist country, a news report said.Paulaner Brewery said it did not consider opening a biergarten in North Korea, according to Bild, Germany’s biggest-selling daily, on its website on Thursday.The Munich-based brewery said its capacity is stretched thin because it plans to open beer gardens in 12 new locations, including one in the United States and two others in Russia,

Industry July 21, 2013

South Koreans have directly invested over 16 trillion won in overseas tax havens over the past five years, a lawmaker said Sunday, citing government data.Rep. An Min-suk of the main opposition Democratic Party, releasing data obtained from the National Tax Service, the Korea Customs Service and other government agencies, said South Korean individuals and enterprises funneled 16.15 trillion won ($14.4 billion) in direct investment into a number of overseas tax havens, including the Cayman Islands

July 21, 2013

Shinhan Bank, a South Korean lender, said Sunday it has raised 30 billion yen ($299 million) by selling bonds denominated in the Japanese currency.Two-year, fixed-rate bonds worth 27 billion yen were priced to yield 0.83 percent or 50 basis points more than the yen-swap rate, while two-year floating rate notes worth 3 billion yen carry an interest of the three-month Yen Libor, or the three-month yen-based London Inter-bank Offered Rate, plus a 60 basis point spread, Shinhan Bank said. A basis po

July 21, 2013

South Korean stocks are expected to trade higher this week on abated concerns over a possible reduction in the United States’ quantitative easing moves, analysts said over the weekend.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index closed at 1,871.41 points on Friday, down 0.2 percent from the previous week.Earlier last week, Seoul shares gathered ground after China’s National Bureau of Statistics said its gross domestic product growth rose 7.5 percent on-year in the April-June period. China is

July 21, 2013

Some commercial banks are reportedly pushing for a hike in service charges, including those on consumers’ transactions via automated teller machines, according to market insiders on Thursday.While the banking sector slashed service fees in the wake of public criticism over “corporate greed” last year, some lenders are seeking to go back on their decision, highlighting an overall drop in earnings.The banking services include remittances, Internet banking and the use of ATMs. Between 2011 and 2012

July 18, 2013

The proportion of young Koreans in their teens and 20s currently working dropped to the lowest level in about a decade, Statistics Korea data showed Thursday.The so-called economic participation rate for those aged between 15 and 29 stood at 43.3 percent as of May 2013, down from 44.7 percent a year earlier.The figure is the lowest since the government agency started producing data on the rate in 2005. The labor force participation ratio is based on a nationwide census every May.The figure, whic

July 18, 2013

South Korea’s financial regulators will have reinforced authority in investigating fraudulent stock trading, becoming closer to the surveillance systems used in the United States and Britain.The Financial Services Commission of Korea is poised to set up the “investigation division,” which will be in charge of fast-track scrutiny of alleged stock manipulation, said regulatory officials on Wednesday.“The authority comes from a close benchmarking of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and t

July 17, 2013

The National Tax Service on Tuesday launched an investigation into four units of Lotte Shopping, which marked the first time in four years since September 2009.The tax agency dispatched some 150 inspectors into the headquarters of Lotte Department Store, Lotte Mart, Lotte Super and Lotte Cinema in Seoul to secure computer hard disks and internal financial statements.Market insiders alleged that the NTS will focus their probe on whether some of the Lotte units exploited tax loopholes or engaged i

July 16, 2013

Jeju Island is reflecting policymakers’ calls to revitalize the nation’s international education, including in the English language, according to a research report from the Korea Development Institute.There are three international schools for elementary, junior high and high schools students located in the Jeju Special Self-Governing Province.Among them are Canada-based Branksome Hall Asia and U.K.-based North London Collegiate School Jeju, both of which are located in the southwestern part of J

July 16, 2013

Financial regulators recently uncovered a variety of irregular business practices of NongHyup Bank, adding to the lender’s loss totaling 55 billion won ($47.8 million) that was publicized last week.The flagship unit of NongHyup Financial Group was found to have engaged in unauthorized lending worth 41.4 billion won, according to the Financial Supervisory Service on Monday.“In violation of the law, the bank’s bancassurance (sale of insurance products via bank branches) salespeople of were implica

July 15, 2013