The sluggish real estate market in Seoul will bounce back this year after bottoming out in the coming months, BoA-Merrill Lynch predicted Tuesday.“Thanks to the recent reduction of housing supply and the growing feasibility of the government-led regulation easing on property transactions, there is a high possibility that the Seoul region real estate market will be vitalized in 2013,” the Korea Center for International Finance said, citing a report from BoA-Merrill Lynch.However, the research cen

Jan. 22, 2013

The Financial Supervisory Service conducted a two-month investigation into Lotte Card, as the company ranked bottom in consumer protection among five major credit card issuers.“(For an intensive probe), we dispatched inspectors to the headquarters of Lotte Card between September and October (in 2012),” an FSS official told The Korea Herald on Tuesday.In addition to the on-site investigation, the FSS summoned Lotte Card’s executives to be held accountable for the poor grade and called on them to

Jan. 22, 2013

Woori Financial Group senior executive director Jeong Hyun-jin has been appointed CEO of Woori Card, with the new firm to be launched in March, group officials said Sunday.Jeong will lead the credit card firm, which is scheduled to be spun off from the financial group’s bank unit as an independent subsidiary.Born in Uiseong, North Gyeongsang Province, in 1952, he has worked mainly for Woori Bank and Hanil Bank, a former entity of the commercial lender, for 30 years.Though Woori Card (formerly Wo

Jan. 20, 2013

The Korean won strengthening against major currencies is estimated to undermine exports from the information technology and automobile industries, a private research institute said Sunday.In particular, the Japanese yen’s weaker position against the won was identified as a serious threat to the price competitiveness of Korea’s IT and car producers by Hyundai Economic Research Institute.While the two sectors are the nation’s top growth engines, HERI estimated that Korea sees a drop in product exp

Jan. 20, 2013

The Financial Supervisory Service will dispatch inspectors to the headquarters of seven major credit card firms next week, in a bid to find out whether they charged retailers irregular service fees.“Starting on Jan. 21, the investigation into the overall credit card industry will be carried out over the next three weeks,” an FSS official said on Thursday.He said the financial regulator had demanded the seven issuers to tender a variety of documents on the card transaction fees on retailers befor

Jan. 17, 2013

With the presidential transition committee’s announcement of a government reorganization plan on Tuesday, names of possible candidates for top economic policymakers are being circulated among financial circles.They include three key ministerial posts: deputy prime minister in charge of overall economic policies, who will concurrently serve as finance minister; chairman of the Financial Services Commission; and governor of the Financial Supervisory Service.Among the leading candidates for the inc

Jan. 16, 2013

Chung Mong-koo, son of late Hyundai founder Chung Ju-yung, prioritized normalizing the management of Kia Motors when he took office as chairman of Hyundai Motor Group in 1998.Under a full-fledged effort by the Hyundai chief and vice chairman Chung Eui-sun, Kia was upgraded to a key subsidiary of the automotive group after it was acquired by Hyundai in the wake of the 1997 financial crisis.Since 2005, Kia has focused on the European market and has identified design as its “core future growth engi

Industry Jan. 14, 2013

Three financial firms owned by Woori Financial Group are expected to draw popularity in the mergers and acquisitions market, as financial authorities are set to resume the policy to privatize the state-funded group through a “split-sale” method this year.When the privatization process is revitalized, possibly eye-catching subsidiaries of Woori Financial could be Woori Investment & Securities, Kyongnam Bank and Kwangju Bank, according to officials in the bank industry.Their forecast comes as the

Jan. 14, 2013

Korea could face further economic woes this year resulting from the downgrading of major countries’ credit standings, a financial research institute warned Thursday.The Korea Center for International Finance predicted in its report that the United States, the United Kingdom and Japan may see their sovereign ratings downgraded this year.It cited three major rating firms’ assessments of the countries. The firms ― Moody’s Investors Service, Standard & Poor’s and Fitch Ratings ― gave negative credit

Jan. 10, 2013

Financial regulators are set to approve Woori Financial Group’s plan to spin off its credit card unit from Woori Bank later this month, sources said Wednesday.The Financial Services Commission and the Financial Supervisory Service held a senior-level meeting on Wednesday to fine-tune details in a preliminary step to endorse Woori Financial’s proposal to launch a stand-alone credit card operation. An FSC official said regulators will reach a final decision in the coming panel discussion, slated f

Jan. 9, 2013

President-elect Park Geun-hye’s transition team is poised to rule out tax hikes in the coming administration’s policy to secure funds for social welfare, committee members said Tuesday.Under Park’s full-fledged welfare project, which will cost the nation more than 90 trillion won ($83.3 billion) over five years, some economists had expected that the high-income bracket and major business groups would ultimately be the main target of tax authorities.But in contrast to market prediction, a member

Jan. 8, 2013