South Korean ministries and state agencies will soon begin to discuss a package of economic stimulus measures, referred to as a “Korean New Deal,” aimed at revitalizing the novel coronavirus-wrecked economy, according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance on Sunday. The “Korean New Deal” will include policies to nurture emerging technologies that have been thrust into the limelight in the ongoing coronavirus crisis, such as remote medical services and online educationa

Market April 26, 2020

The state-run National Pension Service could lose up to 25 trillion won ($20.3 billion) from its investments in the South Korean stock market this year, local reports said on Thursday.　 A asset management report compiled in late January showed that the maximum amount of potential losses of the overall financial assets stood at 40.8 trillion won as of late January, which amounts to 53.6 percent of a limit of 76.2 trillion won. The figure increased by 300 billion won from late November. Poten

Market April 23, 2020

The financial and banking sectors have seen a significant jump in the amount of fines imposed on companies that have violated domestic laws in recent years, but top officials responsible for financial irregularities have received relatively light punishments, data showed Wednesday. According to a report released by corporate data tracker CEOScore, some 33.5 billion won ($27 million) in fines were levied on financial and banking firms involved in illicit activities in 2019, up 122.4 percent fr

Market April 22, 2020

State-run Korea Development Bank and Export-Import Bank of Korea announced Tuesday they will inject a combined 1.7 trillion won ($1.40 billion) of fresh funds to keep the cash-strapped flag carrier Asiana Airlines afloat. The two policy banks held meetings to decide on the size of additional financial support measures for the nation’s second-largest airliner. The rescue move came after HDC Hyundai Development, a real estate developer set to acquire Asiana Airlines, requested the two b

Market April 21, 2020

Amid concerns building over risks of individual investors seeking short-term profits, a local expert said Monday that the latest buying trend will likely result in great success in the long run. “Retail investors tend to have invested in blue chips during the recent buying binge, like Samsung Electronics, SK hynix, Hyundai Motor Company as well as relatively safer products like index funds,” said Yoo Ik-sun, head of the investment strategy unit at local asset manager Hanwha Asset M

Market April 21, 2020

Minister of Health and Welfare Park Neung-hoo, who chairs a fund management committee under the state-run National Pension Service, said Friday that the pension operator could take part in the domestic stock market more actively, if needed, to support market stability. “The NPS’ active intervention last month has helped stabilize the stock market,” said the health and welfare minister at a meeting in Seoul in the morning with members of the committee. “The pension fun

Market April 17, 2020

With the real economy facing the full impact of the ongoing coronavirus crisis, the South Korean government is rolling up its sleeves to boost the nation’s job market. At a meeting with economy-related ministers, Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said Friday that the government would roll out a set of support measures for the job market next week. “The government will announce a package of measures to stabilize employment in South Korea after talking closely with related ministries and

Market April 17, 2020

The value of land owned by foreign nationals here came to 30.8 trillion won ($25.1 billion) last year, and accounted for 0.2 percent of the nation’s total area, government data showed Thursday. Foreign land ownership in South Korea as of end-2019 rose 3 percent from a year earlier in terms of area, with the aggregated total at 248.7 square kilometers, according to data released by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. The corresponding area is equivalent to 0.2 percent o

Market April 16, 2020

BC Card, a credit card processing firm owned by telecom giant KT, said Wednesday in a regulatory filing that it will acquire a controlling stake in internet-only K-Bank in a bid to save the cash-strapped online bank. The announcement came a day after the card company held a board meeting, where the board decided to buy a 10 percent stake in the bank from the telecom firm for 36.3 billion won ($29.8 million) on April 17. With the planned stake purchase, the card company will become the seco

Market April 15, 2020

The state-owned Korea Development Bank will soon pick a preferred bidder for KDB Life Insurance, which it recently put up for sale after acquiring it a decade ago, according to news reports Wednesday. Private equity fund JC Partners is widely believed to have been shortlisted. “JC Partners is the only interested party that has completed due diligence so far,” an official from the policy bank was quoted as saying by Yonhap News Agency. The private equity firm reportedly plans to

Market April 15, 2020

South Korean conglomerates increased spending on research and development despite falling sales last year, according to a report Tuesday. The combined R&D spending of 208 conglomerates last year came in at 53.5 trillion won ($44 billion), up 7.8 percent from a year earlier, according to a report on the nation’s large businesses released by corporate tracker CEOScore. The companies’ combined annual revenue, on the other hand, dropped 0.8 percent to 1,709.7 trillion won durin

Market April 14, 2020

A growing number of homeowners, including those with multiple houses, in some of South Korea’s major cities have given houses to family members instead of selling them to avoid hefty holding taxes, data showed Monday. The number of houses traded among family members in Daegu has more than doubled on-month from 254 in January to 632 in February, according to data compiled by the Korea Appraisal Board, a government agency that evaluates property values. The figure for Gwangju also increas

Market April 14, 2020

Coworking space giant WeWork said Monday that it has appointed Chun Chung-joo (Patricia) as the new general manager of its South Korean office. Chun has 20 years of experience at global and Korean companies under her belt. Most recently, she served as chief strategy officer of food delivery firm Delivery Hero Korea, leading development of business strategies and proceeding with investments and merger and acquisition deals. She was also responsible for managing government relations, corpora

Market April 13, 2020

The amount of unemployment benefits handed out in February surpassed the 800 billion won ($660 million) mark for the first time in February, according to data compiled by the Korea Employment Information Service on Saturday. The amount of subsidies given to the unemployed in February reached 808.3 billion won, up 28 percent on-year. The sharp increase came even before the novel coronavirus hit the nation in earnest in March, reflecting the sluggish domestic job market in recent months. Of 1

Market April 11, 2020

Kim Jung-ju, founder of South Korea’s largest game company Nexon, has invested in Canadian high-end outwear brand Moose Knuckles, seeking new opportunities in the non-gaming sector. Kim, who now serves as chief of Nexon’s holding company NXC, took over 23.9 percent stake of the Canadian garment manufacturer for 64.2 billion won ($53 million). Moose Knuckles is one of the top three high-end winter jacket brands, along with Nobis and Canada Goose. Their winter luxury parkas cost

Market April 11, 2020