Most Popular
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[Exclusive] Korean military set to ban iPhones over 'security' concerns
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[AtoZ into Korean mind] Humor in Korea: Navigating the line between what's funny and not
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Korean, Romanian leaders discuss defense tech, nuclear energy
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[Graphic News] 77% of young Koreans still financially dependent
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S. Korea calls on Japan to confront history amid Yasukuni Shrine visit
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Yoon’s jailed mother-in-law excluded from latest parole list
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Hybe and Min Hee-jin, CEO of Hybe sublabel Ador, lock horns
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North Korea fires several short-range ballistic missiles into sea: JCS
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[Pressure points] Leggings in public: Fashion statement or social faux pas?
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Samsung, SK hynix investors dump shares on Nvidia crash
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Hotel Shilla closes $121m deal to buy stake in 3Sixty Duty Free
Hotel Shilla, a South Korean operator of luxury hotels and duty-free shops, has closed a $121 million transaction to buy a 44 percent stake in US duty-free shop operator Travel Retail Group Holdings, known for the in-flight retailing service 3Sixty Duty Free, a filing showed Wednesday. The deal, closed Tuesday, allowed the hotel and duty-free unit under Samsung to become the second-largest shareholder after 3Sixty Chairman Bernard Klepach. It marks Hotel Shilla’s first investment in a No
April 8, 2020
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Coronavirus-hit small biz owners rush to nonbanking lenders
Small business owners have increasingly turned to nonbanking lending despite the higher-interest loans to withstand the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic, data showed Tuesday. According to the Korea Federation of Community Credit Cooperatives, a mutual financial institution, its banks extended emergency rescue loans worth 15.5 billion won ($12.67 million) to coronavirus-hit small business owners without credit ratings between March 11 and Friday. The demand for loans from KFCC
April 8, 2020
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Seoul stocks open lower on US losses
Seoul stocks opened lower Wednesday, tracking overnight losses on Wall Street amid woes over the new coronavirus. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 15.95 points, or 0.87 percent, to 1,807.65 in the first 15 minutes of trading. The main index jumped 8.2 percent in the past four sessions, helped by signs of the COVID-19 outbreak slowing. But analysts said investors remain cautious, as there is still a lot of uncertainty involving the coronavirus outbreak and its im
April 8, 2020
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[Market close-up] Market eyes KDB's bail-out plan on coronavirus-hit companies
A number of companies in South Korea, both big and small, are standing on the edge of a cliff due to a liquidity crisis stemming from the ongoing virus pandemic. With dark clouds hovering, the Korea Development Bank, a state-owned development policy bank that finances industrial projects, is bending over backward to prop up Korea Inc., injecting vast amounts of emergency public funds into cash-strapped businesses. The industry is keenly watching the next moves of KDB Chairman Lee Dong-gull,
April 7, 2020
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FSS urges retail investors to shun loan stock buying
The Financial Supervisory Service on Tuesday cautioned local retail investors to refrain from borrowing money when investing stocks, pointing at the excessive market volatility. In a rare message, the financial regulator noted that the current market condition is somewhat different from the 2008 global financial crisis, stressing that it has become more unpredictable than before. “Some existing investors think that now is the time to purchase undervalued shares, since they have seen e
April 7, 2020
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Seoul stocks up for 4th day on hopes for virus slowdown
South Korean stocks ended higher Tuesday, extending their gains to a fourth straight session as investor sentiment improved over signs that the spread of the coronavirus could be slowing. The Korean won sharply rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 31.72 points, or 1.77 percent, to 1,823.60. Huh Jae-hwan, a strategist at Eugene Investment Co., said expectations for the slowing spread of the coronavirus in the United States and Europe pushed u
April 7, 2020
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Can Lotte Food’s leveraging plan be litmus test for stimulus package?
South Korea’s food service firm Lotte Food saw a moderate success in raising cash through investment-grade corporate bonds, as a state fund has helped fend off risks from the escalating coronavirus crisis. But analysts said Tuesday Korea is still a tough test bed to check whether the government’s stimulus package can normalize the funding market. On Monday, Lotte Food decided to raise 100 billion won ($81.77 million) after it carried out an institutional investor tranche for its AA
April 7, 2020
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BOK to deliver additional $4.4b to banks via US currency swap this week
The Bank of Korea (BOK) said Tuesday that it will offer $4.41 billion to local banks this week in its second round of dollar funding using its bilateral currency swap arrangement with the US Fed that is designed to help prevent a foreign exchange liquidity crunch. The central bank held an online auction to provide up to $8.5 billion in seven-day debt and 84-day loans. Bids undershot the BOK target of $7 billion in 84-day loans and $1.5 billion in seven-day loans. "A total of $4.41 billi
April 7, 2020
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Seoul shares open higher on Wall Street gains
South Korean shares opened higher Tuesday, tracking overnight gains on Wall Street amid signs that the spread of the coronavirus could be slowing. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 42.10 points, or 2.35 percent, to 1,833.98 in the first 15 minutes of trading. The main index tracked overnight gains on Wall Street. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 7.73 percent, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index climbed 7.33 percent. US stocks soared as the number of new
April 7, 2020
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Eximbank Korea to create health care funds worth W400b
The state-run Export-Import Bank of Korea said Monday that it intends to create two funds worth a total of 400 billion won ($325.2 million) to help South Korean health care companies go global. The money will go to Korean companies devoted to immunotherapy, gene therapy, health care systems, diagnostic kits and medical devices. It will be used to support them in exporting more products, clinching more overseas investment and expanding to foreign markets. Of the total, Eximbank Korea has comm
April 6, 2020
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NHIS commits W1.4tr to alternative investment
The National Health Insurance Service unveiled on Monday plans to commit up to 1.4 trillion won ($1.14 billion) to its first alternative investment in history as an institutional investor. It plans to select two lead partners to manage the assets for four years, officials said. This comes as the South Korean state agency, with some 20 trillion won worth of assets under management, moves to shift away from a conservative portfolio and turn to alternative assets, ranging from real estate to
April 6, 2020
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Jeonse prices on rise as demand for house purchases falls
The average price for the jeonse -- a real estate term unique to South Korea that refers to a property lease -- in Seoul has surpassed 460 million won ($375,000) for the first time, continuing the recent upward trend, data showed Monday. According to the Korea Appraisal Board, a property assessment agency, the average jeonse prices in the capital have been rising since July to reach 460.7 million won as of March. Separate data from property services platform KB Kookmin Bank Liiv On also sho
April 6, 2020
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Bargain-hunting Korean investors flock to overseas stock markets
Korean investors are flocking to overseas stock markets to scoop up undervalued shares, given the sluggish domestic market, according to latest data Monday. Securities information portal SEIBro, operated by Korea Securities Depository, noted local investors transacted some $13.76 billion worth of overseas stocks in March -- up 67.39 percent from the previous month -- marking the largest trading amount in history. Their transactions came to $7.24 billion, while the selling amount recorded $6.5
April 6, 2020
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Seoul stocks spike almost 4% on hopes of virus treatment
South Korean stocks soared by almost 4 percent on Monday, extending their gains to a third straight session on hopes of potential treatment for the new coronavirus that has infected more than 1.2 million people around the world. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 66.44 points, or 3.85 percent, to 1,791.88. Institutional investors bought a net 1.03 trillion won ($838 million), while foreign investors sold a net 202 billion w
April 6, 2020
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Financial holding groups’ net profit jumps 31% in 2019
South Korea’s 10 financial holding groups’ combined net profit increased 31 percent last year, data showed Monday, but the upward trend is unlikely to continue next year. According to the watchdog Financial Supervisory Service, the combined net profit of Shinhan, KB, NH Nonghyup, Hana, Woori, BNK, DGB, JB, Korea Investment and Meritz came to 15.2 trillion won ($12.3 billion) in 2019. The figure was up nearly 3.6 trillion won or 31 percent on-year. The corresponding figure for 201
April 6, 2020
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No. of small biz owners in default rose 7.5% from Q2 to Q4 last year
The number of small business owners who were unable to repay credit loans prolonged an upward trend last year and remains likely to expand further this year, due to the novel coronavirus spread, data showed Sunday. The number of small business owners who are in default came in at 35,806 in the fourth quarter last year, up from 35,567 in the third quarter and 33,292 in the second quarter, according to data compiled by credit rating firm NICE Credit Information Service. Given that some 2.09 mi
April 6, 2020
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Seoul stocks open higher amid virus woes
South Korean shares opened higher Monday amid hopes of a potential treatment for the new coronavirus that has infected more than 1.2 million people around the world. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 20.56 points, or 1.19 percent, to 1,746.00 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Seo Sang-young, a researcher at Kiwoom Securities Co., said the main index received a boost amid positive news about Gilead Sciences' remdesivir against COVID-19. Daniel O'Day, chairman and
April 6, 2020
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S. Korea to post negative GDP growth due to coronavirus: reports
South Korea is likely to post negative economic growth this year due to the novel coronavirus pandemic, data showed Sunday. The average estimate of the nation’s gross domestic product growth for this year recently came to negative 0.9 percent, drastically down from the previous suggestion of around 2 percent. The forecasts were tallied from 11 global financial services firms, including Standard Chartered, UBS, Morgan Stanley, Nomura Holdings and Credit Suisse. The plunge is attributed
April 5, 2020
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Korea’s listed firms’ earnings to shrink 17% in Q1 amid coronavirus pandemic
South Korea’s listed companies are likely to post poor earnings results for the first quarter due to the escalating fallout from the novel coronavirus pandemic, a financial market tracker said Sunday. The combined operating profits of 141 listed companies are expected to mark 16.79 trillion won ($13.6 billion) in the January-March period this year, down 20.22 trillion won, or 16.92 percent, from a year ago, according to data compiled by FN Guide. If the projection turns out to be roughl
April 5, 2020
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Korean stocks close nearly flat, won sinks
South Korean stocks closed nearly flat Friday as a recovery in global oil prices boosted investor sentiment against the new coronavirus pandemic. The local currency dropped against the US dollar. After choppy trading, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added 0.58 point, or 0.03 percent, to close at 1,725.44. Trading volume was high at some 986 million shares worth a little over 1 trillion won ($811 million), with gainers outnumbering losers 506 to 328. The index got off to
April 3, 2020