Seoul is projected to capture 11% of the world’s auto production market within four yearsKorea has been striving to become one of the world’s four largest automakers, though the nation ranked fifth for six consecutive years between 2005 and 2010.Though Korea grabbed fourth place in the global auto manufacturing ranking in 1997, it suffered difficulties in the wake of the 1997-98 financial crisis.N

Foreign investors have apparently been banned from participating in the coming bidding for Woori Financial Group, the nation’s largest financial company by assets.Financial Services Commission chairman Kim Seok-dong clarified Friday that the authorities will hand over the state-run financial group to a Korean bidder.His remarks came during the FSC’s report to the National Assembly on the financial

U.S. Lone Star Funds has been suspected of omitting a significant document when it made a report to Korea’s financial regulator in March, an opposition lawmaker alleged.Rep. Lim Young-ho of the Liberty Forward Party said a unit of Lone Star owns 130 golf courses worth about 3.7 trillion won ($3.36 billion) in Japan, demanding regulatory sanction against the buyout fund.He called for the Financial

BOK report shows debts surpassed 800 trillion won for the first time in Q1 of the yearSnowballing household debts have emerged as a main factor undermining financial status of the middle- and low-income brackets of the local banking industry.According to the Bank of Korea, the nation’s household debts have surpassed 800 trillion won for the first time during the first quarter of the year.Outstandi

Board to discuss on eurozone woes possible extension of KEB takeover dealHana Financial Group plans to hold an emergency board meeting as early as this week to conclude the issue on whether to extend the expiry date of a takeover deal with U.S. Lone Star Funds.The initial contract between Hana and Lone Star to trade shares of Korea Exchange Bank expired on May 24 and they have all been entitled to

Total contribution expected to amount to 1.23 trillion wonA bad bank, which would specialize in absorbing bad loans held by financial companies, will be set up as early as this month, banking sources said Tuesday.“The bad bank may possibly be launched by the end of this month,” a bank official said. “But the launch could be delayed into next month due to the time needed to fine-tune terms of the b

Financial Services Commission Chairman Kim Seok-dong said it would not be easy to order U.S. Lone Star Funds to sell its stake in Korea Exchange Bank by directing “concrete” sale terms.His remarks are based on the assumption that the financial regulator will decide to issue a sanction of coercive stake sale against the Texas-based buyout fund, suspected of stock manipulation.“(Under the scenario o

Police launched a probe Monday into an illegal strike by an auto parts manufacturer in Asan, South Chungcheong Province, which is prompting work suspension at plants of the nation’s major carmakers including Hyundai Motor in Ulsan.The police said they are considering requesting an arrest warrant for the company’s labor union leaders, as well as for key players behind the strike and the illegal occ

Bidding competition for debt-saddled ailing savings banks in business suspension will be launched Tuesday, according to the Korea Deposit Insurance Corp.The state-run KDIC has decided to make a public notice for sale of the seven savings banks on Tuesday, aiming to select preferred bidders by July.In a bid to induce close competition and fast conclusion of deals, the government agency will lower t

Financial regulatory officials have floated the possibility that Lone Star Funds could be ordered to sell most of its controlling stake in Korea Exchange Bank under a punitive action.Such a scenario could raise the issue of whether the Texas-based buyout fund would still be allowed to choose a particular investor, including Hana Financial Group, to dispose of the KEB shares.The headquarters of Kor

The European Union has agreed to significantly expand its sanctions against Iran over its refusal to freeze its disputed nuclear activities, European diplomats said Thursday.EU foreign ministers are expected to approve the new measures, which will add several subsidiaries of companies already on the sanctions list, at a meeting in Brussels on Monday, the diplomats said.(AFP)

Korea's national pension fund needs to rigorously exercise its shareholder rights as it is along-term investor with massive assets under management, its headsaid Thursday.Controversy has heated up over whether pension funds should exercise their shareholder rights in the country's family-ownedconglomerates since Kwak Seung-joon, a key presidential aide,brought up the issue last month."Exercising s

The financial authorities will soon instruct banks to slash their forward trading, as part of government measures to crack down currency speculation by regulating foreign exchange positions.The Ministry of Strategy and Finance and the Bank of Korea said on Thursday that they have decided to order banks dealing with foreign currency trading to reduce the ceiling of forward trading by about 20 perce

An electronic version of the traveler’s check, which has gained popularity among Western travelers for its convenience and security, is also drawing interest in Korea.“In the past, we prepared traveler’s checks when going on a trip, but these days we need to hold a traveler’s card instead of traveler’s checks,” said Richard Kim, country manager of Card Services Korea. Card Services Korea country m

The financial watchdog said Tuesday that it is considering penalizing Hyundai Capital and several of its staff for incurring cyber attacks due to negligent internal controls.Those subject to the regulatory sanctions will possibly include several executives, including CEO Ted Chung, of the loan issuance company jointly owned by Hyundai Motor Group and U.S.-based GE Capital, the Financial Supervisor

A variety of predictions concerning the next step by Hana Financial Group are being issued in the market as its chairman Kim Seung-yu continued to express its willingness to acquire a bank.The situation comes amid growing uncertainty about the conclusion of the deal between Hana Financial and U.S. Lone Star Funds to trade shares of Korea Exchange Bank.As financial regulators indefinitely delayed t

KDB said to be leading potential bidder for September sale of bankThe financial authorities announced Tuesday that the state-controlled Woori Financial Group would be handed over to an investor through a bidding competition by September.The Public Fund Oversight Committee said that it would sell the nation’s largest financial group by assets in a “package deal.” The official announcement came amid

Local securities firms are bracing for the possibility of a liquidity crisis brought on by financial woes in the sluggish construction sector.The firms are closely monitoring the progress of a group of savings banks already suffering from overdue “project financing loans” issued to builders.The risk growing in the stock brokerage sector is due to asset-backed commercial papers, a type of securitie

Major securities companies are eager to recruit outside directors, mainly from government agencies with investigative power.Their recruitment practices have been regarded as a conventional strategy aimed at lobbying the agencies to minimize fallout from possible internal irregularities.According to sources in the stock brokerage industry, agencies whose former high-ranking officials are moving to

Financial chiefs hope to overcome saturated domestic marketChief executives of major financial companies are increasingly focusing on overseas public relations to overcome the challenges of the saturated local market.Among the more active players are KB Financial Group chairman Euh Yoon-dae and Shinhan Financial Group chairman Han Dong-woo. Han Dong-wooEuh left for the U.S. last Saturday to hold i