[THE INVESTOR] The money supply in South Korea rose more than 7 percent on-year in August, according to the central bank on Oct. 12.The nation’s M2 totaled 2,377 trillion won (US$2.10 trillion) in August, up 7.2 percent from a year earlier. It marks a 1.2 percent rise from July, according to the Bank of Korea. M2 is a measure of the money supply counting the currency in circulation, including bank debentures and deposits with a maturity of less than two years, along with stock investments. It‘s

[THE INVESTOR] Netmarble Games has decided to launch “Lineage II: Revolution” for mobile devices in November without the closed beta phase, scheduled to start on Oct. 13, the company said. A closed beta refers to a trail process for a restricted group of people before releasing the game. The game attracted a huge reaction from game users with about 2 million signing up for the trial process. With the large number of trial subscribers, industry watchers predicted it is similar to open beta -- a t

[THE INVESTOR] A third of family members of South Korea’s major conglomerate owners have put up shares as collateral for loans from financial institutions, a market tracker said on Oct. 12.In a report on collateral provided by 363 owner family members of the country’s top 30 conglomerates, known here as chaebol, CEO Score said that 30.3 percent, or 110 people, have offered their shares as collateral for loans as of end-September.The value of their shares put up as collateral totals 6.4 trillion

[THE INVESTOR] Shareholders of listed South Korean companies have earned solid capital gains over the past five years, a lawmaker said on Oct. 12. In an analysis of data from the National Tax Service, Rep. Park Kwang-on of the main opposition Minjoo Party of Korea said 166,838 people filed their capital gains tax return between 2011 and 2015, with their proceeds from stock sales reaching a combined 48.2 trillion won (US$42.80 billion).Of the total, 610 shareholders reported capital gains of 10 b

[THE INVESTOR] Samsung Electronics claimed that it is unfair for a patent violator to hand over all profits from sales of a product using the patent design when it made only a tiny contribution to sales, at the US Supreme Court Oct. 10 in its legal battle with Apple.Industry watchers say that the hearing will weigh in on reimbursement of nearly $400 million in damages it already paid Apple.Samsung paid Apple US$548 million in damages awarded by a lower court for copying designs of the iPhone. In

[DISCLOSURE] Kolon Global (003070) announced on Oct. 11 that it has decided to offer its 43,600 shares at 14,150 won per share to its employees to celebrate the company’s anniversary. By Park Yuna (yunapark@heraldcorp.com)

[THE INVESTOR] Samsung Electronics  said on Oct. 11 that it has started mass production of a new mobile processor for wearable gadgets. The new mobile processor features higher performance and lower electricity consumption, Samsung said in a statement. Mobile processors power entry-level smartphones, smartwatches and other smart devices. With the new processor, named the Exynos 7270, Samsung “introduces the benefits of this cutting-edge technology to wearables,” the statement said. “The Exynos 7

[THE INVESTOR] South Korea’s exports tumbled 18.2 percent in the first 10 days of October, compared to last year, the latest customs data showed on Oct. 11. The country’s exports totaled US$9.47 billion from Oct. 1-10, down from $11.58 billion tallied over the same period last year, according to the Korea Customs Service.Exports of semiconductors fell 5.9 percent on-year, and those of wireless devices plunged 31.2 percent over the 10-day period, while shipments of cars and auto parts dived 51.9

[THE INVESTOR] Lotte Group Chairman Shin Dong-bin has been sued by his elder brother on charges of accounting irregularities of Lotte Shopping, sources familiar with the issue said on Oct. 11. Shin Dong-joo, the former vice president of Tokyo-based Lotte Holdings, filed a complaint with South Korean prosecutors on Sept. 30, claiming Dong-bin and two other officials were involved in cooking the accounting books of Lotte Shopping, SDJ (Shin Dong-joo) Corp. said. His latest legal action against his

[THE INVESTOR] Sluggish production and exports keep dragging down the South Korean economy to recover, according to a government report on Oct. 11. “The economy has been on a flaccid recovery track as private consumption and investment have made a turnaround in recent months, but the production side and exports have still remained sluggish due to partial strikes at major carmakers,” the Finance Ministry said in its monthly economy assessment report called the “Green Book.”On the bright side, ret

[THE INVESTOR] South Korean lawmakers will grill CEOs of four tobacco companies operating in the country regarding their suspected tax evasion during a parliamentary audit this week, industry sources said on Oct. 11. South Korea‘s sole tobacco maker KT&G, Philip Morris Korea, British American Tobacco Korea and Japan Tobacco International are suspected of dodging taxes on huge profits from a tobacco price hike last year.According to the sources, the National Assembly’s safety and administration c

[THE INVESTOR] Hyundai Heavy Industries’ stock price continues to rise on the back of rosy earnings outlook and ongoing restructuring efforts, industry sources said on Oct. 11.Stocks of HHI were trading at 154,000 won (US$138) on the Seoul bourse as of 9:30 a.m., up 1.65 percent from the previous session’s close, and also marking a 52-week high.The shipyard started at 85,500 won on Jan. 4 but has almost doubled so far this year.“Next year, demand for new ships is expected to rise and an industry

[THE INVESTOR] Sales of South Korea‘s top companies surpassed 1,900 trillion-won (US$1.71 trillion) in 2015 with the top 4 percent taking up more than 70 percent share, according to data on Oct. 11According to the data by the Korea 20000 Corporate Research Institute, the combined revenue of the firms that close their books on Dec. 31 reached 1,910 trillion won last year.A total of 219 corporations posted sales of 1 trillion won or more, with the largest number of 4,802 firms registering sales in

[THE INVESTOR]  South Korea has stepped up its efforts to lead the global virtual reality market, which is forecast to reach US$11.2 billion in 2020.The global market for VR headsets will reach $7.9 billion, with that for VR entertainment to hit $3.3 billion in 2020, according to the data compiled by industry tracker IHS.“While the VR headset-installed base will escalate significantly to $81 million by 2020, we predict that expensive, higher-end headsets will dominate the content market,” the IH

[THE INVESTOR]  About 85 percent of the Galaxy Note 7 smartphones in South Korea has been recalled since Samsung Electronics began a voluntary recall program on Sept. 19, according to the Korean Agency for Technology and Standards on Oct. 10.A total of 389,000 units out of the 456,000 Galaxy Note 7s that had been manufactured between July 30 and Sept. 2 have been retrieved by the company, according to the state-run agency.Of those recalled, 352,000 units have been replaced with new ones, with 21

[THE INVESTOR]  Hyundai Motor said Oct. 10 that its electric vehicle appeals most to those in their 30s.Sales of the Ioniq Electric in South Korea surpassed the 1,000-unit mark in early September, two months after its debut in the domestic market. It marked the fastest period among local EVs to reach the milestone.By age group, those in their 30s account for the largest portion of 34 percent, with the number exceeding 40 percent if people in their 20s are included.“The numbers vividly show the c

[THE INVESTOR] South Korea caught several attempts to smuggle totaling 246 firearms into the country over the first eight months of the year, according to data from the Korea Customs Service. It already marks the highest number of guns confiscated by KCS in a year in the 2010s, according to Rep. Yun Ho-jung of the main opposition Minjoo Party of Korea.The growth seems affected by a rising number of military goods enthusiasts, added Yun.In South Korea, gun possession is outlawed except for soldie

[THE INVESTOR] Business leaders from South Korea and Japan agreed on Oct. 10 to boost bilateral economic cooperation in overseas markets and step up efforts to reduce the damage from earthquakes in both countries. The agreement came as the Federation of Korean Industries, South Korea’s biggest lobby group, and the Japanese Business Federation, held a regular meeting earlier in the day to discuss a variety of issues, including bilateral cooperation.“The two countries’ cooperation is increasingly

[THE INVESTOR] Foreign investors increased their ownership of South Korean shares to a record high over the past four months in September.Offshore investors bought a net 1.63 trillion won (US$1.46 billion) worth of listed South Korean shares last month, marking the fourth consecutive month of net purchases, according to the data by the Financial Supervisory Service.Their cumulative net purchases reached 11.1 trillion won in the first nine months of the year, raising their ownership of listed sto

[THE INVESTOR] LG Electronics' operating profits in the third quarter is estimated to fall 3.7 percent on-year possibly due to its sluggish smartphone sales, the company said in its earnings guidance report on Oct. 7. 　LG said it expects an operating profit of 283.2 billion won (US$253.40 million) during the July-September period, which compared to 293.9 billion won a year ago. The figure missed an earlier market consensus of an estimated 319.4 billion won, according to FN Guide, a local market