Prosecutors are to investigate allegations that a stock firm employee caused financial losses to investors by manipulating the assets of financial products.The Financial Supervisory Service reported to the prosecution in March that an employee of SK Securities incurred losses amounting to 6.6 billion won ($5.9 million) to investors by manipulating the underlying assets of the company’s equity-linked securities, officials said Monday.The employee allegedly dropped the stock price of steelmaker PO

The government’s recent financial reform plan which focuses on reinforcing the competitiveness of banking groups triggered a backlash from the secondary market, including private lenders and mutual savings banks.Loan companies reacted against lowering the interest rate ceiling, while small-sized savings banks claimed to be discriminated against bigger units affiliated with a holding company.The Financial Services Commission said earlier this week that it will lower the maximum interest rate for

Shinhan Financial Group, the nation’s largest banking group by assets and profits, said Thursday it began issuing a contingent convertible bond, or CoCo Bond, which combines debt and equity.Despite its relatively long maturity of 30 years, the bond attracted a number of institutional investors, pushing the group to up the issue limit from 200 billion won ($180 million) to 282 billion won, according to officials.It offers an interest rate of 4.38 percent (at 190 basis points over a 10-year Treasu

 KB KICKS OFF INSURANCE BIZ -- KB Financial Group chairman Yoon Jong-kyoo (left) and KB Insurance president Kim Byung-heon celebrate the launch of KB‘s new insurance company Wednesday. The banking group took over LIG Insurance in March this year, in an aim to expand its non-banking business. KB Financial Group

UPGRADED SERVICE FOR FOREIGNERS -- KB Kookmin Bank signs a partnership agreement with Sea Life Busan Aquarium on Tuesday, in a joint goal to offer customized service to foreign nationals. Participants included Oh Pyung-seob (fourth from left), head of customer service group at KB Kookmin Bank, and Sea Life sales and marketing director Yun Jun-young (third from left). KB Kookmin Bank

The imminent kick-off of the Shenzhen-Hong Kong stock connect is seen as a favorable outbound investment opportunity, but is also raising concerns of capital outflow into the more profitable Chinese market, analysts said Wednesday.South Korea’s current strategy is to move in step with China and seek shared growth, instead of competing directly with the giant market.The nation’s stock operator Korea Exchange initiated an exclusive task force to respond preemptively to China’s stock market growth.

KDB Daewoo Securities, one of the nation’s top three brokerage houses, suggested a global asset allocation portfolio to customers out for a mid-risk, mid-return investment.The Global Asset Allocation and Portfolio, or Global Duruduru in Korean, is a comprehensive model portfolio that spreads investment into a diversity of assets around the world.Offering higher stability than stock investment and higher returns than bond investment, the product is best suited for those who wish to make a mid-lev

The nation’s top financial regulator said Tuesday that it would lower the interest rate ceiling applied to private money lenders and expand the budget of state-funded microloans in efforts to ease the burden on the low-income brackets.The maximum rate for private loans will be reduced to 29.9 percent within the year from the current 34.9 percent, according to the Financial Services Commission.The ceiling rate, which is applied to low-credit borrowers who have no access to the low interest rate l

A key aide of South Gyeongsang Province Gov. Hong Joon-pyo will be summoned for questioning this week over allegations of bribery involving the high-profile politician, the prosecution said Monday.Hong is suspected of taking 100 million won (US$93,000) from late businessman Sung Wan-jong in 2011 through one of Hong's close aides when he ran for ruling party chief.Before hanging himself last month, Sung claimed in a memo that he gave hundreds of millions of won to eight politicians, including for

South Korea's finance minister called on Asia Monday to better meet regional demand for infrastructure development by attracting more outside investment and strengthening ties between regional economic institutions, Seoul's finance ministry said.Choi Kyung-hwan, who doubles as deputy prime minister for economic affairs, made the call in a speech to the board of governors session of the Asian Development Bank's annual meeting held in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan."Asian countries need to speed

President Park Geun-hye's job approval rating has edged up slightly, a poll showed Friday, despite a bribery scandal involving some of her key aides.A poll conducted by polling agency Gallup Korea put Park's approval rating at 39 percent this week, up four percentage points from a week earlier.Park's job approval rating has been on the rise since mid-April, when the country was engulfed in the scandal sparked by a "bribery list" left behind by a businessman who committed suicide.The memo listed

BEIJING -- China's state-run media Friday stepped up criticism against Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who stopped short of apologizing for Japan's wartime atrocities in a speech to the U.S. Congress.  In the landmark speech to a joint session of the U.S. Congress on Wednesday, Abe expressed "deep remorse" about World War II but failed to issue his own apology demanded by many over the Japanese military's sexual enslavement of Asian women during the war.  The Chinese state news agency, Xinhu

South Korea said Friday it will help spur civilian exchanges with North Korea to mark the 70th anniversary of their liberation from Japan's colonial rule.The Ministry of Unification said it will encourage civilian groups to boost inter-Korean exchanges in such areas as culture, sports and history to help "restore national unity and open channels for cooperation.""Seoul expects that more exchanges and cooperation will pave the way for broadening mutual understanding and improving inter-Korean rel

President Park Geun-hye's chief of staff said Friday that he will quit immediately if his bribery allegations turn out to be true. Lee Byung-kee's name was written along with seven other high-profile politicians on a "bribery list" left behind by businessman Sung Wan-jong, who hanged himself last month.The memo shows sums of money written next to the names of six out of eight politicians, indicating that they were bribed.No won figures appear next to former Prime Minister Lee Wan-koo's name or t

South Korea's exports shrank for the fourth consecutive month in April but its trade surplus hit a new high as imports dropped at a faster clip than exports, the government said Friday.The country's overall outbound shipments came to US$46.22 billion last month, down 8.1 percent from the same month last year, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.Still, the country posted a record trade surplus of $8.49 billion as imports plunged 17.8 percent on-year to $37.73 billion.April als

The number of business group affiliates subject to restrictions on mutual investments and loan guarantees rose in May from a month earlier, the antitrust watchdog said Friday.The Fair Trade Commission (FTC) said the number of firms on its watch list stood at 1,707 as of this month, up 11 from 1,696 on April 1. The firms belong to the country's 61 largest business groups.A total of 14 companies were added, with three being removed as they were merged with other affiliates or sold off.Seven busine

The volume of South Korea's energy imports inched up on-year in the first quarter of 2015, but its value dropped sharply due mainly to weak international crude oil prices, customs data showed Friday.According to the data by the Korea Customs Service (KCS), South Korea imported 78.24 million tons of energy products, including crude oil, coal and natural gas, during the January-March period, up 1.4 percent from a year earlier.The value of the imports, however, plunged 39.9 percent on-year to US$24

Kolon Industries Inc., South Korea's top textile and chemical material maker, said Friday it has terminated a six-year legal battle with U.S. chemicals juggernaut DuPont Co. over an alleged trade secret theft.In February 2009, DuPont filed a lawsuit against Kolon, alleging its South Korean rival stole trade secrets involving aramid, a type of fiber used in making tires and bullet-proof vests, by hiring one of the U.S. company's retired engineers. Denying the charges, Kolon began an antitrust sui

Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se expressed regret Friday that Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe failed to acknowledge Japan's wartime wrongdoing in his congressional speech earlier this week.Abe, in his speech before a joint session of the U.S. Congress on Wednesday, acknowledged the suffering his country brought to other Asian nations during World War II but offered no apology for its wartime crimes.South Korea and other members of the international community had demanded an apology, especially o

South Korea's consumer prices grew at less than 1 percent for the fifth month in a row in April, a government report showed Friday, fueling worries of deflation.The country's consumer price index inched up just 0.4 percent last month from a year earlier, well below the government's 2 percent growth target for 2015, the report by Statistics Korea showed. Last month's number is unchanged from the 0.4 percent growth tallied for March, which was the lowest increase since July 1999, when consumer pri