The lack of convertibility of the local currency has stood in the way of South Korea’s reclassification into the Morgan Stanley Capital International’s developed market index.To Korea’s market oversight authorities, however, allowing local currency to be exchangeable offshore appears to be the least likely option out of fears of compromising stability in currency trading.MSCI Chairman Henry Fernandez has reiterated the stance Monday in Seoul that Korea, currently included in th

South Korea‘s stock markets modestly gained Monday helped by robust job data of the United States that replaced geopolitical tension from North Korea’s missile launch and global tapering woes.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index closed at 2,382.10, up 0.09 percent Monday compared to the Friday closing, on the back of institutional buying. Institutional investors showed a net purchase of 77.2 billion won ($67.2 million), offsetting net sales of offshore investors at 58.1 bi

Multicultural families will be able to enjoy exemptions in international wire transfer fees and discounts in currency exchange when using Woori Bank, it said Monday.  The families will be exempt from paying transfer fees – up to 25,000 won ($21.70) for outgoing wire and 10,000 won for incoming wires of over $100 -- if they submit identification and at their nearest Woori Bank branch.Also, multicultural families will be offered a narrower foreign exchange spread, by as much as 80 perce

South Korea’s 10 largest business groups in market capitalization account for more than half of the total value of listings on the country’s main bourse, data showed Sunday.The 10 business groups had 907.2 trillion won ($785.8 billion) in market capitalization, accounting for 51.3 percent of the total 1,767 trillion won as of Thursday, showed data by the Korea Exchange.Among the so-called chaebol, Samsung Group with the market bellwether and its electronics arm Samsung Electronics to

Women took up 22.6 percent of the entire workforce in South Korea‘s top 600 firms last year, data by the Korea Economic Research Institute showed Sunday.Among the 531 firms, those that were available for study out of the 600 non finance companies, a total of 254,452 employees were women, an increase of 27,424 from 2012. The proportion of women has gradually increased, rising by 0.1 percent from 2015, and by 1.3 percent since 2012. (123rf)By company, IT service provider Hyosung ITX had the highes

South Korea’s five largest securities firms in net worth are expected to submit applications to start short-term financing businesses Friday.The firms -- Mirae Asset Daewoo, NH Investment & Securities, KB Securities, Samsung Securities and Korea Investment & Securities -- are planning to apply for eligibility reviews to start financing businesses from the third quarter of this year, according to the Financial Services Commission on Thursday.The eligible securities firms will be gra

Kakao, the operator of mobile messenger KakaoTalk and web portal Daum, will be relisted on the top-tier Kospi market Monday, after delisting itself from the second-tier Kosdaq, stock market operator Korea Exchange said Wednesday. The Kosdaq-listed information technology powerhouse was granted approval to move some 67.8 million ordinary shares from the Kosdaq to Kospi on Tuesday, 40 days after it applied for an eligibility review. Shares of Kakao have responded accordingly for two consecutive day

South Korea’s main stock market rebounded Wednesday from a brief retreat after North Korea’s missile launch, but the foreign selling trend continued a second day. 　The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Market Index rose 0.33 percent to close at 2,388.35 on Wednesday, after a 0.58 percent loss the previous day, the third-largest since May. Foreign investors net sold 8.9 billion won ($7.7 million) in Korean stocks, a continued sell-off after 193.6 billion won was sold by offshore investo

South Korea and the United States staged a massive combined ballistic missile exercise Wednesday, sending a warning message to North Korea, the allies' militaries said, a day after the communist country claimed a successful long-range missile test.They fired a barrage of missiles, including the South's Hyunmoo-2A and the US Eighth Army's ATACMS, into the East Sea, according to the Joint Chiefs of Staff.The Hyunmoo-2A is a ballistic missile with a range of 300 kilometers, and the ATACMS, or the A

Emerging markets should brace for signs of monetary policy shifts in developed nations, and South Korea will remain vigilant to such signs that are moving toward ending a decade of fiscal stimulus, Bank of Korea Gov. Lee Ju-yeol said Tuesday.“The massive amount of cash flow into global financial markets will be on the decrease at any rate,” Lee said, while presiding over a conference on economic trends. “The BOK will respond to this by closely watching the shift in developed na

Korea Exchange gave Kakao, which is listed on the second-tier stock market, a nod of approval for entry into the main bourse Monday, 40 days after the company applied for the change.Stocks of Kakao showed a tepid response Tuesday upon the news released after Monday’s market closing. Kakao closed at 98.300 won ($85.40) Tuesday, down 1.11 percent from the previous day.The operator of mobile messenger KakaoTalk and web portal Daum said in a disclosure it would begin the procedure of relisting on th

Golf-loving South Koreans, estimated at over 6 million, according to the Korea Golf Association, have long had trouble booking the best golf course to enjoy a round. Finding the nearest golf course open for reservation, out of 522 across the nation, is often a hassle for players. Moreover, those booking a golf club have to bear the burden of paying deposits for reservations. In April, GOLFZON COUNTY, an operator of five golf courses in South Korea, launched a mobile app that it believes will red

Choi Jong-ku, CEO of the state-run Export-Import Bank of Korea, has been nominated as the chairman of the Financial Services Commission.Cheong Wa Dae on Monday said it expected Choi to become a game changer in curbing household debt, tackling unemployment, stabilizing people‘s quality of life and seeking efficiency in corporate restructuring. “As a nominee of the FSC chief in charge of crafting financial policies for the national economy, I feel grave responsibility,” Cho said

A set of bills to give cryptocurrencies, including bitcoin and ethereum, legal grounds is being prepared by a South Korean lawmaker, a long-awaited move to protect South Koreans from potential risks in transactions.Rep. Park Yong-jin of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea said in a release Monday he would introduce three revisions in July to build a set of regulatory frameworks for digital currencies.Under the bill that aims to revise the Electronic Financial Transactions Act, traders, brokers,

Foreign investors’ net purchase of South Korean stocks are estimated to go beyond 10 trillion won ($8.7 billion) in the first half of 2017, the highest since 2009, data showed Sunday. Their combined net purchase in the first-tier and second-tier stock markets reached 10.3 trillion won from January until Friday, according to data by Koscom, a market watcher launched by the Finance Ministry and the Korea Exchange.Of the total 10.3 trillion won, offshore net purchase in the main bourse amount

South Korea’s main bourse index touched 2,400 for the first time in its history in early morning trade Thursday, before closing at record-high.Opening at 2,396.81, up 0.6 percent from Wednesday’s close, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index surpassed 2,400 at around 9:50 a.m. Thursday.Following the historic touch, the Kospi closed at 2,395.66, up 0.55 percent from the day before. It marked the third this week that the Kospi hit an all-time high. Foreign and institutional in

Hanwha Group Chairman Kim Seung-youn has been at the vanguard of fostering business cooperation with the United States, years before uncertainties emerged upon the inauguration of US President Donald Trump, who has expressed skepticism toward the two countries’ free trade agreement.Kim’s ties with leading business figures in the US, including Heritage Foundation President Edwin Feulner, has made him one of the rare South Korean business representatives who is able to bridge the differences betwe

The Composite Consumer Sentiment Index in South Korea hit a new high for the last six years and five months, data showed Tuesday. The CCSI reached 111.1 in June, up 3.1 points from the previous month, according to data from the Bank of Korea. This marked the highest since it recorded 111.4 in January 2011. The index surged for five consecutive months after dropping for three straight months to hit about an eight-year low in January, at 93.3.For nearly six years, the CCSI hovered at around 100, w

The main bourse in South Korea resumed its record run in 11 trading days on Monday.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Market Index closed at 2,388.66, up 0.42 percent, or 10.06 points from Friday closing. The index hit the record-high after it closed at the previous record at 2,381.69 on June 9. The Kospi inched close to the 2,400 mark by hitting its intraday high at 2,390.70 in the late afternoon trade.Offshore investors purchased shares valued at 34.1 billion won ($30 million) in total, while