The Korea Times

POSCO seeks mutual growth with SMEs

By Kang Seung-woo POSCO is helping to start up venture businesses in line with the government’s push for mutual growth between major and smaller companies. The world’s No. 3 steelmaker has gathered ideas for fresh enterprises from not only its executives and employees, but others including college students, jobless youth and those from small- and medium-sized companies, looking to expand its fields beyond the steel industry. As of the end of July, POSCO received a total of 1,363 plans for one and a half months and the company intends to select the best ones by the end of August. For those wanting to commercialize a selected idea, POSCO will give support by setting up a joint venture, or by providing a financial reward for the plan alone. The firm said that the campaign for mutual growth is reflected by its Chairman Chung Joon-yang’s drive to help local venture firms grow. “As part of seeking mutual growth, POSCO needs to look to a number of ordinary people as well as the company’s staff in coming up with new ideas for new business,” he said in a meeting in February.

Aug 3, 2011By Kang Seung-woo

Companies

Kyobo Life creates contribution award

Kyobo Life Insurance, along with the Asia-Pacific Risk and Insurance Association (APRIA), has created an award for insurance researchers, the Korean company said Tuesday. The APRIA-KYOBO Contribution Award is created to annually honor those who carry out outstanding research and contribute to the insurance industry. APRIA is one of three industry global academic societies, with some 350 members, mainly researchers, from around 30 countries. The others are American Risk and Insurance Association (ARIA) and European Group of Insurance Economists (EGRIE). Along with the award, Kyobo plans to give financial support to researchers from underdeveloped economies to participate in international academic events. The international award is the second created by the third-largest life insurer, following the Shin Research Award for Excellence to commemorate the contribution of Shin Yong-ho, the founder of Kyobo Life Insurance, to the global insurance industry. The contribution award was created in 1997.

Aug 2, 2011By Kang Seung-woo

Companies

Daewoo offers English home trading system

By Kang Seung-woo Daewoo Securities Monday launched its English online home trading system, Qway ENG, for foreigners investing in the Korean stock market. The nation’s No.1 brokerage said the new trading program is developed for trading of Korean stocks, KOSPI 200 futures and options, which are likely to attract many foreign investors. Thanks to the system’s simple menu, comprising stocks, futures and options, price quotations and balance and transfer, users can learn how to trade with ease, the company said. “The English trading platform is developed on the basis of Qway NEO, which was given a Good Design award from the Ministry of Knowledge and Economy and recognized to be convenient and stable,” said Shin Yoon-keun Shin, division head of Multi Channel Division at Daewoo Securities. He also said that Daewoo Securities will continue to support financial investments for foreigners living in Korea, whose numbers exceed 1 million. Along with the launch of Qway ENG, Daewoo Securities is also offering an English authentication/OTP Service. The English program can be d

Aug 1, 2011By Kang Seung-woo

Companies

Downpours affect insurers, airlines, builders

By Kang Seung-woo Three days of torrential rain across much of Korea has hit the nation’s industries hard, in sectors ranging from non-life insurance to construction. According to the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS), there were a total of 5,839 reports of car damage as of Thursday afternoon and local non-life insurance companies are estimated to have to compensate policyholders 40.3 billion won ($38.29 million). The amount is 14 times larger than the 2.8 billion won in compensation between January and June this year combined and the number of reports is the highest monthly record since September last year, when a typhoon resulted in 11,198 claims, resulting in 35.7 billion won being paid in compensation. Making the insurers’ situation worse, high-end foreign cars in the Gangnam area were submerged, which is expected to further increase settlements The financial watchdog estimates the insurers’ July average loss rate will soar by about 4 percentage points amid concerns that growing compensation claims are likely to erode profits of non-life insurance firms, which were

Jul 29, 2011By Kang Seung-woo

Companies

FSC sounds liquidity alarm

By Kang Seung-woo Foreign capital liquidity is in the news as Financial Services Commission (FSC) Chairman Kim Seok-dong continues to take precautions. In fear of ongoing uncertainties in advanced economies, he is requiring banks to brace for any fallout abroad in order to shield the nation’s economy that has often seen foreign investors scrambling for the exit during Korean financial woes. Observers on the contrary say that there are fewer chances that the current situation will evolve into a full-blown crisis. “We have to closely monitor local banks’ foreign capital liquidity situations,” Kim said to an executive council on Monday. He also told 12 lenders, which recently joined the FSC’s task force for foreign currency liquidity, to submit their plans on how to find stable overseas borrowing channels, when financial turmoil occurs. He has remarked on foreign capital liquidity three times in five days. On Saturday Kim said, “The foreign exchange soundness will be the top priority of the nation’s financial policies this year.” Again on Thursday he said to re

Jul 28, 2011By Kang Seung-woo

Companies

Current account surplus hits eight-month high

By Kang Seung-woo Korea’s current account surplus posted an eight-month high in June due to record exports, the central bank said Thursday. The surplus for last month stood at $2.99 billion, up $810 million from the previous one, the Bank of Korea (BOK) said. The current account is the broadest measure of trade that reflects the movement of goods and services. The June figure marked the largest surplus since the $5.11 billion in October last year. Asia’s fourth-largest economy has expanded its surplus streak to 16 months, dating back to March last year. The surplus for the first half of 2011 reached $9.06 billion, down $340 million from the BOK’s pre-estimate, but the bank revised up its full-year forecast of the surplus to $15.5 billion on the strength of robust exports in the latter part of this year. "The July surplus is likely to be similar to the size of the one tallied in June. The full-year surplus is expected to easily meet the BOK’s 2011 target,” Kim Young-bae, director general of the BOK's economic statistics division, said at a press conference. The al

Jul 28, 2011By Kang Seung-woo

Companies

Korean Goldman Sachs unlikely soon

By Kang Seung-woo Policymakers say it is high time the country has a globally-competitive investment bank that could boost funding for Korean business projects overseas. But the majority of market observers advise government officials to calm down as it would be a long and painstaking process before the country earns its stripes in investment banking, if ever. The Financial Services Commission (FSC) Tuesday announced a set of policy suggestions aimed at creating an environment for the dawn of the country’s first investment banks. Its revised version of the amended capital market law, contingent upon approval by lawmakers, enables brokerages with equity capital of over 3 trillion won (about $2.85 billion) to reclassify themselves as investment banks and compete with commercial lenders in corporate financing. The financial regulator said the first Korean investment banks could make their debut by June next year if lawmakers ok its bill by the end of the year. Based on the FSC’s criteria, the country’s top five brokerages, Daewoo Securities, Samsung Securities, Hyund

Jul 28, 2011By Kang Seung-woo

Companies

POSCO engaged in cost-saving efforts

By Kang Seung-woo POSCO and its affiliates have been getting serious about cost reductions amid persistently increasing raw material prices. Along with improving in facilities and developing technology, they are making efforts to collect ubiquitous scrap steel and scale at still mills while recycling working uniforms to help lower expenses. In May, the steel giant launched campaigns to collect scrap steel that was wasted or left around at Pohang and Gwangyang Steel Works ― from May 16 to 27 in Pohang and from May 23 to June 3 in Gwangyang ― to be reused at steel mills. Scrap steel is one of three raw materials, along with iron ore and coking coal, and is the core base material in the steel manufacturing process. The price of scrap steel has jumped to around 600,000 won per ton of late from roughly 400,000 late last year due to the shortage of raw materials, weighing on the company’s wallet. “We started the campaign because we estimated that it will pay off in terms of reusing resources and cleaning up the environment,” said a POSCO official. “As a matter of fact, we

Jul 27, 2011By Kang Seung-woo

Companies

Bandwagon firms overcrowd marketplace

More companies bend business to policy trends By Kang Seung-woo Korea’s big businesses appear more concerned about massaging bureaucratic egos than pursuing their own strategies for corporate growth and global competitiveness. Policymakers have successfully pressed corporations to follow their drumbeat on economy-related drives, including strengthening micro-financing services for struggling families, achieving ``mutual growth’’ by improving the relations between large companies and small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and providing more jobs. The latest companies to leap on the policy bandwagon are banking groups, which are releasing news releases day after day about the increasing number of high-school graduates they are hiring in doing their part to cure the country’s unemployment woes. On cue, President Lee Myung-bak visited the Industrial Bank of Korea (IBK) on Wednesday to personally meet a group of bank employees straight out of high school. ``Educational backgrounds are not a big problem once the person works in his profession for a decade or two.

Jul 25, 2011By Kang Seung-woo

Companies

Banks stingy on time deposit interest

By Kang Seung-woo Despite the central bank’s upward trend in its key interest rate, commercial banks are reluctant to follow suit in deposit rates, as there are few time deposits with interest rates offering more than 5 percent. However, they are quick to increase rates in lending, with their high-interest loans to small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) taking up nearly half of them. According to the Bank of Korea (BOK) and the banking industry Monday, among newly-opened time deposit accounts in May, those with interest of more than 5 percent per annum accounted for 0.4 percent, down 0.2 percentage point from the previous month. The proportion was 10.8 percent in January last year, but since then has been hovering below 2 percent for 16 months. In addition, deposits with annual interest of more than 6 percent have failed to surpass the 1 percent mark for 28 months since February 2009, with no account available since June last year. The BOK has increased the benchmark rate by 1.25 percentage points since July last year to rein in soaring inflationary pressure.

Jul 25, 2011By Kang Seung-woo

Kang Seung-woo

Read more

POSCO seeks mutual growth with SMEs

Kyobo Life creates contribution award

Daewoo offers English home trading system

Downpours affect insurers, airlines, builders

FSC sounds liquidity alarm

Current account surplus hits eight-month high

Korean Goldman Sachs unlikely soon

POSCO engaged in cost-saving efforts

Bandwagon firms overcrowd marketplace

Banks stingy on time deposit interest

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