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  • Economy

    Lula's surprise win hits Korean investors in Brazil bonds

    Korean investors who piled into high-yield Brazilian bonds ahead of the country's presidential election are nursing losses after Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's surprise victory sent bond yields soaring and the currency tumbling, analysts said Wednesday. Brazilian government bonds have been popular among wealthy Korean investors, offering annual yields of around 10 percent and tax-free interest income under a bilateral tax treaty between Korea and Brazil. Korean investors purchased a net $5.53 million worth of Brazilian bonds in September, nearly four times the $1.39 million recorded the previous month, according to SEIBro, a data portal operated by the Korea Securities Depository. They continued to buy Brazilian bonds this month, with net purchases totaling $1.78 million through Tuesday. Investor sentiment was buoyed by improving market conditions ahead of the presidential election amid growing expectations of a right-wing victory. However, market sentiment shifted sharply after the election outcome. Growing concerns over increased government spending and a widening fiscal deficit sent gover

    2 MIN READBy Lee Yeon-woo
    Lula's surprise win hits Korean investors in Brazil bonds
  • Economy

    Korea to closely monitor impact of upcoming US midterm elections

    2 MIN READBy Yonhap
    Korea to closely monitor impact of upcoming US midterm elections
  • Policy

    Gov't to designate new housing zones for over 76,000 homes near Seoul

    1 MIN READBy Yonhap
    Gov't to designate new housing zones for over 76,000 homes near Seoul
  • Economy

    Seoul stocks open tad higher as Fed holds rates ahead of Samsung earnings report

    1 MIN READBy Yonhap
    Seoul stocks open tad higher as Fed holds rates ahead of Samsung earnings report
  • Economy

    ABS issuance falls 5.7% in Q3

    1 MIN READBy Yonhap
    ABS issuance falls 5.7% in Q3
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Economy

Korean currency falls sharply past 1,500 won amid oil price surge

The Korean currency fell markedly past the 1,500-won level against the U.S. dollar Thursday as global oil prices surged amid intensifying tensions in the Middle East. The won opened at 1,505 per dollar, down 21.9 won from the previous session, breaching the psychologically and technically critical 1,500-won threshold. On Monday, the won touched the level for the first time since March 2009 in intraday trading amid surging global oil prices, the Middle East crisis and concerns about supply disruptions. The weakness came as global oil prices rose more than 5 percent on Wednesday (U.S. time), following Israel's attack on natural gas facilities linked to Iran's South Pars field, the world's largest gas field. In response, Iran's Revolutionary Guard threatened to target oil and gas facilities in Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, heightening the risk of further disruptions to energy supplies, according to foreign media reports. Korea's foreign exchange and stock markets have shown heightened volatility since the beginning of this month following the U.S.-Israeli attacks on Iran.

Mar 19, 2026By Yonhap
Korean currency falls sharply past 1,500 won amid oil price surge
Economy

Banks' earnings up 8.2% in 2025 on non-interest income

Korean banks' combined net profit jumped by more than 8 percent last year from a year earlier due mainly to a rise in non-interest income, data showed Thursday. The combined net profit of 20 banks came to 24.1 trillion won ($16.2 billion) last year, up 1.8 trillion won from 22.2 trillion won recorded a year earlier, according to the data from the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). Their interest income came to 60.4 trillion won, up 1.1 trillion won, or 1.8 percent, from a year earlier. Non-interest income came to 7.6 trillion won last year, up 1.6 trillion won, or 26.9 percent, over the cited period, according to the FSS. Their costs to cover loan losses came in at 6.5 trillion won last year, down 0.4 trillion won, or 5.9 percent, from a year before. The banks' return on assets ratio rose to 0.59 percent last year, up from 0.58 percent a year earlier, while their return on equity ratio rose 0.17 percentage point to 7.93 percent over the cited period, the data showed.

Mar 19, 2026By Yonhap
Banks' earnings up 8.2% in 2025 on non-interest income
Economy

Finance chief pledges timely response to excessive FX market volatility

Finance Minister Koo Yun-cheol said Wednesday that the government is closely monitoring foreign exchange (FX) market volatility, pledging to respond in a timely manner to excessive market movements. Koo made the remarks during a meeting with financial experts, including heads of major securities firms, the Ministry of Finance and Economy said, as the Korean won has fluctuated sharply following the U.S.-Israeli joint attacks on Iran. The minister stressed that authorities are maintaining heightened vigilance over foreign exchange market volatility following recent developments in the Middle East. He emphasized that the government will conduct 24-hour monitoring and respond in a timely manner if the won's movements deviate excessively from economic fundamentals. Koo also said a set of three tax support measures aimed at stabilizing the foreign exchange market will soon be submitted to a National Assembly plenary session, expressing hope that their passage would help ease market volatility.

Mar 18, 2026By Yonhap
Finance chief pledges timely response to excessive FX market volatility
Economy

Samil PwC launches AI advisory service as security disclosure scrutiny tightens

Samil PwC, Korea’s largest accounting firm by revenue, has launched an artificial intelligence (AI)-based advisory service to help companies comply with the country’s information security disclosure requirements as the government moves to tighten oversight, the company said Wednesday. Under proposed amendments to the enforcement decree of the Information and Communications Technology Industry Promotion Act, the number of companies subject to mandatory disclosure, which is currently around 600, is set to expand from 2027. Many firms previously outside the rule will need to build new compliance frameworks. The government has also set aside a larger budget to strengthen verification, signaling a more rigorous scrutiny ahead. In the past, minor errors or ambiguous wording in disclosures often went unchallenged. However, with tighter oversight, companies could face a greater risk of penalties stemming from inaccurate or incomplete filings. Samil PwC’s new service uses AI to streamline the disclosure process and reduce inconsistencies. Its automated engine reviews disclosure criteria by

Mar 18, 2026By Park Han-sol
Samil PwC launches AI advisory service as security disclosure scrutiny tightens
Economy

Students using low interest policy loan to invest in stocks sparks debate

“Max it out.” This was the blunt advice given in a viral post on X that has drawn 2.3 million views and more than 2,500 reposts, urging students to take full advantage of low-interest rate loans while they still can. “Where else are you going to get a 1.7-percent interest loan as a young adult?” the user Doll_Mock wrote. “Spend it however you want, whether that’s eating, having fun or investing.” Elsewhere on the platform, another user, who was planning to take out a student loan, asked for help in choosing between two options: “Should I take 500,000 won ($336) now to buy ETFs (exchange-traded funds) and invest the remaining 1.5 million won when the semester starts, or take the full 2 million won loan at the start of the semester and invest it all at once?” A growing number of university and graduate school students are tapping low-interest policy loans to invest in stocks and cryptocurrencies — an emerging practice that is raising questions about its purpose. The quasi-governmental Korea Student Aid Foundation extends student loans of up to 2 million won for living ex

Mar 18, 2026By Park Han-sol
Students using low interest policy loan to invest in stocks sparks debate
Others

Commuters turn to public transit as fuel prices soar amid Iran conflict

Lim Joo-young, an office worker in her 30s who commutes from Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, to Seoul's Seocho District, recently switched from driving to taking the subway as fuel costs climb. "I used to drive to work, so taking the subway during the rush hour has been uncomfortable," she said. "But fuel costs have become too high, so I plan to keep taking the subway for now. I used to fill up about three times a month, but I'm trying to cut that down to once or twice." Another office worker, surnamed Park, who lives in Yangcheon District in Seoul, has also began cutting back on driving. Though her workplace is just a 20-minute drive away, she now rides a bus that takes about an hour. "I've started taking the bus twice a week. I'm trying to rely less on my car overall," Park said. "I'm also cutting back on longer drives to shopping malls on the weekend to save on fuel." Data shows that more commuters are shifting to public transportation as high fuel prices, driven by the escalating conflict in the Middle East, weigh on household budgets. According to Seoul Metro on Wednesday, average daily

Mar 18, 2026By Lee Hyo-jin
Commuters turn to public transit as fuel prices soar amid Iran conflict
Economy

Gov't raises crude oil supply disruption alert to Level 2

The government raised Wednesday the alert over a possible disruption in crude oil supply by a notch to Level 2 as geopolitical tensions in the Middle East persist. The alert was raised to the second lowest tier, or yellow, in Korea's four-tier national resource security crisis warning system, as of 3 p.m., according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources. The decision was made as escalating tensions among major oil producers in the Middle East, the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz and price hikes in global oil prices were expected to strain the supply of oil in Korea. Korea had issued the lowest alert of Level 1 earlier this month, about a week after the U.S. and Israel-led war in Iran broke out. Under the Level 2 alert, the government will strengthen its supply and demand control measures for oil by exercising priority purchase rights to jointly held international petroleum reserves and securing alternative oil supplies that do not pass through the strait. Earlier in the day, Kang Hoon-sik, presidential chief of staff, said Korea has secured a pledge from the United Ar

Mar 18, 2026By Yonhap
Gov't raises crude oil supply disruption alert to Level 2
Economy

KRX issues buy-side sidecar for KOSPI on sharp surge

Korea's main bourse operator on Wednesday issued a buy-side sidecar for the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), temporarily halting trading on the market after a sharp rise. Program trading for KOSPI was suspended for five minutes at 2:34 p.m., according to the Korea Exchange (KRX). A buy-side sidecar is triggered when the KOSPI 200 Futures index increases 5 percent or more for at least one minute. A buy-side sidecar was previously issued on March 10.

Mar 18, 2026By Yonhap
KRX issues buy-side sidecar for KOSPI on sharp surge
Others

Korea Exchange in hot seat after botched Kosdaq status reversal

The Korea Exchange (KRX) is under fire after mistakenly removing a management-issue designation from a Kosdaq-listed firm and reinstating it just a day later, triggering sharp market volatility, market watchers said Wednesday. The controversy has intensified as the stock price swung sharply during the episode, raising concerns about potential investor losses. A management-issue designation serves as a warning mechanism applied to companies with serious financial or operational concerns, or those at risk of breaching listing requirements. Its removal, by contrast, is widely interpreted as a signal that such risks have been resolved and that the firm has returned to normal trading status. Because of this signaling effect, any change in designation can significantly move share prices. SCM Lifescience was designated as a management issue on March 21, 2025, after posting pretax losses from continuing operations for two consecutive years. The exchange’s Kosdaq market division lifted the designation at 7:02 p.m. Monday, concluding, based on the company’s 2025 audit report, that it had met th

Mar 18, 2026By Jun Ji-hye
Korea Exchange in hot seat after botched Kosdaq status reversal
Economy

Half of bond market experts predict consumer prices to rise due to Middle East turmoil

Half of bond experts in South Korea expected consumer prices to rise next month, as the effective closure of the Hormuz Strait amid the ongoing Middle East crisis is expected to fuel inflationary pressure, a poll showed Tuesday. According to the recent survey of 100 bond market experts conducted by the Korea Financial Investment Association (KOFIA), 50 percent of respondents said they expected consumer prices to go up in April. The reading marks a sharp on-month increase from 15 percent in February. Also, 35 percent of respondents said they expected the Korean won to fall further against the U.S. dollar. The local currency had fallen to its weakest level since March 10, 2009, on Monday due to the war in the Middle East, briefly touching the psychologically and technically critical 1,500-won threshold for the first time in 17 years. Since then, it has rebounded to 1,487 won per dollar as of 11 a.m. Wednesday. On bond yields, more experts said they project bond yields to go up in April, as the Bank of Korea (BOK) is likely to keep the country's base rate steady for a prolonged period amid th

Mar 18, 2026By Yonhap
Half of bond market experts predict consumer prices to rise due to Middle East turmoil
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