my timesThe Korea Times

Economy

PolicyCryptocurrencyOthers
  • Others

    SK hynix overtakes Samsung in market value amid AI-driven chip boom

    SK hynix overtook Samsung Electronics to claim the top position on KOSPI by market capitalization on Monday, ending Samsung's reign of 25 years and seven months as the benchmark index's most valuable listed company. KOSPI, meanwhile, edged higher to close above the 9,100 mark, setting a new record high on a closing basis. According to the Korea Exchange, SK hynix recorded a market capitalization of about 2,080.38 trillion won ($1.35 trillion), surpassing Samsung Electronics’ 2,066.66 trillion won by about 13.72 trillion won on a closing price basis. Samsung Electronics first claimed KOSPI's top spot by market capitalization on July 29, 1999, and had maintained its dominance uninterrupted since Nov. 21, 2000. The change at the top comes amid a rally in the semiconductor sector fueled by surging demand tied to the artificial intelligence (AI) boom. While both Samsung Electronics and SK hynix have benefited from the trend, SK hynix has delivered markedly stronger stock performance, ending Samsung's long-standing reign as the market's most valuable company. Samsung's shares have risen nearly

    3 MIN READBy Jun Ji-hye
    SK hynix overtakes Samsung in market value amid AI-driven chip boom
  • Policy

    Concentration in chips 'natural'; efforts to improve foreigners' market access underway: KRX chief

    2 MIN READBy Yonhap
    Concentration in chips 'natural'; efforts to improve foreigners' market access underway: KRX chief
  • Economy

    Watchdog launches probe into Mirae Asset Securities over SpaceX IPO allocation debacle

    3 MIN READBy Park Han-sol
    Watchdog launches probe into Mirae Asset Securities over SpaceX IPO allocation debacle
  • Economy

    Over 200 stocks face delisting as penny stock crackdown kicks off in July

    2 MIN READBy Lee Hyo-jin
    Over 200 stocks face delisting as penny stock crackdown kicks off in July
  • Economy

    8% youth savings plan faces test as stock market booms

    2 MIN READBy Lee Hyo-jin
    8% youth savings plan faces test as stock market booms
Korea Times
About Us
Introduction
History
Contact Us
Products & Services
Subscribe
E-paper
RSS Service
Content Sales
Site Map
Policy
Code of Ethics
Ombudsman
Privacy Policy
Youth Protection Policy
Terms of Service
Copyright Policy
Family Site
Hankookilbo
Dongwha Group
FacebookXYoutubeInstagram
CEO & Publisher: Oh Young-jinDigital News Email: webmaster@koreatimes.co.krTel: 02-724-2114Online newspaper registration No: 서울,아52844Date of registration: 2020.02.05Masthead: The Korea TimesCopyright © koreatimes.co.kr. All rights reserved.

Read more

Economy

Despite Delta variant, BOK remains positive for 4% growth

Park Yang-su, head of the economic statistics department at the Bank of Korea (BOK), gives a briefing at the bank headquarters in Seoul, Tuesday. Yonhap'3Q contraction concerns overblown, as figures overshot potential output' By Lee Kyung-min While the spread of the Delta variant is expected to hurt the momentum of the country's economy amid sluggish vaccination progress since late June due to the shortage of vaccines, the Bank of Korea (BOK) said Tuesday the country's economy could be able to grow 4 percent this year.Despite these challenges, the BOK pinned its rather positive stance on the country's trade performance, which remains strong and is the critical factor for its growth. South Korea is home to the world's top two memory chipmakers, Samsung Electronics and SK hynix. Demand for automotive chips, semiconductors and automotive parts will remain very solid.With the country’s latest GDP outcome, there are chances that the BOK may push back its policy rate hike after it hinted earlier of an impending monetary normalization. Some say the government’s massive spending

Jul 27, 2021By Lee Kyung-min
Despite Delta variant, BOK remains positive for 4% growth
Economy

AllianceBernstein positive about Korean stock market

AllianceBernstein executives speak during an online press conference, Tuesday. Clockwise from top left are senior portfolio manager Yoo Jae-heung, senior investment strategist David Wong and Korean subsidiary CEO Lee Chang-hyun. Courtesy of AllianceBernsteinBy Park Jae-hyukAllianceBernstein remained quite positive in terms of its outlook on the Korean equities market, categorizing the country as one of the developed nations with a strong outlook to bounce back this year from global coronavirus-induced economic problems.Its rationale is based specifically on the country's equities market which is looking constructive in terms of stock market returns and economic recovery.“Korea is still ultimately sensitive to the global growth,” AllianceBernstein's senior investment strategist David Wong said in an online press conference, Tuesday. “The global growth in developed markets remains strong, so we have a constructive perspective on Korea.”A number of Korean companies being exposed to the key long-term growth drivers, such as electric vehicles and renewable energy,

Jul 27, 2021By Park Jae-hyuk
AllianceBernstein positive about Korean stock market
Economy

Korea's National Tax Service pledges cooperation with Russia and Uzbekistan

Kim Dae-ji, left, Korea's National Tax Service (NTS) Commissioner, stands next to his Russian counterpart, Daniil Egorov, Commissioner of the Federal Tax Service of Russia, during their first bilateral meeting in Moscow, Russia, last Friday. Courtesy of NTSBy Anna J. Park In a move to strengthen concerted efforts for international coordination, Korea's National Tax Service (NTS) pledges to cooperate closely with Russia and Uzbekistan, particularly in preventing double taxation and in uncovering offshore tax evasion. During his recent trip to Russia and Uzbekistan, NTS Commissioner Kim Dae-ji held meetings with his counterparts in each country to discuss coordination in the international taxation arena. First off, Kim held a bilateral meeting with Daniil Egorov, the commissioner of the Federal Tax Service of Russia in Moscow, last Friday, the first time ever that the two countries' tax agency chiefs were able to sit together and hold an official meeting on taxation. During the meeting, NTS Commissioner Kim suggested that the two countries effectively adopt both a Mutual Agreement Proc

Jul 27, 2021By Anna J. Park
Korea's National Tax Service pledges cooperation with Russia and Uzbekistan
Economy

Korea's economy grows 0.7% in Q2

gettyimagesbankSouth Korea's economy grew at a solid pace in the second quarter and is on track for a 4 percent expansion this year estimated by the central bank thanks to a strong recovery of domestic demand and robust exports, the Bank of Korea (BOK) said Tuesday. Gross domestic product increased 0.7 percent on-quarter in the April-June period, after a 1.7 percent expansion in the first quarter. The nation's economy grew 5.9 percent on an annual basis, marking the fastest expansion in a decade. The growth was partly supported by a recovery in private consumption in the second quarter, the BOK said in the statement.South Korea's economy contracted 1.3 percent and 3.2 percent in the first and second quarter of last year, respectively, before expanding 2.1 percent in the third quarter and 1.2 percent in the fourth quarter.Private consumption rose 3.5 percent on-quarter in the second quarter and government expenditures gained 3.6 percent in the April-June period, the BOK said. A strong recovery in exports is expected to help South Korea's economy grow at a faster-than-expected pace, bu

Jul 27, 2021
Korea's economy grows 0.7% in Q2
Economy

Increasing Chinese property purchases concern Koreans

gettyimagesbankBy Yoon Ja-youngChinese buyers are increasing real estate purchases in Korea, leading to concerns among some Koreans who are suffering from soaring housing prices. According to data from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport submitted to Rep. Hong Seok-joon of the main opposition People Power Party, foreigners owned 157,489 real estate properties as of 2020, which is 2.2 times more than 2011. Of this number, 40,431 were apartments. The real estate owned by Chinese nationals especially rose steeply. The number of properties owned by Chinese nationals totaled 57,292 in 2020, which is up 16.3 times from 2011. They account for 36.37 percent of total foreign ownership as of last year. They are especially purchasing real estate in Seoul, with the number of properties under Chinese ownership increasing 11.1 times from 2011 to 2020. Chinese real estate ownership increased 26.6 times in Gyeonggi Province which surrounds the capital. On Jeju Island, a popular tourist destination, it grew 112 times to 11,219 properties. They are also purchasing real estate in Sejong,

Jul 27, 2021By Yoon Ja-young
Increasing Chinese property purchases concern Koreans
Economy

Gov't to seize, sell cryptocurrencies held by tax dodgers

Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki, center, speaks during a press briefing at the Sejong Government Complex, July 23. Courtesy of Ministry of Economy and FinanceRevisions unveiled to crack down on overseas tax evasion By Lee Kyung-min Tax authorities will be able to seize and sell cryptocurrencies held by tax dodgers starting Jan. 1, 2022, the finance ministry said Monday.Crypto exchanges will be required to transfer their virtual assets to the government immediately upon request. Failure to comply will lead to search and seizure of sites as deemed necessary by authorities. The amount raised from crypto trading will go into the state coffer.The clampdown is part of broader tax code revisions announced by the Ministry of Economy and Finance. It seeks to bolster efficient use and allocation of state resources to identify sustainable growth engines, spur private investment and strengthen inclusiveness of the social safety net. Revisions made to 16 tax codes will be submitted to the National Assembly Sept. 3.The latest announcement could chill investors' sentiment for

Jul 26, 2021By Lee Kyung-min
Gov't to seize, sell cryptocurrencies held by tax dodgers
Economy

ANALYSIS Upbit under attack from ruling party lawmaker

A pedestrian passes by the headquarters of Upbit operator Dunamu in Seoul in this 2018 file photo. YonhapCrypto exchange denies illegal forex trading allegationBy Park Jae-hyukUpbit, the nation's leading cryptocurrency exchange operated by Dunamu, has become the primary target of criticism from a four-term ruling party lawmaker lately, facing another unfavorable factor in addition to the government's efforts to tighten regulations on the virtual assets industry.Last week, Rep. Noh Woong-rae of the Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), who is also considered one of the top insiders of the party, issued a press release raising suspicions the Upbit operator may have been involved in illegal foreign exchange transactions using its shell corporations in Singapore and Indonesia.He claimed that the police will investigate Upbit in the near future.This came after JTBC, a local broadcaster, reported earlier this month that the police were paying attention to the exchange's possible Foreign Exchange Transaction Act violations through the method of trading foreign currencies internationally without

Jul 26, 2021By Park Jae-hyuk
[ANALYSIS] Upbit under attack from ruling party lawmaker
Economy

Korea to issue FX bonds buoyed by solid ratings outlooks

Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki. YonhapKorea relatively insulated from worldwide sovereign credit downgrades By Lee Kyung-min The Ministry of Economy and Finance plans to issue $1.5 billion (1.7 trillion won) worth of foreign exchange stabilization bonds (forex bonds) in the U.S. and Europe on the back of foreign investors’ high assessment of the country’s economy, as evidenced by stable sovereign credit ratings and outlook from three global rating agencies. This is the latest effort to draw greater foreign investment via issuing dollar- and euro-denominated bonds at lower-than-expected yields, which translates into decreased overseas borrowing costs for local state-run and private firms.Anchoring the plan is a number of key financial market indices reflecting foreign investor confidence in the country's overall economy and credit status, underpinned by continued COVID-19 containment measures and robust exports that led to limited economic contraction over the past year despite concerns surrounding the spread of Delta variants.The credit s

Jul 25, 2021By Lee Kyung-min
Korea to issue FX bonds buoyed by solid ratings outlooks
Economy

National Pension Service's No.1 net purchased stocks turn out to be SK hynix, Samsung Biologics

National Pension Service headquarters in Jeonju, North Jeolla Province (Yonhap)By Anna J. Park SK hynix and Samsung Biologics are two local stocks that the National Pension Service (NPS) net purchased the most last year. The NPS is the country's largest institutional investor with around 884 trillion won ($767 billion) in assets under management (AUM) as of the end of April this year. According to documents released by opposition lawmaker Suh Jung-sook who received related information from the NPS upon request, the public pension fund net purchased 434.2 billion won worth of SK hynix stocks last year, the largest amount spent on net purchasing in local stocks. Samsung Biologics ranked second among stocks the NPS net purchased the most last year at 388.7 billion won, followed by Kia, Samsung C&T and HYBE Entertainment. The NPS is known to have generated around 280 billion won in profits by holding and selling some shares of HYBE Entertainment ― the managing company of K-pop group BTS and many more global and K-pop artists ― during the past several months, since the company made it

Jul 24, 2021By Anna J. Park
National Pension Service's No.1 net purchased stocks turn out to be SK hynix, Samsung Biologics
Economy

KakaoBank threatening KB's leading status in market cap

KakaoBank's Pangyo office in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province / Courtesy of KakaoBankBy Park Jae-hyukKakaoBank is poised to surpass KB and Shinhan financial groups in terms of market capitalization after its forthcoming initial public offering (IPO) slated for Aug. 6.The internet-only bank's IPO price was set at the upper end of 39,000 won ($33) per share following Thursday's demand forecasting session that attracted a record-high 2,580 trillion won worth of bids from institutional investors.As a result, the Kakao subsidiary has been able to go public with an 18.5 trillion won market cap, which is much higher than Hana Financial Group's 13.2 trillion won and Woori Financial Group's 8 trillion won.Although the online bank's market cap is lower than KB's 21.7 trillion won and Shinhan's 19.8 trillion won at this moment, securities analysts said it does not seem to be difficult for KakaoBank to enjoy a rapid stock price hike after its IPO, which will enable the company to become a bellwether in the nation's banking industry.KB Financial Group headquarters in Seoul / Courtesy of KB Financial G

Jul 23, 2021By Park Jae-hyuk
KakaoBank threatening KB's leading status in market cap
previous page
801802803804805
next page

Most Read in Economy