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  • Policy

    Korea cuts fuel price cap by 150 won per liter as oil prices retreat

    Korea will lower its fuel price cap by 150 won ($0.09) per liter starting Saturday, reflecting the recent decline in global crude oil prices and easing tensions in the Middle East, the government said Friday. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources announced that the seventh round of the country's fuel price cap system will take effect at midnight Saturday, lowering the ceiling for gasoline, diesel and kerosene by 150 won per liter from the previous level. The move came after Finance Minister Koo Yun-cheol said earlier Friday that the government would adjust the cap system while maintaining emergency measures aimed at stabilizing consumer prices. "The government will adjust the emergency measures currently in place in phases by closely monitoring developments in the Middle East and the Korean economy," Koo said during a meeting of economy-related ministers. Under the new cap, refiners will be allowed to supply gasoline at up to 1,784 won per liter, diesel at 1,773 won and kerosene at 1,380 won. The government expects retail fuel prices at gas stations to fall from the low-2,000 won

    2 MIN READBy Lee Gyu-lee
    Korea cuts fuel price cap by 150 won per liter as oil prices retreat
  • Others

    KOSPI slides nearly 6% amid profit-taking in chips

    2 MIN READBy Jun Ji-hye
    KOSPI slides nearly 6% amid profit-taking in chips
  • Others

    SK hynix Nasdaq ADR listing seen as potential support for won amid prolonged weakness

    3 MIN READBy Jun Ji-hye
    SK hynix Nasdaq ADR listing seen as potential support for won amid prolonged weakness
  • Economy

    Bourse operator issues circuit breaker for KOSPI on sharp fall

    1 MIN READBy Yonhap
    Bourse operator issues circuit breaker for KOSPI on sharp fall
  • Economy

    KRX activates sell-side sidecar for KOSPI on sharp fall

    1 MIN READBy Yonhap
    KRX activates sell-side sidecar for KOSPI on sharp fall
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Economy

Targeted support to pandemic-hit sectors is desirable for S. Korea: OECD chief

Angel Gurria, secretary-general of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), delivers a speech during a conference to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Korea Development Institute (KDI) at Four Seasons Hotel in Seoul, Wednesday. Courtesy of KDIThe head of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) recommended Wednesday that South Korea provide targeted support to the sectors hit hard by the pandemic in light of growing pressure on public finances.Angel Gurria, secretary-general of the OECD, said that providing selective support will help boost private consumption, compared with universal assistance to all families."It is important to ensure that public money is spent efficiently, all the more so as Korea is the world's fastest ageing country, which implies considerable upward pressure on public spending going forward," Gurria said in an email interview with local media.His remarks came as South Korea is seeking to draw up an extra budget to provide another round of emergency relief handouts to small merchants and shop owners stung by

Feb 17, 2021
Targeted support to pandemic-hit sectors is desirable for S. Korea: OECD chief
Economy

Mirae Asset at risk of losing principal in Blackstone-backed Frontera investment

Mirae Asset Financial Group headquarters in central Seoul / Courtesy of Mirae Asset Financial GroupBy Anna J. ParkMirae Asset is facing the potential loss of a huge sum of the principal put in its overseas investment in the Frontera gas-fired power plant project, as the Texan plant owner filed for bankruptcy earlier this month. Earlier, Mirae Asset Financial Group's three affiliates and the Korean Teachers' Credit Union (KTCU) jointly decided in 2018 to invest a total of 160 billion won ($144 million) ― 80 billion won each ― providing senior secured debt loans to the natural gas plant that sells its electricity to Mexico.Back then, the investment had been considered stable and profitable, as global asset manager Blackstone Group owned 100 percent equity of the plant operator, Frontera Generation Holdings. It was the first overseas infrastructure investment by the KTCU, the manager of teachers' pension funds. However, the coronavirus pandemic disrupted energy demand in the market last year, leaving the gas plant in Texas in a liquidity crisis. Unable to fulfill debt payments for 2021,

Feb 17, 2021By Anna J. Park
Mirae Asset at risk of losing principal in Blackstone-backed Frontera investment
Economy

Coupang IPO could test Wall Street's appetite for profits

Coupang Founder Kim Bom-suk speaks during the Milken Institute's 22nd annual Global Conference in Beverly Hills, Calif., April 30, 2019. Reuters-YonhapBy Kim Yoo-chulCoupang's looming initial public offering (IPO) on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) could offer a chance to test investors' appetite for a promising but risky business. The digital shopping platform has been growing rapidly, while it remains saddled by huge debt, and will face fiercer competition from rivals such as Amazon as well as potential regulatory and labor risks.Coupang's business model is appealing, since the company is well-positioned to enjoy the so-called “network effect” when the value of a product, service or platform increases simply because the number of users grows and causes the network itself to grow.Basically, Coupang's core value proposition is that it wants to level up “customer experience” at discounted prices with new offerings that help third-party contractors (merchants) to possibly grow their key businesses. In other words, the more favorable the reviews of its service

Feb 17, 2021By Kim Yoo-chul
Coupang IPO could test Wall Street's appetite for profits
  • Coupang to upgrade delivery service after going public
Economy

Gov't long-term supply measures unlikely to curb housing, jeonse prices

Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki, second from right, speaks during a ministerial-level meeting at the Seoul Government Complex in Gwanghwamun, Wednesday. Courtesy of Ministry of Economy and FinanceKorea to pick ‘New Town’ finalists for housing supply By Lee Kyung-min The government will announce the candidates for areas where 250,000 new public housing units will be built as soon as possible, in a swift move to dispel concerns over the efficacy of the large housing supply plan. The list will be announced as early as March or June at the latest.Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said Wednesday that related revision bills will be submitted to the National Assembly this week for enforcement in June following National Assembly approval before April.Builders will be able to seek in-depth, extensive consultation with the government over the next three months to initiate state-led redevelopment and reconstruction plans in June, he added.“The government is aware of market expectations and concerns about how and whether the Feb.

Feb 17, 2021By Lee Kyung-min
Gov't long-term supply measures unlikely to curb housing, jeonse prices
Economy

ANALYSIS Metal markets see 'supercycle' amid reflation

Structural bull market begins amid post-pandemic recovery, ample global liquidity and weak dollarBy Anna J. ParkAmple liquidity in global markets and expectations of economic recoveries spurred by progress in coronavirus vaccinations have prompted the prices of commodities ― such as food, oil, industrial metals and chemicals ― to display an upswing. The price of the benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude increased 16 percent in February alone, surpassing $60 a barrel earlier this week and reaching the highest level since January last year. Copper prices this week also reached the highest level seen since May 2012, touching $8,437 a ton at the London Metal Exchange (LME). Copper prices rose around 9 percent so far this year due to tight supply and strong demand. Prices of other metals have also risen.The price of nickel reached $18,840, the highest since September 2019. Aluminum and zinc also witnessed a jump from the previous year thanks to increased global demand, mainly due to a rise in Chinese exports. Platinum prices also soared to their highest levels since September 2014

Feb 17, 2021By Anna J. Park
[ANALYSIS] Metal markets see 'supercycle' amid reflation
Economy

Korea to quicken implementation of home supply scheme: finance minister

Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki speaks during a meeting on the housing market at the government complex in Seoul, Wednesday. YonhapFinance Minister Hong Nam-ki said Wednesday the government will focus on accelerating the implementation of the latest housing supply plan in a bid to help stabilize rising home prices.The government said early this month it will ease construction regulations and support redevelopment projects in urban areas to increase the number of new homes by up to 836,000 nationwide in the next four years.Hong said in a ministerial meeting on the housing market that the country will first select the candidates for sections of land by the second quarter that will be used to build some 250,000 properties.Hong said the government will be able to supply 2.05 million homes across the country by 2025, the largest amount in two decades."It is time for market players to view housing buying in a cool-headed manner, given that apartment prices in Seoul sharply fell in the midst of the 2008-09 global financial crisis," he said.The latest housing policy centers on expanding the hom

Feb 17, 2021
Korea to quicken implementation of home supply scheme: finance minister
Economy

Moon says 'innovative' expansion of housing supply is urgent, telling land ministry to press harder

President Moon Jae-in speaks during a meeting at Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul, Tuesday. YonhapPresident Moon Jae-in emphasized the urgency Tuesday of significantly increasing the supply of new houses in an "innovative" way to stabilize the market.He was receiving a briefing from the land ministry on its 2021 policy at Cheong Wa Dae."I cannot but stress that real estate policy is the most urgent task in this period, in which the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport should succeed at all costs," Moon said.He called on the ministry to "leave its fate" to promptly stabilizing home prices and rents with a focus on a set of fresh measures unveiled earlier this month.On Feb. 4, the government announced a plan to provide a total of 830,000 additional housing units, including 323,000 in Seoul, by 2025 through development projects led by the public sector. It promised deregulation as an incentive.The move represented the latest in a string of policies aimed at curbing soaring apartment prices mainly in the greater Seoul area and other major cities.It has underlined a shift in the liberal M

Feb 16, 2021
Moon says 'innovative' expansion of housing supply is urgent, telling land ministry to press harder
Economy

ANALYSIS Banks rushing to reduce no. of apps, integrate digital financial services

gettyimagesbankLenders that neglect consumer convenience lack foresight By Lee Kyung-min Korea's leading commercial banks are introducing new apps with integrated financial services, in a move to better compete with their Internet-only fintech rivals defined by higher user satisfaction due to faster, easier and simpler app operation.Commercial banks' collective efforts toward digitization, however, are set to fall further behind, since less-motivated, traditional lenders lack the technological means to realize speedy app operation, something fintech service providers are bound to excel at via the healthy feedback loops of day-to-day fixes, following constant trial and error.No immediate consumer convenience is expected either through Open Banking or MyData, two key data-driven policy initiatives spearheaded by the Financial Services Commission (FSC). The reason is that while the system supposedly facilitates integration of the services of multiple financial groups, it fails to incentivize cooperation among these market players highly anxious about losing customers to their competitor

Feb 16, 2021By Lee Kyung-min
[ANALYSIS] Banks rushing to reduce no. of apps, integrate digital financial services
Economy

Kyobo urges regulator to launch investigation into Anjin

Kyobo Life Insurance Chairman Shin Chang-jae delivers a speech during the firm's New Year seminar at its headquarters in Seoul on Jan. 8. Courtesy of Kyobo Life InsuranceBy Lee Min-hyungKyobo Life Insurance has urged the nation's financial authorities to investigate Deloitte Anjin accountants over their suspicious internal trading with a client ― Hong Kong-based Affinity Equity Partners ― the life insurer said Tuesday.Kyobo and its financial investor ― an Affinity-led consortium ― are in a months-long legal dispute regarding Anjin's alleged involvement in apparent accounting fraud by manipulating Kyobo's corporate value at the request of the client.Prosecutors are looking into whether three Anjin accountants colluded with Affinity to distort Kyobo's pre-initial public offering (IPO) stock price.But the insurer considered the ongoing investigation “not enough” and presented a petition recently to the two financial authorities here, the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) and Financial Services Commission (FSC), asking them for a thorough investigation. Kyobo insisted the a

Feb 16, 2021By Lee Min-hyung
Kyobo urges regulator to launch investigation into Anjin
Economy

Banking groups support SMEs

Financial Services Commission (FSC) Chairman Eun Sung-soo, third from left, speaks during a meeting with heads of the nation's five largest banking groups at the Korea Federation of Banks headquarters in Seoul, Tuesday. They discussed additional loan maturity extensions for small businesses facing difficulties from the COVID-19 pandemic. From left are NongHyup Financial Group Chairman Son Byung-hwan, Shinhan Financial Group Chairman Cho Yong-byoung, Eun, KB Financial Group Chairman Yoon Jong-kyoo, Hana Financial Group Chairman Kim Jung-tai and Woori Financial Group Chairman Son Tae-seung. Courtesy of FSC

Feb 16, 2021By Park Jae-hyuk
Banking groups support SMEs
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