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  • Economy

    DWS Group bullish on Korea logistics, upbeat on stock market reforms

    DWS Group said Monday that European real estate is expected to deliver annual returns of 9 percent over the next five years, offering fresh investment opportunities for Korean investors despite their recent caution toward alternative assets. Speaking during a press meeting at the International Finance Center in Seoul, officials from the German asset manager noted that European real estate has become increasingly attractive as supply remains tight across major sectors, while demand continues to be supported by structural factors. Clemens Schaefer, global head of real estate for the Asia-Pacific, Europe, Middle East and Africa at DWS Group, said vacancy rates in Europe's residential, logistics and office sectors are significantly lower than those in the U.S. But new supply is expected to remain limited, as high development costs and relatively low expected returns have discouraged developers from launching new projects. The company forecast that European real estate will generate annual returns of 9 percent over the next five years, compared with 7.2 percent for the U.S. and 7 percent for

    2 MIN READBy Lee Yeon-woo
    DWS Group bullish on Korea logistics, upbeat on stock market reforms
  • Economy

    Korea's $519 bil. chip megaproject sparks Kosdaq rally, fails to lift KOSPI

    2 MIN READBy Park Han-sol
    Korea's $519 bil. chip megaproject sparks Kosdaq rally, fails to lift KOSPI
  • Economy

    Korean won tumbles to fresh 17-year low on foreign stock selloff

    1 MIN READBy Yonhap
    Korean won tumbles to fresh 17-year low on foreign stock selloff
  • Economy

    Seoul shares down 2% late Monday morning on tech losses, Iran uncertainty

    1 MIN READBy Yonhap
    Seoul shares down 2% late Monday morning on tech losses, Iran uncertainty
  • Economy

    Korea's ETF market overtakes Kosdaq for 1st time

    2 MIN READBy Lee Yeon-woo
    Korea's ETF market overtakes Kosdaq for 1st time
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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.

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Economy

BC Card embraces blockchain for new mobile voucher system

BC Card's headquarters in Seoul / Courtesy of BC CardBy Lee Min-hyungBC Card has implemented blockchain technology for its mobile voucher system, enabling users to enjoy an easier and more secure shopping experience, the company said Tuesday.According to the nation's largest card-processing firm, this latest technological achievement allowed its VIP customers to issue and use any vouchers via its mobile payment app, Paybook.Customers had to issue paper vouchers before the blockchain-based new technology was developed, but they no longer have to do so under the advanced system powered by blockchain, the company said.BC Card said it has applied the blockchain technology to 15 VIP-only vouchers, and plans to widen the category for more users to experience the convenient payment service.“The convergence of the technology and the voucher system is a major technological leap forward, which will pave the way for us to develop a more innovative and convenient payment environment,” said Kim Jin-chul, vice president at BC Card's customer service division.The company also underlined

Dec 15, 2020By Lee Min-hyung
BC Card embraces blockchain for new mobile voucher system
Economy

Will bitcoin replace gold as safe haven asset?

Experts split over future course of digital currencyBy Lee Kyung-min Bitcoin is back in spotlight as it has continued an upward spiral amid lingering uncertainty caused by the fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic, sparking debate over the future course of the digital currency. Opinion is split over whether bitcoin could replace gold as a safe haven asset. Some say this is possible since the gold price has peaked and bitcoin is increasingly being embraced by institutional investors who tend to seek stability over short-term profit.Others say this claim lacks merit because the speculative asset with high price volatility has a variety of “operational” risks.Bitcoin has fallen precipitously in the past few days and is hovering at around $18,000 (19.6 million won) after hitting an all-time high of $19,462.14, Dec.3 (local time). During 2020 the value of the cryptocurrency has risen about 170 percent. The price of gold is hovering at around $1,800 per ounce, Dec.9 (local time), down from a peak of over the $2,050 level in August. It dipped to as low as $1,780, Nov.30.New asset cla

Dec 15, 2020By Lee Kyung-min
Will bitcoin replace gold as safe haven asset?
Economy

Fate of Korean Air's 'water rage' heiress still up in the air

Hanjin Transportation Chief Marketing Officer Emily Lee Cho, left, poses with company officials at the logistics firm's Jeju branch, Thursday, to celebrate the test operation of hybrid electric parcel delivery vehicles. / Courtesy of Hanjin TransportationActivist fund urges owners to stay out of Hanjin TransportationBy Park Jae-hyuk Emily Lee Cho, also known as Cho Hyun-min and the younger sister of Korean Air owner Hanjin Group Chairman Cho Won-tae, is apparently facing a bumpy road in tightening her control over Hanjin Transportation, the group's logistics arm where she works as chief marketing officer (CMO).The major obstacle to her plan at this moment is HYK Partners, a newly established domestic private equity firm (PEF) which is the second-largest shareholder of Hanjin Transportation with a 9.79 percent stake, following the group's holding company Hanjin KAL's 27.69 percent.According to Hanjin Transportation, HYK sent the company a proposal last week calling for the reform of its governance structure and an increase in shareholder value. Both the logistics firm and the PEF decl

Dec 15, 2020By Park Jae-hyuk
Fate of Korean Air's 'water rage' heiress still up in the air
Economy

Soaring won puts forex authorities in a bind

By Lee Kyung-min The rapid appreciation of the won continues to spell trouble for the foreign exchange authorities in Korea, a repeated dilemma over whether market intervention is needed to “rein in” the fast-soaring local currency that saps the competitive edge of the export-reliant economy. The concern is growing since Korea can look only to exports, which have had a better-than-expected performance amid the COVID-19 pandemic, as the only reason for optimism given the sharp tightening of consumption set to worsen due to a third wave of coronavirus infections.Market intervention via buying U.S. dollars to weaken the won will entail an immediate warning from the U.S., drawing attention to Korea that is already on the list of countries under close monitoring for currency manipulation.Economists and market analysts say the local currency will continue to strengthen as the U.S. dollar is highly likely to weaken following a massive stimulus package pledged by U.S. President-elect Biden.The local currency closed

Dec 15, 2020By Lee Kyung-min
Soaring won puts forex authorities in a bind
Economy

FSC chairman vows to stably navigate pandemic-stricken market next year

Chairman of the Financial Services Commission (FSC) Eun Sung-soo speaks during an online press conference held at the Government Complex in Seoul, Monday. / Courtesy of FSCFSC chief said no.1 priority next year is overcoming COVID-19By Anna J. ParkThe chief of the nation's financial regulator vowed to continue to take all necessary measures to stabilize Korea's pandemic-stricken market conditions, stressing the number one priority of the financial authority in the next year will be overcoming the COVID-19 crisis.Speaking at this year's year-end press conference, which was held online due to the pandemic, Financial Services Commission (FSC) Chairman Eun Sung-soo said the financial regulator will swiftly and aggressively respond to the market's changing needs, just as it has throughout the year with a stimulus package program in place worth more than 175 trillion won ($160 billion). Eun said the financial market is facing uncharted territory with the pandemic crisis, as it has to solve mutually-conflicting policy goals, such as providing urgent and ample liquidity to local businesses w

Dec 14, 2020By Anna J. Park
FSC chairman vows to stably navigate pandemic-stricken market next year
Economy

Prudential Life deepening internal crack amid downsizing

Prudential Life Insurance Company of Korea headquarters in Seoul / Courtesy of Prudential Life Insurance Company of KoreaBy Lee Min-hyungPrudential Life Insurance Company of Korea is taking an aggressive step to cut fixed costs by receiving its first-ever voluntary retirement applications, a move seen as part of its preparation for the upcoming integration with KB Life Insurance.The step, however, is expected to raise a sense of uncertainty among the insurer's quality life planner employees, as this is the first time that the company took the measure in three decades since it tapped into the Korean market in 1990.Prudential Life said the decision was inevitable amid the dismal industry outlook stemming from the prolonged low interest rate and dwindling economic growth. The insurer will receive applications for voluntary retirement from employees over 46 years of age or who have worked for the company for more than two decades.But the decision is unnerving its employees, as the move is unprecedented and the company awaits a planned integration with the KB affiliate within the next cou

Dec 14, 2020By Lee Min-hyung
Prudential Life deepening internal crack amid downsizing
Economy

Eximbank provides $500 mil. for Mozambique gas project

A render of LNG plants in Mozambique / Courtesy of MitsuiThe Export-Import Bank of Korea (Eximbank) said Monday it will provide $500 million (545 billion won) in financial support for a major integrated liquefied natural gas (LNG) project in Mozambique.The project financing by the state-run lender is aimed at helping Korean companies successfully complete the construction of two LNG plants in the southern African nation.Daewoo Engineering & Construction and a group of small- and medium-sized Korean firms are participating in the project, according to Eximbank.The total value of the project is about $23.5 billion. When the project is finished, about 12.9 million tons of LNG will be produced from the plants annually. This amounts to 23 percent of Korea's annual LNG imports, the lender said.“We expect the project to create 1,300 new jobs annually and promote foreign exchange earnings,” an official from the lender said. The Korean construction and equipment manufacturers taking part in the project plan to invest $550 million in the five-year project.Eximbank also said it

Dec 14, 2020
Eximbank provides $500 mil. for Mozambique gas project
Economy

Sales of Korean companies edge up in 2019, but operating profits tumble

An outdoor shopping street remains vacant amid fears of the coronavirus in Seoul, Dec. 7, 2020. APSouth Korean companies saw their combined sales inch up in 2019 but their operating profits tumble amid a trade spat between the United States and China, as well as weak demand for semiconductors, government data showed Monday. The combined sales of 752,675 companies reached 4,987 trillion won (US$4.52 trillion) last year, up 1.9 percent from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. Their operating profit slipped 22.7 percent on-year to 220 trillion won in 2019, the data showed. Last year's operating profit marked the sharpest decline since 2011, when Statistics Korea began compiling such data.Big companies with assets worth over 10 trillion won, including Samsung Electronics Co. and Hyundai Motor Co., accounted for 56.8 percent of the combined operating profit of the South Korean businesses last year, underscoring that South Korea's economy is still dominated by conglomerates, known here as chaebol.In 2019, the country had 2,391 big companies, accounting for a

Dec 14, 2020
Sales of Korean companies edge up in 2019, but operating profits tumble
Economy

Fiscal woes deepen as number of 'zombie companies' spikes

gettyimagesbank'Strengthened social safety net should limit job losses' By Lee Kyung-minThe number of companies unable to pay interest on loans reached 4,000 in 2019, fueling corporate insolvency concerns exacerbated by “zombie companies” amid the virus-induced economic meltdown due to their shaky financials that had already been in trouble long before the virus came into the picture.Experts recommend corporate restructuring should be pursued equally with strengthened unemployment benefits, coupled with the greater role of private equity funds (PEFs) in the private sector.A zombie company is an indebted business that only has funds to pay off interest on loans, but not the principle loans themselves, depending on creditors or government bailouts to keep afloat. Data from the Korea Capital Market Institute (KCMI) released Dec. 7 during a seminar showed the number of zombie companies subject to external audits that reported interest coverage ratios below 1 for the third consecutive year reached a record high of 4,046 in 2019. The figure jumped from 1,716 in 2007 and 3,082 i

Dec 14, 2020By Lee Kyung-min
Fiscal woes deepen as number of 'zombie companies' spikes
Economy

JPMorgan's 'unreliable' outlook on Korean companies

Celltrion Chairman Seo Jung-jin shares his company's roadmap for growth during a JPMorgan healthcare conference in San Francisco on Jan. 15. / Yonhap By Lee Min-hyungJPMorgan's seemingly “unreliable and radical” forecast on Korean companies is raising eyebrows from investors after it turned out that most local stocks that the U.S. investment bank predicted to fall this year reported whopping growth.Late last year, JPMorgan urged investors to sell shares of Netmarble, one of the biggest game firms here, setting its target stock price at 60,000 won ($54.95) in 2020.But the company closed at 128,500 won on Friday on the main bourse. Despite the pessimistic growth forecast by JPMorgan, Netmarble shares jumped to as high as 200,000 won in September.The negative outlook was in contrast to what most Korean brokerage houses had been saying. Earlier this year, eBest Investment & Securities expected Netmarble shares to rise to 115,000 won on hopes of the firm's launch of new

Dec 14, 2020By Lee Min-hyung
JPMorgan's 'unreliable' outlook on Korean companies
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