The korea economic daily

Stock correction warning

BOK governor warns of abrupt stock market correction; holds rate steady

South Korea’s central bank governor has warned of an abrupt stock market correction, asking investors to refrain from excessive borrowing amid ...

Household debts

S.Korean banks' household, company loans near $1.8 trn

South Korean households and companies have taken out fresh loans worth 208 trillion won ($189 billion) from banks last year, pushing the outstanding ...

ESG management

Korea requires major companies to disclose ESG activities from 2025

Big companies listed on South Korea’s major stock market will be required to disclose their business activities related to environmental, socia...

Short selling

Calls grow for further or indefinite extension of short-selling ban

South Korean retail investors are speaking out against the lifting of a one-year ban on stock short selling ahead of its resumption scheduled for mid...

KOSPI

NPS boosts holdings in parts, materials, leisure stocks

The National Pension Service has raised exposure to parts, materials and leisure stocks in South Korea that had underperformed the broader markets, w...

S.Korea's cleaning and disinfecting appliance exports soar amid COVID-19 pandemic

Increased time spent at home due to the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic has led to the rise in exports of cleaning and disinfecting appliances, including ...

KOSPI

Kospi closes above 3,000 points for first time

South Korea’s benchmark stock index closed above the 3,000 mark for the first time on Jan. 7, powered by sectors such as telecoms and financial...

Pension funds

CPPIB owns one-quarter of Korea’s listed logistics REIT

The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) has emerged as the top shareholder in South Korea’s only listed logistics real estate investm...

Semiconductor exports

Korea’s chip exports to top $100 bn in 2021, second-best performance ever

South Korea’s semiconductor exports are expected to top $100 billion this year, led by rising demand for DRAM and system chips.According to the...

Kospi market cap

S.Korea's stock market cap tops nominal GDP for the first time

The combined value of South Korea’s main stock market, which wrapped up last year at its highest-ever closing level, topped the country’s...

Year-end review

Korea’s retail investors go West, eye golden ticket for big money

For South Korean stock investors, 2020 may go down in history as the year of The Great Quest for big money, and at the end of their journey they foun...

Market snapshot

Korea’s stock markets rise most among majors; beat S&P 500, Nasdaq gains

South Korean bourses on Wednesday wrapped up this year's trade at their highest levels of the year, rising the most among major equity markets and be...

Stock markets

Kospi hits fresh highs ahead of ex-dividend date

South Korea’s benchmark index Kospi hit a new intraday high on Dec. 28 at 2,834.59 points, just two days before wrapping up the year. However, ...

IPO performances

Korea’s liquidity-driven IPO market sets slew of fresh records in 2020

As the stock markets around the globe took a wild ride amid the pandemic in 2020, ample liquidity led to plenty of fresh records in the initial publi...

IPOs

Seoul stock markets brimming with startup IPOs in Jan

Singapore-based biosimilar maker Prestige BioPharma and nine startups are set to make initial public offerings in Seoul to raise at least 640 billion...

Year of ants investors

Korea’s retail investors shed loser image, turn pandemic into bonanza

In South Korea, as the saying goes, the stock market is at its peak if a swarm of individual investors go on a buying spree, often leading to heavy l...

Treasury yields

Korea’s treasury yields climb on hopes of vaccines, more bond issues

South Korea’s treasury yields are heading higher as advances in vaccine development and concerns over increased government bond sales prompt fo...

Kosdaq outlook

Kosdaq at 20-yr high, eyes opportune moment to emerge from bush league

Twenty years ago today, South Korea’s tech-heavy Kosdaq was reeling from the bursting of the IT bubble, with the junior market’s benchmar...

Markets

Seoul shares tipped to benefit from global indices' China exclusions

Global index providers' recent decisions to remove Chinese companies from their benchmarks are expected to draw additional global and institutional m...

Law revisions

Korea’s commercial law revisions irk businesses, limit top shareholders’ clout

The National Assembly on Wednesday passed a series of commercial law revisions designed to limit business owners’ clout and enhance supervision...

2021 Outlooks

J.P. Morgan lifts 2021 Kospi target to 3,200

Global investment firm J.P. Morgan projects South Korea’s benchmark Kospi will climb to 3,200 next year, up nearly 18% from the current 2,723....

Undervalued stocks

Investors set sights on value stocks as LG Electronics’ shares soar

With South Korea’s stock market indexes at or near all-time highs, finding bargains in the market is a daunting task.Growth stocks such as batt...

Personal pensions

Korea’s personal pensions gamble with risky stocks for higher returns

South Korea’s individual pension fund holders are moving their money out of banks and insurance companies into brokerages in pursuit of higher ...

Exporters' currency woes

Korea Inc. braces for tough year as strong KRW kicks in

South Korean exporters are bracing for a tough year with their profits poised to languish, hit by the strong won, amid expectations for a rebound in ...

Exports

Korea set to overtake Japan as No. 5 exporter by 2026

South Korea is set to overtake Japan and become the world’s No. 5 export powerhouse by 2026 on grounds that the country will maintain its curr...

Currency gains

KRW strengthens to 2.5-year high as Korean stocks rally

The South Korean won has strengthened to its highest level in two and a half years amid local stocks’ three-day bull run to a record high on ho...

Stock markets

Retail investor buying, foreign selling hit fresh highs on Kospi

Foreign investors sold a record volume of shares on South Korea’s main bourse on Nov. 30, triggering a sharp fall in the main stock index, whil...

Sovereign bonds

KRW bonds favored amid rekindled interest in riskier assets

SINGAPORE -- Global investors are returning to emerging market debt, including Korean won bonds, as they hunt for higher yields amid stronger local c...

Economic growth

BOK raises growth view as it holds rate, warns against V-shaped recovery

The Bank of Korea has raised its growth forecast for this year and next, citing advances in vaccine development and a rebound in exports, after keepi...

Fund inflows

Global funds flow into S.Korea as investors look to life after COVID-19

An increasing amount of global funds are flowing into South Korea as advances in COVID-19 vaccine development and a weaker dollar boost investors&rsq...