SEOUL, Oct. 9 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s exchange-traded fund (ETF) market has entered a new era, surpassing 250 trillion won ($180 billion) in total assets and reshaping what it means to be a “mega fund” in one of the country’s fastest-growing financial sectors. According to data from the Korea Securities Depository released Tuesday, the number [...]
Government Kicks Off “New Leap Fund” to Wipe Out Old Debts for Over 1 Million Borrowers SEOUL, Oct. 8 (Korea Bizwire) — The South Korean government has launched a new debt relief initiative aimed at helping long-term defaulters rebuild their financial lives, but officials face a key hurdle in securing cooperation from private lenders that [...]
SEOUL, Oct. 6 (Korea Bizwire) – Shares in securities firms, which have already doubled this year, are widely expected to further advance down the road on the back of increased turnover and market-friendly steps, industry watchers said Monday. According to the Korea Exchange (KRX), the index tracking listed securities firms’ stock movement has nearly doubled [...]
SEOUL, Oct. 6 (Korea Bizwire) – Nearly 60 percent of South Koreans feel a sense of anxiety about falling behind the trend of using generative artificial intelligence (AI) models to help with investments, a survey showed Monday. According to the poll by the Korea Press Foundation on 1,000 South Koreans, 59.1 percent of respondents expressed [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 29 (Korea Bizwire) — South Koreans believe they will need about 3.5 million won ($2,600) a month to live comfortably in retirement, but most expect to secure only two-thirds of that amount, according to a new survey by KB Financial Group’s research institute. The study, released Sunday, polled 3,000 people aged 25 to [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 25 (Korea Bizwire) — Delinquency rates at South Korea’s major credit card companies hit an 11-year high in the first quarter amid an economic slowdown, the central bank said Thursday. The delinquency rate on loan assets at the major card firms came to 2.3 percent as of end-March, the highest since 2014, according [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 24 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korean regulators said Tuesday they had broken up a sophisticated stock manipulation scheme involving some of the country’s wealthiest business operators and financial insiders, in what is being billed as the first major case under President Lee Jae-myung’s new crackdown on market abuses. The Financial Services Commission, the [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 18 (Korea Bizwire) — The U.S. Federal Reserve’s decision to lower its benchmark interest rate for the first time under President Donald Trump is fueling cautious optimism in Seoul’s financial markets, with analysts predicting improved liquidity and renewed foreign inflows — but also warning of lingering risks tied to trade negotiations. On Wednesday [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 16 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korean shares extended their record-breaking run on Tuesday, closing more than 1 percent higher on strong foreign inflows and a surge in chip stocks. The Korean won also strengthened sharply against the U.S. dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) gained 42.31 points, or 1.24 percent, to [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 16 (Korea Bizwire) — A growing number of South Koreans in their 40s and 50s are turning to individual Treasury bonds as a preferred tool for retirement planning, according to new data from Mirae Asset Securities, the sole distributor of the instruments. Figures show that 39.3 percent of investors in such bonds over [...]