BOK chief warns household debt near tipping point, keeps rates steady

BOK chief warns household debt near tipping point, keeps rates steady

Rhee Chang-yong, governor of the Bank of Korea (BOK), warned on Thursday that mounting household debt is now undermining both private consumption an...

NPS boosts allocation to direct lending, secondaries

NPS boosts allocation to direct lending, secondaries

The National Pension Service (NPS), the world’s third-largest pension fund, has been further diversifying its portfolio through increased expo...

Vietnam, gateway for SK Group’s global renewable energy push

Vietnam, gateway for SK Group’s global renewable energy push

TIEN GIANG, VIETNAM – Off the coast of Vietnam’s Tien Giang Province, 36 wind turbines spin steadily with a constant whoosh and swish, g...

Shinhan Financial’s overseas business blooms, on track for record earnings

Shinhan Financial’s overseas business blooms, on track for record earnings

Shinhan Financial Group Co., South Korea’s leading financial holding company, is poised to surpass 1 trillion won ($692 million) in annual net...

Korea’s OCI, Israel’s Arava Power to jointly build solar cell plant in Texas

Korea’s OCI, Israel’s Arava Power to jointly build solar cell plant in Texas

OCI Energy Co., a US subsidiary of South Korea’s OCI Holdings Co., and Israel’s Arava Power will jointly build a solar cell power plant ...

Korean pension funds raise bets on infrastructure, global stocks

Korean pension funds raise bets on infrastructure, global stocks

South Korean pension funds are raising their bets on infrastructure and global stocks, while reducing exposure to the domestic stock market on a dow...

China's Miniso re-enters S.Korea

China's Miniso re-enters S.Korea

Miniso, a household goods store known as "the Chinese version of Daiso", has re-entered South Korea after three years.According to the retail indust...

Korea’s household debt sees ‘balloon effect’ as rules tightened in Seoul

Korea’s household debt sees ‘balloon effect’ as rules tightened in Seoul

South Korea’s household lending market is witnessing a balloon effect as tighter government lending rules for Seoul and its surrounding metrop...

NPS commits $436 mn to Koramco, Hana Alternative for real estate lending

NPS commits $436 mn to Koramco, Hana Alternative for real estate lending

The National Pension Service (NPS), South Korea’s largest institutional investor, has selected Koramco Asset Management Co. and Hana Alternati...

Korea’s financial exposure to real estate nearly doubles in 10 years

Korea’s financial exposure to real estate nearly doubles in 10 years

South Korea’s financial exposure to real estate has nearly doubled over the past decade, with lending to households making up about half. The ...

Samsung tops US consumer TV satisfaction study

Samsung tops US consumer TV satisfaction study

Samsung Electronics Co. ranked as the top TV brand for consumer satisfaction in the US, according to the 2024 American Customer Satisfaction Index (...

Kookmin to tighten loan limits to cool housing market

Kookmin to tighten loan limits to cool housing market

Kookmin Bank, South Korea’s largest lender under KB Financial Group, will tighten lending to curb mortgage loan growth in line with the govern...

BOK signals autumn rate cut as inflation, economic growth slow

BOK signals autumn rate cut as inflation, economic growth slow

South Korea’s central bank is likely to reduce interest rates in the next three months as inflation is expected to ease amid a slowdown in Asi...

Korea’s household debt hits record high on mortage loans

Korea’s household debt hits record high on mortage loans

South Korea’s household debt hit a record high in the second quarter as the domestic housing market started to recover and more consumers rush...

S.Korea’s July household debt grows at fastest pace in over 3 years

S.Korea’s July household debt grows at fastest pace in over 3 years

South Korea’s household debt is expanding at the fastest pace in over three years, clouding growth in Asia’s fourth-largest economy and ...

Mirae Asset's India Billion Consumer ETF surpasses $150 mn in net assets

Mirae Asset's India Billion Consumer ETF surpasses $150 mn in net assets

South Korea's Mirae Asset Global Investments said on Thursday that the net assets of its TIGER India Billion Consumer ETF surpassed 200 billion wo...

Direct lending, a core allocation for investors: M&G Investments

Direct lending, a core allocation for investors: M&G Investments

Private credit continues to lure investors, not least within one of the largest areas of private credit, direct lending. Providing reliable income s...

KIC eyes direct lending with high return potential: CEO

KIC eyes direct lending with high return potential: CEO

Sovereign wealth fund Korea Investment Corporation (KIC) seeks opportunities in direct lending for companies that are not cyclically sensitive and g...

M&A rebound will drive private credit volume increase: Golub Capital

M&A rebound will drive private credit volume increase: Golub Capital

As the Federal Reserve signaled delays in rate cuts after meeting earlier this month, more investors have adopted for a wait-and-see attitude. Those...

Affinity extends tender offer for food container maker Lock&Lock

Affinity extends tender offer for food container maker Lock&Lock

Hong Kong-based Affinity Equity Partners is set to extend its tender offer for South Korean food container maker Lock&Lock Co. shares, as the pr...

Korea’s household debt growth at 5-month high on mortgages

Korea’s household debt growth at 5-month high on mortgages

South Korea’s household lending growth hit a five-month high in April as mortgage loans increased amid signs of a recovery in the property mar...

Korea eyes $1.5 bn injection in KDB to boost chip, battery sectors

Korea eyes $1.5 bn injection in KDB to boost chip, battery sectors

South Korea may inject some 2 trillion won ($1.5 billion) into Korea Development Bank (KDB) by the end of this month to support the state-run bank's...

S.Korean government seeks to lower streaming service rates

S.Korean government seeks to lower streaming service rates

The South Korean government is seeking to lower the country’s video streaming service, or over-the-top (OTT) media service, rates as part of i...

Korean LPs stick to private debt amid market uncertainties

Korean LPs stick to private debt amid market uncertainties

South Korean limited partners will tap private debt as their most preferred asset class in 2024 to secure stable income amid geopolitical conflicts an...

The North Face supplier Youngone lends $177 mn to Scott

The North Face supplier Youngone lends $177 mn to Scott

Youngone Corp., a South Korean clothing manufacturer to global outdoor brands like The North Face and Patagonia, said on Thursday it has decided to ...

South Koreans expect inflation to slow, relief to BOK’s hawkish stance

South Koreans expect inflation to slow, relief to BOK’s hawkish stance

South Koreans expect inflation to slow over the next 12 months, providing relief to the central bank’s hawkish stance that policy rates should...

SK Group to buy 537 GWh green power from SK E&S

SK Group to buy 537 GWh green power from SK E&S

South Korea’s second-largest conglomerate SK Group is accelerating its net zero transition with its affiliates agreeing to buy 537 gigawatts h...

Japanese furniture brand Nitori to open first store in Korea

Japanese furniture brand Nitori to open first store in Korea

Nitori Co., dubbed Japan's IKEA, is slated to open its first store in South Korea next week, accelerating its Asia-centered expansion push, while su...

Korea Investment raises $400 mn to expand US assets

Korea Investment raises $400 mn to expand US assets

Seoul-based brokerage firm Korea Investment & Securities Co. (KIS) has raised $400 million in new bonds to strengthen its investments in the US ...

HD Hyundai joins $14 mn offshore wind power project

HD Hyundai joins $14 mn offshore wind power project

HD Hyundai Electric Co., the electrical equipment and energy solution company under South Korea’s shipbuilding giant HD Hyundai Co., has joine...

Kakao Pay backs out of acquisition deal for SSG Pay, Smile Pay Hanwha in talks to buy five-star hotel Paraspara Seoul Kia's Lego-like PV5 with 16 variants to hit market in July Stray Kids make K-pop history with landmark stadium show in Germany S.Korea’s most prominent business leader returns with all charges cleared