S. Korea’s current account surplus at 2-yr high; full-year surplus to top BOK forecast

South Korea’s current account surplus rose in September to its highest level in two years on the back of rebounding exports of chips and automob...

Korea’s No. 1 chicken franchise raises $8.2bn in subscriptions

South Korea’s No. 1 fried chicken franchise operator Kyochon F&B pulled in a staggering $8.2 billion in deposits during its two-day public s...

Korea's largest job portal JobKorea up for sale

South Korea-based private equity firm H&Q has begun the sale process for JobKorea, the country's largest job portal estimated to be worth up to $7...

KIC CEO Choi Heenam named S.Korea’s financial ambassador

South Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has appointed Choi Heenam, chief executive of the Korea Investment Corporation (KIC), as the country's...

S. Korea's FX reserves rise for 7th straight month to record-high $426.5 bn

South Korea's foreign exchange reserves rose for a seventh straight month to a fresh record high in October due to gains in non-dollar assets and incr...

Korea’s EV battery stocks surge on Europe sales, US vote

Shares of South Korea’s three leading electric vehicle battery makers surged Tuesday, on strong electric car sales in Europe and expectations th...

Strong KRW helps S. Korea hold above $30,000 per capita GNI

South Korea’s per capita income is expected to continue its downward streak for the second straight year in 2020 due to the coronavirus impact, ...

Samsung Engineering wins biggest-ever $3.6 bn deal; shares surge

Samsung Engineering Co., a construction arm of Samsung Group, has clinched a 4.1 trillion won ($3.6 billion) deal to build part of a refinery facility...

SK Holdings' board underpins new standard in Korea

On Jul. 21, SK Holdings Co.'s board of directors rejected management's request to simplify the reporting procedure for investment proposals. Among the...

Why Korea struggles to manage the US, China

As the United States and China fight like proverbial whales in the ocean, middle power dolphins like South Korea must strategize to avoid being crushe...

Transparency, GP commitment key in Korea LPs' manager selection

South Korea’s leading institutional investors, including the National Pension Service (NPS), rated general partners’ (GP) commitment and f...

KKR’s $3 bn Asia infra fund to raise $200 mn from Korea

South Korean pension funds and insurance companies will commit $200 million in aggregate to KKR’s first Asia infrastructure fund targeting to ra...

Neon signs give way to no-sign trend in Korea

Flashy, glittery neon signs used to be one of the signature sights of Seoul, a city that never sleeps. But these signs are slowly becoming a thing of ...

Korea's signature sauce gochujang goes global, riding on K-wave

South Korea’s food exports have surged on the back of Korean dramas, or more popularly known as K-dramas, gaining global popularity particularly...

US-China tensions push S. Korea to find middle way

The US and China trade disputes are unlikely to fade, whoever wins the Nov. 3 US presidential election, and South Korea needs to find a middle way bet...

Coffee Bean Korea seeks 100% stake sell-off

South Korea’s popular coffee house Coffee Bean Korea Co. is seeking to sell a 100% stake in the company held by Chief Executive Officer Park San...

Korea's signature sauce gochujang goes global, riding on K-wave

South Korea’s food exports have surged on the back of Korean dramas, more popularly known as K-dramas, gaining global popularity particularly in...

South Korea, The Oracle of Global Trends

Back in early 2004, my friend and I met with Bill Gurley and Mark Evans from Benchmark Capital, who were visiting Seoul from Silicon Valley to gat...

COVID-19 pandemic slams Korea’s job market; elderly workers rise

Hit hard by the fallout of the coronavirus pandemic, South Korea lost about 392,000 jobs in September, with the number of employed slipping for the se...

Korea's beauty chain pre-IPO attracts PEFs

South Korea's largest health and beauty franchise CJ Olive Young has received preliminary bids from around seven participants including global and dom...

Korea Post plans $87 mn US fixed income investment

Korea Post’s insurance arm is planning to select two asset management companies for around 100 billion won ($87.4 million) in US fixed-income in...

Bank of Korea keeps rate steady at record low; signaling no further action

The Bank of Korea has left its policy rate unchanged at a record low of 0.5% as was widely expected, citing a slow economic recovery amid the ongoing ...

Why a Biden presidency means more of the same with North Korea

If the Democratic Party candidate Joe Biden wins the US presidential election next month, as the polls suggest he will, many things will change. The g...

Brookfield's debt fund to raise $610 mn from Korea

Brookfield Infrastructure Partners will collect around 700 billion won ($610 million) from South Korean institutional investors for its second credit ...

Korea Does Matter: Why KED decided to go global

Korea Does Matter. This was one of many candidates for the name of our new global media outlet. Although we ended up going with our existing brand ...

Korea Investment acquires California-based office building worth $86 mn

Korea Investment & Securities Co. has acquired a luxury office building in Orange County, California valued at around 100 billion won ($86 million...

Korea’s biggest fried chicken brand aims to raise up to $61 mn in Nov. IPO

Kyochon F&B, South Korea’s No. 1 fried chicken franchise operator, plans to raise up to 71.3 billion won ($61 million) in an initial public ...

Gangneung, South Korea’s coffee capital

Wanna come to Gangneung for a sip of tasty coffee?For some 20 years, Gangneung has been the city of coffee for many Koreans.Located on the other side ...

Korea’s Hanjin Heavy up for sale, preliminary bidding by Oct. 26

Creditors of Hanjin Heavy Industries & Construction Co. will put the cash-strapped South Korean shipbuilder up for sale next month as the lenders ...

Kakao Pay set to be Korea's first mobile-payment fintech to go public

Kakao Pay Corp. is set to become South Korea’s first mobile-payment fintech company to go public as the company kicks off preparations for an in...