With the unprecedented boom in the U.S. stock market since the beginning of this year, domestic individual investors have poured 4 trillion won (US$3 billion) into direct stock investments abroad, surpassing four times the amount invested during the same period last year. Securities firms are also r
After the announcement of corporate value enhancement support measures, Kia, which had been recognized as one of the representative low Price-to-Book Ratio (PBR) stocks and had shown an upward trend, surpassed Hyundai Motor, often referred to as its “big brother” within the group, in market capitali
A huge wave that began with Chinese e-commerce platform AliExpress is now on the horizon, making it to more difficult to predict the future of the Korean e-commerce market.While Korean e-commerce players are competing fiercely for survival, the United States, China, and other Asian countries have jo
The National Pension Service (NPS) has come out against the reappointment of Cho Won-tae, president and chairman of Korean Air, as an inside director, sparking interest in the reasons behind the move.According to the aviation industry on March 17, the NPS’s Fund Management Committee is expected to v
Recently, there has been a trend where shareholder demands for increased shareholder returns have slightly subsided as proposals such as the retirement of repurchased stocks or dividend expansions were rejected at shareholder meetings. While companies have temporarily relieved the pressure by proact
The combined operating profit of the top 10 companies by market capitalization in the South Korean stock market falls short of those of leading Japanese company Toyota and top Taiwanese company TSMC.To address the “Korea discount,” which refers to the undervaluation of South Korean stocks, it is poi
Even after surpassing the “psychological resistance level” of 100 million won, bitcoin continues its upward trend in the domestic market.In particular, a phenomenon known as the “kimchi premium” is observed, where the price of bitcoin in the domestic market is forming higher than that in the U.S. ma
The author is an analyist for NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at junsup@nhqv.com -- Ed.HGI’s 2023 dividend announcement fell somewhat short of market expectations. However, if sufficient profits available for dividend are secured through system improvements, an expansion of shareholder
Lotte Chemical is reportedly considering the sale of its Malaysian subsidiary Lotte Chemical Titan (LC Titan).According to industry sources on Mar. 6, Lotte Chemical is searching for potential buyers for LC Titan, including Korean and foreign petrochemical companies and large private equity funds (P
Last quarter, the global semiconductor industry witnessed a nearly 30% increase in DRAM revenue compared to the previous quarter. According to TrendForce, a market research firm based in Taiwan, on March 5, global DRAM revenue reached US$17.46 billion in the fourth quarter, marking a 29.6% growth fr
HLB disclosed on March 4 that its board of directors has approved the issuance of 60 billion won in convertible bonds to domestic private equity funds and others. The primary purpose of this fundraising is to secure operational funds. Although the company currently holds over 65 billion won in cash
The former chief technology officer (CTO) of Kakao Bank, who sparked controversy by exercising stock options worth some 7 billion won (US$5.25 million) immediately after Kakao Bank’s listing, has been nominated as the new CTO of Kakao.According to the IT industry on March 4, it has been reported tha
SK D&D, the real estate development arm of SK Group, announced on March 4 that it held a board meeting and completed its spin-off into two entities: SK D&D and SK eternix.As a result of the spin-off, SK D&D will focus on real estate operations, while SK eternix will specialize in renewable energySK
The author is an analyst for NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at bk@nhqv.com -- Ed.Global stock markets have rallied of late, with the S&P500 surging for four months in a row. In February, the Kospi has outperformed other major markets. But, the fast market growth is likely to bolster p
Woori Financial Group has established a strategic partnership with Mubadala, the sovereign wealth fund of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), between their respective subsidiaries.According to sources in the financial sector on Feb. 28, Woori Venture Partners, a subsidiary of Woori Financial Group, sign
The author is an analyst for NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at junsup@nhqv.com -- Ed.From now forward, we believe that the key to determining the value of financial sector plays is to be the existence of specific shareholder return policies and the market's level of trust in them.Boos
The author is an analyst for NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at youngryu@nhqv.com -- Ed.Micron begins mass production of HBM3EMicron has kicked off full-scale production of HBM3E (24GB 8-high) to be used for Nvidia’s H200, which is scheduled to be shipped from 2Q24. The company has als
Mirae Asset Securities announced on Feb. 27 that the number of its retail customer accounts in India has exceeded 1 million.After the launch of the online trading platform “m.Stock” in April 2022, the Indian unit of Mirae Asset Securities has rapidly ascended in the rankings within the local online
Starbucks Korea has halted sales of its sparkling water Perrier following a quality control controversy.Starbucks Korea announced on Feb. 26 that it has preemptively suspended sales of Perrier from Feb. 1 following quality control issues raised by the brand’s overseas manufacturer.Perrier is a spark
Foreign investors who invest in domestic stocks and bonds will see significant improvements in the complex foreign exchange procedures they have faced so far. It is expected that the accessibility of foreign investors to the domestic market and the Korean won will improve.The Bank of Korea and the M