Seoul shares opened higher Monday on hope for the US Federal Reserve's rate cut and earnings releases of major tech firms this week. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 27.62 points, or 1.01 percent, to 2,759.52 in the first 15 minutes of trading. All eyes are on the US central bank's policy decision and earnings results by Apple Inc., Amazon.com Inc. and Samsung Electronics Co. The Fed is expected to cut rates as early as in September. In Seoul, tech and auto stocks l

South Korean shares closed sharply higher Friday, ending a two-day losing streak on large cap gains led by financial firms and shipbuilding companies. The local currency fell slightly against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 21.25 points, or 0.78 percent, to close at 2,731.90. Trading volume was moderate at 504.7 million shares worth 12.8 trillion won ($9.24 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 594 to 288. Institutions purchased a net 394 billion won wor

South Korean shares dipped by nearly 2 percent Thursday as tech and auto stocks crashed following an overnight drop on Wall Street. The local currency fell slightly against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index lost 48.06 points, or 1.74 percent, to close at 2,710.65. Trading volume was heavy at 433 million shares worth 13.4 trillion won ($9.67 billion) with losers outnumbering gainers 728 to 160. Foreigners remained net sellers for a second straight session, dumping a n

Seoul shares opened sharply lower Thursday, tracking overnight losses on Wall Street. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index lost 35.99 points, or 1.30 percent, to 2,722.72 in the first 15 minutes of trading. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 1.25 percent, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq plunged 3.64 percent Wednesday on worse-than-expected Q2 performances by major tech companies, including Tesla. In Seoul, most large caps were in negative terrain. Market kingpin and tech giant Samsun

LG Chem announced on Wednesday that Rhythm Pharmaceuticals, which had acquired the global license for LB54640 -- a new oral drug for a rare form of obesity developed by LG Chem -- has begun giving doses to the first participants in a phase 2 clinical trial. For the phase 2 trial, Rhythm Pharmaceuticals recruited 28 patients aged 12 and older with hypothalamic obesity -- a condition caused by congenital or acquired damage to hypothalamic function, resulting in difficulties in appetite control. Th

Seoul shares closed higher Tuesday to snap a four-day losing streak, tracking an overnight rebound in US tech stocks. The local currency rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 10.78 points, or 0.39 percent, to close at 2,774.29. Trade volume was moderate at 416 million shares worth 11.3 trillion won ($8.15 billion), with losers outnumbering winners 494 to 365. Foreign investors purchased 241.2 billion won worth of local shares, while retail investors an

Analysts here took a mixed view on how US President Joe Biden’s withdrawal from the November presidential race would affect South Korean shares, with growing uncertainty expected to hurt investor sentiment. Some brokerages expected the benchmark Kospi index to dip below the 2,650 level due to heightened short-term volatility. Others anticipated the main bourse would rise to 2,900 thanks to the recovery of shares in the semiconductor, automobile and rechargeable battery industries. These

Seoul shares fell more than 1 percent Monday, hit by declines in semiconductor stocks. The local currency fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) tumbled 31.95 points, or 1.14 percent, to close at 2,763.51. Trade volume was slightly moderate at 456.1 million shares worth 10.3 trillion won ($7.42 billion), with losers outnumbering winners 673 to 211. Institutions and foreign investors dumped local shares worth a combined 105.3 billion won, while retail

Seoul shares started lower Monday as most blue chips across the board retreated, led by battery and energy-related stock losses. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index dipped 5.57 points, or 0.2 percent, to 2,789.89 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Leading battery firm LG Energy Solution dropped 2.75 percent following news that it has recently suspended construction of its joint US plant with General Motors amid stagnation in growth of the electric vehicle market. Smaller rival Samsu

[코리아헤럴드=조혜림 기자] SK온이 미국 켄터키에 투자한 세계 최대 전기차 배터리 생산공장 양산을 앞두고 앤디 버시어 미국 켄터키 주지사가 방한해 국내 기업들을 상대로 추가 투자 유치에 대한 기대감을 내비쳤다. 그는 15일 코리아헤럴드와의 인터뷰에서 SK온의 58억 달러 투자에 대해 "주 역사상 최대 규모"라며 "관련 협력사들을 중력처럼 끌어들일 것"으로 기대를 내비쳤다. SK온은 포드와 함께 2022년 전기차 배터리 생산 합작 법인인 블루오벌SK를 공식 출범시켰다. 이후 58억 달러를 투자해 총 628만 제곱미터 (190만평) 부지에 켄터키 1·2공장을 짓는다. 두 공장은 미국 단일 부지 내 최대인 80GWh 이상의 생산 규모를 자랑한다. 버시어 주지사는 SK의 대규모 투자 이후 한국 기업들의 켄터키 이전에 대한 관심이 크게 증가했다고 말했다. 그는 "현재 SK와 포드가 어떤 협력사들이 필요한지와 공장에서 얼마나 가까운 위

Seoul shares closed slightly higher Tuesday as traders were trying to digest the effect of Donald Trump's possible victory in the US presidential election on the market. The local currency fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 5.17 points, or 0.18 percent, to close at 2,866.09. Trade volume was slightly heavy at 667.5 million shares worth 12.4 trillion won ($8.95 billion), with losers outnumbering winners 498 to 356. Foreign investors and instituti

SK On’s new battery plant in Kentucky – the world’s largest of its kind – will help attract more investments into the US state like “gravity,” Gov. Andy Beshear told The Korea Herald in an interview held in Seoul on Monday. SK On, the battery-making unit of SK Group, has set up a joint venture with US auto giant Ford, called BlueOval SK, in the southeastern state of the US, with a whopping $5.8 billion investment. “SK On’s project is the largest in

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear met with officials from South Korea's major electric vehicle (EV) battery and materials companies in a bid to attract additional investment to the US state, industry sources said Monday. The Kentucky governor came to Korea on Sunday for meetings on Monday with executives of car battery maker SK On Co. and Lotte Chemical Corp., which makes EV battery materials, according to the sources. He also plans to meet officials from LG Chem Ltd., which owns about an 80 perce

LG Chem has pledged to increase humanitarian support for villagers affected by the 2020 gas leak accident at its Indian subsidiary LG Polymers. According to the company on Wednesday, its top executives, including Vice Chairman and CEO Shin Hak-cheol and Chief Financial Officer Cha Dong-seok, visited Andhra Pradesh, a southern coastal state of India, on Tuesday to meet with the state’s Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu and local people. At the site, Shin expressed his deepest sympathy to

Seoul shares opened lower Wednesday, as investors sat on the sidelines after Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell fell short of offering more details on the path of the Fed's rate policy. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 5.96 points, or 0.21 percent, to 2,861.42 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite and the S&P 500 rose to record highs, although the Dow Jones Industrial Average edged down 0.13 percent. During his congression