Korea Economic Daily

Saudi daily exports hit a three-year high Iran boosts tanker loadings Similar move seen last year ahead of a U.S. strike As concerns grow over a potential military clash between the United States and Iran, Middle Eastern countries appear to be increa

Bank of Korea governor: "I think the gap between current market rates and the policy rate is excessive" Oh Se-sung, Hankyung.com reporter sesung@hankyung.com

The median of the Bank of Korea (BOK) Monetary Policy Board’s projection for the policy rate six months ahead was presented at 2.50% per annum. The figure comes from the K dot plot, unveiled for the first time by the BOK on the 26th. Dots were also p

The Bank of Korea decided to keep the base rate at 2.50% per annum. It opted to hold rates for a sixth consecutive meeting after cutting the base rate by 0.25 percentage point from 2.75% per annum in May last year. The decision is seen as reflecting

HBM4 race heats up in earnest… Samsung Electronics and SK hynix show strength in the pre-market With Nvidia posting record-high revenue on sustained demand for artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure, shares of Samsung Electronics and SK hynix ar

Existing treasury shares to be cancelled within 18 months… companies with foreign ownership caps within 3 years "Expectations for additional policy measures will be priced into stocks" With the passage of the “third revision to the Commercial Act,” w

The KOSPI has surpassed the 6,000 mark for the first time ever, extending the steepest rally among major stock markets worldwide. With U.S. equities rebounding across the board overnight, expectations for the market on the 26th are also rising. Accor

Q4 beats market estimates Q1 outlook also tops expectations “Vera Rubin GPU leadership to continue” Nvidia delivered fiscal 2026 fourth-quarter (November 2025–January 2026) revenue and earnings per share (EPS) that exceeded market expectations. Its f

Major indexes in the New York stock market all moved higher, as funds flowed into tech shares ahead of Nvidia’s earnings release. On the 25th (local time) at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 307.65 points (0.6

◆Samsung Electronics holds Galaxy Unpacked…unveils S26 series Samsung Electronics on the 25th (local time) hosted its Galaxy Unpacked 2026 event in San Francisco, the United States, unveiling the Galaxy S26 Ultra, Galaxy S26 Plus and Galaxy S26. A ke

Power-hungry Big Tech data centers…hit emerging-market manufacturing As Big Tech ramps up investment in artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure, “computeflation”—inflationary pressure across global supply chains—has emerged as a new flashpoint fo

Retail investors’ “return to domestic equities” ignites the ETF market Betting on ETFs over individual stocks As top names such as Samsung Electronics and SK hynix surge Investors turn to ETFs rather than chasing individual shares 7 of the top 10 by

5,000 in a month, now 6,000 Up 44% this year alone Retail investors ‘sweep up’ 19 trillion won in a month Driving the market’s sprint Mandatory ‘treasury share cancellation’ Third round of Commercial Act amendments passes the National Assembly The su

Stripe moves to pursue M&A PayPal jumps 6.7% on takeover hopes U.S. fintech startup Stripe is reportedly pursuing an acquisition of PayPal Holdings. On the news, PayPal shares rallied sharply on the day. On the 24th (local time), Bloomberg, citing so

AMD–Meta sign AI infrastructure supply deal Supply-chain diversification; reduced reliance on Nvidia AI competitive landscape shifts from “training” to “inference” Focus on stronger bargaining power versus Nvidia Chinese media “closely watching” the

First-ever '6,000 KOSPI' milestone…also topped 6,100 intraday The KOSPI index on the 25th ushered in the era of the '6,000 KOSPI' (KOSPI index 6,000) for the first time ever. Buying by institutions and retail investors pushed the benchmark higher. Wi

President Donald Trump threatened in a post on social media yesterday, saying that “countries that want to play games will face tariffs far higher—and far worse—than what they recently agreed to.” It was a warning to brace themselves if they try to o

WTI, Brent down 1% Iran: "An agreement with the U.S. is within sight" Both sides preparing for possible military clashes Iran pushes to buy hypersonic missiles International oil prices posted a modest decline for a second straight day. With the Unite

U.S. President Donald Trump’s address to the nation is scheduled to take place at 9 p.m. Eastern time at the U.S. Capitol. He is expected to focus mainly on plans to ease cost-of-living pressures. At a White House press briefing held today (24th), Pr

Lee Chan-jin, governor of South Korea’s Financial Supervisory Service (FSS), met with chief executives of foreign financial institutions and asked for cooperation to advance the capital market. On the 25th, the FSS held a roundtable with CEOs of fore

Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance, Samsung Life, Samsung Securities Chairman orders: "Identify what we can learn from AI" Executives and working-level staff mobilized overseas Lee Jae-yong, chairman of Samsung Electronics, is said to have convened the

The KOSPI broke above 6,000 at the open. Index heavyweight Samsung Electronics rose strongly, pushing the benchmark into new territory. On the 25th, the KOSPI opened at 6,022.70, up 53.06 points (0.89%) from the previous session. Samsung Electronics

The KOSPI has only 30.36 points left to reach the 6,000 level. With the U.S. stock market in New York closing higher overnight, forecasts are emerging that a green light has been lit for the KOSPI to hit 6,000. Another positive factor is that concern

Financial infrastructure is changing rapidly, including payments and settlement Prepare by making active use of the 'regulatory sandbox' The landscape of digital finance is shifting rapidly. Stablecoins, blockchain-based capital markets, and even phy

Major indexes on Wall Street rebounded sharply. The move came after AI company Anthropic announced partnerships with several tech firms, easing fears that AI would disrupt the software industry. On the 24th (local time) at the New York Stock Exchange

President Lee Jae-myung said on the 25th in a post on his X (formerly Twitter) that he hopes legislation to cancel treasury shares “will be done as soon as possible, even by a moment,” adding that “there is a mountain of work to do, including a law t

◆ New York stocks end higher after rebound… Anthropic plays both arsonist and firefighter Wall Street’s three major indexes managed to rebound intraday on the 24th local time and closed in positive territory. Anthropic, recently dubbed the tech indus

January yen-dollar 'rate check' led by Bessent "If Japan had requested it, coordinated intervention by both countries would have been considered" Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is reported to have expressed reluctance over additional policy ra