Samsung Confirms Record 110 Trillion Won in Shareholder Returns

* Editor's note: AI PRISM (Personalized Report & Insight Summarizing Media) is an AI-based personalized news recommendation and summary service developed with support from the Korea Press Foundation. It selects and provides six tailored news items by reader type.

1. Dividends Also Enter a "Megacycle": Surging Profits Point to 188 Trillion Won Next Year

Key summary: Samsung Electronics confirmed through its board a shareholder return of up to 110 trillion won combining dividends and share buybacks and cancellations, of which about 30 trillion won in cash dividends will be paid out first during the third quarter. The three-year cumulative shareholder return reaches 120 trillion to 140 trillion won, roughly five times the previous peak of 20.3 trillion won in 2020. According to FnGuide, free cash flow is projected at 376.2 trillion won next year, meaning that if the company maintains its existing policy of returning 50% of free cash flow, next year's return funds would arithmetically jump to about 188.1 trillion won. The financial investment industry views this striking scale of returns as a catalyst for resolving the Korea Discount, the undervaluation of Korean stocks.

2. In a Dizzying Market That Triggered 81 Circuit Breakers, Retail Investors Switch to Long-Term U.S. Holdings

Key summary: This month, four of the top five stocks bought net by retail investors were U.S. index ETFs, including the TIGER U.S. S&P 500 (641.8 billion won) and the KODEX U.S. Nasdaq 100 (426 billion won). Net buying by retail investors on the main board plunged from 42.4 trillion won in June to 2.75 trillion won this month, and the turnover rate for listed shares was halved, from 22.35% in June to 11.99% this month. The KOSPI fell 22.19% last month, an overwhelmingly steeper decline than the Nikkei 225 (-8.14%) or the Nasdaq (-3.20%), while the KOSDAQ barely held the 800 line at 801.94 on that day. Park Yeon-joo, head of the research center at Mirae Asset Securities, said the market is "in the process of digesting volatility, with investor sentiment dampened by excessive volatility in the first half."

3. As Producer Prices Turn Lower, Bank of Korea Says It "Will Consider the Side Effects" of Rate Hikes

Key summary: The producer price index last month fell 0.4% from the previous month, turning lower for the first time in 11 months, with declines led by coal and petroleum products (-5.1%) and chemical products (-1.3%) amid falling international oil prices. The Bank of Korea raised its base rate from 2.5% to 2.75%, or 0.25 percentage point, last month, and will decide at the Monetary Policy Board meeting on the 27th whether to hike again. New Deputy Governor Kwon Min-soo told reporters that day it is "a time to decide in a balanced, prudent and flexible manner, weighing both the policy effects and the side effects of rate hikes." Lee Heung-hoo, head of the Bank of Korea's price statistics team, said international oil prices had risen 11% from the previous month through mid-August, indicating that upward pressure on producer prices could grow again — a reading that keeps forecasts for a preemptive hike valid.

4. Fallout From Commercial Law Revision: Rights-Offering Withdrawals Double

Key summary: Since the revision of the Commercial Act extended directors' duty of loyalty to shareholders, withdrawal notices for rights offerings totaled 22 through the 20th of this month, double the 11 in the same period last year. EcoPro BM had planned a rights offering of 1.2 trillion won but has seen the schedule pushed back amid shareholder opposition and correction demands from the Financial Supervisory Service, and CEO Kim Jang-woo said the amount raised could be cut to 900 billion won. Golfzon Holdings, Gabia and SK D&D, among many other listed companies, are also facing disputes over tender offers and rights offerings, putting a sharp brake on corporate fundraising and mergers and acquisitions. An investment banking industry official said, "Rights offerings, tender offers and IPOs are all contracting, and since difficulties in raising capital hamper companies' ability to secure mid- to long-term growth engines, remedial measures are needed."