Seeking Alpha: Shinhan Financial: A Great Korean Bank, And Priced Like It

Investors have gotten a little skittish about the prospects for an ongoing economic recovery in South Korea, as large exporters and sectors like property seem to be recovering but smaller businesses see more tepid results. That has stalled out the momentum in Korea's banking sector, but conservatively managed Shinhan Financial Group (SHG) continues to perform well from an internal operations standpoint. Although I see prospects for Shinhan to average a low teens earnings growth rate over the next five years, there just doesn't seem to be much value in the shares at this price.

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Shinhan Financial: A Great Korean Bank, And Priced Like It

Investopedia: Is Shinhan A Good Option For Investors Looking For Banking Performance?

Investors who want to put new money to work in the banking sector are finding a shrinking pool of good options out there. While there are a few banks here and there, like U.S. Bank (NYSE:USB), that still offer some solid long-term potential, most U.S. and Canadian bank stocks have caught up to their fundamental values and so many European banks are just a horror show of credit risk and low growth.

So what about emerging markets? Investors have started to worry about the growth outlook in Brazil, and the problems in Argentina have offered up a reminder that success in these markets can be fleeting. But Asia may be a different case. In particular, investors may want to consider the opportunity in Korea's leading bank Shinhan Financial Group (NYSE:SHG).

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http://stocks.investopedia.com/stock-analysis/2012/Is-Shinhan-A-Good-Option-For-Investors-Looking-For-Banking-Performance-SHG-BNS-KB-C0612.aspx

FinancialEdge: Kim Jong Il's Death And The Markets

When news broke late Sunday night that North Korean dictator Kim Jong Il had died, there was pretty much an instant sense of uncertainty and nervousness in Asian markets. The reason for this unease is not hard to ascertain; North Korea is a desperately poor country with a huge military. If the new leader, Kim Jong Un cannot quickly cement his power and authority, there is the threat and risk of civil war, military provocation against South Korea and/or Japan, and a continuation (or escalation) of the brinksmanship that Kim Jong Il used to keep world powers ill at ease.

What will this change in power mean for the markets, both in Asia and in the United States?


Markets Generally Hate Uncertainty 
It was not surprising to see markets in South Korea and Japan sell off on the news of this change in North Korea. More than anything, markets hate uncertainty and there is now a gigantic red question mark where North Korean policy is now concerned. To that end, it is perhaps a bit surprising that gold was barely up as of early Monday morning.

To read the full column, please follow this link:
http://financialedge.investopedia.com/financial-edge/1211/Kim-Jong-Ils-Death-And-The-Markets.aspx#axzz1h0AbjDPb

Investopedia: Citigroup On The Mend ... Slowly

It's just a fact of life that it's easier and faster to destroy than it is to rebuild. To that end, Citigroup (NYSE:C) has certainly been a frustrating stock to hold this year as the stock had been nearly cut in half before a recent rally. While this huge bank's third quarter earnings continue to point to progress, the reality is that Citigroup is still a long way from normal, and shareholders have to be content with more short-term disappointment if they want to see the long-term value play out.

Decent Third Quarter Results  
Although analysts had been marking down their expectations, going into this quarter, Citi didn't do too badly. Adjusted core revenue fell 2% on a sequential basis, as modest growth in regional consumer banking (2%) and decent growth in transaction services (7%) was offset by declines in securities and banking 12%. For whatever reason, it helps shareholders, this performance is likely to be the rule for other large banks like Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) (BofA) as well. 

To read more, click below: 
http://stocks.investopedia.com/stock-analysis/2011/Citigroup-On-The-Mend--Slowly-C-BAC-USB-WFC-SHG-BSBR-BAP1020.aspx

2010 - A Year Of Banking Dangerously

From recovery in Asia to hot growth in Latin America to seemingly near-collapse in Europe, it is a yeoman's task to try to sum up the 2010 world of international banking in under 800 words. Perhaps, though, that is the summation; Asia came back, Latin America never left and Europe struggled to hang on through the latest crisis. Suffice it to say, it sets the table for an interesting 2011. 

Asia - Been There, Done That, Learned the Lesson
To some extent, it is probably fair to say that between Japan's property bubble-fueled bank bubble and collapse (and a 20-year zombie economy), Hong Kong's boom-bust real estate markets and Southeast Asia's debt-fueled over-expansion of past decades, Asian bankers had already seen this movie before. Consequently, while the decline of global trade during the Great Recession did no favors for these economies, the underlying models were in better shape and 2010 saw good rebounds in many markets. (For more, see 7 Ways To Position Yourself For Recovery.)

Publicly-traded Korean banks like KB Financial (NYSE:KB) and Woori (NYSE:WF) lagged the U.S. S&P 500 (Shinhan (NYSE:SHG) outperformed), but were still up for the year and did quite a bit better than American banks on the whole. Japanese banks like Mitsubishi UFJ (NYSE:MTU) and Mizuho (NYSE:MFG) were likewise "yeah, but" performers - yeah, they did better than most American banks, but still not all that well.

Elsewhere in Asia, there was substantially better performance. Indian wonder twins ICICI (NYSE:IBN) and HDFC (NYSE:HDB) were strong stocks this year, as was Australia & New Zealand Banking Group (Nasdaq: ANZBY.PK). While China's efforts to cool inflation impacted the likes of China Construction Bank, Industrial & Commercial Bank, and Bank of China, the share price performance still holds up relative to many regional U.S. banks.


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