-- Retail sales in South Korea, a gauge of private spending, rose 1.8% in March from the previous month, after a 0.3% decline in February, according to data from Statistics Korea on Thursday.
On an annual basis, retail sales increased 5% in March, following a rise of 4.3% in the preceding month.
Cedar Woods Properties (ASX:CWP) reported a 12% increase in pre-sales at the end of the fiscal third quarter, reaching over AU$788 million, from AU$700 million in the same period last year, according to a Thursday filing with the Australian bourse.The company achieved 442 gross sales in the March quarter, its second-highest result on record, with sales lower than the prior quarter due to limited early stock availability.Western Australia and Queensland were the company's strongest-performing markets in the third quarter, with South Australia steady and Victoria remaining weak, per the filing.The company said it remains on track to deliver fiscal 2026 net profit after tax growth guidance of 30% to 35% and is well positioned for continued profit growth in fiscal 2027.The company's shares rose past 2% in recent Thursday trade.
Wingtech (SHA:600745) swings to a net loss attributable to shareholders of 189.3 million yuan in the first quarter from the year-ago attributable profit of 261.4 million yuan, according to a Shanghai bourse filing on Thursday.Loss per share was 0.15 yuan, compared to the year-ago earnings per share of 0.21 yuan.Operating revenue slumped 94% year on year to 816.4 million yuan from 13.1 billion yuan.
South Korean shares opened higher on Thursday, starting the trading at a new high after market mover Samsung Electronics (KRX:005930) reported strong first-quarter sales and operating income.In addition, strong Q1 earnings by top US firms such as Alphabet, Amazon.com, Meta Platforms, and Microsoft also boosted sentiment. The strong results also restored investor confidence in the AI sector boom.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index, or Kospi, rose by 48.49 points, to open at 6,739.39. The Kosdaq marginally gained to open at 1,224.75.Samsung Electronics posted first-quarter operating income of 57.2 trillion won, up 756% from 6.69 trillion won a year earlier. The South Korean chipmaker's sales jumped 69% year over year to 133.9 trillion won from 79.1 trillion won.The company said that its highest-ever quarterly revenue and operating profit were achieved via AI technology innovation and proactive market response. Favorable currency movements, particularly a stronger greenback, raised operating profit by about 1.8 trillion won on-quarter in Q1, primarily driven by the company's parts business.