South Korea Bourse Expected To Crack Resistance At 3,200 Points

The South Korea stock market has climbed higher in four straight sessions, rising almost 65 points or 2.1 percent along the way. The KOSPI now sits just beneath the 3,200-point plateau and it’s tipped to extend its gains again on Friday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is upbeat on optimism for economic recovery and rising crude oil prices. The European and U.S. markets were up and the Asian bourses are expected to follow suit.

The KOSPI finished modestly higher on Thursday as gains from the financials and technology stocks were offset by weakness from the chemical companies and automobile producers.

For the day, the index added 11.95 points or 0.38 percent to finish at 3,194.33 after trading between 3,178.99 and 3,204.48, Volume was 1.3 billion shares worth 17.4 trillion won. There were 468 decliners and 375 gainers.

Among the actives, Shinhan Financial collected 0.94 percent, while KB Financial jumped 1.50 percent, Hana Financial climbed 1.22 percent, Samsung Electronics rose 0.12 percent, LG Electronics skyrocketed 6.50 percent, SK Hynix added 0.36 percent, Naver eased 0.13 percent, LG Chem lost 0.67 percent, Lotte Chemical retreated 1.22 percent, S-Oil skidded 1.25 percent, POSCO perked 2.22 percent, SK Telecom rallied 2.39 percent, KEPCO shed 0.41 percent, Hyundai Motor dropped 0.86 percent, Kia Motors sank 0.93 percent and SK Innovation was unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is broadly positive as stocks moved sharply higher on Thursday, offsetting losses from the previous session and sending the Dow and the S&P 500 to fresh record closing highs.

The Dow spiked 305.10 points or 0.90 percent to finish at 34,035.99, while the NASDAQ jumped 180.92 points or 1.31 percent to end at 14,038.76 and the S&P 500 gained 45.76 points or 1.11 percent to close at 4,170.42.

The rally on Wall Street followed a batch of largely upbeat U.S. economic data, including a Commerce Department report showing retail sales spiked much more than expected in March. A separate report from by the Labor Department said first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits pulled back much more than expected last week.

Also, The National Association of Home Builders noted a modest increase in U.S. homebuilder confidence in April, while the Federal Reserve reported a rebound in industrial production last month.

Oil futures settled higher on Thursday, extending gains to a fourth straight session, continuing to ride on the recent upward revision in the global oil demand forecast by the International Energy Agency. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for May ended higher by $0.31 or 0.5 percent at $63.46 a barrel.