South Korea Stock Market Poised To Snap Losing Streak

The South Korea stock market has finished lower in two straight sessions, sinking more than 70 points or 2.8 percent along the way. The KOSPI now rests just above the 2,655-point plateau although it’s due for support on Tuesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is cautiously optimistic, with bargain hunting likely after overdone selling a day earlier. The European markets were down and the U.S. bourses were up and the Asian markets figure to follow the latter lead.

The KOSPI finished sharply lower on Monday following losses from the financial shares, technology stocks and industrial issues.

For the day, the index tumbled 47.58 points or 1.76 percent to finish at 2,657.13 after trading between 2,657.04 and 2,680.35. There were 761 decliners and 142 gainers.

Among the actives, Shinhan Financial dipped 0.24 percent, while KB Financial stumbled 3.07 percent, Hana Financial declined 2.67 percent, Samsung Electronics skidded 1.04 percent, Samsung SDI lost 3.02 percent, LG Electronics and SK Telecom both retreated 3.25 percent, SK Hynix tumbled 2.26 percent, Naver tanked 3.83 percent, Lotte Chemical weakened 1.79 percent, S-Oil slumped 1.42 percent, SK Innovation sank 2.52 percent, POSCO surrendered 3.21 percent, KEPCO dropped 1.17 percent, Hyundai Motor climbed 1.11 percent, Kia Motors eased 0.25 percent and LG Chem was unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street ends up positive as the major averages spent most on Monday in negative territory before a later rally pushed them solidly into the green.

The Dow jumped 238.06 points or 0.70 percent to finish at 34,049.46, while the NASDAQ spiked 165.56 points or 1.29 percent to end at 13,004.85 and the S&P 500 gained 24.34 points or 0.57 percent to close at 4,296.12.

The late rebound on Wall Street came as treasuries pulled back as the day progressed. The ten-year yield continued to give ground after ending last Thursday’s trading at its highest closing level since December 2018.

The NASDAQ benefited from a surge by shares of Twitter (TWTR), which shot up by 5.7 percent after the social media giant accepted billionaire Elon Musk’s buyout deal valued at about $44 billion.

The soft start was the result of lingering concerns about the outlook for interest rates ahead of the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy meeting next week, as well as concerns about global economic growth amid a surge in Covid-19 cases in China.

Crude oil prices fell sharply on Monday as a spike in Covid cases in China raised concerns about energy demand. A strong U.S. dollar amid rising prospects of a series of sharp interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve also weighed on crude oil prices. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for June ended down by $3.53 or 3.5 percent at $98.54 a barrel.

Closer to home, South Korea will release an advance estimate for Q1 GDP later this morning. GDP is expected to rise 0.6 percent on quarter and 2.8 percent on year after gaining 1.2 percent on quarter and 4.2 percent on year in the three months prior.