Tech Shares Expected To Boost KOSPI On Thursday

The South Korea stock market has moved lower in consecutive trading days, slipping more than 25 points or 1 percent along the way. The KOSPI now rests just above the 2,500-point plateau although it figures to find traction on Thursday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is mixed to higher on optimism over the outlook for interest rates. The European markets were down and the U.S. bourses were mostly higher and the Asian market figure to follow the latter lead.

The KOSPI finished modestly lower on Wednesday as losses from the financials, technology stocks and oil and chemical companies were mitigated by support from the automobile producers.

For the day, the index shed 13.55 points or 0.54 percent to finish at 2,496.51 after trading between 2,488.42 and 2,510.13. Volume was 623.6 million shares worth 8.76 trillion won. There were 475 decliners and 388 gainers.

Among the actives, Shinhan Financial tanked 2.11 percent, while KB Financial retreated 1.12 percent, Hana Financial plunged 3.20 percent, Samsung Electronics skidded 1.07 percent, LG Electronics soared 2.68 percent, SK Hynix shed 0.46 percent, Naver lost 0.47 percent, LG Chem tumbled 1.80 percent, Lotte Chemical fell 0.29 percent, S-Oil dropped 0.96 percent, SK Innovation plummeted 4.60 percent, POSCO declined 1.61 percent, SK Telecom rallied 2.37 percent, Hyundai Mobis climbed 1.12 percent, Hyundai Motor accelerated 2.44 percent, Kia Motors spiked 2.74 percent and KEPCO was unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is mostly upbeat as the major averages opened higher and the NASDAQ and S&P 500 finished firmly in positive territory, while the Dow ended just below the unchanged line.

The Dow dipped 30.48 points or 0.09 percent to finish at 33,531.33, while the NASDAQ jumped 126.89 points or 1.04 percent to end at 12,306.44 and the S&P 500 added 18.47 points or 0.45 percent to close at 4,137.64.

The initial strength on Wall Street reflected a positive reaction to the Labor Department’s highly anticipated report on consumer prices, which said inflation matched estimates and rose in April.

The report also said the annual rate of consumer price growth eased to 4.9 percent in April from 5.0 percent in March. That marked the smallest 12-month increase since April 2021 and added to optimism about the Federal Reserve pausing its interest rate hikes.

Crude oil prices showed a notable move to the downside on Wednesday, giving back ground after closing high for three straight sessions. West Texas Intermediate for June delivery slumped $1.15 or 1.6 percent to $72.56 a barrel after peaking at $73.71 in the previous session.

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