South Korea Shares Expected To Remain Rangebound

The South Korea stock market has moved lower in back-to-back sessions, slumping more than 80 points or 3.2 percent along the way. The KOSPI now sits just above the 2,420-point plateau and it’s likely to remain in that neighborhood on Thursday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is rudderless amidst a lack of catalysts. The European and U.S. markets were mixed and little changed and the Asian bourses figure to follow suit.

The KOSPI finished modestly lower on Wednesday following losses from the financial shares, technology stocks and industrials.

For the day, the index dropped 22.34 points or 0.91 percent to finish at 2,421.62 after trading between 2,418.14 and 2,468.43. Volume was 461.3 million shares worth 7.54 trillion won. There were 498 decliners and 378 gainers.

Among the actives, Shinhan Financial sank 0.43 percent, while KB Financial fell 0.38 percent, Hana Financial dropped 0.98 percent, Samsung Electronics retreated 1.41 percent, Samsung SDI plunged 3.43 percent, LG Electronics was down 0.58 percent, SK Hynix slumped 2.15 percent, Naver weakened 1.55 percent, LG Chem tanked 2.85 percent, Lotte Chemical rose 0.25 percent, S-Oil surrendered 2.03 percent, SK Innovation plummeted 3.81 percent, POSCO tumbled 1.72 percent, SK Telecom declined 1.73 percent, KEPCO rallied 2.32 percent, Hyundai Mobis slid 0.67 percent, Hyundai Motor shed 0.74 percent and Kia Motors lost 0.65 percent.

The lead from Wall Street offers little clarity as the major averages opened higher, quickly dipped into the red and finished mixed and little changed.

The Dow shed 40.33 points or 0.12 percent to finish at 34,112.27, while the NASDAQ rose 10.56 points or 0.08 percent to close at 13,650.41 and the S&P 500 perked 4.40 points or 0.10 percent to end at 4,382.78.

The lackluster performance on Wall Street came as traders seemed reluctant to make significant moves following recent strength in the markets.

Amid the focus on the outlook for interest rates, traders kept a close eye on remarks by Fed Chair Jerome Powell – but he refrained from specifically addressing monetary policy, focusing instead on praise for the work done by the Fed’s Division of Research and Statistics.

Traders also shrugged off results of the Treasury Department’s auction of $40 billion worth of ten-year notes, which attracted average demand.

Crude oil prices fell sharply on Wednesday amid concerns about the outlook for demand and a jump in U.S. crude oil inventories. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for December lost $2.04 or about 2.6 percent at $75.33 a barrel.