Tech Surge Poised To Propel South Korea Shares

The South Korea stock market on Thursday halted the four-day winning streak in which it had soared almost 100 points or 4 percent. The KOSPI now rests just above the 2,400-point plateau although it’s expected to bounce higher again on Friday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is upbeat on encouraging inflation data and an improved outlook for interest rates. The European and U.S. markets were sharply higher and the Asian bourses are tipped to follow suit.

The KOSPI finished modestly lower on Thursday following losses from the technology and oil companies, while the financials and chemicals were mixed.

For the day, the index dropped 22.18 points or 0.91 percent to finish at 2,402.23 after trading between 2,401.99 and 2,426.10. Volume was 886 million shares worth 9.2 trillion won. There were 525 decliners and 319 gainers.

Among the actives, Shinhan Financial collected 0.40 percent, while Hana Financial retreated 1.58 percent, Samsung Electronics tanked 2.58 percent, Samsung SDI weakened 1.76 percent, LG Electronics stumbled 1.39 percent, SK Hynix eased 0.11 percent, Naver tumbled 2.22 percent, LG Chem plunged 2.80 percent, Lotte Chemical advanced 0.86 percent, S-Oil plummeted 3.26 percent, SK Innovation slumped 1.09 percent, POSCO dropped 0.88 percent, SK Telecom declined 1.56 percent, KEPCO surrendered 2.42 percent, Kia Motors skidded 1.19 percent and Hyundai Motor, Hyundai Mobis and KB Financial were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is broadly positive as the major averages saw their best performance in two years, opening sharply higher Thursday and continuing to accelerate as the day progressed, ending near session highs.

The Dow skyrocketed 1,201.43 points or 3.70 percent to finish at 33,715.37, while the NASDAQ exploded for 760.97 points or 7.35 percent to close at 11,114.15 and the S&P 500 surged 207.80 points or 5.54 percent to end at 3,956.37.

The rally on Wall Street followed the release of a report from the Labor Department showing a smaller than expected monthly increase in consumer prices and a bigger than expected slowdown in the annual rate of price growth.

The data suggests the Federal Reserve’s efforts to contain inflation are having an effect, reinforcing recent optimism the central bank will slow the pace of interest rate hikes as early as next month.

Crude oil prices climbed higher on Thursday, rebounding after three straight days of losses as the dollar fell on the better than expected U.S. inflation data. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for December ended higher by $0.64 or 0.8 percent at $86.47 a barrel.