Tech Shares May Weigh On South Korea Stock Market

The South Korea stock market on Tuesday ended the three-day winning streak in which it had picked up more than 30 points or 1.3 percent. The KOSPI market now rests just beneath the 2,500-point plateau and it may take further damage on Wednesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is uncertain ahead of the FOMC’s rate decision and statement later today. The European markets were up and the U.S. bourses were mixed and the Asian markets figure to follow the latter lead.

The KOSPI finished barely lower on Tuesday following mixed performances from the financial shares, technology stocks, chemicals and industrials.

For the day, the index eased 1.84 points or 0.07 percent to finish at the daily low of 2,498.81 after peaking at 2,528.54. Volume was 476.1 million shares worth 8.63 trillion won. There were 493 gainers and 385 decliners.

Among the actives, Shinhan Financial declined 1.36 percent, while KB Financial collected 0.54 percent, Hana Financial dipped 0.22 percent, Samsung Electronics eased 0.13 percent, Samsung SDI dropped 1.19 percent, LG Electronics was up 0.21 percent, SK Hynix jumped 1.41 percent, Naver skidded 1.18 percent, LG Chem rose 0.35 percent, Lotte Chemical plummeted 3.31 percent, S-Oil plunged 2.90 percent, SK Innovation surrendered 2.91 percent, POSCO rallied 1.30 percent, SK Telecom advanced 0.81 percent, KEPCO retreated 1.61 percent, Hyundai Mobis spiked 1.98 percent, Hyundai Motor tanked 2.86 percent and Kia Motors tumbled 1.90 percent.

The lead from Wall Street offers little guidance as the major averages opened lower on Tuesday; the Dow turned higher and finished in the green, while the NASDAQ remained under water throughout the session and the S&P bounced back and forth across the line before ending slightly in the red.

The Dow climbed 133.86 points or 0.35 percent to finish at 38,467.31, while the NASDAQ dropped 118.15 points or 0.76 percent to close at 15,509.90 and the S&P 500 dipped 2.96 points or 0.06 percent to end at 4,924.97.

The pullback by the NASDAQ came as traders cashed in on the recent strength in the tech sector ahead of the release of quarterly results from the likes of Google parent Alphabet (GOOGL), software giant Microsoft (MSFT), Apple (AAPL), Amazon (AMZN) and Meta Platforms (META).

Uncertainty ahead of today’s Federal Reserve’s monetary policy announcement may also have inspired traders to book profits. The Fed is widely expected to leave interest rates unchanged, but the accompanying statement could have a significant impact on the outlook for rates.

In economic news, the Labor Department noted an unexpected increase in job openings in December. Also, the Conference Board reported a continued improvement in U.S. consumer confidence in January.

Crude oil prices moved sharply on Tuesday, largely offsetting the steep drop in the previous session after the International Monetary Fund raised its global growth forecast for 2024. West Texas Intermediate for March delivery jumped $1.04 or 1.4 percent to $77.82 a barrel.

Closer to home, South Korea will provide December data for industrial production and retail sales later this morning. Industrial production is tipped to add 0.5 percent on month and 6.0 percent on year after gaining 3.3 percent on month and 5.3 percent on year in November. Retail sales are expected to rise 0.5 percent on month after adding 1.0 percent in November.

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