Tech Shares May Extend KOSPI's Losing Streak

(RTTNews) - The South Korea stock market has moved lower in four straight sessions, slumping almost 125 points or 4.6 percent along the way. The KOSPI now sits just beneath the 2,585-point plateau and it figures to open in the red again on Thursday.

The global forecast for thew Asian markets is mixed to lower, with oil and technology stocks likely to weigh. The European markets were up and the U.S. bourses were down and the Asian markets figure to split the difference.

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

For the day, the index dropped 25.45 points or 0.98 percent to finish at the daily low of 2,584.18 after peaking at 2,626.63. Volume was 400.5 million shares worth 9.5 trillion won. There were 456 decliners and 406 gainers.

Among the actives, Shinhan Financial dropped 1.22 percent, while KB Financial weakened 2.02 percent, Hana Financial tumbled 2.43 percent, Samsung Electronics retreated 1.38 percent, Samsung SDI eased 0.13 percent, LG Electronics fell 0.87 percent, SK Hynix dipped 0.22 percent, Naver perked 0.06 percent, LG Chem stumbled 1.70 percent, Lotte Chemical sank 2.73 percent, S-Oil tanked 4.08 percent, SK Innovation advanced 0.96 percent, POSCO surrendered 2.50 percent, SK Telecom shed 0.79 percent, KEPCO plunged 3.33 percent, Hyundai Mobis lost 1.47 percent, Hyundai Motor plunged 3.51 percent and Kia Motors slumped 1.39 percent.

The lead from Wall Street is soft as the major averages opened higher on Wednesday but quickly turned lower, spending most of the rest of the day in the red.

The Dow shed 45.66 points or 0.12 percent to finish at 37,753.31, while the NASDAQ tumbled 181.88 points or 1.15 percent to end at 15,683.37 and the S&P 500 sank 29.20 points or 0.58 percent to close at 5,022.21.

The lower close on Wall Street came on concerns about the outlook for interest rates following remarks by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, who suggested rates are likely to remain higher for longer amid a "lack of progress" toward reaching the central bank's inflation goal.

Weakness among technology stocks weighed on the tech-heavy NASDAQ as shares of Nvidia (NVDA) came under pressure, while the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index also slumped.

Crude oil prices tumbled on Wednesday, adding to modest losses in the two previous sessions after data showed a surge in U.S. crude oil inventories. West Texas Intermediate crude for May delivery plunged $2.67 or 3.1 percent to $82.69 a barrel.