South Korea Bourse Poised To End Losing Streak

(RTTNews) - The South Korea stock market has finished lower in two straight sessions, sinking almost 30 points or 1.1 percent along the way. The KOSPI now sits just beneath the 2,610-point plateau although it may stop the bleeding on Friday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is upbeat on an improved outlook for interest rates. The European markets were mixed and the U.S. bourses were up and the Asian markets figure to split the difference.

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

For the day, the index shed 10.54 points or 0.40 percent to finish 2,608.54. Volume was 571.7 million shares worth 11.3 trillion won. There were 627 decliners and 243 gainers.

Among the actives, KB Financial sank 0.72 percent, while Hana Financial fell 0.37 percent, Samsung Electronics lost 0.56 percent, Samsung SDI slid 0.55 percent, LG Electronics stumbled 0.88 percent, SK Hynix perked 0.17 percent, Naver gained 0.65 percent, LG Chem added 0.42 percent, Lotte Chemical plunged 2.79 percent, S-Oil declined 1.22 percent, SK Innovation skidded 1.04 percent, POSCO retreated 1.40 percent, SK Telecom dropped 0.82 percent, KEPCO shed 0.32 percent, Hyundai Mobis rose 0.22 percent, Hyundai Motor was down 0.65 percent, Kia Motors slumped 0.84 percent and Shinhan Financial was unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is broadly positive as the major averages opened higher and accelerated as the day progressed, ending near session highs.

The Dow surged 428.73 points or 1.26 percent to finish at 34,408.06, while the NASDAQ jumped 156.34 points or 1.15 percent to end at 15,826.35 and the S&P 500 climbed 53.25 points or 1.22 percent to close at 4,425.84.

The rally on Wall Street reflected optimism about the outlook for interest rates following the release of some U.S. economic data. While the Federal Reserve forecast further rate hikes, traders seem hopeful the central bank will not follow through.

The optimism stemmed from a report from the Labor Department showing initial jobless claims held at their highest level last week since October 2021. A separate Labor Department report said import prices in the U.S. fell more than expected in May, also generating optimism about the outlook for inflation.

Crude oil prices rose sharply Thursday, buoyed by reports suggesting a jump in demand from Chinese refineries and additional stimulus from the Chinese central bank. The dollar's weakness also contributed to the jumped in oil prices. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures ended higher by $2.35 or 3.4 percent at $70.62 a barrel.