Higher Open Called For South Korea Shares

(RTTNews) - The South Korea stock market has moved higher in back-to-back sessions, advancing almost 115 points or 2.9 percent along the way. The KOSPI now sits just above the 3,960-point plateau and it's likely to open to the upside again on Thursday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is positive on optimism over the outlook for interest rates. The European and U.S. markets were up and the Asian bourses figure to follow that lead.

The KOSPI finished sharply higher on Wednesday following gains from the financial shares, technology stocks and industrial issues.

For the day, the index jumped 103.09 points or 2.67 percent to finish at 3,960.87. Volume was 291.5 million shares worth 15.6 trillion won. There were 771 gainers and 125 decliners.

The lead from Wall Street is upbeat as the major averages opened in the green and stay that way all day, ending near session highs.

The Dow jumped 314.67 points or 0.67 percent to finish at 47,427.12, while the NASDAQ rallied 189.10 points or 0.82 percent to end at 23,214.69 and the S&P 500 gained 46.73 points or 0.69 percent to close at 6,812.61.

The strength on Wall Street came as traders seem to have shrugged off the valuation concerns that recently weighed on the markets and dragged the NASDAQ and the S&P 500 down to their lowest levels in over two months.

The markets have recently benefited from renewed optimism about the outlook for interest rates; CME Group's FedWatch Tool indicates the chances the Fed will lower rates by another quarter point next month have soared to 82.9 percent from just 30.1 percent a week ago.

In economic news, the Commerce Department released a long-delayed report showing new orders for U.S. manufactured durable goods increased more than expected in September. Also, the Labor Department saw an unexpected dip by first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits last week.

Crude oil prices rose on Wednesday as doubts were cast on the possible success of the new U.S. proposal to end the Russia-Ukraine war. West Texas Intermediate crude for January delivery was up $0.61 or 1.05 percent at $58.56 per barrel.

Closer to home, the Bank of Korea will wrap up its monetary policy meeting this morning and then announce its decision on interest rates. The BoK is widely expected to keep its benchmark lending rate steady at 2.50 percent.