Tech Shares Likely To Drag KOSPI Lower

(RTTNews) - The South Korea stock market has climbed higher in four straight sessions, advancing more than 70 points or 2.7 percent along the way. The KOSPI now rests just shy of the 2,670-point plateau and investors are likely to cash in on Wednesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is negative, with technology and oil stocks likely to lead the way lower. The European and U.S. markets were mostly in the red and the Asian bourses are expected to open in similar fashion.

The KOSPI finished modestly higher as gains from the technology stocks were capped by weakness from the financials and industrials.

For the day, the index added 14.53 points or 0.55 percent to finish at 2,669.80 after trading between 2,641.88 and 2,675.80. Volume was 404.2 million shares worth 9.5 trillion won. There were 449 decliners and 436 gainers.

Among the actives, Shinhan Financial tumbled 1.99 percent, while KB Financial dropped 0.92 percent, Hana Financial retreated 1.38 percent, Samsung Electronics rallied 1.40 percent, Samsung SDI slumped 1.06 percent, LG Electronics sank 0.39 percent, SK Hynix added 0.64 percent, Naver jumped 1.56 percent, LG Chem skidded 1.10 percent, Lotte Chemical plummeted 4.57 percent, S-Oil declined 1.44 percent, SK Innovation eased 0.07 percent, POSCO tanked 2.30 percent, SK Telecom dipped 0.30 percent, KEPCO fell 0.32 percent, Hyundai Mobis lost 0.42 percent, Hyundai Motor stumbled 1.47 percent and Kia Motors plunged 2.40 percent.

The lead from Wall Street is soft as the major averaged opened lower on Tuesday and only the Dow was able to peek barely into positive territory by the session's end.

The Dow rose 25.50 points or 0.07 percent to finish at 37,715.04, while the NASDAQ tumbled 245.41 points or 1.63 percent to end at 14,765.94 and the S&P 500 sank 27.00 points or 0.57 percent to close at 4,742.83.

The weakness in the broader markets came as traders continued to cash in on recent strength, particularly among technology stocks.

A steep drop by shares of Apple (AAPL) weighed on the tech sector, with the iPhone maker tumbling by 3.6 percent to its lowest closing level in well over a month after Barclays downgraded its rating on the company's stock to Underweight from Equal Weight.

The price of crude oil couldn't hold early gains and showed a substantial downturn on Tuesday over escalating Middle East tensions. West Texas Intermediate crude for February delivery surged nearly $2 to a high of $73.64 a barrel early in the session but pulled back sharply to close down $1.27 or 1.8 percent at $70.38 a barrel.