KOSPI Expected To Remain Rangebound On Thursday

(RTTNews) - The South Korea stock market has finished lower in two of three trading days since the end of the two-day winning streak in which it had advanced more than 35 points or 1.4 percent. The KOSPI market now rests just beneath the 2,470-point plateau and it's likely to remain in that neighborhood again on Thursday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is mixed to higher and will be dependent on earnings news. The European markets were up and the U.S. bourses were mixed and the Asian markets figure to split the difference.

The KOSPI finished modestly lower on Wednesday following losses from the oil and steel companies, gains from the financials and chemicals and a mixed picture among the technology stocks.

For the day, the index shed 8.92 points or 0.36 percent to finish at 2,469.69. Volume was 381.6 million shares worth 7.17 trillion won. There were 608 decliners and 271 gainers.

Among the actives, Shinhan Financial spiked 2.69 percent, while KB Financial collected 1.36 percent, Hana Financial jumped 1.63 percent, Samsung Electronics slumped 1.60 percent, Samsung SDI retreated 1.26 percent, LG Electronics and Hyundai Motor both rose 0.11 percent, SK Hynix gained 0.50 percent, LG Chem soared 2.43 percent, Lotte Chemical skyrocketed 7.07 percent, S-Oil dropped 0.75 percent, SK Innovation rallied 2.09 percent, POSCO sank 0.74 percent, SK Telecom perked 0.20 percent, KEPCO added 0.66 percent, Hyundai Mobis fell 0.24 percent and Kia Motors and Naver were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street suggests mild upside as the major averages opened higher on Wednesday and largely stayed that way, although the Dow slipped into the red by the close.

The Dow dropped 99.06 points or 0.26 percent to finish at 37,806.39, while the NASDAQ gained 55.97 points or 0.36 percent to end at 15,481.92 and the S&P 500 perked 3.95 points or 0.08 percent to close at a fresh record high of 4,868.55.

Technology stocks helped lead the way higher in early trading on Wall Street, with shares of Netflix (NFLX) soaring by 10.7 percent after the streaming giant reported better than expected fourth quarter revenues.

Buying interest waned over the course of the session, reflecting renewed interest rate concerns amid a rebound by treasury yields. Yields moved lower early in the session but bounced higher following some upbeat U.S. economic data and a disappointing five-year note auction.

Oil prices climbed higher on Wednesday on data showing a larger-than-expected decline in U.S. crude inventories, while a weak dollar also contributed to the increase in oil prices. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for March added $0.72 or nearly 1 percent at $75.09 a barrel.

Closer to home, South Korea will release preliminary Q4 numbers for gross domestic product later this morning. GDP is expected to expand 0.5 percent on quarter and 2.1 percent on year after rising 0.6 percent on quarter and 1.4 percent on year in the three months prior.