Renewed Support Anticipated For South Korea Stock Market

(RTTNews) - The South Korea stock market on Monday snapped the four-day winning streak in which it had spiked more than 130 points or 5.5 percent. The KOSPI now sits just beneath the 2,490-point plateau although it's expected to bounce higher again on Tuesday. The global forecast for the Asian markets is mixed to higher, with strong support expected from the technology companies. The European markets were down and the U.S. bourses were mixed and the Asian markets figure to follow the latter lead. The KOSPI finished slightly lower on Monday following losses from the financial shares and industrials, while the technology companies were mixed. For the day, the index slipped 5.49 points or 0.22 percent to finish at 2,488.97 after trading between 2,483.43 and 2,515.62. Volume was 515 million shares worth 8.2 trillion won. There were 487 gainers and 397 decliners. Among the actives, KB Financial shed 0.47 percent, while Hana Financial retreated 1.34 percent, Samsung Electronics dropped 0.89 percent, Samsung SDI advanced 0.96 percent, LG Electronics lost 0.57 percent, SK Hynix rallied 2.17 percent, Naver jumped 1.90 percent, LG Chem eased 0.19 percent, Lotte Chemical soared 3.82 percent, SK Innovation tumbled 1.99 percent, POSCO Holdings dipped 0.18 percent, SK Telecom rose 0.35 percent, KEPCO climbed 0.94 percent, Hyundai Mobis slumped 2.66 percent, Hyundai Motor stumbled 1.86 percent, Kia Motors tanked 2.85 percent and Shinhan Financial was unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is cautiously optimistic as the major averages opened mixed on Monday and finished largely the same way.

The Dow shed 110.58 points or 0.25 percent to finish at 43,717.48, while the NASDAQ surged 247.17 points or 1.24 percent to close at a record 20,173.89 and the S&P 500 advanced 22.99 points or 0.38 percent to end at 6,074.08.

The general strength on Wall Street reflected optimism about the outlook for interest rates ahead of the Federal Reserve's monetary policy decision later today. The Fed is widely expected to continue cutting interest rates, with CME Group's FedWatch Tool currently indicating a 99.1 percent chance the central bank will lower rates by another 25 basis points.

The surge by the NASDAQ came amid significant strength among semiconductor stocks, with the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index jumping by 2.1 percent. Networking stocks also saw considerable strength, extending a recent upward trend, driving the NYSE Arca Networking Index up by 2.0 percent to a new record closing high.

Buying interest was somewhat subdued, however, as recent data showing inflation remains somewhat sticky has led to some worries the Fed will lower rates slower than previously anticipated next year.

In U.S. economic news, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York released a report showing a sharp pullback by its reading on regional manufacturing activity in the month of December.

Crude oil prices fell on Monday amid concerns about the outlook for demand after weak economic data from China and the threat of tariffs. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for January closed down $0.58 at $70.71 a barrel.