South Korea Bourse May Extend Tuesday's Losses

(RTTNews) - The South Korea stock market has alternated between positive and negative finishes through the last four three trading days since the end of the two-day slide in which it had stumbled more than 40 points or 1.7 percent. The KOSPI now rests just beneath the 2,650-point plateau and it may open under pressure again on Wednesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets suggests further consolidation on concerns over the outlook for interest rates. The European markets were mixed and flat and the U.S. bourses were sharply lower and the Asian markets also figure to open in the red.

The KOSPI finished modestly lower on Tuesday following losses from the technology, chemical, energy and industrial companies.

For the day, the index sank 24.87 points or 0.93 percent to finish at 2,649.40 after trading between 2,649.35 and 2,684.83. Volume was 447 million shares worth 11.9 trillion won. There were 606 decliners and 282 gainers.

Among the actives, Shinhan Financial fell 0.34 percent, while KB Financial collected 0.72 percent, Hana Financial sank 0.83 percent, Samsung Electronics retreated 1.60 percent, Samsung SDI tumbled 2.14 percent, SK Hynix shed 0.42 percent, Naver declined 1.72 percent, LG Chem dropped 0.81 percent, Lotte Chemical skidded 1.18 percent, S-Oil slumped 1.33 percent, SK Innovation eased 0.12 percent, POSCO plunged 2.40 percent, SK Telecom perked 0.19 percent, KEPCO lost 1.21 percent, Hyundai Mobis rose 0.40 percent, Hyundai Motor tanked 2.54 percent and Kia Motors stumbled 2.07 percent.

The lead from Wall Street is broadly negative as the major averages opened lower on Tuesday and remained deep in the red throughout the session, ending near daily lows.

The Dow plummeted 404.64 points or 1.04 percent to finish at 38,585.19, while the NASDAQ tumbled 267.92 points or 1.65 percent to close at 15,939.59 and the S&P 500 sank 52.30 points or 1.02 percent to end at 5,078.65.

The weakness on Wall Street came as traders continued to cash in on recent strength in the markets, which lifted the S&P 500 and the NASDAQ to record closing highs last week.

Uncertainty about the outlook for interest rates also weighed on the markets ahead of congressional testimony by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. He's due to testify before the House Financial Services Committee later today and the Senate Banking Committee on Thursday.

In U.S. economic news, the Institute for Supply Management said U.S. service sector growth slowed more than expected in February. Also, The Commerce Department noted a drop in new orders for U.S. manufactured goods in January.

Crude oil futures settled lower on Tuesday, falling for the second consecutive session on concerns about the outlook for demand. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for April ended down $0.59 at $78.15 a barrel.