SEOUL: The South Korea stock market has inched lower in back-to-back sessions, although it has slipped just 3 points or 0.1 percent in that span. The KOSPI remains just above the 2,080-point plateau, and the market figures to remain steady in that neighborhood again on Monday. The global forecast for the Asian markets is cautiously optimistic thanks to upbeat economic date, although the stagnant price of crude oil may weigh. The European markets were mixed on Friday and the U.S. bourses were slightly higher – and the Asian markets figure to split the difference.
The KOSPI finished barely lower again on Friday as losses from the technology stocks were tempered by support from the financials and industrials. For the day, the index eased 1.26 points or 0.06 percent to finish at 2,080.58 after trading between 2,072.57 and 2,081.18. Volume was 296 million shares worth 4.27 trillion won. There were 403 gainers and 389 decliners. Among the actives, Samsung Electronics shed 0.42 percent, while Samsung Life Insurance dropped 1.4 percent, Shinhan Financial collected 0.32 percent, Woori Bank climbed 1.12 percent, POSCO jumped 1.42 percent, SK Hynix advanced 1.61 percent, Hyundai Motor spiked 3.44 percent and Kia Motors added 0.67 percent. The lead from Wall Street is mildly positive as stocks were lackluster on Friday before ending slightly higher to reach new record closing highs.
The Dow added 4.28 points or 0.1 percent to 20,624.05, while the NASDAQ was up 23.68 points or 0.4 percent to 5,838.58, while the S&P gained 3.94 points or 0.2 percent to 2,351.16. For the week, the NASDAQ surged 1.8 percent, while the Dow jumped 1.7 percent and the S&P gained 1.5 percent. Profit taking contributed to the initial weakness on Wall Street ahead of the long holiday weekend; the U.S. markets are closed today for Presidents Day. In economic news, the Conference Board saw a bigger than expected increase by its index of leading U.S. economic indicators in January. Crude oil futures fell Friday as slumping demand for gas at higher prices weighed on oil prices. March WTI was oil up 4 cents, or less than 0.1 percent to settle at $53.40/bbl.
