Bargain Hunting May Boost KOSPI On Monday

(RTTNews) - The South Korea stock market has moved lower in four straight sessions, slipping more than 55 points or 2.1 percent along the way. The KOSPI now sits just above the 2,685-point plateau although it may stop the bleeding on Monday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is cautiously optimistic, with technology shares expected to lead the way higher. The European markets were mixed and the U.S. bourses were up and the Asian markets figure to split the difference.

The KOSPI finished sharply lower on Friday with damage across the board, especially among the financial shares, technology stocks and industrials.

For the day, the index dropped 34.21 points or 1.26 percent to finish at 2,687.60 after trading between 2,681.17 and 2,696.99. Volume was 491.3 million shares worth 12.01 trillion won. There were 618 decliners and 263 gainers.

Among the actives, Shinhan Financial fell 0.32 percent, while KB Financial shed 0.52 percent, Hana Financial slid 0.33 percent, Samsung Electronics plummeted 3.07 percent, Samsung SDI skidded 1.11 percent, LG Electronics slumped 1.36 percent, SK Hynix sank 0.70 percent, Naver tumbled 1.70 percent, Lotte Chemical surrendered 1.79 percent, S-Oil perked 0.15 percent, SK Innovation plunged 2.40 percent, POSCO declined 1.55 percent, SK Telecom eased 0.19 percent, KEPCO stumbled 1.65 percent, Hyundai Mobis tanked 2.64 percent, Hyundai Motor retreated 1.47 percent, Kia Motors lost 0.41 percent and LG Chem was unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is upbeat but inconsistent as the major averages opened higher on Friday; the S&P and NASDAQ remained firmly higher all day, while the Dow struggled to stay above water.

The Dow rose 4.33 points or 0.01 percent to finish at 39,069.59, while the NASDAQ jumped 184.76 points or 1.10 percent to close at a record high of 16,920.79 and the S&P 500 gained 36.88 points or 0.70 percent to end at 5,304.72.

For the week, the NASDAQ jumped 1.4 percent, the S&P 500 was nearly unchanged and the Dow tumbled 2.3 percent.

The rebound on Wall Street came as traders looked to pick up stocks at somewhat reduced levels following the downturn seen on Thursday, which saw the Dow post its worst daily drop since March 2023.

In economic news, the Commerce Department noted an unexpected increase in durable goods orders in April. Also, the University of Michigan said in a report that consumer sentiment in the U.S. deteriorated less than estimated in May.

Crude oil prices moved higher Friday, snapping a four-day losing streak despite concerns about the outlook for demand. West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures for July ended higher by $0.85 at $77.72 a barrel; for the week, WTI crude futures slumped 3 percent.