KOSPI May Run Out Of Steam On Monday

(RTTNews) - The South Korea stock market has moved higher in six straight sessions, collecting more than 110 points or 44. percent along the way. The KOSPI now rests just above the 2,570-point plateau although it's likely to see profit taking on Monday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is mixed to lower as inflation concerns war with support from oil stocks. The European markets were up and the U.S. bourses were down and the Asian markets figure to follow the latter lead.

The KOSPI finished modestly higher on Friday as gains from the financials and chemicals were offset by weakness from the oil and automobile stocks, while the technology companies were mixed.

For the day, the index gained 9.83 points or 0.38 percent to finish at 2,571.49. Volume was 878.9 million shares worth 12.9 trillion won. There were 607 gainers and 261 decliners.

Among the actives, Shinhan Financial strengthened 1.29 percent, while KB Financial spiked 3.07 percent, Hana Financial soared 3.56 percent, Samsung Electronics retreated 1.51 percent, Samsung SDI dropped 0.91 percent, LG Electronics dipped 0.09 percent, SK Hynix added 0.68 percent, Naver improved 1.32 percent, Lotte Chemical jumped 1.76 percent, S-Oil sank 0.85 percent, SK Innovation lost 0.68 percent, POSCO skyrocketed 6.26 percent, SK Telecom perked 0.10 percent, KEPCO climbed 1.19 percent, Hyundai Mobis eased 0.22 percent, Hyundai Motor declined 1.41 percent, Kia Motors stumbled 1.50 percent and LG Chem was unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is soft as the major averages shook off early support on Friday, quickly heading south and staying in the red throughout the day.

The Dow tumbled 143.23 points or 0.42 percent to finish at 33,886.47, while the NASDAQ sank 42.83 points or 0.35 percent to close at 12,123.47 and the S&P 500 fell 8.58 points or 0.21 percent to end at 4,137.64. For the week, the Dow jumped 1.2 percent, the S&P 500 added 0.8 percent and the NASAQ rose 0.3 percent.

The weakness that emerged on Wall Street coincided with the release of a report from the University of Michigan showing a jump in inflation expectations in the month of April.

In economic news, the Commerce Department said retail sales fell more than expected in March, while the Federal Reserve said U.S. industrial production increased more than expected in March, although the increase was largely due to a spike in utilities output.

Crude oil futures settled modestly higher Friday, lifted by the International Energy Agency's forecast that global crude demand will grow to a record 101.9 million barrels per day this year. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for May rose $0.36 or 0.4 percent at $82.52 a barrel.

Closer to home, South Korea will release March data for imports, exports and trade balance later this morning. In February, imports were down 6.4 percent on year and exports dropped an annual 13.6 percent for a trade deficit of $4.60 billion.