South Korea Stock Market Likely To Be Rangebound

(RTTNews) - The South Korea stock market on Tuesday halted the two-day winning streak in which it climbed more than 45 points or 2.3 percent. The KOSPI closed just below the 1,940-point plateau, and now the market figures to hold steady in that neighborhood on Wednesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is murky, thanks to conflicting data from the United States and slightly overbought markets that suggest profit taking. The European markets were higher and the U.S. bourses were mixed but little changed - and the Asian markets figure to follow the latter lead.

The KOSPI finished slightly lower on Tuesday following a mixed performance from the technology stocks and the industrial issues.

For the day, the index fell 4.10 points or 0.21 percent to finish at 1,939.02 after trading between 1,936.75 and 1,944.75. Volume was 295.3 million shares worth 3.6 trillion won.

Among the actives, Samsung Electronics shed 0.45 percent, while LG Electronics lost 0.5 percent, Hyundai Motor added 0.29 percent, Kia Motors jumped 1.14 percent, SK Hynix fell 1.66 percent, POSCO tumbled 1.04 percent, Hyundai Steel collected 0.46 percent, Hyundai Heavy Industries dropped 1.23 percent, Samsung Heavy Industries plunged 1.64 percent and Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering plummeted 1.79 percent.

The lead from Wall Street provides little clarity as stocks turned in a lackluster performance on Tuesday following the release of a mixed batch of U.S. economic data. Despite the choppy trading, the Dow closed above 18,000 for the first time and set a new record closing high along with the S&P 500.

The NASDAQ fell 16.00 points or 0.3 percent to 4,765.42, while the Dow climbed 64.73 points or 0.4 percent to 18,024.17 and the S&P 500 edged up 3.63 points or 0.2 percent to 2,082.17.

Early buying interest was generated by a report from the Commerce Department showing much stronger than previously estimated third quarter GDP growth. But the Commerce Department also reported an unexpected decrease in durable goods orders and new home sales.

Relatively light trading activity also contributed to the lackluster performance, as some traders got a head start on the holidays.

Closer to home, the Bank of Korea said this morning that its index for consumer confidence slipped to 102.0 in December - down from 103.0 in November but still above the level of 100 that means optimists outnumber pessimists.