South Korea Stock Market Tipped To Open In The Green

(RTTNews) - The South Korea stock market has alternated between positive and negative finishes through the last five trading days since the end of the four-day losing streak in which it had tumbled almost 150 points or 6.3 percent. The KOSPI sits just beneath the 2,210-point plateau and it may add to its winnings on Wednesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is upbeat on continued bargain hunting, particularly among the technology stocks and energy companies. The European and U.S. markets were sharply higher and the Asian bourses are predicted to follow that lead.

The KOSPI finished sharply higher on Tuesday with broadly based gains, especially from the financials, technology stocks and oil and chemical companies.

For the day, the index jumped 53.89 points or 2.50 percent to finish at 2,209.38 after trading between 2,180.84 and 2,212.38. Volume was 412.58 million shares worth 7.37 trillion won. There were 815 gainers and 90 decliners.

Among the actives, Shinhan Financial rallied 2.99 percent, while KB Financial strengthened 2.29 percent, Hana Financial surged 5.08 percent, Samsung Electronics spiked 3.96 percent, Samsung SDI jumped 1.83 percent, LG Electronics added 2.67 percent, SK Hynix accelerated 3.73 percent, Naver plummeted 8.79percent, LG Chem soared 3.54 percent, Lotte Chemical increased 3.82 percent, S-Oil gained 3.21 percent, SK Innovation skyrocketed 7.32 percent, POSCO advanced 5.45 percent, SK Telecom rose 0.20 percent, KEPCO retreated 1.24 percent, Hyundai Mobis gained 3.66 percent, Hyundai Motor improved 1.70 percent and Kia Motors climbed 1.25 percent.

The lead from Wall Street is broadly positive for the second straight day as the major averages opened sharply higher on Tuesday and stayed that way throughout the session.

The Dow surged 825.43 points or 2.80 percent to finish at 30,316.32, while the NASDAQ soared 360.97 points or 3.34 percent to end at 11,176.41 and the S&P 500 spiked 112.50 points or 3.06 percent to close at 3,790.93.

The continued strength on Wall Street came as investors scooped up bargains following a brutal September. The rally was also fueled by a lower dollar and falling treasury yields.

Traders also continue to bet that the Federal Reserve may slow the pace of its interest rate hikes on the heels of some disappointing economic data earlier in the week.

Crude oil prices rose sharply Tuesday, extending gains from the previous session as traders continued to bet on hopes the OPEC will agree to a large cut in crude output later today. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for November settled at $86.52 a barrel, up $2.89 or 3.5 percent.

Closer to home, South Korea will provide September numbers for consumer prices later this morning, with forecasts calling for an increase of 0.4 percent on month and 5.7 percent on year. That follows the 0.1 percent monthly contraction and the 5.7 percent yearly gain in August.