The South Korean stock market has experienced declines over the past two sessions, shedding over 60 points, amounting to a 2.3% drop. The KOSPI index currently hovers slightly above 2,555 points and may continue to experience losses on Friday.
The forecast for Asian markets is largely negative, with technology stocks likely to face pressure due to diminishing optimism regarding interest rate prospects. Both European and U.S. markets ended the day with substantial losses, and Asian exchanges are expected to follow a similar trend.
On Thursday, the KOSPI recorded significant losses, driven by declines in financial, technology, and industrial stocks. By the close of trading that day, the index had fallen 37.64 points, or 1.45%, settling at 2,556.15 after fluctuating between 2,552.36 and 2,579.65. The trading volume was 396.7 million shares, valued at 10.7 trillion won, with 473 stocks gaining ground and 401 declining.
In terms of individual performances: Shinhan Financial plunged 5.87%, KB Financial dropped 3.83%, Hana Financial fell 4.31%, while Samsung Electronics edged up 0.17%. Samsung SDI declined 3.54%, LG Electronics decreased 2.19%, SK Hynix plunged 4.46%, and Naver slid 2.52%. LG Chem lost 2.18%, but Lotte Chemical saw a rally of 2.69%. SK Innovation slipped 1.18%, POSCO fell 1.32%, and SK Telecom dipped 0.35%. Meanwhile, KEPCO added 0.65%, Hyundai Mobis gained 0.40%, whereas Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors decreased by 2.49% and 2.34%, respectively.
The situation on Wall Street was grim, with major indices opening significantly lower and maintaining that trajectory throughout the day.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 378.08 points or 0.90% to close at 41,763.46. Meanwhile, the NASDAQ fell 512.78 points or 2.76% to 18,095.15, and the S&P 500 declined 108.22 points or 1.86% to finish at 5,705.45.
This downturn on Wall Street was prompted by a negative response to the earnings results from major tech companies, Microsoft (MSFT) and Meta Platforms (META). Additionally, traders were focused on consumer price inflation data, which largely met economist expectations, but core CPI defied lower projections by remaining unchanged. This has intensified worries that the Federal Reserve might reduce interest rates at a slower pace than previously anticipated.
Oil prices rose on Thursday, buoyed by expectations of increased demand from the U.S. and a likely delay in OPEC's planned output hike set for December. Specifically, West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for December increased by $0.65 or 0.95%, closing at $69.26 per barrel.
Back in South Korea, October figures for imports, exports, and the trade balance are expected to be released later today. Imports are anticipated to have risen by 2.3% year-on-year, slightly above the 2.2% growth seen in September. Exports are projected to have increased by 6.1% annually, down from 7.5% the previous month. The trade surplus is estimated at $4.60 billion, compared to $6.66 billion recorded in the prior month.
