Additional Strength Anticipated For South Korea Shares

(RTTNews) - The South Korea stock market bounced higher again on Friday, one session after ending the three-day winning streak in which it had advanced almost 70 points or 3.2 percent. The KOSPI now rests just beneath the 2,350-point plateau and it may extend its gains on Monday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is upbeat following stronger than expected employment data from the United States. The European and U.S. markets were solidly higher and the Asian bourses are tipped to follow suit.

The KOSPI finished modestly higher on Friday following gains from the technology stocks and automobile producers, while the chemicals, financials and oil companies were mixed.

For the day, the index gathered 19.26 points or 0.83 percent to finish at the daily high of 2,348.43 after moving as low as 2,316.29. Volume was 430.5 billion shares worth 7.8 trillion won. There were 482 gainers and 377 decliners.

Among the actives, Shinhan Financial collected 0.56 percent, while KB Financial dropped 0.84 percent, Hana Financial eased 0.24 percent, Samsung Electronics rose 0.34 percent, Samsung SDI sank 0.81 percent, LG Electronics skyrocketed 7.00 percent, SK Hynix rallied 2.18 percent, Naver spiked 2.96 percent, LG Chem climbed 1.02 percent, Lotte Chemical skidded 0.94 percent, S-Oil soared 2.34 percent, SK Innovation plummeted 6.33 percent, POSCO shed 0.78 percent, SK Telecom added 0.40 percent, KEPCO advanced 0.90 percent, Hyundai Mobis perked 0.23 percent, Hyundai Motor gained 0.62 percent and Kia Motors strengthened 1.24 percent.

The lead from Wall Street is upbeat as the major averages opened sharply higher on Friday, faded midday but bounced higher again late in the session.

The Dow surged 402.02 points or 1.26 percent to finish at 32,403.22, while the NASDAQ jumped 132.35 points or 1.28 percent to close at 10,475.25 and the S&P 500 climbed 50.66 points or 1.36 percent to end at 3,770.55.

For the week, the NASDAQ plummeted 5.7 percent, the S&P tumbled 3.4 percent and the Dow dropped 1.4 percent.

The volatility followed the release of the Labor Department's closely watched monthly employment report for October.

The report showed non-farm payroll employment jumped by 261,000 jobs in October after surging by an upwardly revised 315,000 jobs in September.

The report generated a mixed reaction among traders, creating uncertainty about the outlook for future interest rate hikes.

Crude oil prices climbed higher Friday amid easing concerns about the outlook for energy demand. A weak dollar and fears of a ban by the European Union on Russian oil also supported crude oil prices. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for December ended higher by $4.44 or 5 percent at $92.61 a barrel.