Additional Support Called For South Korea Shares

(RTTNews) - The South Korea stock market has moved higher in two straight sessions, advancing more than 110 points or 2.7 percent along the way. The KOSPI now sits just above the 4,100-point plateau and it may add to its winnings on Tuesday. The global forecast for the Asian markets is mixed to higher, with gold, oil and technology shares likely to lead the way higher. The European markets were down and the U.S. bourses were up and the Asian markets figure to follow the latter lead.

The KOSPI finished sharply higher on Monday following gains from the financial shares, technology stocks, chemical companies and automobile producers. For the day, the index rallied 85.38 points or 2.12 percent to finish at 4,105.93. Volume was 312.4 million shares worth 12.9 trillion won. There were 534 gainers and 340 decliners. Among the actives, Shinhan Financial vaulted 1.68 percent, while KB Financial collected 1.04 percent, Hana Financial jumped 1.84 percent, Samsung Electronics rallied 3.95 percent, Samsung SDI added 0.64 percent, LG Electronics rose 0.40 percent, SK Hynix surged 6.03 percent, Naver climbed 1.06 percent, LG Chem spiked 2.22 percent, Lotte Chemical accelerated 2.95 percent, SK Innovation gained 0.66 percent, POSCO Holdings improved 0.83 percent, SK Telecom shed 0.56 percent, KEPCO lost 0.51 percent, Hyundai Mobis dropped 0.95 percent, Hyundai Motor perked 0.17 percent and Kia Motors was up 0.08 percent.

The lead from Wall Street is positive as the major averages opened higher on Monday and spent all day in the green.

The Dow climbed 227.79 points or 0.47 percent to finish at 48,362.68, while the NASDAQ jumped 121.21 points or 0.52 percent to close at 23,428.83 and the S&P 500 added 43.99 points or 0.64 percent to end at 6,878.49.

The strength on Wall Street came as on continued strength among technology stocks, with companies like Oracle (ORCL) and AI darling and market leader Nvidia (NVDA) leading the charge.

Overall trading activity was subdued, however, with a lack of major U.S. economic data keeping traders on the sidelines. Some traders may also be away as they look to get a head start on the Christmas Day holiday on Thursday.

Crude oil prices surged on Monday as the conflict between the U.S. and Venezuela continue to escalate, while Russia and Ukraine remain heavily engaged. West Texas Intermediate crude for February delivery was up $1.43 or 2.53 percent at $57.95 per barrel.