Soft Start Anticipated For South Korea Stock Market

(RTTNews) - The South Korea stock market has moved lower in two straight sessions, slumping more than 35 points or 1.3 percent along the way. The KOSPI now sits just above the 2,670-point plateau and it's expected to open in the red again on Tuesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets suggests consolidation on rising concerns over the outlook for interest rates. The European markets were mixed and the U.S. bourses were down and the Asian markets figure to follow the latter lead.

The KOSPI finished modestly lower on Monday as losses from the technology and chemical companies were mitigated by support from the financial shares and automobile producers.

For the day, the index dropped 11.39 points or 0.42 percent to finish at 2,670.43 after trading between 2,641.16 and 2,673.26. Volume was 552 million shares worth 10.3 trillion won. There were 580 decliners and 302 gainers.

Among the actives, Shinhan Financial collected 0.72 percent, while KB Financial dipped 0.15 percent, Hana Financial improved 0.73 percent, Samsung Electronics tumbled 1.79 percent, Samsung SDI surrendered 1.75 percent, LG Electronics dropped 1.07 percent, SK Hynix gained 0.43 percent, Naver declined 1.67 percent, LG Chem rose 0.38 percent, Lotte Chemical slumped 2.27 percent, S-Oil rallied 1.65 percent, SK Innovation plunged 2.86 percent, POSCO skidded 1.14 percent, SK Telecom added 0.40 percent, KEPCO surged 3.47 percent, Hyundai Mobis advanced 0.83 percent, Hyundai Motor accelerated 1.47 percent and Kia Motors soared 4.37 percent.

The lead from Wall Street is broadly negative as the major averages opened higher on Monday but quickly head south and finished deep in the red.

The Dow dropped 248.13 points or 0.65 percent to finish at 37,735.11, while the NASDAQ tumbled 290.08 points or 1.79 percent to close at 15,885.02 and the S&P 500 sank 61.59 points or 1.20 percent to end at 5,061.82.

The initial strength on Wall Street reflected a positive reaction to earnings news from Goldman Sachs (GS) as the investment banking company reported Q1 earnings that exceeded estimates on better than expected revenues.

Traders also initially reacted positively to a Commerce Department report showing much stronger than expected U.S. retail sales growth in March - but the data triggered another spike by treasury yields.

The yield on the benchmark 10-year note has surged to its highest levels in five months, as the data has led to renewed concerns about the outlook for interest rates.

Crude oil prices fell on Monday amid slightly easing concerns about supply disruptions after Iran's drone and missile attack on Israel did not cause any big damage. Concerns about the outlook for oil demand in China and a strong U.S. dollar also weighed on oil prices. West Texas Intermediate Crude futures for May ended lower by $0.25 at $85.41 a barrel.