South Korea Bourse Poised To Halt Losing Streak

(RTTNews) - The South Korea stock market has moved lower in four straight sessions, tumbling more than 80 points or 3.4 percent along the way. The KOSPI now rests just above the 2,580-point plateau although it may finally stop the bleeding on Tuesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is upbeat, with bargain hunting expected ahead of key inflation data later in the week. The European markets were mixed and flat and the U.S. bourses were solidly higher and the Asian markets figure to follow the latter lead.

The KOSPI finished modestly lower again on Monday following losses from the chemical and industrial companies, while the financials and technology shares were mixed.

For the day, the index stumbled 22.09 points or 0.85 percent to finish at 2,580.71. Volume was 497.1 million shares worth 11.8 trillion won.

Among the actives, Shinhan Financial collected 1.28 percent, while KB Financial retreated 1.54 percent, Samsung Electronics added 0.29 percent, Samsung SDI declined 2.83 percent, LG Electronics fell 0.48 percent, SK Hynix jumped 1.50 percent, Naver soared 4.92 percent, LG Chem tanked 3.30 percent, Lotte Chemical sank 0.70 percent, S-Oil surged 3.12 percent, SK Innovation plunged 5.22 percent, POSCO plummeted 5.56 percent, SK Telecom advanced 0.86 percent, KEPCO shed 0.57 percent, Hyundai Mobis slumped 1.52 percent, Hyundai Motor slumped 2.19 percent, Kia Motors tumbled 3.72 percent and Hana Financial was unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is positive as the major averages opened higher on Monday and largely stayed that way, finishing firmly in the green.

The Dow jumped 407.51 points or 1.16 percent to finish at 35,473.13, while the NASDAQ climbed 85.16 points or 0.61 percent to close at 13,994.40 and the S&P 500 gained 40.41 points or 0.90 percent to end at 4,518.44.

The strength that emerged on Wall Street came as investors indulged in some bargain hunting after last week's losses.

The upside was measured, however, ahead of crucial reports on consumer and producer price inflation later in the week, which could affect the Federal Reserve's plan for interest rates.

Most economists expect another pause in interest rate hikes by the Fed next month, although the data has led to some uncertainty about the outlook for rates beyond that.

Oil futures settled lower on Monday, coming off the four-month highs they touched last week. The dollar's strength ahead of inflation data weighed on oil prices. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for September shed $0.88 or 1.1 percent at $81.94 a barrel.