South Korea Shares Poised To Bounce Higher On Friday

(RTTNews) - The South Korea stock market on Thursday ended the three-day winning streak in which it had advanced more than 45 points or 1.8 percent. The KOSPI now sits just above the 2,610-point plateau although it's likely move back to the upside again on Friday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is upbeat on easing concerns over the outlook for interest rates. The European markets were mixed and the U.S. bourses were up and the Asian markets figure to split the difference.

The KOSPI finished slightly lower on Thursday following mixed performances from the financial shares, technology stocks and industrials.

For the day, the index slipped 4.75 points or 0.18 percent to finish at 2,610.85. Volume was 570.8 million shares worth 11.25 trillion won. There were 503 decliners and 369 gainers.

Among the actives, Shinhan Financial collected 0.28 percent, while KB Financial and KEPCO both were up 0.10 percent, Hana Financial dropped 0.95 percent, Samsung Electronics eased 0.14 percent, Samsung SDI sank 0.82 percent, LG Electronics advanced 0.80 percent, SK Hynix strengthened 1.57 percent, Naver plunged 2.20 percent, LG Chem retreated 1.21 percent, Lotte Chemical improved 1.48 percent, S-Oil added 0.27 percent, SK Innovation plummeted 4.07 percent, POSCO dipped 0.13 percent, SK Telecom fell 0.20 percent, Hyundai Mobis added 0.23 percent, Hyundai Motor perked 0.15 percent and Kia Motors slumped 0.73 percent.

The lead from Wall Street is positive as the major averages shook off a flat lead on Thursday and climbed steadily throughout the session, ending solidly in the green.

The Dow climbed 168.59 points or 0.50 percent to finish at 33,833.61, while the NASDAQ jumped 133.63 points or 1.02 percent to close at 13,238.52 and the S&P 500 rose 26.41 points or 0.62 percent to end at 4,293.93.

The strength on Wall Street reflected easing concerns about the outlook for interest rates following the Labor Department report showing initial jobless claims increased by much more than expected last week.

While jobless claims can be volatile around holidays like Memorial Day, the data seems to have added to optimism that the Federal Reserve will pause its interest rate hikes at Wednesday's meeting.

Crude oil prices regained ground after a midday sell-off but still ended Thursday's trading session firmly in negative territory as concerns about the outlook for energy demand continued to weigh on the markets. West Texas Intermediate for July shed $1.24 or 1.7 percent at $71.29 a barrel.

Closer to home, South Korea will provide April figures for current account later this morning, with forecasts suggesting a deficit of $1.38 billion following the $0.27 billion surplus in March.