Seoul shares dip 1 pct on Fed rate hike woes, won sharply slides

South Korean stocks fell by almost 1 percent Friday, as investors moved to lock in profits from recent gains on concerns about high inflation and the Federal Reserve's tightening push. The local currency fell sharply against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 23.67 points, or 0.95 percent, to close at 2,456.15, ending a two-day winning streak. Trading volume was a bit slim at 576.69 million shares worth 7.06 trillion won ($5.23 billion), with losers outpacin

Oct. 13, 2023

Seoul shares open lower on rising woes over Fed rate hike speculation

South Korean stocks opened lower Friday, tracking overnight losses on Wall Street, as investors moved to lock in profits from recent sharp gains on quicker-than-expected US inflation and high bond yields. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 14.41 points, or 0.58 percent, to 2,465.41 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, US shares finished lower after the consumer price index rose at a quicker than expected rate of 3.7 percent on-year in September, which raised speculati

Oct. 13, 2023

Seoul shares end higher on tech gains, Fed comments

Seoul shares ended higher Thursday, tracking gains on Wall Street, buoyed by Federal Reserve officials' dovish comments on interest rates and tech gains. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 29.74 points, or 1.21 percent, to close at 2,479.82. Trading volume was moderate at 505.19 million shares worth 8.79 trillion won ($6.5 billion), with gainers outpacing losers 676 to 201. Institutions bought a net 254.08 billion won worth of sto

Oct. 12, 2023

Seoul shares open higher on US gains

Seoul shares opened higher Thursday, tracking overnight gains on Wall Street, boosted by dovish comments on interest rates by Federal Reserve officials. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 18.59 points, or 0.8 percent, to 2,468.67 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.2 percent to 33,804.87, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite gained 0.7 percent to 13,659.68. Fed officials said the US central bank doesn't need to keep tighten

Oct. 12, 2023

Seoul shares open higher on US gains after Fed comments

Seoul shares opened higher Wednesday, tracking overnight gains on Wall Street, buoyed by dovish comments on interest rates by Federal Reserve officials. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 44.09 points, or 1.84 percent, to 2,446.67 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.4 percent to 33,739.30, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite gained 0.6 percent to 13,562.84. Traders have expected another rate hike this year due to higher-than-ex

Oct. 11, 2023

Seoul shares end lower amid conflict in Middle East

Seoul shares closed lower Tuesday as investors remain cautious due to the Israel-Palestine conflict. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 6.15 points, or 0.3 percent, to close at 2,402.58. The Kospi opened higher, tracking gains on Wall Street, boosted by Federal Reserve officials' dovish comments on rates. Trading volume was moderate at 410.31 million shares worth 9.3 trillion won ($6.9 billion), with losers outpacing gainers 626 t

Oct. 10, 2023

Seoul shares open higher on US gains; Israel-Palestine conflict adds uncertainties

Seoul shares opened higher Tuesday, tracking gains on Wall Street, after Federal Reserve officials made dovish comments on rates, with investors assessing uncertainties over the Israel-Palestine conflict. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 33.18 points, or 1.38 percent, to 2,441.91 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.6 percent to 33,604,65, and the tech-heavy NASDAQ Composite gained 0.4 percent to 13,484.24. Traders have expect

Oct. 10, 2023

Seoul shares close tad higher ahead of key US jobs data

South Korean stocks closed slightly higher Friday ahead of the US payrolls data release. The local currency rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 5.13 points, or 0.21 percent, to close at 2,408.73. Trading volume was slim at 284.6 million shares worth 6.36 trillion won ($4.71 billion), with gainers outpacing losers 652 to 220. Foreigners sold off a net 325.4 billion won worth of shares, continuing their selling streak for the 11th consecutive trading d

Oct. 6, 2023

Seoul shares open higher ahead of US jobs data

South Korean stocks opened higher Friday as investors await the US payrolls data, which will give clues for the Federal Reserve's future monetary tightening policy. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 10.86 points, or 0.45 percent, to 2,414.46 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, all three US indexes slipped as investors were on edge ahead of the release of monthly non-farm payrolls data to be released later in the day, which will be a decisive factor in forecast

Oct. 6, 2023

Seoul shares close tad lower amid mixed US rate outlook

South Korean stocks closed slightly lower Thursday amid a mixed outlook on whether the United States will maintain its monetary tightening policy. The local currency rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index declined 2.09 points, or 0.09 percent, to close at 2,403.60. Trading volume was moderate at 446.01 million shares worth 8.96 trillion won ($6.64 billion), with losers outpacing gainers 583 to 295. Foreigners and institutions dumped a net 272.1 billion won an

Oct. 5, 2023

Doosan Robotics shares debut at double IPO price

Shares of Doosan Robotics, South Korea’s largest collaborative robot producer under the conglomerate Doosan Group, nearly doubled on Thursday, as the company made its stock market debut. Doosan Robotics closed at 51,400 won ($38.03) per share on Korea's main bourse Kospi, up 97.69 percent from its initial public offering price of 26,000 won. Its market capitalization stood at 3.33 trillion won, ranking in the top 100 stocks on Kospi. Its shares opened at 59,100 won, 127.3 percent hi

Oct. 5, 2023

Seoul shares open higher on Fed rate pause hopes

South Korean stocks rebounded Thursday from a crash the previous day, as weaker-than-expected US jobs data raised hopes that the Federal Reserve may refrain from further rate increases. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 9.08 points, or 0.38 percent, to 2,414.77 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, US shares rebounded after a slump the previous session thanks to big tech gains, including Tesla, Alphabet, Microsoft and Amazon. Investors hope that the Fed may not go fo

Oct. 5, 2023

Seoul shares, won crash amid rising Fed woes

South Korean stocks fell to a six-month low Wednesday on a sharp decline in big-cap tech shares amid growing concerns the Federal Reserve will keep its rates higher for longer. The local currency fell against the US dollar to hit an 11-month low. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index slid 59.38 points, or 2.41 percent, to close at 2,405.69, the lowest since March. The secondary KOSDAQ plunged 4 percent. The Kospi's trading volume was moderate at 417.16 million shares worth 9.88 tr

Oct. 4, 2023

Seoul shares open sharply down on US jobs data, rate hike woes

South Korean stocks opened sharply lower Wednesday, tracking an overnight slump on Wall Street, as US jobs data deepened concerns about further interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 47.43 points, or 1.92 percent, to 2,417.64 in the first 15 minutes of trading. The secondary KOSDAQ index lost more than 2.2 percent in the first 15 minutes. Overnight, US shares ended markedly lower as an increase in available job openings in August strength

Oct. 4, 2023

Seoul shares snap 4-day losing run; won falls to fresh yearly low

South Korean stocks finished slightly higher Wednesday following recent sharp losses amid concerns about the Federal Reserve's further interest rate hikes and the US economic outlook. The local currency fell against the US dollar to hit a fresh yearly low. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 2.1 points, or 0.09 percent, to close at 2,465.07, ending a four-day losing streak. Trading volume was a bit slim at 354.97 million shares worth 6.26 trillion won ($4.64 billion), with

Sept. 27, 2023

BTS agency likely to face tougher disclosure rules

Hybe, the K-pop powerhouse behind the mega success of bands such as BTS and New Jeans, could be obliged to disclose its corporate information if the total assets of the firm and its affiliates continue to surpass 5 trillion won ($3.7 billion) by the end of this year. The combined total assets of Hybe and its 16 affiliates stood at 5.37 trillion won as of end-June, a report by corporate data research institute CEO Score showed Wednesday. Under the Monopoly Regulation and Fair Trade Act, a busin

Sept. 27, 2023

Seoul shares open lower on Fed, growth woes

South Korean stocks opened lower Wednesday, tracking an overnight drop on Wall Street, on lingering concerns about further interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve and the US economic outlook. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 3.01 points, or 0.12 percent, to 2,459.96 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, US shares ended markedly lower as data pointed to weaker-than-expected consumer confidence, stoking fears over a slowdown in the world's largest economy. Inve

Sept. 27, 2023

Seoul shares tumble to 5-month low; won falls to yearly low

South Korean stocks fell to a five-month low Tuesday on lingering concerns about the Federal Reserve's continued monetary tightening path and risks in the Chinese property sector. The local currency fell sharply against the US dollar to hit a yearly low. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 32.79 points, or 1.31 percent, to close at 2,462.97, extending a losing streak to the fourth session. Trading volume was a bit slim at 418.85 million shares worth 6.86 trillion won ($5.09

Sept. 26, 2023

Seoul shares open lower on tech losses

South Korean stocks opened lower Tuesday, despite overnight gains on Wall Street, as big-cap tech shares lost ground amid lingering concerns about the Federal Reserve's aggressive monetary policy path. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 13.20 points, or 0.53 percent, to 2,482.56 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, US shares rose following recent sharp losses as the Federal Reserve signaled higher borrowing rates for longer to curb inflation, sending bond yields

Sept. 26, 2023

[Graphic News] Imports of Japanese seafood dip for 5th month in Aug.

South Korean imports of Japanese seafood fell for the fifth consecutive month in August on concerns over Japan’s release of treated radioactive water, government data showed. Seoul imported $7.81 million worth of fishery products from the neighboring country last month, down 34.8 percent from a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service. August posted the largest on-year decline this year, and last month’s import value was the smallest monthly figure in two ye

Sept. 26, 2023