KOSPI May Extend Tuesday's Losses

(RTTNews) - The South Korea stock market has finished lower in two of three trading days since the end of the two-day winning streak in which it had rallied almost 340 points or 4.2 percent. The KOSPI now sits just above the 7,270-point plateau and it's likely to open under water again on Wednesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is weak on continued concerns over the conflict in the Middle East and on the outlook got 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 sharply lower on Tuesday with damage across the board, especially among the technology, chemical and automobile sectors.

For the day, the index plunged 244.38 points or 3.25 percent to finish at 7,271.66 after trading between 7,141.91 and 7,446.57. Volume was 524.8 million shares worth 37.1 trillion won. There were 706 decliners and 178 gainers.

Among the actives, Shinhan Financial collected 0.86 percent, while KB Financial eased 0.13 percent, Hana Financial advanced 0.96 percent, Samsung Electronics tumbled 1.96 percent, Samsung SDI surrendered 4.24 percent, LG Electronics cratered 11.66 percent, SK Hynix tanked 5.16 percent, Naver dropped 0.95 percent, LG Chem plunged 6.03 percent, Lotte Chemical stumbled 2.50 percent, SK Innovation retreated 3.00 percent, POSCO Holdings declined 4.86 percent, SK Telecom contracted 2.79 percent, KEPCO soared 3.98 percent, Hyundai Mobis plummeted 8.06 percent, Hyundai Motor crashed 8.90 percent and Kia Motors sank 4.68 percent.

The lead from Wall Street is negative as the major averages opened lower on Tuesday and remained in the red throughout the trading day.

The Dow slumped 322.24 points or 0.65 percent to finish at 49,363.88, while the NASDAQ tumbled 220.03 points or 0.84 percent to close at 25,870.71 and the S&P 500 sank 49.44 points or 0.67 percent to end at 7,353.61.

The weakness on Wall Street came amid an extended surge by treasury yields, with the yield on the benchmark ten-year note jumping to its highest levels since January 2025.

Concerns about elevated crude oil prices leading to a sustained acceleration in the pace of inflation continued to drive yields higher and increase the possibility of an interest rate hike.

Crude oil prices took a breather on Tuesday following news the U.S. is halting its planned attacks on Iran, although the Strait of Hormuz remains closed. West Texas Intermediate crude for June was down $0.07 or 0.1 percent at $108.59 per barrel.