KOSPI May Extend Wednesday's Losses

(RTTNews) - The South Korea stock market headed south again on Wednesday, one day after ending the three-day slide in which it had crashed more than 1,300 points or 15 percent. The KOSPI now sits just above the 7,730-point plateau and it may take further damage on Thursday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is weak on further escalating tensions in the Middle East. The European and U.S. markets were down and the Asian bourses are expected to follow that lead.

The KOSPI finished sharply lower on Wednesday following losses from the financial shares, technology stocks, plastics and automobile producers.

For the day, the index plummeted 366.11 points or 4.52 percent to finish at 7,730.82 after trading between 7,541.11 and 7,996.68. Volume was 457.5 million shares worth 39 trillion won. There were 547 decliners and 343 gainers.

Among the actives, Shinhan Financial declined 2.96 percent, while KB Financial fell 0.52 percent, Hana Financial sank 0.92 percent, Samsung Electronics plunged 6.06 percent, Samsung SDI stumbled 3.59 percent, LG Electronics surrendered 9.68 percent, SK Hynix cratered 7.54 percent, Naver plummeted 11.67 percent, LG Chem contracted 1.82 percent, Lotte Chemical dropped 1.83 percent, SK Innovation shed 1.89 percent, POSCO Holdings slipped 0.41 percent, SK Telecom tanked 2.22 percent, KEPCO gained 0.83 percent, Hyundai Mobis tumbled 4.20 percent, Hyundai Motor crashed 5.79 percent and Kia Motors retreated 2.80 percent.

The lead from Wall Street is broadly negative as the major averages opened lower and continued trend deeper into the red as the day progressed, ending at session lows.

The Dow tumbled 953.33 points or 1.87 percent to finish at 49,918.78, while the NASDAQ tanked 509.32 points or 1.98 percent to end at 25,169.50 and the S&P 500 slumped 119.66 points or 1.62 percent.

The weakness that emerged on Wall Street came as President Donald Trump ramped up his threats against Iran following a recent exchange of attacks.

Trump's latest threats came after U.S. Central Command said forces completed "self-defense strikes" against Iran on Tuesday at the president's direction in response to the downing of a U.S. helicopter.

In economic news, the Labor Department reported that consumer prices in the U.S. increased in line with estimates in May. Core consumer price growth also matches expectations.

Crude oil prices surged Wednesday on concerns about the gulf conflict intensifying further after the U.S. and Iran resumed attacks, keeping the Strait of Hormuz closed. West Texas Intermediate crude for July delivery was up $2.26 or 2.56 percent at $90.46 per barrel.

Closer to home, South Korea will release jobless figures for May later this morning; in April, the unemployment rate was 2.8 percent.