South Korea: Stocks flat, won stays at 3-year high on dollar weakness

[SEOUL] South Korea's Kospi stock index weakened slightly on Tuesday. The Korean won barely moved from a 3-year high reached this week while bond yields rose.

At 00.59 GMT, the Kospi was down 2.05 points or 0.08 per cent at 2,501.31.

The won was quoted at 1,064.3 per dollar on the onshore settlement platform, 0.15 per cent weaker than its previous close at 1,062.7.

In offshore trading, the won was quoted at 1,064.3 per US dollar, down 0.18 per cent from the previous day, while in one-year non-deliverable forwards it was being transacted at 1,055.75 per dollar.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was down 0.19 per cent.

Japanese stocks rose 0.13 per cent. US markets were closed on Monday for a public holiday.

The Kospi is up around 1.5 per cent so far this year, and up by 0.36 per cent in the previous 30 days.

The current price-to-earnings ratio is 12.10, the dividend yield is 1.28 per cent and the market capitalisation is 1,242.04 trillion won.

The trading volume during the session on the Kospi index was 98,299,000 shares, and of the total traded issues of 877, the number of advancing shares was 285.

Foreigners were net buyers of 27,550 million won worth of shares.

The US dollar has fallen 0.19 per cent against the won this year. The won's high for the year is 1,056.67 per dollar on January 14 2018 and low is 1,073.2 on January 11 2018.

In money and debt markets, March futures on three-year treasury bonds fell 0.01 points to 107.53.

REUTERS