Seoul: Stocks log best week in five months as Biden heads toward victory

[SEOUL] South Korean shares rose on Friday, marking their best weekly gain since June, as US stocks rose overnight after investors assessed the prospect of a Joe Biden presidency with a split Congress in the United States.

The benchmark Kospi closed up 2.71 points or 0.11 per cent at 2,416.50. For the week, the index jumped 6.6 per cent, its biggest since early June.

The likelihood of Republicans taking control of the Senate reduces risks of more regulations for businesses, while the growing prospect of a Biden win boosted alternative energy shares, says Lee Kyoung-min, an analyst at Daishin Securities.

Shares of battery maker LG Chem jumped 6.35 per cent, while wind power tower manufacturer CS Wind surged 6.1 per cent.

Foreigners were net buyers of 788.4 billion won (S$947.2 million) worth of shares on the main board.

The won was quoted at 1,120.4 per US dollar on the onshore settlement platform, 0.70 per cent higher than its previous close at 1,128.2.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 2.56 per cent, while the S&P 500 index jumped 1.95 per cent on Thursday.

The Kospi has risen 9.96 per cent so far this year, and gained 0.1 per cent in the previous 30 trading sessions.

The trading volume during the session in the Kospi index was 812.16 million shares. Of the total traded issues of 906, the number of advancing shares was 293.

The won has gained 3.2 per cent against the dollar so far this year.

The most liquid three-year Korean treasury bond yield rose by 1.8 basis points to 0.946 per cent, while the benchmark 10-year yield rose by 3.6 basis points to 1.563 per cent.

REUTERS