Seoul: Stocks barely move; won edges up
[SEOUL] South Korea's KOSPI stock index weakened on Friday. The Korean won inched up in the local platform and bond yields rose. At 0630 GMT, the KOSPI was down 0.96 points or 0.04 per cent at 2,475.41. The benchmark index fell 2.7 per cent on a weekly basis, its biggest weekly loss since early August.
The won was quoted at 1,086.4 per US dollar on the onshore settlement platform, 0.17 per cent firmer than its previous close at 1,088.2.
In offshore trading, the won was quoted at 1,085.54 per US dollar, up 0.11 per cent from the previous day, while in one-year non-deliverable forwards it was being transacted at 1,083.05 per US dollar.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was down 0.05 per cent, after US stocks ended the previous session with mild gains. Japanese stocks rose 0.41 per cent.
The KOSPI is up around 22.2 per cent so far this year, and down by 0.13 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 284,017,000 shares, and of the total traded issues of 873, the number of advancing shares was 346. Foreigners were net sellers of 244,378 million won worth of shares.
The US dollar has fallen 10.01 per cent against the won this year. The won's high for the year is 1,075.71 per dollar on Nov 29, 2017 and low is 1,211.8 on Jan 3, 2017.
In money and debt markets, December futures on three-year treasury bonds were unchanged at 108.26. The Korean three-month Certificate of Deposit benchmark rate was quoted at 1.65 per cent compared with a previous close of 1.64 per cent, while the benchmark three-year Korean treasury bond yielded 2.082 per cent, higher than the previous day's 2.08 per cent.
REUTERS
BT is now on Telegram!
For daily updates on weekdays and specially selected content for the weekend. Subscribe to t.me/BizTimes
Capital Markets & Currencies
Syngenta to withdraw China IPO application on weak market: sources
Chinese firms’ fundraisings in limbo as IPOs scrutinised at home and abroad
Japan FX chief calls yen’s slump unusual, vows to act if needed
Trump’s meme stock is skyrocketing but for how long?
Europe: Stoxx 600 closes second-straight quarter with gains
US: Dow, S&P 500 end at records, adding to Q1 gains