Seoul: Stocks wobble on US govt shutdown, dim trade talk outlook

[SEOUL] South Korea's Kospi stock index declined on Monday as investors are anxious about political instability in the United States. The South Korean won fell, while bond yields rose.

At 0116 GMT, the Kospi was down 8.41 points or 0.41 per cent at 2,053.08.

Local markets fell on concerns over the partial US government shutdown and possible delay of Sino-US trade negotiations, according to Mirae Asset report.

Aides of US President Donald Trump said the government shutdown could be extended to January.

Over the weekend, Mr Trump's trade adviser Peter Navarro said it would be difficult for the United States and China to reach an agreement after the 90-day period of talks, unless Beijing was prepared to overhaul its trade and industrial practices.

The won was quoted at 1,127.1 per dollar on the onshore settlement platform , 0.42 per cent weaker than its previous close of 1,122.4.

In offshore trading, the won was quoted at 1,126.7 per dollar, up 0.12 per cent from the previous day, while in one-year non-deliverable forwards it was being transacted at 1,107.65 per dollar.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was down 0.27 per cent, after US stocks ended the previous session with mild losses. Japanese financial markets were closed on Monday.

The Kospi is down around 16.5 per cent so far this year and by 1.18 per cent in the past 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 on the Kospi index was 92.4 million shares and, of the total traded issues of 880, the number of advancing shares was 274.

Foreigners were net sellers of 42.19 billion won worth of shares. The dollar has risen 5.66 per cent against the won this year. The won's high for the year was 1,053.55 per dollar, hit on April 2, and its low was 1,146.26, touched on Oct. 11.

In money and debt markets, March futures on three-year treasury bonds rose 0.02 points to 109.18. The Korean three-month Certificate of Deposit benchmark rate was quoted at 1.9 per cent, while the benchmark three-year Korean treasury bond yielded 1.84 per cent, higher than the previous day's 1.84 per cent.

REUTERS