Seoul: South Korean stocks closed higher for a third consecutive session Thursday, bolstered by hopes for a rate cut in the United States. The local currency traded almost unchanged against the U.S. dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added 26.04 points, or 0.66 percent, to close at 3,986.91.
According to Yonhap News Agency, trade volume was moderate at 251.6 million shares valued at 12.85 trillion won (US$8.77 billion), with more stocks rising than falling in a count of 482 to 389. Foreign investors and institutions bought a net 149.6 billion won and 431.9 billion won worth of local shares, respectively, while individual investors sold a net 609.3 billion won.
The KOSPI opened sharply higher, climbing over 1 percent, following overnight gains on Wall Street. On Wednesday, U.S. stocks closed broadly higher, continuing a four-day winning streak as investors anticipated a possible easing by the U.S. Federal Reserve. The S and P 500 rose 0.7 percent, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.7 percent, and the Nasdaq Composite climbed 0.8 percent.
However, the Seoul market later reduced its earlier gains as the central bank kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged, with analysts interpreting a more hawkish tone from policymakers. The Bank of Korea (BOK) maintained the key rate at 2.5 percent and raised the country’s economic growth forecast to 1 percent for 2025.
“The BOK’s rate freeze and expectations of a U.S. rate cut in December helped attract foreign funds into both the spot and futures markets, supporting a rebound in the index,” said Lee Jae-won, an analyst at Shinhan Securities.
Most large-cap shares showed mixed results. Market leader Samsung Electronics added 0.68 percent to 103,500 won, and its competitor SK hynix surged 3.82 percent to 544,000 won amid eased artificial intelligence concerns. Naver, the top internet company, dropped 4.55 percent to 251,500 won after Dunamu Inc., operator of South Korea’s largest cryptocurrency exchange Upbit, reported a significant hacking attack. Naver had announced the acquisition of Dunamu the previous day.
Leading biotech firm Samsung Biologics decreased 0.3 percent to 1.65 million won, and major banking group KB Financial Group fell 0.8 percent to 123,700 won. The local currency was quoted at 1,464.75 won against the greenback at 3:30 p.m., up 0.8 won from the previous session.
Bond prices, which move inversely to yields, ended lower. The yield on three-year Treasurys rose 11.8 basis points to 3.013 percent, and the return on the benchmark five-year government bonds increased 11.3 basis points to 3.197 percent.