SEOUL, Mar 13: South Korean shares rebounded on Wednesday as a slightly stronger Japanese yen encouraged buying in firms such as Samsung Electronics that had lost ground in recent days on concerns over their competitiveness in overseas markets.
The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) ended up 0.32 percent at 1,999.73 points, snapping a two-day fall.
Retail investors continued to snap up KOSPI shares, offseting selling by foreign investors and institutional buyers.
Samsung Electronics firmed 2.2 percent, LG Electronics climbed 1.9 percent, while LG Display gained 0.9 percent.
The yen’s sell-off paused on Wednesday, but expectations of radical policy easing from the Bank of Japan meant further weakness was likely, which could undermine price competitiveness of South Korean exporters.
Hyundai Motor fell 0.2 percent, while Kia Motors gained 0.4 percent.
Lee Kyung-min, an analyst at Woori Investment & Securities, said the KOSPI has room to rebound from a recent correction, stemming from the yen’s weakness and geographical risks.
But he said, ‘U.S. Stocks are showing signs of losing upward momentum, and wariness ahead of monetary meeting and options expires weigh on the market.’
A poll by Reuters showed South Korea’s central bank is likely to keep its policy rate steady for a fifth consecutive month on Thursday, while the chance of at least one more cut this year has increased as the economy struggles to gain momentum.
Four different types of options will expire on Thursday in quarterly convergence known as quadruple witching, which could add volatility in the equity market as traders unwind positions.
Shipping firms lost ground. Hyundai Merchant Marine slumped 4.3 percent and Hanjin Shipping shed 3.3 percent.
STX Pan Ocean Co Ltd reversed its gains earlier in the day, ending down 3 percent. On Monday, it said top shareholder STX Corp is proceeding with sales of its controlling stake in the shipping company.
‘Sales hope faded out later in the day as concerns emerged about a protracted sales process because of difficulty in the shipping sector,’ said Cho Byeong-hee, an analyst at Kiwoom Securities.
(AGENCIES)
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