Foreign investors bolster Seoul shares
The benchmark Kospi climbed modestly on Thursday to close at 2,072.79, up 2.25 points, or 0.11 percent.
The index fluctuated in-session, rising above 2,090 early on the news that an arrest warrant for Lee Jae-yong, the de facto head of Samsung, was rejected. But market insiders speculate that investors will stay cautious until Donald Trump takes office in the United States.
“The direction of the Kospi will likely be set only after the big event of Trump’s inauguration ceremony,” said Bookook Securities analyst Kim Sung-hwan. “From the technical point of view, the index is seen as taking a breather on the upper side of the tight range.”
Market bellwether Samsung Electronics rose Thursday, up 1.46 percent to close at 1,874,000 won, pushed up on eased concerns about a leadership crisis with Lee’s possible arrest. Chipmaker SK Hynix gained 1.54 percent to 49,600 won.
Auto-related companies didn’t do well. Hyundai Motor tumbled 1.30 percent to 152,000 won while its sister company Kia Motors inched down 0.85 percent to 40,800 won. Auto parts maker Hyundai Mobis slid 1.95 percent to close at 277,000 won.
The secondary Kosdaq continued its jitters and fell slightly, down 0.7 points, or 0.11 percent, to 626.19, despite solid performances by many of top shares in the index.
Kakao, the nation’s top messenger provider, rose 1.48 percent to 82,300 won while CJ E&M soared 10.8 percent to 87,200 won, on the news that Netmarble’s new mobile game Lineage 2 Revolution made more than 206 billion won in profit in just a month. CJ’s entertainment unit owns more than 30 percent of Netmarble’s shares.
The Korean won strengthened 0.9 percent to 1,177.6 on the dollar. Three-year and 10-year government bonds added three and five basis points to end at 1.68 and 2.17 percent.
BY CHOI HYUNG-JO, YONHAP [choi.hyungjo@joongang.co.kr]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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