Korean shares open lower after Fed chief's remarks

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Korean shares open lower after Fed chief's remarks

Published: 23 Mar. 2023, 09:42 Updated: 23 Mar. 2023, 10:08

A screen in Hana Bank's trading room in central Seoul shows stock and foreign exchange markets open on Thursday. [NEWS1]

Stocks opened lower Thursday, tracking U.S. losses overnight, as the chief of the U.S. Federal Reserve dismisses the possibility of rate cuts this year amid concerns over instability of the global banking system.

The benchmark Kospi shed 11.61 points, or 0.48 percent, to 2,405.35 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

Overnight, U.S. shares fell after the Fed raised its key rate by 25 basis points to a range of 4.75 percent to 5 percent, the ninth rate hike in a row, and Chair Jerome Powell dismissed any rate cuts this year to curb inflation.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.63 percent, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite dived 1.60 percent.

Investor sentiment was hurt further after U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen told lawmakers Wednesday that her government does not consider "blanket insurance" for all U.S. bank deposits.

In Seoul, most big-cap shares lost ground.

Samsung Electronics fell 0.49 percent, and SK hynix lost 0.92 percent.

Battery maker LG Energy Solution decreased 0.7 percent, and Samsung SDI went down 0.68 percent. LG Chem inched down 0.14 percent.

Hyundai Motor lost 0.06 percent and its affiliate Kia sank 1.52 percent.

Naver dived 1.21 percent, and Kakao skidded 1.59 percent.

The local currency was trading at 1,297.45 won against the dollar as of 9:15 a.m., down 10.25 won from the previous session's close.

Yonhap