Seoul shares end higher amid rate hike woes

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Seoul shares end higher amid rate hike woes

Published: 08 May. 2023, 17:05 Updated: 08 May. 2023, 17:32

A screen in Hana Bank's trading room in central Seoul shows the Kospi closing at 2,513.21 points on Monday, up 0.49 percent, or 12.27 points, from the previous trading day. [YONHAP]

Stocks ended higher Monday, following U.S. stocks' rally last week, with investors staying cautious about the Federal Reserve's further rate hikes to tame inflation. The won rose against the dollar.

The Kospi went up 12.27 points, or 0.49 percent, to 2,513.21.

Trading volume was moderate at 645.61 million shares worth 9.06 trillion won ($6.8 billion), with gainers outnumbering decliners 571 to 301.

Institutions and foreigners bought a combined 698 billion won worth of stocks, offsetting individuals' stock selling valued at 694 billion won.

On Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 1.7 percent to 33,674.38 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rallied 2.2 percent to 12,235.41.

Strong U.S. jobs data and Apple's higher-than-expected earnings results pushed up U.S. stocks, reviving investors' appetite for risky assets, analysts said.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell said Wednesday after its policy meeting that it is too soon to say the rate hike cycle is over as the Fed believes inflation remains too high.

The U.S. central bank raised interest rates by 0.25 percentage point to a range between 5 and 5.25 percent, the 10th consecutive hike since March 2022.

In Seoul, tech and auto stocks led gains.

Samsung Electronics rose 1.2 percent to 65,900 won, and Sk hynix remained flat at 88,700 won.

LG Electronics climbed 2.8 percent to 112,300 won, and SK Innovation jumped 3.4 percent to 185,000 won.

Hyundai Motor gained 1.7 percent to 202,500 won, and Kia advanced 1.4 percent to 87,100 won.

Among decliners, budget carrier Jeju Air fell 0.2 percent to 14,110 won, and car battery maker LG Energy Solution shed 1 percent to 558,000 won.

Posco Holdings declined 3 percent to 367,500 won, and Posco Future M dropped 5 percent to 321,500 won.

The local currency ended at 1,321.4 won against the dollar, down 1.4 won from the previous session's close.

Bond prices, which move inversely to yields, closed lower. The yield on three-year government bonds rose 5.3 basis points to 3.261 percent, and the yield on the benchmark 10-year government bonds upped 5.5 basis points to 3.438 percent.

BY SOHN DONG-JOO, YONHAP [sohn.dongjoo@joongang.co.kr]