South Korea Bourse Inherits Positive Lead For Tuesday

The South Korea stock market has tracked higher in three straight sessions, advancing more than 70 points or 2.7 percent along the way. Now at a fresh record closing high, the KOSPI now sits just beneath the 2,810-point plateau and it's looking at a green light for Tuesday's trade.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is optimistic thanks to Brexit and stimulus news, although profit taking may set in as the day progresses. The European and U.S. markets were up and the Asian bourses figure to open in similar fashion.

The KOSPI finished slightly higher on Monday as gains from the financials and industrials were offset by weakness from the oil companies and a mixed picture from the technology stocks.

For the day, the index was up 1.74 points or 0.06 percent to finish at 2,808.60 after trading between 2,799.56 and 2,834.59. Volume was 978 million shares worth 23.6 trillion won. There were 530 decliners and 315 gainers.

Among the actives, Shinhan Financial collected 0.60 percent, while KB Financial added 0.33 percent, Hana Financial rose 0.14 percent, Samsung Electronics climbed 1.16 percent, LG Electronics skyrocketed 11.16 percent, SK Hynix tumbled 2.12 percent, Samsung SDI sank 0.71 percent, LG Chem shed 0.49 percent, Lotte Chemical and KEPCO both were up 0.19 percent, S-Oil skidded 1.30 percent, SK Innovation retreated 1.39 percent, POSCO perked 0.92 percent, Hyundai Motor accelerated 1.34 percent, Kia Motors jumped 1.78 percent and SK Telecom was unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is solid as stocks opened higher on Monday and remained in the green throughout the session, sending the major averages to fresh record closing highs.

The Dow jumped 204.10 points or 0.68 percent to finish at 30,403.97, while the NASDAQ climbed 94.69 points or 0.74 percent to end at 12,899.42 and the S&P 500 gained 32.30 points or 0.87 percent to close at 3,735.36.

The strength on Wall Street came in reaction to news that President Donald Trump finally signed a $2.3 trillion government spending bill that includes approximately $900 billion in coronavirus relief funds.

Trading activity remained subdued, however, with many traders still away from their desks ahead of the New Year's Day holiday on Friday.

Crude oil prices drifted lower on Monday as rising coronavirus cases and tighter restrictions on travel in several places raised concerns about outlook for energy demand. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for February ended down $0.61 or 1.3 percent at $47.62 a barrel.

Closer to home, the Bank of Korea said this morning that consumer confidence in South Korea tumbled in December after its Composite Consumer Sentiment Index (CCSI) came in with a score of 89.8 - down sharply from 97.9 in November.

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