South Korea Shares Tipped To Open In The Green

(RTTNews) - The South Korea stock market bounced higher again on Tuesday, one day after snapping the two-day winning streak in which it had collected almost 40 points or 1.6 percent. The KOSPI now rests just above the 2,680-point plateau and it's expected to see additional support on Wednesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is positive on optimism over the outlook for interest rates. The European and U.S. markets were up and the Asian markets are tipped to at least open in similar fashion.

The KOSPI finished modestly higher on Tuesday following gains from the technology stocks and chemicals, while the financials and industrials were mixed.

For the day, the index advanced 21.97 points or 0.83 percent to finish at 2,681.81 after trading between 2,659.72 and 2,686.14. Volume was 390 million shares worth 9.45 trillion won. There were 495 decliners and 365 gainers.

Among the actives, Shinhan Financial shed 0.44 percent, while KB Financial soared 3.54 percent, Samsung Electronics rallied 1.24 percent, Samsung SDI skyrocketed 11.12 percent, LG Electronics spiked 2.41 percent, SK Hynix lost 0.54 percent, Naver rose 0.32 percent, LG Chem surged 3.33 percent, Lotte Chemical perked 0.25 percent, SK Innovation accelerated 1.94 percent, POSCO jumped 2.97 percent, SK Telecom improved 0.77 percent, KEPCO skidded 1.04 percent, Hyundai Mobis was up 0.20 percent, Hyundai Motor sank 0.82 percent, Kia Motors eased 0.08 percent and Hana Financial and S-Oil were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is upbeat as the major averages opened flat on Tuesday but quickly moved solidly to the upside and finished comfortably in the green.

The Dow soared 235.83 points or 0.61 percent to finish at 39,005.49, while the NASDAQ surged 246.36 points or 1.54 percent to end at 16,265.64 and the S&P 500 rallied 57.33 points or 1.12 percent to close at 5,175.27.

The strength on Wall Street reflected a positive reaction to the Labor Department's highly anticipated report on consumer price inflation in February.

While core price growth slowed slightly less than expected, the slowdown still seems to have added to optimism about the Federal Reserve lowering interest rates in June.

The Labor Department is scheduled to release a separate report on Thursday on producer price inflation for February.

Oil futures settled lower again on Tuesday on the U.S. inflation data and persisting worries about the outlook for demand. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for April sank $0.37 at $77.56 a barrel.