KOSPI Due For Profit Taking On Wednesday

(RTTNews) - The South Korea stock market has moved higher in back-to-back sessions, surging almost 200 points or 3 percent on its way to a fresh record closing high. The KOSPI now sits just beneath the 6,390-point plateau although investors figure to lock in gains on Wednesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets remains grim thanks to ongoing geopolitical concerns in the Middle East. The European and U.S. markets were down and the Asian bourses are expected to follow that lead.

The KOSPI finished sharply higher on Tuesday following gains from the technology, chemical and automobile companies, while the financial sector was mixed.

For the day, the index surged 169.38 points or 2.72 percent to finish at the daily high of 6,388.47 after trading as low as 6,302.54. Volume was 784.2 million shares worth 30.5 trillion won. There were 455 gainers and 408 decliners.

Among the actives, Shinhan Financial dipped 0.20 percent, while KB Financial fell 0.31 percent, Hana Financial collected 0.24 percent, Samsung Electronics vaulted 2.10 percent, Samsung SDI skyrocketed 19.89 percent, LG Electronics climbed 1.69 percent, SK Hynix spiked 4.97 percent, Naver rose 0.23 percent, LG Chem soared 6.57 percent, Lotte Chemical added 0.67 percent, SK Innovation rallied 3.65 percent, POSCO Holdings surged 8.22 percent, SK Telecom surged 4.15 percent, KEPCO lost 0.22 percent, Hyundai Mobis jumped 6.43 percent, Hyundai Motor accelerated 3.61 percent and Kia Motors expanded 1.65 percent.

The lead from Wall Street is soft as the major averages opened higher on Tuesday but quickly turned lower and remained in the red for the remainder of the day, ending at session lows.

The Dow dropped 293.18 points of 0.59 percent to finish at 49,149.38, while the NASDAQ sank 144.43 points or 0.59 percent to end at 24,259.96 and the S&P 500 lost 45.13 points or 0.63 percent to close at 7,064.01.

The weakness that emerged on Wall Street came as the price of crude oil has moved sharply higher over the course of the day.

Crude oil prices continued to surge on Tuesday as the ongoing shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz kept supply disruption concerns alive. West Texas Intermediate crude for May delivery was up $3.99 or 4.45 percent at $93.60 per barrel.

Earlier in the session, the markets benefitted from positive corporate earnings news from the likes of UnitedHealth (UNH) and homebuilder D.R. Horton (DHI), both of which handily beat expectations.

Early buying interest was also generated in reaction to a Commerce Department report showing retail sales in the U.S. surged by more than expected in the month of March.