The South Korea stock market found renewed support on Wednesday, one day after snapping the two-day winning streak in which it had jumped more than 55 points or 2 percent. The KOSPI now sits just above the 2,770-point plateau and it may add to its winnings on Thursday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets is upbeat on an improved outlook for interest rates. The European and U.S. markets were solidly higher and the Asian bourses are expected to follow suit.
The KOSPI finished sharply higher on Wednesday following gains from the technology and chemical companies, while the financial shares came in mixed.
For the day, the index climbed 32.50 points or 1.19 percent to finish at 2,770.69. Volume was 543.14 million shares worth 11.84 trillion won. There were 586 gainers and 302 decliners.
Among the actives, Shinhan Financial collected 0.50 percent, while KB Financial retreated 1.57 percent, Hana Financial climbed 1.09 percent, Samsung Electronics surged 2.48 percent, Samsung SDI plummeted 3.33 percent, LG Electronics advanced 0.78 percent, SK Hynix soared 3.02 percent, Naver added 0.40 percent, LG Chem perked 0.16 percent, Lotte Chemical and S-Oil both jumped 1.80 percent, SK Innovation eased 0.10 percent, POSCO plunged 2.23 percent, SK Telecom dropped 0.92 percent, KEPCO improved 0.71 percent, Hyundai Mobis sank 0.68 percent, Hyundai Motor shed 0.40 percent and Kia Motors gained 0.45 percent.
The lead from Wall Street is broadly positive as the major averages opened higher on Wednesday and remained in the green throughout the session.
The Dow gained 99.46 points or 0.24 percent to finish at 40,842.79, while the NASDAQ surged 451.98 points or 2.64 percent to end at 17,599.40 and the S&P 500 rallied 85.86 points or 1.58 percent to close at 5,522.30.
The early rally on Wall Street reflected a positive reaction to the latest corporate earnings news from companies like Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), Starbucks (SBUX) and DuPont (DD).
Stocks continued to see strength after the Federal Reserve\'s monetary policy announcement. While the Fed left interest rates unchanged, as expected, minor changes to the accompanying statement may hint at future rate cuts.
Fed Chair Jerome Powell said in his post-meeting press conference that a rate cut in September would be \"on the table\" if economic data continues on its current path.
Oil prices rose sharply Wednesday amid concerns about possible supply disruptions due to rising tensions in the Middle East, and on data showing a larger than expected drop in U.S. crude inventories last week. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for September ended up $3.18 or 4.3 percent at $77.91 a barrel.
Closer to home, South Korea will provide July numbers for imports, exports and trade balance later this morning. Imports are expected to jump 13.4 percent on year after sinking 7.5 percent in June. Exports are called higher by an annual 19.1 percent after adding 5.1 percent in the previous month. The trade surplus is pegged at $4.38 billion, down from $7.99 billion a month earlier.