Bargain Hunting May Boost South Korea Shares

(RTTNews) - The South Korea stock market has finished lower in four straight sessions, sinking more than 620 points or 9 percent along the way. The KOSPI now sits just above the 6,380-point plateau although it's overdue for support on Tuesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is murky ahead of key inflation data and hampered by rising crude oil prices. The European markets were up and the U.S. bourses were mostly lower and the Asian markets are likely to split the difference.

The KOSPI finished sharply lower on Monday with damage across the board, especially among the technology stocks and semiconductors, while the financials and industrials also were down.

For the day, the index plummeted 241.69 points or 3.65 percent to finish at 6,384.24. Volume was 313 million shares worth 21.33 trillion won. There were 717 decliners and 166 gainers.

The lead from Wall Street is weak as the major averages opened mixed on Monday end remained on oppositive sides of the line throughout the day, ending little changed.

The Dow climbed 195.60 points or 0.38 percent to finish at 51,850.55, while the NASDAQ dropped 120.27 points or 0.44 percent to close at 27,245.90 and the S&P 500 dipped 4.30 points or 0.06 percent to end at 7,807.24.

The choppy trading on Wall Street came as traders were reluctant to make significant moves ahead of the release of key inflation data on Wednesday.

That data may have a significant impact on the outlook for interest rates ahead of the Federal Reserve's next monetary policy meeting later this month, with current forecasts suggesting no change.

Earnings news is also likely to attract attention, as financial giants Citigroup (C), JPMorgan Chase (JPM), Wells Fargo (WFC) and Bank of America (BAC) are among the companies due to report their quarterly results this week.

Crude oil prices moved sharply higher day on Monday in the wake of fresh attacks on Saudi Arabia's aviation infrastructure by Iran-backed Houthi militants. West Texas Intermediate crude for November delivery jumped $2.42 or 2.6 percent to $94.27 a barrel.