Win Streak May Continue For South Korea Shares

(RTTNews) - The South Korea stock market has climbed higher in back-to-back sessions, surging almost 550 points or 10 percent in that span. The KOSPI now sits just above the 6,010-point plateau and it may add to its winnings on Thursday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is cautiously optimistic after the Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged, although the upside will be limited by a spike in oil prices. The European and U.S. markets were slightly higher and the Asian bourses are likely to follow suit.

The KOSPI finished sharply higher on Wednesday with gains across the board, particularly among the technology, industrial and finance sectors.

For the day, the index surged 374.10 points or 6.63 percent to finish at 6,012.44 after trading between 5,745.51 and 6,032.28. Volume was 223.2 million shares worth 19.83 trillion won. There were 580 gainers and 288 decliners.

The lead from Wall Street suggests mild upside as the major averages opened higher on Wednesday; the Dow and S&P remained in the green, while the NASDAQ bounced back and forth all day but finally ended to the upside.

The Dow rose 97.53 points or 0.19 percent to finish at 52,475.10, while the NASDAQ gained 72.04 points or 0.27 percent to end at 26,549.85 and the S&P 500 added 21.38 points or 0.28 percent to close at 7,743.98.

The higher close on Wall Street came after the Federal Reserve announced its widely expected decision to leave interest rates unchanged following its latest meeting.

The central bank's next monetary policy meeting is scheduled for December 8-9, with CME Group's FedWatch Tool currently indicating an 85.0 percent chance the Fed will raise rates by a quarter point.

Crude oil prices surged on Wednesday as reports suggest possible U.S. attacks on Iran by next week, fueling supply disruption concerns for an indefinite period. West Texas Intermediate crude for December was up $3.12 or 3.12 percent at $103.02 per barrel.