 |
| A currency trader watches monitors in the foreign exchange dealing room of the KEB Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, in this Nov. 30 file photo. AP-Yonhap |
Shares on the South Korean stock markets are expected to move within a tight range next week with investors likely remaining wary over uncertainties from the Omicron variant of COVID-19 and rising tensions between the United States and Russia over Ukraine, analysts said Saturday.
The benchmark KOSPI closed at 3,012.43, Friday, adding 6.02 points, or 0.2 percent, during the week’s trading.
The main index started down about 1.8 percent Monday, but rebounded after U.S. President Joe Biden said putting his country under another COVID-19 lockdown was not on the table.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Emergency Use Authorization for Merck’s antiviral pill and Pfizer’s Paxlovid for COVID-19 treatment also helped ease market worries.
“The overall risks are likely to be alleviated, although uncertainties remain with the possibility of limited stronger quarantine measures by governments in other countries,” said Kim Young-han, an analyst at NH Investment & Securities.
Also in focus are the fresh tensions between the U.S. and Russia over the deployment of Russian troops to its border with Ukraine, and whether the issue will be resolved soon through talks, which U.S. officials have said will take place early next month, Kim added.
Trading volume is also expected to remain less than moderate throughout next week, given that it is the final week before the new year, typically a period for books closing and listed firms to trade ex-dividend, according to the analyst.
The local stock markets will be open for trading until Thursday to round out the year.
This past week, foreign investors scooped up a net 306.1 billion won ($257.8 million) worth of local equities, with institutions buying a net 1.58 trillion won, as individual investors unloaded a net 2.01 trillion won. (Yonhap)
Seoul shares likely to see range-bound trading next week
Source: Buhay Kapa PH
0 Comments