After a positive start and a subsequent fall into negative territory, the South Korean stock market has edged higher on Wednesday with select stocks from banking and technology sectors moving up on strong buying support. The mood, however, remains quite cautious amid concerns about a possible slowdown in the global economic recovery.
The benchmark KOSPI index, which drifted down to 1,764.5 after advancing to 1,775.8, is currently up 2.7 points or 0.16% at 1,771.
Among bank stocks, Shinhan Financial is up 1.3%, KB Financial is gaining about 1.5% and Woori Finance is trading modestly higher, while Korea Exchange Bank is down with a loss of 0.4%.
In the technology space, Samsung Electronics and LG Display LCD are up with modest gains, while Hynix Semiconductor and LG Electronics are trading lower by 1% and 0.4% respectively.
Shipping stocks Hyundai Heavy Industries and Samsung Heavy Industries are down 1.4% and 0.6% respectively. STX Pan Ocean and Daewoo Shipbuilding are down with marginal losses.
Among automobile stocks, Ssangyong Motor is up 1.5% and Hyundai Motor is up marginally, while Kia Motor is trading lower by 1%.
Oil and telecommunications stocks are trading flat. Steel stocks Hyundai Steel and POSCO are down 2.3% and 1.3% respectively.
Among airliners, Korean Air is down 5.5% and Asiana Airlines is trading lower by about 3.6%.
On the economic front, South Korea posted a current account surplus of $5.04 billion in June, the Bank of Korea said Wednesday, up from the $3.82 billion surplus in May. The capital and financial account in June saw a net outflow of $940 million, down from $12.04 billion in the previous month. Reserve assets increased by $3.39 billion in June. The current account surplus for the first six months of 2010 came in at $11.61 billion.
Among other markets in the Asia-Pacific region, Japan, New Zealand, Shanghai and Hong Kong are up with notable gains. Australia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Taiwan are trading marginally higher. Markets across the region ended on a mixed note on Tuesday.
On Wall Street, stocks closed on opposite sides of the unchanged mark on Tuesday, as a mixed batch of economic data and solid quarterly earnings results divided market sentiment on the day. While the Dow eked out a modest gain, the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 declined by slim margins.
On the economic front, the Conference Board released a report showing that its consumer confidence index fell to 50.4 in July from an upwardly revised 54.3 in June. Economists had expected the index to slip to a reading of 51.0 compared to the 52.9 originally reported for the previous month.
The Dow gained 12.26 points or 0.1% to close at 10,537.69, a new two-month closing high, while the Nasdaq declined by 8.2 points or 0.4% to 2,288.3 and the S&P 500 slipped by 1.2 points or 0.1% to 1,113.8.
Major European markets ended with moderate gains on Tuesday. The French CAC 40 index gained 0.8%, while the U.K.'s FTSE 100 index and the German DAX index advanced by 0.3% and 0.2% respectively.
Crude oil prices declined on Tuesday amid data showing a bigger-than-expected decline in U.S. consumer confidence. Light, sweet crude for September delivery settled at US$77.50 a barrel, down US$1.48, on the session.
The price of crude oil had advanced 4% in the previous week to hit a two-month high, as strong corporate results from the U.S. helped prop up risk appetite of investors and a tropical storm threatened to disrupt production on the Gulf of Mexico.
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June 05, 2026 16:18 ET A busy week for economic news flow saw a slew of reports being released that reflected the trends in the U.S. labor market. In Europe, economic growth and inflation data gained attention as the European Central Bank and Bank of England head for policy session later in the month. In Asia, the monetary policy session of the Indian central bank was in focus as the country, a major oil importer, reels under the pressures of a weaker rupee and rising inflation.