S.Korean stocks drop on lingering trade worries

Amorepacific

03/09/2019 08:04

* KOSPI index sags, foreigners net sellers
    * Korean won weakens versus U.S. dollar
    * South Korea benchmark bond yield falls
    * For the midday report, please click  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL3N25U098

    SEOUL, Sept 3 (Reuters) - Round-up of South Korean financial
markets:
    
** South Korean shares slipped on Tuesday as persistent worries
over the Sino-U.S. trade spat led investors to trim their equity
exposure. The Korean won and the benchmark bond yield fell.
    
** Anxieties over the Sino-U.S. trade talks have been the main
reason behind investors' soured sentiment, prompting sales by
foreign investors amid a risk-off mood, said Lee Won, an analyst
at Bookook Securities. 
    
** China has lodged a complaint against the United States at the
World Trade Organization over U.S. import duties, the Chinese
Commerce Ministry said on Monday.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL3N25T2PU
    
** The Seoul stock market's main KOSPI  .KS11  ended down 3.50
points, or 0.18%, at 1,965.69 points.
    
** Foreigners were net sellers of 303.6 billion won ($250.36
million) worth of shares on the main board. 
    
** South Korea's cosmetic makers exposed to China rallied, after
Chinese factory activity data beat market estimates. Shares of
AmorePacific  090430.KS  and LG Household & Healthcare
 051900.KS  rose 7.6% and 4.8%, respectively, helping the
chemical sub-index  .KS29  gain 1.3%.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL3N25U0NW
    
** Shares of Samsung Electronics  005930.KS  extended losses and
closed 1.3% lower after Fitch Ratings said it expected memory
chip manufacturers to continue to suffer in the short-term,
before the industry stabilises next year.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nFIT7LrWHH
        
** The won was quoted at 1,215.6 per dollar on the onshore
settlement platform  KRW=KFTC , 0.39% lower than its previous
close at 1,210.8.
     
** In offshore trading, the won  KRW=  was quoted at 1,215.6 per
U.S. dollar, down 0.2% from the previous day, while in
non-deliverable forward trading its one-month contract
 KRW1MNDFOR=  was quoted at 1,214.5 per dollar.
     
** MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan
 .MIAPJ0000PUS  was down 0.57%. Japanese stocks  .N225  rose
0.02%.  MKTS/GLOB 
     
** The KOSPI has fallen 3.69% so far this year, and lost 6.0% in
the previous 30 trading sessions.
     
** The current price-to-earnings ratio is 12.10, the dividend
yield is 1.28% and the market capitalisation is 1,242.04
trillion won.
     
** The trading volume during the session in the KOSPI index
 .KS11  was 331.14 million shares and, of the total traded
issues of 887, the number of advancing shares was 439.
     
** The won has lost 8.2% against the U.S dollar so far this
year.
     
** In money and debt markets, September futures on three-year
treasury bonds  KTBc1  rose 0.02 point to 110.98, while the
3-month Certificate of Deposit rate was quoted at 1.49%.
     
** The most liquid 3-year Korean treasury bond yield fell by 0.8
basis point to 1.226%, while the benchmark 10-year yield fell by
2.2 basis points to 1.326%.    

($1 = 1,212.6600 won)    

 (Reporting by Hayoung Choi; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)
 ((hayoung.choi@thomsonreuters.com; +82 2 6936 1468;))