S.Korean stocks near 1-month high on trade hopes, dovish Fed

CJ ENM

11/01/2019 07:07

* KOSPI index highest since Dec 19, foreigners buy
    * Korean won inches up against USD
    * South Korea bond yields up
    * For the midday report, please click  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL3N1ZB16P

    SEOUL, Jan 11 (Reuters) - Round-up of South Korean financial
markets:
    
    ** South Korea's KOSPI stock index  .KS11  rose on Friday as
U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell's dovish comments
cheered investors amid news trade talks between Washington and
Beijing were moving to higher levels. The Korean won rose while
bonds fell.
    
    ** Powell on Thursday reiterated that the U.S. central bank
could be patient in approving any further rate increases as
officials gauge whether the U.S. economy will slow this year, as
some in financial markets worry, or continue motoring ahead as
the Fed itself expects.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N1ZA1MY
    
    ** U.S. officials expect China's top trade negotiator may
visit Washington this month, signaling that higher-level
discussions will likely follow this week's talks with mid-level
officials in Beijing as the world's two largest economies try to
hammer out a deal to end a tit-for-tat tariff war.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL3N1ZA03L
    
    ** The KOSPI closed up 12.29 points or 0.60 percent at
2,075.57 after hitting its highest level since Dec. 19. For the
week, the benchmark index jumped 3.2 percent, snapping five
consecutive weekly losses. 
    
    ** Shares of Dexter Studios Co Ltd  206560.KQ  rose nearly
30 percent after local media reported CJ ENM Co Ltd  035760.KQ 
plans to buy Dexter Studios. CJ ENM said in a regulatory filing
that it is not pursuing acquisition of Dexter Studios, but
considering financial investment and other options to strengthen
contents production capabilities.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nS6N1Z205H
    
    ** The won was quoted at 1,116.4 per dollar on the onshore
settlement platform  KRW=KFTC , 0.17 percent firmer than its
previous close at 1,118.3. The currency rose 0.7 percent on 
week, its biggest weekly gain since Dec. 21.
    
    ** In offshore trading, the won  KRW=  was quoted at
1,116.71 per U.S. dollar, up 0.01 percent from the previous day,
while in one-year non-deliverable forwards  KRWNDFOR=  it was
being asked at 1,100.15 per dollar.
    
    ** MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside
Japan  .MIAPJ0000PUS  was up 0.26 percent, after U.S. stocks
ended the previous session with gains  MKTS/GLOB . Japanese
stocks  .N225  rose 0.97 percent.
    
    ** The KOSPI is up around 1.1 percent so far this year, and
up by 0.95 percent in the previous 30 days.
    
    ** The current price-to-earnings ratio is 12.10, the
dividend yield is 1.28 percent and the market capitalisation is
1,242.04 trillion won.
    
    ** The trading volume during the session on the KOSPI index
 .KS11  was 372,532,000 shares. Of the total traded issues of
898, the number of advancing shares was 534.
    
    ** Foreigners were net buyers of 177,432 million won worth
of shares.
    
    ** The won's high for the year is 1,114.7 per dollar on Jan.
2 and the low is 1,130.05 on Jan. 3.
    
    ** In money and debt markets, March futures on three-year
treasury bonds  KTBc1  fell 0.03 points to 109.27.
    
    ** The Korean 3-month Certificate of Deposit benchmark rate
was quoted at 1.86 percent, while the benchmark 3-year Korean
treasury bond yielded 1.803 percent, higher than the previous
day's 1.80 percent.

 (Reporting by Joori Roh; Editing by Shreejay Sinha)
 ((joori.roh@thomsonreuters.com; +82 2 3704 5642; Reuters
Messaging: joori.roh.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))