South Korean shares rise for third day as auto, steelmakers jump

Kakao

13/02/2025 01:12

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      KOSPI rises, foreigners net sellers
    

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      Korean won strengthens against dollar
    

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      South Korea benchmark bond yield rises
    

  
       SEOUL, Feb 13 (Reuters) - Round-up of South Korean
financial markets:
    
    ** South Korean shares climbed for the third consecutive
session on Thursday and hit the highest levels in three months,
as automakers surged on optimism about a potential exemption
from U.S. tariffs, while steelmakers saw a rebound. 
    ** The benchmark KOSPI  .KS11  was up 10.88 points, or
0.43%, at 2,559.27, as of 0043 GMT, hitting its highest intraday
level since early November 2024.
    ** U.S. President Donald Trump said he would impose
reciprocal tariffs as soon as Wednesday evening on every country
that charges duties on U.S. imports, after introducing 25%
tariffs on steel and aluminium imports on Monday. 
    ** Republican U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Mike
Johnson said that he believes Trump is considering exemptions to
reciprocal tariffs that include the automobile and
pharmaceutical industries.  
    ** South Korea's free trade agreement with the United States
could help mitigate its exposure to reciprocal tariffs
threatened by Trump, economists said. 
    ** Shares of Hyundai Motor  005380.KS  rose as much as
3.99%, the biggest daily jump in more than a month, while sister
automaker Kia Corp  000270.KS  climbed 3.6% after four sessions
of declines.
    ** Steelmaker POSCO Holdings  005490.KS  rose 4.3%, while
Hyundai Steel  004020.KS  jumped 6.8%.     
    ** Among other index heavyweights, chipmakers and battery
manufacturers rose, but biopharmaceutical stocks fell. 
    ** Of the total 939 traded issues, 478 shares advanced,
while 376 declined.
    ** Foreigners were net sellers of shares worth 222.1 billion
won ($152.91 million).
    ** The won was quoted at 1,452.9 per dollar on the onshore
settlement platform  KRW=KFTC , 0.21% higher than its previous
close at 1,456.0.
    ** The most liquid three-year Korean treasury bond yield
 KR3YT=RR  rose by 1.4 basis points to 2.666%, while the
benchmark 10-year yield  KR10YT=RR  rose by 2.3 basis points to
2.905%.

    ($1 = 1,452.4500 won)

 (Reporting by Jihoon Lee; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)
 ((jihoon.lee@thomsonreuters.com;))