South Korean shares start week lower as chipmakers decline

Kakao

24/02/2025 01:39

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      KOSPI falls, foreigners net sellers
    

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      Korean won weakens against dollar
    

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      South Korea benchmark bond yield falls
    

  
       SEOUL, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Round-up of South Korean
financial markets:
    
    ** South Korean stocks dropped on Monday, mirroring the
losses seen on Wall Street in the previous session, with major
chipmakers driving the declines in the benchmark index.  
    ** The benchmark KOSPI  .KS11  was down 19.69 points, or
0.76%, at 2,634.89, as of 0118 GMT. 
    ** U.S. stocks tumbled on Friday, extending their selloff in
the wake of dour economic reports and closing the book on a
holiday-shortened week fraught with new tariff threats and
worries of softening consumer demand.
    ** The Bank of Korea is expected to cut its key interest
rate by 25 basis points on Tuesday and offer support to an
economy that barely grew last quarter, according to a Reuters
poll. 
    ** Chipmaker Samsung Electronics  005930.KS  declined 1.20%,
while its counterpart SK Hynix  000660.KS  dropped 3.82%,
following a 4.1% slide in U.S. artificial intelligence chip
giant Nvidia  NVDA.O  on Friday.
    ** Among other index heavyweights, automakers and
biopharmaceutical firms fell, but battery manufacturers
advanced.     
    ** Of the total 940 traded issues, 302 shares advanced,
while 574 declined.
    ** Foreigners were net sellers of shares worth 150.3 billion
won ($104.98 million).
    ** The won was quoted at 1,434.2 per dollar on the onshore
settlement platform  KRW=KFTC , 0.03% lower than its previous
close at 1,433.8.
    ** In money and debt markets, March futures on three-year
treasury bonds  KTBc1  rose 0.05 point to 106.73.
    ** The most liquid three-year Korean treasury bond yield
 KR3YT=RR  fell by 1.6 basis points to 2.603%, while the
benchmark 10-year yield  KR10YT=RR  dropped 5.4 basis points to
2.824%.

    ($1 = 1,431.7000 won)

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