S.Korea stocks extend gains on trade talks optimism

Pearl Abyss

03/04/2019 03:29

* KOSPI index rises, foreigners net buyers
    * Korean won strengthens versus U.S. dollar
    * South Korea benchmark bond yield rises

    SEOUL, April 3 (Reuters) - Round-up of South Korean
financial markets:    
    
** South Korea's KOSPI stock index  .KS11  rose on Wednesday
after a report that the United States and China are drawing
closer to a final trade agreement. The won strengthened, and the
benchmark bond yield rose.
    
** The main KOSPI index rose 8.12 points, or 0.37 percent, to
2,185.30, heading for a fourth straight session of gains.

** Officials from the world's top two economies have resolved
most of the issues standing in the way of a deal to end their
long-running trade dispute, the Financial Times reported, citing
sources.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nFWN21K0QQ
    
** Shares of South Korean game makers rose after the Chinese
regulators approved 30 imported online video games on Tuesday.
Netmarble Corp  251270.KS , PearlAbyss  263750.KQ  and Webzen
 069080.KQ  climbed as much as 5 percent, 7.6 percent and 10.3
percent, respectively.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL3N21L07A
    
** Foreigners were net buyers of 104.4 billion won worth of
shares on the main board.
    
** The won was quoted at 1,135.2 per dollar on the onshore
settlement platform  KRW=KFTC , 0.11 percent higher than its
previous close at 1,136.4.
    
** In offshore trading, the won  KRW=  was quoted at 1,134.9 per
U.S. dollar, up 0.2 percent from the previous day, while in
one-year non-deliverable forward trading its one-month contract
 KRW1MNDFOR=  was quoted at 1,133.2 per dollar.
    
** MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan
 .MIAPJ0000PUS  was up 0.50 percent, after U.S. stocks trod
water on Tuesday  MKTS/GLOB . Japanese stocks  .N225  rose 0.62
percent.
    
** The KOSPI has risen 6.99 percent so far this year, and fell
1.5 percent in the previous 30 trading sessions.
    
** 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 147.38 million shares and, of the total traded
issues of 895, the number of advancing shares was 492.
    
** The won has lost 1.7 percent against the U.S dollar this
year.
    
** In money and debt markets, June futures on three-year
treasury bonds  KTBc1  fell 0.05 points to 109.60, while the
3-month Certificate of Deposit rate was quoted at 1.89 percent.
    
** The most liquid 3-year Korean treasury bond yield rose by 0.7
basis points to 1.714 percent, while the benchmark 10-year yield
climbed by 2.2 basis points to 1.879 percent.

 (Reporting by Yuna Park; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)
 ((Yuna.Park@thomsonreuters.com; +822 3704 5565; Reuters
Messaging: yuna.park.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))