South Korea stocks recoup losses on China stimulus hopes; won jumps

YG Entertainment

11/03/2019 07:31

* KOSPI index ends flat, foreigners sell
    * Korean won rises against USD
    * South Korea bond yields rises
    * For the midday report, please click  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL3N20Y0IR

    SEOUL, March 11 (Reuters) - Round-up of South Korean
financial markets:
** South Korea's KOSPI stock index  .KS11  ended flat on Monday,
tracking the rebound in China stock markets as the country's
central bank pledged to further support the slowing economy. The
Korean won gained, snapping seven straight session of losses,
and the benchmark bond yields also climbed.
    
** The benchmark KOSPI index closed nearly unchanged at 2,138.10
points, 0.66 points or 0.03 percent up from its previous close.
Earlier in the session, it dropped 11.9 points or 0.6 percent.

** Shares in China rebounded on Monday after the country's
central bank pledged to further support the slowing economy by
spurring loans and lowering borrowing costs. Shanghai Composite
index  .SSEC   was up 1.92 percent at 3,026.99, after plunging
4.4 percent on Friday, while China's blue-chip CSI300 index
 .CSI300  was up 1.98 percent, recovering from a 4 percent drop
on Friday.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL3N20X06K
    
** The meagre payroll gains reported by the Labor Department on
Friday were the weakest since September 2017, with a big drop in
the weather-sensitive construction industry. They also reflected
a decline in hiring by retailers and utility companies as well
as the transportation and warehousing sector, which is
experiencing a shortage of drivers.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nUSN8EEFR0
            
** "As we predict this week to be volatile ahead of the
double-witching day, KOSPI market managed to close flat as Fed's
signal to hold rates and money flowing into Chinese market eased
investor sentiment," Lee Won, an analyst at Bookook Securities.
    
** Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said on Sunday the
U.S. central bank does "not feel any hurry" to change the level
of interest rates again as it watches how a slowing global
economy affects local conditions in the United States.
 urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N20X0BG
    
** Shares of YG Entertainment Inc  122870.KQ , one of South
Korea's three major K-pop talent agencies, plunged as much as
15.6 percent, marking their biggest percentage loss since Nov.
2005. Stock dropped after a member of South Korean K-pop band
Big Bang, managed by the agency, has been booked on alleged sex
bribery.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL3N20Y0TS

** The country's transport ministry said on Monday that it is
conducting emergency safety inspection on two Boeing 737 MAX 8
aircraft, which are operated by South Korean budget carrier
Eastar Jet.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nS6N1YH018
    
** The ministry's comments came after the latest version of
Boeing Co's  BA.N  best-selling 737 family - a global industry
workhorse - has again been thrust into the spotlight after a
fatal crash in Ethiopia, months after a deadly crash involving
an identical brand-new jet in Indonesia.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N20X080
     
** Foreigners were net sellers of 109.7 billion won worth of
shares on the main board.
    
** The won was quoted at 1,133.7 per dollar on the onshore
settlement platform  KRW=KFTC , 0.22 percent higher than its
previous close at 1,136.2, snapping the previous seven-day
losing streak.
    
** In offshore trading, the won  KRW=  was quoted at 1,133.5 per
U.S. dollar, down 0.1 percent from the previous day, while in
one-year non-deliverable forward trading its one-month contract
 KRW1MNDFOR=  was quoted at 1,132.5 per dollar.
    
** MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan
 .MIAPJ0000PUS  was up 0.37 percent, after U.S. stocks ended the
previous session with losses  MKTS/GLOB . Japanese stocks
 .N225  rose 0.47 percent.
    
** The KOSPI climbed 4.76 percent so far this year, and rose 0.6
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 260.05 million shares and, of the total traded
issues of 896, the number of advancing shares was 338.
    
** The won has lost 1.6 percent against the U.S dollar this
year.
    
** In money and debt markets, March futures on three-year
treasury bonds  KTBc1  fell 0.02 percent to 109.23, 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 0.8
basis points to 1.810 percent, while the benchmark 10-year yield
rose by 1.1 basis points to 1.984 percent.

 (Reporting by Joori Roh, Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)
 ((joori.roh@thomsonreuters.com; +82 2 3704 5642; Reuters
Messaging: joori.roh.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))