Seoul stock market falls on expectations of further delay in US rate cut

The Seoul stock market fell 1.26% this Friday and its main indicator, the Kospi, chained its fourth session of losses, weighed down by growing concern about a further delay in the rate cut by the US Federal Reserve (Fed).

The Kospi closed with a decline of 34.21 points, reaching 2,687.60 units, in a session in which 12.01 trillion won (about 8,110 million euros) were moved.

The Kosdaq technology stock index fell 0.85% or 7.17 points to 839.41 points. The drop in the South Korean stock market comes after the decline in Wall Street after the publication of stronger than expected economic indicators, which, added to the aggressive tone of the latest minutes of the Fedhave fueled expectations that the US central bank will keep interest rates high for longer than expected.

In this scenario, some investors are choosing to withdraw funds from the South Korean market, hindering its performance. Large-cap companies in Seoul lost ground across sectors, including tech conglomerate Samsung Electronics, which fell 3.07% following reports that its latest high-bandwidth memory chips had failed tests. made by the American giant Nvidia.

The country’s second largest chipmaker, SK hynix, fell 0.7%. Battery maker LG Energy depreciated 1.66%, and its competitors Samsung SDI and POSCO Future M fell 1.11% and 2.68%, respectively.

The biochemical firm Samung Biologics fell 2.47%, and the main South Korean pharmaceutical company, Celltrion, fell 1.96%. The largest vehicle manufacturer in the Asian country, Hyundai, depreciated by 1.47%, and its component subsidiary Hyundai Mobis, by 2.64%, while the largest national internet provider, Naver, fell by 1.7%. .

The local currency, the won, lost 7.10 units against the US dollar, which was exchanged at 1,369.50 won at the close of the session.