*
Asian stocks steady as Credit Suisse buyout brings relief
*
KOSPI flat, foreigners net sellers
*
Korean won flat against U.S. dollar
*
South Korea benchmark bond yield falls
SEOUL, March 20 (Reuters) - Round-up of South Korean financial markets:
** South Korean shares were flat on Monday as investors adopted a wait-and-watch stance ahead of the U.S. monetary policy meeting this week even as they eased worries over a potential global banking crisis after Credit Suisse buyout.
** The Korean won was flat, while the benchmark bond yield
fell.
** The benchmark KOSPI was listless at 2,393.77, as
of 0124 GMT, after flitting between positive and negative
territory in early trade.
** Among the index heavyweights, chipmakers, automakers and battery manufacturers fell, but online platform operators Naver and Kakao jumped more than 2% each. Biopharmaceutical stocks also traded in black.
** South Korean financial stocks rose as Swiss lender UBS
takeover of peer Credit Suisse and global central banks'
liquidity measures provided relief across markets from a
potential banking sector turmoil.
** The U.S. Federal Reserve is expected to meet later this
week for a rate decision, with investors mostly seeing another
25-basis-point hike.
** "Worries over Credit Suisse eased, but investors are
taking a wait-and-see mood as it is difficult to say the whole
crisis has ended and with the Fed's policy meeting due later
this week," said Na Jeong-hwan, an analyst at NH Investment and
Securities.
** Of the total 931 issues traded, 578 shares advanced.
** Foreigners were net sellers of shares worth 33.9 billion
won ($26.00 million).
** The won was quoted at 1,301.0 per dollar on the onshore settlement platform , flat from its previous close at 1,302.2.
** In money and debt markets, March futures on three-year
treasury bonds rose 0.05 point to 104.51.
** The most liquid three-year Korean treasury bond yield
fell by 2.5 basis points to 3.391%, while the benchmark 10-year
yield dropped 1.8 basis points to 3.389%.
($1 = 1,303.8300 won)
(Reporting by Jihoon Lee; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)
