off-the-wire

South Korean shares set for fifth weekly gain; L&F jumps

Kitco Media
By Reuters
Published:
Updated:
Reuters



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KOSPI rises, foreigners net sellers

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Korean won strengthens against dollar

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South Korea benchmark bond yield rises


SEOUL, April 14 (Reuters) - Round-up of South Korean financial markets:


** South Korean shares edged higher on Friday and were set for a fifth consecutive weekly gain on easing worries about aggressive U.S. interest rate policy. The won rallied, while the benchmark 10-year bond yield rose.


** The benchmark KOSPI rose 4.48 points, or 0.17%, to 2,566.14, as of 02:09 GMT. For the week, it has risen 3.1%, heading for its longest run of weekly gains since June 2021.


** Shares of battery material maker L&F Co Ltd rose more than 7% at one point on a local media report that it had won deals to supply cathode materials to battery cell makers in the country.


** Technology giant Samsung Electronics fell 0.91% and peer SK Hynix gained 0.34%, while battery maker LG Energy Solution declined 1.84%.


** Of the total 928 issues traded, 608 shares gained.


** Foreigners were net sellers of shares worth 33.3 billion won ($25.65 million).



** The won was quoted at 1,299.8 per dollar on the onshore settlement platform , 0.82% higher than its previous close at 1,310.4.


** In offshore trading, the won was quoted at 1,298.1 per dollar, up 0.2% on the day, while in non-deliverable forward trading its one-month contract was quoted at 1,295.6.


** The central bank chief said on Thursday he was not worried much about where the won's exchange rate stands, hours after his bank announced a $35 billion currency swap deal with the country's national pension fund.


** The KOSPI has risen 14.74% so far this year, and gained 5.5% in the previous 30 trading sessions.


** The won has lost 2.7% against the dollar so far this year.


** In money and debt markets, June futures on three-year treasury bonds fell 0.04 point to 105.10.


** The most liquid three-year Korean treasury bond yield rose by 2.5 basis points to 3.221%, while the benchmark 10-year yield rose by 4.1 basis points to 3.308%. ($1 = 1,298.1200 won) (Reporting by Choonsik Yoo; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)

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