South Korea's stock markets are forecast to trade in a tight range next week as investors remain on the sidelines due to the release of corporate quarterly earnings reports, analysts said Saturday.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) finished the week at 1,388.37, up 0.19 percent from the previous week as the local stock markets rebounded late in the week on the back of good fourth-quarter earnings reports by top steelmaker POSCO and market leader Samsung Electronics.
The Bank of Korea policymakers kept its key interest rates steady at 4.5 percent on Thursday, which helped ease concerns that a further rate hike would lead to an economic slowdown.
But analysts point out that the main bourse still lacks strong buyers, which is likely to weigh on the market.
"Such concerns as uncertainty over the central bank's rate decision were eased, but there are not enough strong buyers to prop up the markets," said Kim Joong-hyun, an analyst at Goodmorning Shinhan Securities Co.
According to analysts, investors will closely watch corporate earnings reports. On Wednesday, Intel Corp., the world's largest chip manufacturer, plans to report its earnings for the October-December period, which is likely to influence the movement of technology shares.
Seoul, Jan. 13 (Yonhap News)
Seoul bourse expected to remain flat next week |
