(RTTNews) - The South Korea stock market bounced higher again on Thursday, one session after it had ended the two-day winning streak in which it had picked up almost 30 points or 1.5 percent. The KOSPI now rests just above the 2,085-point plateau and the technology stocks may give it a boost again on Friday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets suggests mild upside on the back of tech shares after solid earnings news. The European markets were up and the U.S. bourses were mixed and the Asian markets figure to split the difference.
The KOSPI finished slightly higher on Thursday following gains from the financial shares and industrials, while the technology stocks also were mostly in the green.
For the day, the index rose 5.04 points or 0.24 percent to finish at 2,085.66 after trading between 2,067.90 and 2,089.85. Volume was 352.6 million shares worth 4.6 trillion won. There were 415 decliners and 394 gainers.
Among the actives, Shinhan Financial collected 0.69 percent, while KB Financial added 0.23 percent, Hana Financial climbed 1.83 percent, Samsung Electronics dropped 0.98 percent, LG Electronics gained 0.58 percent, LG Display plunged 2.82 percent, SK Hynix spiked 2.92 percent, POSCO perked 0.22 percent, SK Telecom advanced 1.06 percent, KEPCO fell 0.39 percent, Hyundai Motors gained 0.42 percent and Kia Motors jumped 2.10 percent.
The lead from Wall Street is inconclusive as stocks hovered near the unchanged line for much of Thursday trade before ending mixed.
The Dow fell 28.42 points or 0.11 percent to end at 26,805.53, while the NASDAQ added 66.00 points or 0.81 percent to 8,185.80 and the S&P 500 rose 5.77 points or 0.19 percent to 3,010.29.
The tech-heavy NASDAQ benefited from solid earnings news from Microsoft (MSFT) and electric car maker Tesla (TSLA) - while 3M (MMM) disappointed and weighed on the Dow.
In economic news, the Commerce Department noted a bigger than expected decrease in durable goods orders in September, and also that new home sales pulled back last month. Also, the Labor Department said first-time claims for unemployment benefits fell last week.
Crude oil futures ended higher on Thursday, extending gains to a third straight session amid rising hopes the OPEC and allies will extend output cuts. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for December ended up $0.26 or 0.5 percent at $56.23 a barrel.
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