S.Korea stocks edge higher as chip giants continue to rise; won falls

In This Article:

* KOSPI index edges up, foreigners net buyers * Korean won drops versus U.S. dollar * South Korea benchmark bond yield falls SEOUL, March 22 (Reuters) - Round-up of South Korean financial markets: ** South Korea's KOSPI stock index rose on Friday as chip giants continued gaining on brisk outlook by U.S. chipmaker Micron. The Korean won weakened against the dollar while the benchmark bond yield fell.

** As of 0206 GMT, the Seoul stock market's main KOSPI index rose 1.07 points or 0.05 percent to 2,185.95 points.

** Shares of chip giants, Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix , added 1.2 percent each, as industry outlook improved following the conference call of U.S. chipmaker Micron on Wednesday. Both firms are set to rise for fourth consecutive session.

** Shares of the affiliates of Asiana Airlines plunged as bourse suspended Asiana stocks after an accounting firm submitted a report which pointed out lack of audit evidences.

** Investors in Hyundai Motor Group companies rejected Elliott Management's demands for a massive special dividend, dealing a blow to the U.S. hedge fund's campaign to shake up South Korea's second-biggest family-run conglomerate. Shares of Hyundai Motor fell 0.4 percent, while Hyundai Mobis shares gained 0.9 percent.

** Foreigners were net buyers of 95.4 billion won worth of shares on the main board.

** The won was quoted at 1,129.8 per dollar on the onshore settlement platform , 0.19 percent lower than its previous close at 1,127.7. ** In offshore trading, the won was quoted at 1,129.2 per U.S. dollar, down 0.2 percent from the previous day, while in one-year non-deliverable forward trading its one-month contract was quoted at 1,127.6 per dollar.

** MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up 0.41 percent, after U.S. stocks rose . Japanese stocks fell 0.12 percent.

** The KOSPI has risen 7.12 percent so far this year, and fell 0.8 percent in the previous 30 trading sessions.

** The current price-to-earnings ratio is 12.10, the dividend yield is 1.28 percent and the market capitalisation is 1,242.04 trillion won.

** The trading volume during the session on the KOSPI index was 125.36 million shares and, of the total traded issues of 891, the number of advancing shares was 297.

** The won has lost 1.2 percent against the U.S dollar this year.

** In money and debt markets, June futures on three-year treasury bonds fell 0.01 points to 109.33, while the 3-month Certificate of Deposit rate was quoted at 1.90 percent.

** The most liquid 3-year Korean treasury bond yield rose by 1.1 basis points to 1.804 percent, while the benchmark 10-year yield fell by 0.3 basis points to 1.929 percent.

(Reporting by Hayoung Choi; Editing by Rashmi Aich)