KOSPI and KOSDAQ Show Mixed Trends Amid Caution Over US Interest Rate Direction [fn Morning Market Report]

[Financial News] On the 10th, a day before the Federal Reserve System (Fed) announces its base rate decision, both the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) and the Korea Securities Dealers Automated Quotations (KOSDAQ) are showing mixed movements.
As of 10:10 a.m. today, the KOSPI was down 0.20% from the previous trading day at 4,135.32. The index started the session at 4,159.05, up 0.37% from the previous close, but soon turned downward.
In the KOSPI Market, foreign investors are net buyers of 31.3 billion KRW, while individuals and institutions are net sellers of 13.9 billion KRW and 18.7 billion KRW, respectively.
Overnight, the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) closed with mixed results across its three major indices. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) and the Standard & Poor's 500 Index (S&P 500) fell by 0.38% and 0.09%, respectively, while the NASDAQ Composite Index (NASDAQ Composite) rose 0.13%. Analysts attribute this to caution ahead of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting scheduled for early morning on the 11th (Korea time).
There is growing speculation that the Fed will cut the base rate by 0.25 percentage points at its final FOMC meeting of the year. However, market participants are closely watching the tone of comments from Fed Chair Jerome Hayden Powell regarding the pace of rate cuts and the number of cuts expected next year.
Among the top market cap stocks in Korea, Samsung Electronics and SK hynix are showing divergent trends. Samsung Electronics is trading at 107,800 KRW, down 0.55%, while SK hynix is up 2.83% at 582,000 KRW.
By sector, pharmaceuticals (up 1.01%), entertainment and culture (up 0.89%), and manufacturing (up 0.33%) are gaining, while construction (down 1.73%), transportation and warehousing (down 0.89%), and textiles and apparel (down 0.56%) are weakening.
At the same time, the KOSDAQ index was up 0.20% from the previous session at 932.20.

elikim@fnnews.com Kim Mi-hee Reporter