South Korean shares rise as investors assess Trump’s tariff plans

SEOUL: Round-up of South Korean financial markets:

South Korean shares erase early gains as traders eye Trump’s first day

• South Korean shares rose more than 1% on Wednesday, tracking Wall Street’s overnight gains as investors hoped US President Donald Trump’s tariff plans might not be as strong as feared.

• The benchmark KOSPI closed up 29.03 points, or 1.15%, at 2,547.06.

• On Tuesday, the KOSPI erased early gains of more than 1% to end lower after Trump’s tariff comments.

• Wall Street rose overnight on relief that Trump did not start his second term with blanket tariff increases.

• Trump said on Tuesday a 10% tariff on imports from China was being discussed, a day after he talked about tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada.

• “The 10% he mentioned is lower than his earlier 60% pledge. Although there still remains uncertainty, it is relieving in the sense that it is not going to be a shock or fear,” said Huh Jae-hwan, an analyst at Eugene Investment Securities.

• Among index heavyweights, chipmaker Samsung Electronics rose 1.50% and peer SK Hynix gained 3.44%, while battery maker LG Energy Solution climbed 1.55%.

• Hyundai Motor added 0.97%, while sister automaker Kia Corp gained 1.98%.

• Of the total 944 traded issues, 403 shares advanced, while 483 declined.

• Foreigners were net buyers of shares worth 355.0 billion won ($246.88 million).

• The won was quoted at 1,437.6 per dollar on the onshore settlement platform, 0.15% lower than its previous close at 1,435.5. ** In money and debt markets, March futures on three-year treasury bonds fell 0.03 point to 106.90.

• The most liquid three-year Korean treasury bond yield rose by 0.4 basis point to 2.573%, while the benchmark 10-year yield rose by 0.1 basis point to 2.820%.