South Korean stocks rise on foreign buying in electronics firms, won weakens

Seoul: Round-up of South Korean financial markets:

** South Korea's KOSPI stock index inched up on Friday on foreign buying worth 206 billion won ($167.93 million) mainly in electronics firms, after impact from rebalancing in MSCI EM indexes cooled down. The Korean won weakened, and the benchmark bond yield fell.

** The Seoul stock market's main KOSPI rose 2.94 points, or 0.14%, to 2,041.74.

** For the week, the KOSPI lost 0.17%; for the month, it fell 7.34%.

** Shares in South Korean auto industry tumbled after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened higher tariffs on all goods from Mexico until illegal immigration is stopped. Mexico is a regional manufacturing hub for some of South Korean auto and parts makers.   ** Foreigners were net buyers of 206.1 billion won worth of shares on the main board.

** The won was quoted at 1,190.9 per dollar on the onshore settlement platform, 0.18% lower than its previous close at 1,188.8.

** In offshore trading, the won was quoted at 1,190.2 per U.S. dollar, down 0.1% from the previous day, while in non-deliverable forward trading its one-month contract  was quoted at 1,189.6 per dollar.

** MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan  was up 0.22%, after U.S. stocks up. Japanese stocks fell 1.63%.

** The KOSPI has risen 0.03% so far this year, and lost 9.3% in the previous 30 trading sessions.

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

** The trading volume during the session on the KOSPI index  was 426.55 million shares and, of the total traded issues of 894, the number of advancing shares was 484.

** The won has lost 6.3% against the U.S dollar so far this year.

** In money and debt markets, June futures on three-year treasury bonds rose 0.18 points to 110.03, while the 3-month Certificate of Deposit rate was quoted at 1.84%.

** The most liquid 3-year Korean treasury bond yield fell by 3.9 basis points to 1.587%, while the benchmark 10-year yield fell by 5.9 basis points to 1.682%.