S.Korea Stocks Lead Asian Markets in Losses as Samsung Shares Plunge
South Korea stock market led markets in Asia in losses as shares of firms related to Samsung dragged the market down.
Stocks in Asia traded lower on Friday as the impact from the Covid-19 situation continued to weigh on the global economy.
As of 9:20 local time in Thailand, Nikkei dipped 0.01%, SSEC fell 0.02%, HSI slipped 0.42%, Kospi dropped 1.67%, while ASX 200 rose 0.50%.
The plummet in the South Korea Stock Exchange came after shares related to the country’s conglomerate electronics firm, Samsung, dragged the market down as the firm’s heir was released from prison this morning on parole over the bribery allegation.
In the morning session, the share price of Samsung Electronics fell 3.25%, Samsung C&T dropped 1.48% while Samsung Life Insurance slipped 1% and Samsung SDS plunged 1.4%.
Meanwhile, crude oil prices closed lower yesterday over the statement of the International Energy Agency (IEA), saying the spread of the coronavirus Delta variant would slow the global oil demand recovery.
The international benchmark Brent crude dropped 13 cents to close at $71.31 per barrel. The U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) fell 16 cents to close at $69.09 per barrel.