The global forecast for the Asian markets is negative on concerns over the outlook for interest rates. The European markets were mixed and the U.S. bourses were down and the Asian markets figure to split the difference.
The KOSPI finished modestly lower on Thursday following losses from the technology companies, financial shares and automobile producers, while the oil and chemical stocks were mixed.
For the day, the index slipped 7.70 points or 0.33 percent to finish at 2,329.17 after trading between 2,296.44 and 2,342.86. Volume was 543.5 billion shares worth 9.1 trillion won. There were 552 decliners and 299 gainers.
Among the actives, Shinhan Financial retreated 1.25 percent, while KB Financial sank 0.84 percent, Hana Financial dropped 0.85 percent, Samsung Electronics shed 0.67 percent, LG Electronics skidded 1.08 percent, SK Hynix tanked 2.13 percent, Naver tanked 2.87 percent, LG Chem jumped 1.64 percent, Lotte Chemical lost 0.63 percent, S-Oil plunged 2.39 percent, SK Innovation soared 3.27 percent, POSCO eased 0.19 percent, SK Telecom rose 0.20 percent, KEPCO fell 0.30 percent, Hyundai Mobis dipped 0.23 percent, Hyundai Motor tumbled 1.82 percent and Kia Motors plummeted 2.57 percent.
The lead from Wall Street is soft as the major averages opened lower on Thursday and remained in the red throughout the trading day.
The Dow dropped 146.51 points or 0.46 percent to finish at 32,001.25, while the NASDAQ tumbled 181.86 points or 1.73 percent to close at 10,342.94 and the S&P 500 lost 39.80 points or 1.06 percent to end at 3,719.89.
The weakness on Wall Street came as traders continued to digest the fourth straight 75-basis point interest rate hike by the Federal Reserve, and comments from the central bank Chair Jerome Powell that signaled more interest rate hikes in the coming months.
Investors also digested the latest batch of economic data and looked ahead to the crucial non-farm payroll data, due on Friday.
The Commerce Department said the U.S. trade gap widened to a three-month high in September, while the Labor Department said jobless claims declined last week and the Commerce Department said new orders for U.S. manufactured goods rose more than expected.
Crude oil prices settled sharply lower Thursday amid concerns about the outlook for energy demand. The dollar's sharp uptick following hawkish comments from the Federal Reserve also weighed on crude oil prices. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for December sank $1.83 or 2 percent at $88.17 a barrel.