South Korea stocks slip despite stellar exports as oil worries weigh

South Korean shares dipped on Thursday, despite impressive September trade data, as soaring oil prices and concerns about the durability of resurgent Middle East oil supplies dampened investor confidence. The South Korean won declined, while the benchmark bond yield increased. The KOSPI index fell 14.60 points, or 0.21%, to 6,823.44 as of 00:56 GMT on Thursday.

Among the major index constituents, chipmaker Samsung Electronics declined 0.19%, while rival SK Hynix rose by 0.23%. Battery maker LG Energy Solution remained unchanged, while Hyundai Motor Group and sister automaker Kia Corp experienced a 0.07% and 0.27% decrease, respectively.

South Korea's exports surged by 83.5% in September, reaching a record $120.9 billion year-on-year, as semiconductor shipments tripled due to global investments in artificial intelligence. POSCO Holdings, a steelmaker, dropped 0.16%, while drugmaker Samsung BioLogics gained roughly 2%.

President Donald Trump announced plans on Wednesday for South Korea to invest $200 billion in US projects; however, Seoul indicated that a $54 billion pipeline for an Alaska LNG project was not yet confirmed. Of the 905 traded issues, 354 shares gained, while 487 declined. Foreign investors were net sellers of shares worth 494.4 billion won.

The won was traded at 1,359.4 per dollar on the onshore settlement platform, a 0.27% decrease from its previous close of 1,355.7. The KOSPI index has risen 61.92% so far this year, while the won has strengthened by 5.9% against the dollar year-to-date. In money and debt markets, December futures on three-year treasury bonds fell 0.07 point to 102.30.

The most liquid three-year Korean treasury bond yield increased by 2.4 basis points to 4.035%, while the benchmark 10-year yield rose by 5.0 basis points to 4.451%.