Stock Price Passed 700 Point

The composite stock index broke 700 mark after the lapse of 15 months.

After the Bank of Korea (BOK) announced that the economy would fall to a worst situation during the first half of next year, as the expectation about the economic recovery has spread and the individual investors resumed to purchase the stocks in the forward market, the stock price sharply rose.

In the Korea Stock Exchange, the composite stock index recorded 704.50 points yesterday, increased by 17.89 points (2.60 percent) from the previous day, to pass 700 point for the first time since August 30th last year when it recorded 718.93 points. The Kosdaq index also closed market yesterday at 72.82 points, up by 0.93 points (1.29 percent).

The composite stock index showed a steady tone due to the precautious sentiment following the recent unexpected jump of stock price in the morning. But as the individual and the foreign investors purchased the futures of KOSPI200 and the program traders flowed into the futures market from the spot market, the atmosphere turned up in the afternoon.

The sharp rise was found among the items with high market value such as the Samsung Electronics that rose by 3.09 percent from the previous day to reach 280,000 won.

By industry, as the semiconductor equipment companies recorded an all-round upsurge to the upper limit of the price, the electric and electronics businesses showed a bullish tendency. And the stocks of banks, insurance companies and construction companies also increased

Lee Jong-Woo, director of the Daewoo Securities, said, "Although the daily index will fluctuate to a large degree, the general rising tendency will maintain. But it will depend on sales offered in the market from the remainders of program purchase that reached 1 trillion 200 billion won."

Park Hyeon-Jin witness@donga.com