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Global Markets Week in Review: Kospi Drops 5.4%, Brent Gains 2%

South Korea's Kospi fell 5.39% in the week to Oct. 8 while Brent rose 1.99%, the S&P 500 added 0.55% and the 10-year Treasury yield slipped to 5.22%.

By Global Terminal Staff · · 3 min read

A digital candlestick chart showing market trends on a dark screen
Photo: Tötös Ádám / Unsplash

Why it matters

  • South Korea's Kospi fell 5.39% from its Oct. 2 close to 6,625.93 on Oct. 8, the worst of the major stock indexes tracked here. Korea's market was shut Friday for a holiday.
  • U.S. stocks barely moved over the week through Thursday. The S&P 500 rose 0.55% and the Nasdaq Composite 0.01%, while Japan's Nikkei and Hong Kong's Hang Seng each gained about 1%.
  • Brent crude rose 1.99% to a $104.28 settlement on Thursday. The 10-year Treasury yield fell 6 basis points to 5.22% and the dollar index rose 0.21%.

Analysis: this piece includes our interpretation of the facts reported.

South Korea's Kospi was the big loser among major stock markets this week. It fell 5.39% from its Friday, Oct. 2 close to 6,625.93 on Thursday, Oct. 8, according to Yahoo Finance data. Brent crude rose 1.99%, while U.S. stocks ended Thursday almost where they started the week.

U.S. markets have not traded yet on Friday, so U.S. figures below are Thursday closes. Asian stock indexes are Friday closes. Korea's market was closed on Friday for a national holiday, Trading Economics said.

How did global markets move this week?

MarketOct. 2 closeLatest closeChange
S&P 5007,722.727,765.36 (Thu.)+0.55%
Nasdaq Composite27,190.8627,193.34 (Thu.)+0.01%
STOXX Europe 600631.35625.51 (Thu.)−0.93%
Nikkei 225 (Japan)68,309.4669,030.92 (Fri.)+1.06%
Hang Seng (Hong Kong)23,972.2924,211.35 (Fri.)+1.00%
Kospi (South Korea)7,003.746,625.93 (Thu.)−5.39%
U.S. 10-year yield5.28%5.22% (Thu.)−0.06 pt
U.S. 30-year yield5.63%5.60% (Thu.)−0.03 pt
Dollar index (DXY)101.93102.14 (Thu.)+0.21%
EUR/USD1.12501.1201 (Thu.)−0.44%
USD/JPY157.93158.06 (Thu.)+0.08%
Brent crude ($/barrel)102.25104.28 (Thu.)+1.99%
Gold futures ($/ounce)4,162.304,157.00 (Thu.)−0.13%
Bitcoin ($)84,49781,676 (Thu.)−3.34%

Sources: Yahoo Finance daily closes; Treasury yields are U.S. Treasury Department par yields. Currency closes are Yahoo Finance end-of-day London quotes; bitcoin closes are at midnight UTC.

Which markets fell the most?

Korea's chip-heavy market and bitcoin. The Kospi lost ground in all three sessions this week after its Oct. 2 close, as memory-chip stocks slid. Our Kospi analysis shows the index 27.3% below its June 22 record. Bitcoin fell 3.34% through Thursday's close, as covered in our gold and bitcoin analysis.

Europe also lagged. The STOXX Europe 600 fell 0.93% through Thursday. Eurozone bond yields extended a surge on Thursday and raised fragmentation worries, Trading Economics said. The euro slipped 0.44% against the dollar; see our euro analysis on French and Spanish politics.

What happened to bond yields and oil?

Long yields rose early in the week, then eased. The 10-year Treasury yield hit 5.31% on Monday, Oct. 5, and the 30-year reached 5.67% on Wednesday, Treasury data show, before both fell back on Thursday. Our long-bond selloff analysis covers the global moves.

Brent jumped about 4% on Thursday as Iran stepped up attacks on tankers in the Strait of Hormuz and a hurricane threatened U.S. Gulf of Mexico output, Trading Economics said. Our oil analysis has the background.

How is Friday trading so far?

Mostly higher. The Hang Seng rose 1.79% on Friday as Xiaomi jumped 9.7%, and the Nikkei ended almost flat, according to Trading Economics and Yahoo Finance data. Oil eased after President Trump said Washington would hold off on attacks on Iran before the midterm elections, Trading Economics said. Brent traded near $103.17 and gold futures near $4,208.50 around 12:45 GMT, Yahoo Finance data show. S&P 500 futures were up about 0.3%.

Mainland China reopened after Golden Week on Thursday; see our China analysis. Track live levels on our world markets page.

Sources