[Good Morning Stock Market] "US Stocks Fall on Auto Tariff Concerns... Increased Volatility in KR Stock Market"

The U.S. New York stock market closed lower. The White House's announcement of new automobile tariffs had an impact. On the 27th, the Korean stock market is expected to experience volatility due to the prolonged impeachment political situation and U.S.-origin tariff issues.

Reuters Yonhap News

On the 26th (local time), in the New York stock market, the blue-chip-focused Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 42,454.79, down 132.71 points (0.31%) from the previous trading day. The large-cap-focused S&P 500 fell 64.45 points (1.12%) to 5,712.2, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq dropped 372.84 points (2.04%) to 17,899.01.

The news that the White House planned to announce unexpected automobile tariffs in the afternoon influenced the market. Until the New York market closed, automobile-related stocks showed a significant decline. General Motors (GM) fell 3.12%, Stellantis dropped 3.55%. Along with these, Tesla declined by 5.58%.

After the market closed, U.S. President Donald Trump held a press conference and officially announced that, following steel and aluminum, a 25% tariff would also be imposed on foreign automobiles imported into the United States.

Seonghoon Lee, a researcher at Kiwoom Securities, said, "The U.S. stock market continues to experience high volatility due to ongoing tariff noise from Trump, resulting in repeated ups and downs," adding, "Ahead of the mutual tariffs to be announced on April 2, such extreme volatility is expected to continue." He further stated, "At this point, it is appropriate to maintain a wait-and-see stance and focus on risk management rather than expanding exposure to U.S. stocks early."

The domestic stock market is also expected to continue experiencing volatility. Factors such as Trump's tariffs on imported automobiles and the prolonged presidential impeachment political situation are expected to have an impact.

Researcher Lee said, "There is a possibility that the presidential impeachment ruling date will be postponed to April," adding, "The prolonged impeachment political situation is causing domestic political uncertainty and negative economic outlooks, which are exerting upward pressure on the KRW-USD exchange rate." He also added, "The domestic stock market is expected to see sell-offs in the semiconductor and automobile sectors due to Trump's announcement of a 25% tariff on imported automobiles and the poor performance of major U.S. semiconductor stocks such as Nvidia."