โ New York Stock Market Declines, Rally Ends In the U.S. New York Stock Market, major indices closed lower on the 12th local time. The Dow Jones Industrial Average at the New York Stock Exchange fell by 234.44 points (0.53%) to close at 43,914.12, marking a six-day losing streak, the longest since April. The large-cap Standard & Poor's 500 Index dropped 32.93 points (0.54%) to 6,051.25, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index fell 132.05 points (0.66%) to 19,902.84. Profit-taking occurred in the market, which had shown strength with the Nasdaq surpassing the 20,000 mark the previous day. Economic indicators released before the market opened also provided a reason for selling. Tesla, which hit an all-time high the previous day, fell 1.57%. The U.S. Department of Labor reported that the number of new unemployment claims for the week ending on the 7th was 242,000, exceeding Wall Street's forecast of 220,000. The November Producer Price Index (PPI) also rose faster than expected. Last month's PPI increased by 0.4% month-on-month and 3.0% year-on-year. Rob Howarth, chief investment strategist at US Bank Wealth Management, told Reuters, "Investors are wondering what the Fed will do next week," adding, "The key question is whether inflation will really be a problem and whether the Fed should really delay its role in cutting rates." โ Import Prices Rise for Two Consecutive Months as Exchange Rate Jumps Despite a drop in international oil prices last month, the won/dollar exchange rate jumped, raising the overall price level of imported products in Korea (in won terms) by 1.1%. If this trend continues, it is feared that it will negatively impact domestic consumer prices with a lag of several months. According to export and import price index statistics released by the Bank of Korea on the 13th, the import price index for November (provisional in won terms, 2020 level 100) was 139.03, up 1.1% from 137.55 in October. The import price index has shown an upward trend for two consecutive months since October (2.1%). By item, agricultural, forestry, and fishery products (2.6%), primary metal products (1.9%), and coal and petroleum products (1.7%) rose over the month, with coffee (6.4%), propane gas (4.0%), aluminum refined products (4.0%), and secondary batteries (3.9%) showing significant increases. The rise in exchange rates is cited as a cause of price increases. The won/dollar exchange rate jumped 2.4% from an average of 1,361.00 won in October to 1,393.38 won in November. In contrast, international oil prices, based on Dubai crude (monthly average per barrel), fell 3.1% from $74.94 in October to $72.61 in November. โ Police Chiefs' Arrest Review for 'Meeting Before Martial Law' George Ho, Commissioner General of the National Police Agency, and Kim Bong-sik, Commissioner of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, are at a crossroads of arrest today. The Seoul Central District Court announced that the pre-arrest interrogation (warrant review) for Commissioner Ho and Commissioner Kim would be held at 3 p.m. today, presided over by Judge Nam Cheon-gyu. The Special Investigation Unit for Martial Law applied for arrest warrants for them the previous day on charges of engaging in important duties related to treason under the Criminal Act, and the prosecution requested the court after midnight. It is extremely rare for the top leadership of the police organization to be subject to judicial processing simultaneously. They were urgently arrested on charges of directing control of the National Assembly during martial law, but evidence suggesting they were aware of the martial law plan in advance was found, raising the possibility of evidence destruction, which the police deemed necessary for arrest. They are accused of meeting President Yoon Suk-yeol at the presidential safe house in Samcheong-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul, around 7 p.m. on the 3rd, receiving instructions on institutions to be controlled after the declaration of martial law, and being involved from the planning stage of martial law. They are also accused of ordering the full control of access to the National Assembly twice on the day of martial law to prevent lawmakers heading to the National Assembly for the vote to lift martial law. Commissioner Ho is also suspected of sending police forces to the Central Election Management Committee to cooperate with the martial law execution by the martial law forces. โ Ruling Party's Factional Conflict Intensifies Over 'Yoon's Expulsion' Factional conflict is intensifying within the People Power Party over the expulsion and removal of President Yoon Suk-yeol. The party's Ethics Committee announced after a meeting near Yeouido last night that it had begun deliberations on initiating disciplinary procedures against the president, stating, "Considering the seriousness of the matter, we decided to proceed cautiously regarding the substance and procedure." The meeting, originally scheduled to be held at the party headquarters, was reportedly relocated just before it was held for security reasons. The meeting was convened at the request of Representative Han Dong-hoon to discuss the agenda of President Yoon's expulsion and removal. Representative Han previously stated, "After seeing President Yoon's statement, I urgently instructed the Ethics Committee to convene for the expulsion and removal of President Yoon from this party," adding, "President Yoon can no longer perform his duties as president." Considering that the Ethics Committee usually decides on whether to initiate disciplinary procedures at the first meeting, it is expected that the Ethics Committee will not reach a conclusion for the time being. The power struggle between factions over the expulsion and removal of President Yoon is expected to continue. It has not yet been confirmed what stance President Yoon has taken on the convening of the Ethics Committee. However, it is reported that President Yoon stated he had no intention of leaving the party when he met with senior party members on the 3rd to discuss measures to address the situation after the declaration of martial law. Kim So-yeon Hankyung.com Reporter sue123@hankyung.com
2024.December.12General
