Asia Market Wrap 28 August: Kospi falls 1.79 percent as 7 of 10 Asian benchmarks rise
The Kospi fell 1.79 percent to 6,788.88 on Friday, the steepest decline on a board where 7 of the 10 Asian benchmarks in this wrap closed higher, on our calculation. The other 9 ranged from Taiwan’s 0.77 percent gain to Shenzhen’s 0.68 percent fall, a span of 1.46 percentage points on the same calculation, so Korea’s drop was on its own wider than the entire range of every other market on the board.
Korea breaks from a firmer region
Korea’s decline sat well outside the regional pattern. Measured against Taiwan at the top of the board, the gap was 2.56 percentage points in a single session on our calculation, the widest separation between any two markets on this board.
The Bank of Korea raised its Base Rate by 25 basis points on 27 August, from 2.75 percent to 3.00 percent. In the same decision the Board lifted its growth forecast to 3.3 percent for this year and 2.9 percent for next, against the 2.6 percent and 2.1 percent it published in May, citing strong exports and a strong semiconductor sector.
The CBOE Volatility Index eased 0.21 percent to 14.48, so the steepest decline on this board landed alongside a slightly calmer reading on the gauge of United States equity volatility. On our reading the contrast reinforces that Korea’s decline was not part of a broad regional move away from risk, although the figures alone do not establish what drove the divergence.
Around the region
Taiwan led at 0.77 percent and the Topix followed at 0.72 percent, with the Topix outpacing the Nikkei 225 by 0.30 percentage points on our calculation. Thursday’s United States session had been led from the front, on our reading, the Nasdaq Composite rising 1.57 percent against the Dow Jones Industrial Average’s 0.20 percent, a gap of about 1.4 percentage points on our calculation.
The mainland was the region’s soft spot alongside Korea. The Shenzhen Component fell 0.68 percent against the Shanghai Composite’s 0.11 percent, a gap of 0.57 percentage points on our calculation. Hong Kong was effectively unchanged, up 0.07 percent, leaving the 3 Greater China boards spread across 0.76 percentage points on the same calculation. Outside those three, 6 of the remaining 7 markets rose, with Korea the exception.
| Index | Close | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Taiex (Taiwan) | 46,331.45 | +0.77% |
| Topix (Japan) | 4,146.71 | +0.72% |
| S&P/ASX 200 (Australia) | 9,092.30 | +0.60% |
| Nikkei 225 (Japan) | 66,405.56 | +0.41% |
| Nifty 50 (India) | 24,175.65 | +0.35% |
| Straits Times (Singapore) | 5,699.93 | +0.28% |
| Hang Seng (Hong Kong) | 25,584.79 | +0.07% |
| Shanghai Composite (China) | 3,952.179 | -0.11% |
| Shenzhen Component (China) | 13,953.066 | -0.68% |
| Kospi (South Korea) | 6,788.88 | -1.79% |
Closing index levels for the 28 August 2026 session, captured at 11:02 GMT after every Asian market had closed. Ranked by change. The Taiex close is the Taiwan Stock Exchange’s own published figure; the remaining levels are from CNBC.
Commodities, currencies and volatility
Silver rose 1.24 percent to 70.295 dollars an ounce while gold fell 0.26 percent. On our calculation that puts the ratio of the COMEX December gold contract to the COMEX September silver contract at 66.175, against 67.175 measured on the 27 August settlements, a narrowing of 1.00 point.
Crude was mixed across the two benchmarks. Brent rose 0.26 percent to 89.93 dollars a barrel while West Texas Intermediate eased 0.19 percent, widening the Brent to WTI spread to 6.56 dollars a barrel from 6.17 dollars on the 27 August settlements, a widening of 39 cents or 6.32 percent on our calculation. Both comparisons set an intraday level against the previous session’s settlement, which is the same basis the percentage changes in the table use.
Currencies barely moved. The dollar was firmer against all three currencies in the table, most of all against the yen at 0.14 percent, while the dollar index itself was unchanged to two decimal places at 99.163.
| Contract | Level | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Silver, COMEX (Sep’26), dollars an ounce | $70.295 | +1.24% |
| Brent Crude, ICE (Oct’26), dollars a barrel | $89.93 | +0.26% |
| WTI Crude, NYMEX (Oct’26), dollars a barrel | $83.37 | -0.19% |
| Gold, COMEX (Dec’26), dollars an ounce | $4,651.80 | -0.26% |
Most active contract quotes from the same 11:02 GMT capture, taken before the day’s settlement windows. These are intraday levels, not exchange settlements. Changes are measured against each contract’s previous close, which is the prior session’s settlement, so they are settlement to intraday.
| Instrument | Level | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Dollar/yen | 159.62 | +0.14% |
| US Dollar Index (DXY) | 99.163 | 0.00% |
| Euro/dollar | 1.1648 | -0.03% |
| Pound/dollar | 1.3588 | -0.03% |
| CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) | 14.48 | -0.21% |
| Bitcoin, dollars | $79,588.41 | -0.59% |
Intraday quotes from the same 11:02 GMT capture on 28 August 2026, measured against each instrument’s previous close.
Elsewhere, most recent completed sessions
The Dubai Financial Market announced on 24 August that it would close on Friday 28 August for Al Mawlid Al Nabawi, the Prophet’s Birthday, and resume on Monday 31 August. The Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange market status was closed. The Middle East table below carries the 27 August session. European markets were open on Friday and had not closed when these levels were taken, and the United States had not yet opened.
Middle East, 27 August close, for reference
| Index | Close | Change |
|---|---|---|
| DFM General (Dubai) | 5,882.63 | +0.27% |
| QE Index (Qatar) | 9,876.29 | +0.23% |
| FTSE ADX General (Abu Dhabi) | 10,044.52 | +0.09% |
| Bahrain All Share (Bahrain) | 1,941.497 | -0.088% |
| Nomu Parallel Market (Saudi Arabia) | 21,797.66 | -0.12% |
| Tadawul All Share (Saudi Arabia) | 11,237.93 | -0.20% |
| ASE Index (Jordan) | 4,008.73 | -0.21% |
| MSCI Tadawul 30 (Saudi Arabia) | 1,514.43 | -0.32% |
Carried verbatim from our Middle East Market Wrap of 27 August 2026. These are that session’s closes, not Friday levels.
Europe, 27 August close, for reference
| Index | Close | Change |
|---|---|---|
| DAX (Germany), Xetra close | 26,367.24 | +0.31% |
| OMX Helsinki (Finland) | 13,742.79 | +0.24% |
| OMXS30 (Sweden), on our calculation | 3,321.44 | -0.15% |
| OMXC 25 (Denmark), on our calculation | 1,917.50 | -0.17% |
| BEL 20 (Belgium) | 5,838.67 | -0.38% |
| AEX (Netherlands) | 1,103.38 | -0.40% |
| PSI 20 (Portugal) | 9,389.24 | -0.60% |
| Stoxx Europe 600 (Europe) | 651.85 | -0.69% |
| Euro Stoxx 50 (euro area) | 6,424.73 | -0.71% |
| FTSE 100 (United Kingdom) | 10,792.54 | -0.79% |
| IBEX 35 (Spain) | 19,881.60 | -0.93% |
| SMI (Switzerland) | 14,384.37 | -1.09% |
| FTSE MIB (Italy) | 52,265.12 | -1.17% |
| CAC 40 (France) | 8,319.87 | -1.68% |
Carried verbatim from our Europe Market Wrap of 27 August 2026.
United States, 27 August close, for reference
| Index | Close | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Nasdaq Composite | 26,541.35 | +1.57% |
| Nasdaq 100 | 29,641.56 | +1.43% |
| S&P 500 | 7,730.99 | +0.72% |
| Russell 2000 | 3,014.34 | +0.28% |
| Dow Jones Industrial Average | 53,569.44 | +0.20% |
Carried verbatim from our US Market Wrap of 27 August 2026.
Why it matters: On our reading the session is a test of how far a move led from the front in New York carries into Asia, and the answer on Friday was that it carried unevenly. Taiwan and Japan finished among the day’s leaders while Korea went the other way by 1.79 percent, and its decline exceeded the entire 1.46 percentage point range of the other 9 markets. That makes Korea the clear outlier within an otherwise firmer regional session, which matters to anyone treating Asia as a single position rather than as 10 separate ones. The commodity leg was mixed, with Brent up 0.26 percent while West Texas Intermediate and gold both eased, so it neither confirmed nor contradicted the equity picture.
Outlook: The gap between Korea and the rest of the region is the number to watch into Monday, because it will show whether Friday’s divergence begins to close or persists into a second session. In Japan, the question is whether the Topix holds the 0.30 percentage point advantage over the Nikkei that it opened on Friday. In commodities, the day’s final settlements will show whether silver’s intraday strength against gold and the wider Brent to WTI spread survive to the close.
Sources: CNBC, closes and intraday quotes captured at 11:02 GMT on 28 August 2026; Taiwan Stock Exchange; Bank of Korea, Monetary Policy Decision of 27 August 2026; Dubai Financial Market, market announcement of 24 August 2026; Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange, market status read 28 August 2026; The Edge, Middle East, Europe, US and Commodities Market Wraps of 27 August 2026.
