The Seoul bourses mired in lethargy were at their thinnest in a year last month, data showed Tuesday.

According to data released by Korea Exchange (KRX) on Tuesday, the daily trade turnover of the main Kospi and secondary Kosdaq markets averaged 8.49 trillion won ($7.09 billion) in September, down 150 billion won from 8.6 trillion won in August. It is the thinnest since November last year when daily turnover was 8.42 trillion won.

The Kosdaq market drew 3.97 trillion won per day in September. Turnover of the Kospi averaged 4.5 trillion won per day, higher than 4.4 trillion won in July when it was the lowest in two years and six months.

Inactive trade from August carried over to September amid little upside for the Korean economy and companies.

In September, the main Kospi recovered from a steep fall in August to reach 2,100 level before falling after negative news related to the ongoing trade conflict between the United States and China emerged. Prospects for trade talks between the world’s two largest economies remain uncertain after formal impeachment inquiry against U.S. President Donald Trump was launched over Trump-Ukraine scandal. Several media outlets also reported that the White House was considering delisting Chinese stocks in the U.S.

Investors also remained shy in September as they cast doubts about third-quarter performance of the Korean Inc. including bellwether Samsung Electronics Co. that would first release preliminary figures next week.

Seo Sang-young, a researcher at Kiwoom Securities, said that trade talks between the U.S. and China is expected to take place in October but uncertainties still remain, leading investors to take a more “wait and see” approach ahead of major events earlier on in the month such as Samsung Electronics’ earnings announcement and Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s speech.

Lee Young-gon, a researcher at Hana Financial Investment, too many uncertainties scare investors. The market is expected to stay inactive until U.S.-China trade talks take form and key tech companies show improvement in earnings.

By Chung Seung-hwan and Lee Eun-joo

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