Seoul shares edge down on recession woes

SEOUL, Nov. 14 (Yonhap) -- South Korean stocks ended 0.02 percent lower Friday as concerns over a global recession weighed on investor sentiment, analysts said. The local currency fell against the U.S. dollar.

Reversing earlier gains, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI)
declined 0.18 points to 1,088.26. Volume was moderate at 431.5 million shares
worth 4.99 trillion won (US$3.58 billion). Gainers outnumbered losers 556 to 274.

"The KOSPI reversed its earlier rises as institutional and foreign selling put
downward pressure on the key stock index," said Park Suk-hyun, an analyst at
Eugene Investment & Securities Co. "Investors remained cautious over instability
in the domestic capital market and how severely the global financial turmoil will
affect the real economy."
The KOSPI got off to a brisk start, mirroring overnight rallies in U.S. markets,
but lingering uncertainty over the financial meltdown gripped investors, analysts
say. Foreign investors dumped a net 137.7 billion won worth of local stocks on
the Seoul bourse.
Tech shares lost ground with market leader Samsung Electronics shedding 1.9
percent to 465,000 won. Hana Financial Group, the country's No. 3 financial
services firm, tumbled 13.65 percent to 14,550 won.
Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering, the world's No. 3 shipbuilder, jumped
by the daily limit of 15 percent to 15,650 won after state-run lender Korea
Development Bank reached a preliminary agreement with Hanwha Group over the terms
of the stake sale for the shipyard.
U.S. stocks gained ground Thursday after volatile trading mainly due to bargain
hunting. The Dow Jones industrial average jumped 6.67 percent and the
tech-dominated Nasdaq composite index soared 6.5 percent.
The local currency closed at 1,399.2 won to the dollar, down 7.7 won from
Thursday's close, as offshore investors cut their holdings of local stocks,
dealers said.
sooyeon@yna.co.kr
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