Seoul shares tumble 3.24 pct on growing uncertainty

(ATTN: ADDS bond yields at bottom)
SEOUL, Feb. 24 (Yonhap) -- South Korean stocks tumbled 3.24 percent on Tuesday as
investors were spooked by overnight Wall Street setbacks and spreading jitters
over a U.S. bank rescue plan, analysts said. The won plunged to an 11-year low
against the greenback.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 35.67 points to
1,063.88. Volume was heavy at 569 million shares worth 3.73 trillion won (US$2.49
billion), with losers outpacing gainers 651 to 182.
""Overnight Wall Street setbacks set a gloomy tone for local shares, with
uncertainty spreading over what kind of plans the U.S. government will unveil to
bail out its troubled banking sector including Citigroup," said Lee Sun-yup, an
analyst at Goodmorning Shinhan Securities. "The local currency's decline also
weighed on investors' sentiment."
Foreigners drove the overall market downturn here, selling more shares than they
bought for the 11th consecutive session. On Tuesday, they dumped a net 302
billion won worth of local shares.
Most large-cap shares were pummeled, with financial and shipbuilding issues among
the hardest-hit.
KB Financial Group fell 4.57 percent to 27,150 won, while Shinhan Financial Group
dived 6.1 percent to 21,550 won. Major brokerages also ended sharply lower, with
Mirae Asset Securities dropping 6.53 percent to 58,700 won.
Top shipyard Hyundai Heavy Industries closed down 5.79 percent to 179,000 won and
second-ranked Samsung Heavy Industries were down 4.93 percent to 22,200 won.
Tech and automakers were also dented on gloomier demand outlooks for their
products in overseas markets. Tech bellwether Samsung Electronics lost 3.61
percent to 467,500 won, while leading carmaker Hyundai Motor closed down 3.74
percent at 47,550 won.
On Monday, Wall Street plunged to the lowest level in more than a decade as
confusion mounted over the government's bailout program to be released for the
embattled financial sector. The Dow Jones industrial average sank 3.41 percent,
while the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite slid 3.71 percent.
The local currency ended at 1,516.3 won to the dollar, down 27.3 won from
Monday's close, on massive foreign selling in local stock markets. This marked
the lowest level since March 13, 1998 when the nation was in the midst of the
Asian-wide financial meltdown.
Bond prices, which move inversely to yields, closed mixed. The return on
three-year Treasuries surged 0.07 percentage point to 3.9 percent while the
benchmark yield on five-year government bonds ended flat at 4.64 percent.
kokobj@yna.co.kr
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