Seoul stocks down 0.87 pct in late morning

SEOUL, March 3 (Yonhap) -- South Korean stocks traded 0.87 lower late Tuesday
morning, paring steep opening falls thanks to bargain hunting, analysts said.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) declined 8.86 points to
1,009.95 as of 11:20 a.m.
"Strong purchases by institutional investors helped cut heavy losses as they
scrambled to pick up shares at discount following the recent tumble," said Kwak
Jung-bo, an analyst at Hana Daetoo Securities.
The key index opened below the 1,000-point level, hit by an overnight U.S. stocks
tumble, but it reduced losses as electronics and shipbuilders rebounded on
institutional buying.
Bank shares, however, traded sharply lower on sustained jitters over the global
financial market.
The won was trading at 1,566.7 won to the U.S. dollar as of 11:20 a.m., up 3.6
won from an 11-year low on Friday.
pbr@yna.co.kr
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