Seoul stocks down 0.21 pct in late morning

By Lee Youkyung
SEOUL, Sept. 7 (Yonhap) -- South Korean shares traded 0.21 percent lower late
Monday morning on widening institutional sell-offs of financial and bank shares,
analysts said.

Reversing earlier gains, the benchmark Korean Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI)
shed 3.45 points to 1,605.45 as of 11:20 a.m.
Financial and bank stocks lost ground as a new limit on bank mortgage lending
took effect Monday, prompting investors to worry about falls in their profits.
KB Financial Group, the top financial services firm by net profit, and its rival
Woori Finance Holdings Co. lost more than 1 percent. Korea Exchange Bank (KEB),
the No.5 lender, slid more than 2 percent.
The local currency was trading at 1,233.55 won to the U.S. dollar as of 11:20
a.m., up 7.95 won from Friday's close.
ylee@yna.co.kr
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