Seoul shares end 0.32 pct lower on tech losses

(ATTN: ADDS bond yields at bottom)
By Kim Soo-yeon
SEOUL, Oct. 21 (Yonhap) -- South Korean stocks closed lower Wednesday as
investors dumped tech shares mirroring overnight falls in U.S. markets, analysts
said. The local currency dropped against the U.S. dollar.
After range-bound trading, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index
(KOSPI) declined 5.29 points to 1,653.86. Volume was moderate at 359.9 million
shares worth 5.19 trillion won (US$4.4 billion) with losers outpacing gainers 450
to 329.
"Investor sentiment remained weak on overnight falls in U.S. markets. But
continued buying by foreign investors and eased strength of the local currency
are likely to give some relief to the market down the road," said Lee Jae-man, an
analyst at Tong Yang Securities.
Although foreign investors bought a net 111.7 billion won worth of Seoul stocks,
sell-offs by institutional and retail investors prevented the KOSPI from moving
to positive territory.
Tech shares sharply fell on a foreign report that AT&T Inc. is to sue Samsung
Electronics, LG Display and other makers of liquid-crystal displays on
allegations of price fixing over their panels sold in the U.S.
Market bellwether Samsung Electronics declined 2.26 percent to 735,000 won and
flat panel giant LG Display lost 0.46 percent to 32,750 won.
But consumer electronics giant LG Electronics advanced 1.69 percent to 120,500
won on its strong third-quarter earnings. Before the market closed, LG
Electronics reported over 30-fold on-year jump in the third-quarter net profit
with 807.2 billion won due to a pickup in global demand for its mobile handsets
and LCD TVs.
Top carmaker Hyundai Motor jumped 4.23 percent to 103,500 won as investors hunted
for bargains on a bright outlook for the company's earnings.
The local currency ended at 1,179 won against the greenback, down 13.1 won from
Tuesday's close, as disappointing U.S. housing data prompted offshore investors
to revive their appetite for safe assets, dealers said.
Bond prices, which move inversely to yields, closed higher. The return on
three-year Treasuries shed 0.02 percentage point to 4.53 percent and the
benchmark yield on five-year government bonds lost 0.01 percentage point to 4.97
percent.
sooyeon@yna.co.kr
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