Thursday Trading Sees Marts Mixed

Seoul stocks closed mixed Thursday. The main board moved up for the third consecutive trading session, but the Kosdaq market ended a two-day rally. A fifth day of foreign buying limited early losses, and program buying later in the session pulled up the index. The Korea Composite Stock Price Index squeezed out a gain of 0.7 points, or 0.1 percent, to close at 584.4. Trade volume fell to 397 million shares worth 1.81 trillion won ($1.37 billion).

Key blue chips were mixed. Samsung Electronics rose 0.4 percent to 230,000 won. Korea Electric Power Corp. added 0.4 percent, ending at 23,000 won. Pohang Iron & Steel shed 0.5 percent, to close at 101,000 won. SK Telecom slipped 0.2 percent to 233,500 won.

Kia Motors jumped 7.5 percent to 9,350 won. But Hyundai Motor Co., the largest shareholder in Kia, fell 2.7 percent to 21,400 won, ending its five-day rally. Declining issues outnumbered advancers 471 to 306. Sixteen shares rose by 15 percent, the daily ceiling. Five issues hit the down limit.

The Kosdaq market ended lower, defying the U.S. Nasdaq market's overnight gains. The composite index shed 1.01 points, or 1.25 percent, to close at 79.99. Trade volume was 419 million shares, valued at 2.94 trillion won.

Woongjin Coway, a water purifier maker, and Sung Kwang Envitech, a water supply and disposal facility maker, jumped by the daily limit of 12 percent after the government said Wednesday that viruses were found in tap water in some parts of the country. A total of 33 issues touched the daily ceiling and five fell the limit. Losing issues led gainers 386 to 175.

by Moon So-young