Kospi down 1.1% on dropped tech shares
Seoul’s main stock market ended down 1.1 percent yesterday as investors dumped tech shares including Samsung Electronics to take profits from their recent rallies, analysts said. The local currency rose against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Kospi fell 14.7 points to 1,354.1, snapping its four-day winning streak. Volume was heavy at 664.46 million shares worth 8.01 trillion won ($5.9 billion), with losers outpacing gainers 550 to 285.
“The index started higher as optimism grew that the economic downturn would ease but soon lapsed into negative territory due to profit-taking in tech and auto shares, which had driven the recent market rally,” said Choi Soon-ho, an analyst at Eugene Investment and Securities.
Samsung Electronics, the world’s leading computer memory chipmaker, plunged 5.6 percent to 592,000 won after posting a 72 percent decline in first-quarter profits.
Smaller rival Hynix Semiconductor lost 4.7 percent, after it reported its sixth straight quarterly loss as the global recession worsened a supply glut.
Home appliance giant LG Electronics fell 4.5 percent.
Auto issues also weighed on the market. Top carmaker Hyundai Motor fell 2.1 percent after climbing 3.2 percent a day earlier. Its affiliate and second-largest automaker Kia Motors shed 4.2 percent even after reporting that it returned to profit during the first quarter.
Ssangyong Motor retreated 3.4 percent. Workers at the Korean automaker, which is under bankruptcy protection, began a partial strike yesterday to protest the company’s plans to cut jobs. Workers will halt production for four hours, the Pyeongtaek-based company said in a regulatory filing.
Shipyards, however, continued to rally on an upbeat outlook for demand. Shipbuilding giant Hyundai Heavy Industries jumped 3.2 percent.
NCsoft, Korea’s biggest online game maker, gained 5.3 percent. Goldman Sachs and Co. lifted its 12-month target price and maintained its “buy” recommendation, saying it had underestimated the revenue contribution from PC cafes in Korea.
The local currency finished at 1,343.2 won to the dollar, up 4.8 won from Thursday’s close, as investors bet that financial market will further stabilize, dealers said.
Yonhap, Bloomberg
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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