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Shares decline as investors cash out three-day streak

Published: 07 Feb. 2025, 17:00

KIM JU-YEON
[email protected]

A screen in Hana Bank's trading room in central Seoul shows the Kospi closing at 2,521.92 points on Feb. 7, down 14.83 points, or 0.58 percent, from the previous trading session. [YONHAP]

Shares finished lower Friday as investors sought profit following gains in the past three sessions. The local currency slightly fell in value against the dollar.

The Kospi dropped 14.83 points, or 0.58 percent, to close at 2,521.92.

Trade volume was moderate at 411.62 million shares worth 10 trillion won ($6.98 billion), with losers outnumbering winners 597 to 290.

Foreigners and institutions combined sold a net 448.97 billion won while retail investors bought a net 330.66 billion won worth of shares.

The Kospi plunged 2.52 percent Monday due to concerns regarding U.S. import tariffs but rebounded for three consecutive trading days, rising by more than 1 percent each session.

Overnight, Wall Street shares finished mixed amid a lack of market leads. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.28 percent, while the Nasdaq composite and S&P 500 climbed 0.51 percent and 0.36 percent, respectively.

“With a wait-and-see stance emerging in the domestic stock market, the recent rally has apparently led to some profit taking,” Lee Sung-hoon, an analyst at Kiwoom Securities, said.

In Seoul, blue chips dropped across the board, with Samsung Electronics slipping 0.56 percent to 53,700 won and its chipmaking rival SK hynix dropping 0.25 percent to 203,000 won.

Battery and automotive shares also retreated. Battery producer LG Energy Solution fell 1.75 percent to 336,000 won, and automaker Hyundai Motor slumped 1.47 percent to 200,500 won.

State-run Korea Gas Corp. plummeted 13.82 percent to 30,550 won following the government's announcement of its failure to confirm the economic viability of one of the potential oil and gas reserves in the East Sea.

Among winners, Hyundai Rotem surged 11.33 percent to 79,600 won after a securities firm forecast improved earnings for the defense equipment manufacturer this year.

The local currency was trading at 1,447.80 won against the dollar at 3:30 p.m., up 0.10 won from the previous session.

Bond prices, which move inversely to yields, closed lower. Three-year government bond yields rose 5.2 basis points to 2.631 percent, while the return on the benchmark 10-year U.S. government bonds gained 1.8 basis points to 4.441 percent.

BY KIM JU-YEON, YONHAP [[email protected]]