Seoul shares dipped from six-month highs to fall 0.3 percent on Friday, after Korea Exchange Bank (KEB) announced a profit plunge, while investors locked in gains in outperforming exporters as the won hit its highest since May.
Data showing weaker US consumer sentiment along with higher oil prices contributed to losses at exporters, although shares benefiting from a stronger South Korean won, such as steel maker POSCO Co Ltd, advanced.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 0.27 percent to end at 1,395.73 points, after briefly hitting 1,399.87, its highest since May 17. Volumes were modest. "What we are seeing today is just a little pull back from the recent strong gains," said Chang In-whan, chief executive and fund manager of KTB Asset Management.
Shares still rose 0.86 percent for the week, marking the fourth straight weekly gain as the KOSPI rebounds from the downturn induced by North Korea's nuclear test in early October. The KOSPI is likely to break above the 1,400 point level as early as next week, analysts said, although it is unlikely to approach the record 1,464.70 points hit on May 11 any time soon.
Foreign investors have also sold heavily despite the market's gains, unloading a net 128.3 billion won ($137.5 million) in the KOSPI on Friday, according to Korea Exchange data at 0610 GMT. It was their 11th consecutive session of net sales, and brought their total for the year to a net $12 billion.
Korea Exchange Bank (KEB), at the heart of a persistent probe by prosecutors, fell 2.02 percent to 12,150 won after the lender reported third-quarter net profit plunged from a year earlier due to unexpected tax provisions.
However, Kookmin Bank, which is negotiating with Lone Star to purchase KEB from the US buyout fund, gained 0.4 percent to 75,800 won amid hopes it would be able to win a lower price.
Samsung Electronics Co Ltd fell 0.32 percent to 629,000 won after the world's biggest maker of memory chips rose 4.3 percent over the past three sessions. Other exporters fell, with Hyundai Motor Co Ltd down 1.34 percent to 73,900 won. POSCO rose 0.92 percent to 275,000 won.
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