Seoul shares finished slightly higher on Friday, with gains led by shipbuilders and metal issues including Korea Zinc, but falls by financials such as Shinhan Financial weighed on the index. The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) finished up 0.79 percent at 1,170.94 points.
"The index is losing steam near its psychologically significant 1,200 point level, though programme buying has lent some support," said Park Suk-hyun, a market analyst at Eugene Investment & Securities. The index is up 3.9 percent on the week and is trading above its 120-day average of 1,150 points.
"Shares will likely trade between 1,100 and 1,200 points for the rest of this month, but looking ahead to Aprils results season, some changes in movement are expected depending on whether the corporate numbers come out surprisingly solid or surprisingly bad," Park added. Korea Zinc, the worlds No 2 zinc smelter, jumped 9.78 percent, boosted by latest gains in zinc prices, which climbed about 12.15 percent on the month.
Steelmakers also advanced after Citigroup said in a research report that BHP Billiton Mitsubishi Alliance (BMA), the worlds largest exporter of coking coal, had agreed to accept a discount of around 61 percent for the raw material after talks with Japans Nippon Steel.
Hana Financial had gained about 25 percent since March 6 as of Thursdays closing, versus the benchmark indexs 10 percent rise during the same period. Shipbuilders advanced, with Daewoo Shipbuilding & Engineering jumping 5.13 percent and Samsung Heavy rising 2.41 percent.
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