SEOUL: Round-up of South Korean financial markets:
** South Korean shares fell on Wednesday as traders braced for a likely US Federal Reserve policy decision to taper its pandemic-era stimulus. The Korean won weakened, while the benchmark bond yield fell.
** The benchmark KOSPI fell 37.78 points, or 1.25%, to 2,975.71, as of 0630 GMT.
** Trading was thin as many were in a wait-and-see mode ahead of the Federal Open Market Committee decision, while the spread of COVID-19 in China also weakened sentiment, said Kim Seok-hwan, an analyst at Mirae Asset Securities.
** Among heavyweights, technology giant Samsung Electronics fell 1.54% and peer SK Hynix slipped 1.86%, while LG Chem dropped 5.66% and Naver declined 1.83%.
** Kakao Pay Corp saw its shares double in value from their IPO price on their trading debut, as the fintech's expected growth in transactions and other services whetted investor appetite.
** China stocks fell as risk appetite took a hit after Premier Li Keqiang warned of economic downward pressure while new locally transmitted COVID-19 cases spiked to a near three-month high, lifting the prospect of fresh curbs in Beijing.
** Foreigners were net sellers of 448.7 billion won worth of shares on the main board.
** The won was quoted at 1,181.6 per dollar on the onshore settlement platform, 0.61% lower than its previous close at 1,174.4.
** In offshore trading, the won was quoted at 1,181.5 per dollar, down 0.3% from the previous day, while in non-deliverable forward trading its one-month contract was quoted at 1,182.6.
** The won has lost 8.1% against the dollar so far this year.
** In money and debt markets, December futures on three-year treasury bonds fell 0.01 point to 108.17.
** The most liquid 3-year Korean treasury bond yield fell by 0.4 basis point to 2.036%, while the benchmark 10-year yield fell by 1.1 basis points to 2.469%.
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