South Korean shares closed slightly lower on Tuesday, hit by profit-taking as the market neared a key technical level, but a resilient performance by technology stocks prevented the index from dropping further.
Futures-related program selling dragged down a number of large cap shares, while brokerage stocks led the day's losers. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) finished down 0.14 percent at 873.46 points, after opening at a session high of 879.41.
"The market clung to a 20-day moving average, with investors playing tug of war at the key technical level," said Kim Hyung-chan, a fund manager at KTB Asset Management. The market got off to a spritely start, helped by robust domestic industrial output data for February and a strong finish on Wall Street.
Among leading decliners, SK Telecom Co fell 1.64 percent to close at 210,500 won, and state-run power monopoly Korea Electric Power Corp slipped 1.94 percent to end at 20,200 won.
Trade volume stood at 280.6 million shares valued at 1.87 trillion won. Decliners edged out gainers by 396 to 324 with 79 stocks unchanged. The June KOSPI 200 futures index ended up 0.35 points at 116.0, while the underlying KOSPI 200 spot index fell 0.12 points to 114.98. The junior Kosdaq ended 0.21 percent lower at 431.39.