Seoul shares fell on Monday, led by banking issues such as Hana Financial Group, with renewed concerns about growing tension in North Korea adding further pressure to the shares. The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) finished down 1.13 percent at 1,412.42 points.
"Buying appetite has weakened. Both institutions and foreign investors are selling, following their latest streak of buying," said Park Suk-hyun, a market analyst at KTB Securities. Foreign investors turned net sellers after a six consecutive session buying streak, offloading a net 56.3 billion won ($44.68 million). Institutions sold a net 409 billion won.
"Growing tension in North Korea and an increasingly aggressive tone taken up by the United Nations and United States have heightened South Korea's geopolitical risks and dampened sentiment," Park added. North Korea said on Saturday it would start a uranium enrichment program and weaponize all its plutonium in response to fresh UN sanctions, which the United States said it would work vigorously to enforce.
Defence issues including Victek and Huneed Technologies spiked 15 percent and 14.58 percent respectively. Losses were led by banks, with Hana Financial Group falling 4.81 percent. "I have been getting questions about a rights issuance by Hana Financial. Although the company is adamantly denying it, such talk seems to be affecting the shares," said an analyst who declined to be named.
Shinhan Financial Group lost 1.62 percent and Woori Finance Holdings declined 1.84 percent. But exporters outperformed on the back of a weaker won currency, with Hynix Semiconductor, the world's No 2 memory chip maker, rising 2.32 percent and LG Electronics, the world's No 3 handset maker, ending flat.
Shares related to Kumho Asiana Group also outperformed after the company said on Sunday it was selling stakes in affiliates Asiana IDT, Kumho Auto Lease and a stake in the Beijing Lufthansa Center building complex owned by Daewoo Engineering & Construction, which the group purchased in 2006. The group said it expected to secure nearly 240 billion won ($192.2 million) from the sales. Kumho Industrial edged 0.8 percent lower, while Asiana Airlines ended flat.
But Daewoo Motor Sales tumbled 4.68 percent after the company said in a filing to the Korea Exchange that it was issuing 13 million new shares worth nearly 107 billion won ($85.69 million). However STX Offshore & Shipbuilding gained 3.07 percent after the shipbuilder said on Monday it had won $340 million in orders to build tankers for an unidentified European company.
Defensive issues also outperformed, tracking their US peers, with SK Telecom, South Korea's top mobile phone operator, rising 1.7 percent and KT&G, a tobacco monopoly, advancing 0.42 percent. Retail investors bought a net 503.15 billion won. Decliners led advancers 534 to 272, with 65 unchanged.
Trading volume stood at 419 million shares worth 4.9 trillion won, compared with 505.5 million shares worth 5.2 trillion won on Friday. The KOSPI 200 September futures index fell 1.95 points to 179.95, and the KOSPI 200 spot index advanced 2.03 points to 180.66. The junior Kosdaq market ended 0.88 percent lower at 519.63 points.