Seoul shares slipped on Friday led by technology issues such as Hynix Semiconductor, but markets remained stable despite news of North Korea's uranium enrichment, while tour issues rose on a positive brokerage note. The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) finished down 0.29 percent at 1,608.90 points.
Shares in Hynix Semiconductor tumbled 5.67 percent as selling appetite ruled following gains in recent weeks. Daewoo Securities downgraded its rating on the world's second-largest maker of memory chips to "neutral" from "buy." Shares in Samsung Electronics lost 1.03 percent.
But tour agencies rallied amid hopes the worst may be nearly over for the sector. J.P. Morgan upgraded its rating on Hana Tour to "overweight" from "neutral" and also raised its target price to 40,000 won from the previous 30,700 won. "We expect outbound travel to recover at least half way to its peak level in 2010," J.P. Morgan said in a report dated September 3.
Hana Tour spiked 7.11 percent and Modetour rallied 5.1 percent. But automakers declined after Credit Suisse said in a report on Friday that they faced "a time for a breather." "We believe investors should brace for a strong synchronised demand recovery in 2011, not in 2010...structural support for further share gains is more likely after platform integration plans are completed in 2012," it said. Hyundai Motor lost 0.46 percent and Kia Motors declined 3.47 percent.
Shares in KT&G advanced 0.74 percent after the tobacco monopoly said on Friday it would buy back and cancel 101.3 billion won ($81.48 million) worth of its shares as part of a shareholder return plan. "We view the buyback announcement as positive. One of the overhangs on the stock have been investor uncertainty about the company's likely use, or misuse, of its surplus cash," Citigroup said in a note on Friday.