Seoul shares ended slightly higher on Thursday helped by firm gains in technology issues such as Samsung Electronics, but substantial falls in banks including Hana Financial Group weighed. The Korea Composite Stock Price Index finished up 0.23 percent at 1,874.69 points.
China's growth ebbed in the third quarter while inflation edged just a touch higher, showing that the world's second-largest economy was strong but far from overheating and suggesting that an interest rate rise this week may be enough for now. Foreign investors were buyers of a net 105.7 billion won ($94.20 million) worth of stocks and individual investors purchased a net 181.2 billion won.
Shares in Hana Financial Group tumbled 7.3 percent after its top shareholder Temasek Holdings had sold its entire 9.6 percent stake in Hana Financial Group Inc for $607 million. Other banking issues also retreated, with KB Financial Group down 1.3 percent and Shinhan Financial Group trading 2.5 percent lower.
Shares in LG Display ended down 2 percent ahead of its weak set of results. The world's No 2 flat screen maker reported its lowest operating profit in six quarters, as panel prices tumbled on weak consumer demand for TVs and computers. Shares in Hyundai Heavy Industries, the world's No 1 shipbuilder, ended up 1.7 percent.