Seoul shares ended up 1.2 percent on Friday, buoyed by a strong set of US corporate earnings and foreign investors' purchases, with gains led by technology issues including LG Display. The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) finished up 1.21 percent at 1,897.31 points.
"The US market's solid set of corporate results have apparently boosted sentiment and have prompted foreign investors' buying into stocks," said Choi Seong-lak, a market analyst at SK Securities. "The market is trying to settle more comfortably at the psychologically significant 1,900-point level, where the market sees resistance," said Kim Seong-bong, a market analyst at Samsung Securities
Kim added, however, that foreign investors' renewed buying was an "optimistic sign." The main KOSPI's 30-day moving average is about 1,860 points, and its relative strength index (RSI) reads 60, near overbought mark of 70. Foreign investors were buyers of a net 549 billion won ($486.5 million) worth of stocks, snapping two days of selling. LG Display shares outperformed despite posting its worst profit in six quarters late on Thursday, amid projections that the sector was nearing a bottom, analysts said.
"The broader market view is that the sector will hit a bottom in November. We are more optimistic and think it has already hit a bottom this month and will improve from here," said Jeff Kang, an analyst at Daishin Securities. Shares in LG Display were up 4.6 percent. Other technology issues also climbed, with shares in LG Electronics, the world's No 3 handset vendor up 1.9 percent and Samsung Electronics, the world's No 1 memory chip maker up 1.6 percent.
But the won currency's falls weighed on airlines, as a weaker won renders the cost of importing jet fuel higher and dampens appetite for overseas travel. Shares in Korean Air Line, South Korea's biggest air carrier, were down 1.7 percent and Asiana Airlines slipped 1.9 percent.
Elsewhere, shares in Hyundai Motor rose 3.4 percent after the country's top automaker said it had signed a 500 billion won ($443.1 million) joint venture with China's commercial vehicles maker Sichuan Nanjun Automotive Group to expand its presence in the growing segment.
Strong gains in shipbuilders also provided support. Shares in Hyundai Heavy Industries ended up 4.4 percent, and Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering rose 4.1 percent. Trading volume was 341.6 million shares worth 5.8 trillion won, compared with 385.8 million shares worth 6.4 trillion won in the previous session. The KOSPI 200 December futures index rose 3.1 points to 246.05. The KOSPI 200 spot index advanced 3.31 points to 245.84. The junior Kosdaq market gained 0.09 percent to 523.12.