Seoul shares snapped a six-day rebound on Friday, with foreign investors turning net sellers ahead of a US labour market report, although the market posted a weekly gain. The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) ended down 0.69 percent to 1,867.75 points on Friday but rose 5 percent on the week.
"The KOSPI has risen substantially this week and last week, but this is in the range of a technical rebound. What is important is (US President Barack) Obama's speech next week to see whether he will offer strong measures to jump-start the US economy," said Kim Seung-han, an analyst at Hi Investment & Securities. Foreign investors turned net sellers after three sessions of buying, offloading 104.9 billion won ($98.8 million) worth of shares.
"Foreign buying is taking a pause after leading the market's recent sharp rises. Institutional investors also want to check big events next week," said Chun Jong-kyu, an analyst at Samsung Securities. Wall Street's four-day rally ground to a halt on Thursday, with investors looking pessimistically towards jobs data due later on Friday expected to underscore fears the economy is headed for another recession.
Most large-cap stocks lost ground, with Samsung Electronics falling 0.26 percent and Hyundai Motor retreating 1.23 percent. Shipbuilders and brokerages were among the worst performers after their recent rallies, with Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering tumbling 4.14 percent and Woori Investment & Securities down 4.93 percent. Auto, chemical and refinery issues also lost ground after recent rises. LG Chem declined 3.29 percent and S-Oil slid 3.67 percent.
Investors turned their eyes on domestic-oriented stocks such as retailers and telecom firms, with Hyundai Department Store rising 2.22 percent and LG Uplus inching up 0.59 percent. Shares in Ahnlab Inc, a security solutions provider, soared by the daily limit of 15 percent after a newspaper reported company founder, chairman of the board and biggest shareholder Ahn Chul-soo may run in the upcoming Seoul mayoral race.
Steel pipe makers also rallied following media reports that South Korean President Lee Myung-bak may discuss with his Russian counterpart in November a gas pipeline project involving Russia and the two Koreas. Park Geun-hye, the frontrunner for South Korea's next president, also expressed support for the project on Thursday, saying it would help build trust between the two Koreas, Yonhap News reported.
Dong Yang Steel Pipe, a maker of steel pipes for gas transport, surged by the intraday limit of 15 percent, extending gains into a second straight session. Peer Histeel also jumped 15 percent. The KOSPI 200 September futures dropped 1.38 percent or 3.35 points to 239.15. KOSPI 200 spot index was down 2.21 points to 240.16. The junior Kosdaq market finished up 0.87 percent to 494.47.