Seoul shares reversed early losses to finish flat on Friday as investors sought buying opportunities in the wake of recent selling, despite downward pressure from weak manufacturing data out of China and Europe. The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) edged 0.04 percent higher to close at 2,026.83, snapping a three-day losing streak but posting a slim weekly loss of 0.3 percent.
"Corrections in the KOSPI started kicking in earlier than its US and European peers, helping to minimise the selloff today and underpinned by strong technical support," said Samsung Securities analyst Kim Sung-bong. Chinese manufacturing activity shrank for a fifth straight month in March and the eurozone economy is showing new signs of wilting in surveys that pointed to weakening global demand, but the impact on the market was cushioned by bargain-hunting after recent extended falls.
Shipbuilders and steelmakers, heavily exposed to Chinese demand and subject to sharp falls on a string of negative headlines out of China, staged a comeback to outperform other sectors after a weak start. Hyundai Heavy Industries Co Ltd rose 1.76 percent, while Hyundai Hysco Co Ltd rallied 3.8 percent.
Energy and petrochemical counters also rallied, with GS Holdings Corp climbing 3.3 percent and LG Chem Ltd up 2.37 percent. "Crude oil refiners and chemicals issues have cooled too dramatically, with LG Chem nearly falling to the level of its 120-day moving average. Despite lingering risks, there were some attractive valuations there," said Korea Investment & Securities analyst Kim Chul-joong.
Hyundai Engineering & Construction Co Ltd reversed early losses to inch up 0.49 percent, while most of its peers ended in the red, following a 1.11 trillion won ($982.7 million) order from Qatar announced through a regulatory filing. Despite setting a weekly loss, the KOSPI average is still up more than 11 percent this year, with analysts forecasting solid support near the 2,000 point level as the market gathers strength for another rally. The benchmark KOSPI 200 index ticked 0.01 percent lower, while the junior KOSDAQ inched down 0.08 percent.