Seoul Shares Decline Amid Samsung Setbacks; Korean Won Continues Downward Trend

SEOUL: Seoul shares closed lower on Tuesday as significant market players, including Samsung, faced substantial selling pressure following declines on Wall Street. The Korean won also continued its decline against the U.S. dollar for the seventh consecutive day. According to Yonhap News Agency, the Korea Composite Stock Price Index, a benchmark for the market, fell by 34.22 points, or 1.3 percent, to end the day at 2,570.70. Institutional and foreign investors sold a combined total of 602 billion won (approximately US$436 million) of stocks, surpassing individual investors' stock purchases, which were valued at 582 billion won. The trading volume was moderate, with 337.43 million shares valued at 8.75 trillion won changing hands. Declining stocks outnumbered advancing ones, with 688 losers against 195 gainers. In the U.S., the Dow Jones Industrial Average experienced a 0.8 percent decline to 42,931.60, while the Nasdaq Composite, heavily weighted toward technology stocks, rose by 0.3 percent to 18,540.01. In the Seoul market, large-cap stocks showed mixed results. Samsung Electronics Co., a key player, saw its shares drop by 2.2 percent, reaching a 52-week low of 57,700 won. Hyundai Motor Co., Korea's leading carmaker, decreased by 1.1 percent to 234,500 won, while LG Energy Solution Ltd., a major battery manufacturer, fell by 2.1 percent to 381,500 won. Korean Air Co., the national airline, experienced a 0.2 percent decline to 23,550 won. Conversely, some stocks managed to gain ground. Korea Electric Power Corp., a state utility company, increased by 2.6 percent to 21,800 won. SK Telecom Co., the leading wireless services provider, climbed by 2.1 percent to 57,500 won, and Hyundai Mobis Co., a prominent auto parts manufacturer, rose by 1.4 percent to 247,500 won. The local currency was trading at 1,380.10 won to the U.S. dollar by the afternoon, marking a decrease of 4.9 won from the previous session. This continued the won's losing streak for a seventh day. Bond prices, which move inversely to yields, also fell. The yield on three-year Treasurys rose by 4.1 basis points to 2.943 percent, while the yield on five-year government bonds increased by 5.1 basis points to 3.014 percent.