Seoul:Seoul shares ended lower on Monday, mirroring losses on Wall Street, as investors remained cautious ahead of third-quarter earnings reports from major chipmakers and a key interest rate decision expected from the U.S. Federal Reserve later in the week. Despite the dip in shares, the Korean won saw a slight rise against the U.S. dollar.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) opened 0.92 percent lower and continued to fall, closing down 80.83 points, or 1.46 percent, at 5,469.47. The trade volume was light, with 190.46 million shares worth 12.01 trillion won (approximately US$9.08 billion) traded. Decliners significantly outnumbered advancers by 790 to 101.
The decline in Seoul shares followed a decrease in U.S. markets on Friday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropping 1.23 percent and the Nasdaq Composite slipping 0.21 percent. Investors are particularly focused on the earnings reports from SK hynix, expected on Wednesday, and Samsung Electronics, due on Thursday, for insights into the outlook for artificial intelligence (AI) chip demand and memory prices.
Additionally, the Federal Reserve's two-day policy meeting, starting Tuesday, is being closely watched. The central bank is widely expected to maintain current interest rates despite ongoing inflationary pressures. In the stock market, foreigners sold a net 695.5 billion won worth of stocks, while institutions and individuals purchased a net 611 billion won and 47 billion won, respectively.
Large-cap stocks in Seoul mostly saw declines. Samsung Electronics fell 1.16 percent to 213,000 won, and SK hynix decreased by 0.16 percent to 1.28 million won. Hyundai Motor dropped 2.54 percent to 288,000 won, and Hanwha Aerospace plunged 4.04 percent to 760,000 won. Among the few gainers, Jeju Air rose 0.96 percent to 5,250 won, and LG Display increased by 2.38 percent to 7,320 won.
The Korean won was quoted at 1,323.1 won against the U.S. dollar as of 330 p.m., compared to 1,324.6 won at the previous stock trading session's close.