SEOUL– South Korean stocks swung to losses late Friday morning as investors took to the sidelines on woes over a recession.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) lost 7.61 points, or 0.33 percent, to trade at 2,325.03 points as of 11:20 a.m.
The index flipped back to losses after opening higher. The KOSPI dipped nearly 2 percent each on Wednesday and Thursday on recession fears.
South Korea’s trade deficit hit a record high in the first half of the year amid the global energy crunch.
Investors are also worried that the U.S. core personal consumption expenditures (PCE) prices, a gauge of inflation growth, did not slow down enough in May to alleviate the market jitters about the Federal Reserve’s aggressive rate hikes.
In Seoul, market behemoth Samsung Electronics decreased 0.7 percent, and No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix shed 2.64 percent.
Battery giant LG Energy Solution retreated 2.96 percent, but top carmaker Hyundai Motor advanced 0.83 percent.
The local currency was trading at 1,292.95 won against the U.S. dollar, up 5.45 won from the previous session’s close.
Source: Yonhap News Agency