SEOUL — Seoul
shares fell more than 1 per cent on Friday amid concerns over a slower monetary
easing cycle in the United States, along with the aftermath of President Yoon
Suk Yeol's short-lived martial law declaration this month.
The Korean won also continued to hover around 1,450 won per
U.S. dollar for two straight sessions, the lowest level in 15 years.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI)
plunged 31.78 points, or 1.3 per cent, to close at 2,404.15. It fell below the
2,400 threshold at one point during the session, reports Yonhap news agency.
The trade volume was moderate at 606.4 million shares worth
9.12 trillion won (US$6.28 billion), with losers outnumbering winners 703 to
204.
Foreigners and institutions dumped local shares worth 817
billion won and 89.1 billion won, respectively, while retail investors bought a
net 790 billion won.
Earlier this week, U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell
suggested two additional rate cuts next year, two fewer than what the Fed had
projected three months ago.
"The stock market is experiencing growing volatility
amid uncertainties in the U.S. monetary policy," said Kim Ji-won, an
analyst at KB Securities. "The market sentiment over risky assets will
remain subdued for the time being.
In Seoul, top tech giant Samsung Electronics slid 0.19 per
cent to 53,100 won, and No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix lost 3.71 per cent to 168,500
won.
Financial shares also tumbled, with KB Financial falling
1.27 percent to 85,800 won and Shinhan Financial moving down 1.23 percent to
48,250 won.
Leading pharmaceutical giant Samsung Biologics also declined
1.98 per cent to 939,000 won, while Celltrion edged up 0.05 per cent to 192,500
won.
The greenback remained high as the US posted
stronger-than-expected economic growth of 3.1 per cent for the third quarter,
compared with the previous estimate of 2.8 per cent.
Bond prices, which move inversely to yields, closed lower.
The yield on three-year Treasurys rose 2.6 basis points to 2.629 per cent and
the return on the benchmark five-year government bonds gained 3.9 basis points
to close at 2.775 per cent.
