Lee Hyo-jin covers the Bank of Korea, the banking industry and broader financial news. Her previous beats include foreign affairs, North Korea and general reporting on Korean society.
KOSPI edges higher despite US tech headwinds
The won-dollar exchange rate, KOSPI and Kosdaq indexes are displayed in the dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, Tuesday. The benchmark KOSPI closed at 6,742.74, up 45.78 points, or 0.68 percent, from the previous session. Yonhap
By Lee Hyo-jin
Seoul shares ended higher Tuesday, recouping sharp early losses as leading chip stocks recovered from a sell-off, triggered by overnight weakness in U.S. technology shares.
The benchmark KOSPI opened 2.4 percent lower at 6,535.93 and fell more than 4 percent at one point in morning trading before recovering in the afternoon. It closed at 6,742.74, up 45.78 points, or 0.68 percent, from the previous session.
Foreign investors were net sellers, offloading a net 3.82 trillion won ($2.75 billion) worth of shares, while institutional and retail investors were net buyers, purchasing 1.17 trillion won and 1.05 trillion won, respectively.
Overnight, U.S. stocks closed mixed as concerns over the profitability of artificial intelligence-related investments weighed on technology shares. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.26 percent, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq fell 0.76 percent.
Samsung Electronics came under selling pressure in early trading despite plans for up to 110 trillion won in shareholder returns, as the scale and timing of its share cancellations remained undecided.
SK hynix was also pressured after its tentative wage agreement was rejected in a vote by its production workers' union. The rejection sent the issue of how much of their performance bonuses should be paid in treasury shares back to the negotiating table.
Both stocks later recovered. Samsung Electronics closed at 257,000 won, up 0.19 percent from the previous session, while SK hynix rose 0.42 percent to 1.678 million won.
Investors also remained cautious ahead of major events this week, including earnings from U.S. chip giant Nvidia due Wednesday (local time) and the Federal Reserve's annual Jackson Hole conference the following day, which will feature Fed Chair Kevin Warsh's keynote speech.
Meanwhile, the secondary Kosdaq opened 6.4 points, or 0.79 percent, lower at 806.93 before reversing course to close at 827.15, up 13.82 points, or 1.7 percent.
"The KOSPI opened sharply lower, led by weakness in semiconductor stocks, but recovered as investors rotated into large-cap shares. On the Kosdaq, gains in some materials, parts and equipment stocks helped support the index," said Kang Jin-hyuk, an analyst at Shinhan Securities.
In the Seoul foreign exchange market, the won closed at 1,386.1 won per dollar, down 3.7 won from the previous session.