Seoul Shares Decline Amid Profit Taking

SEOUL, Feb. 7 (Yonhap) -- Seoul's stock market closed lower on Friday as investors decided to take profits after three days of gains. Additionally, the South Korean currency weakened against the U.S. dollar.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell by 14.83 points, or 0.58 percent, finishing the day at 2,521.92.

Trading activity was moderate, with a total of 411.62 million shares exchanging hands, valued at approximately 10 trillion won (around $6.98 billion). The number of losing stocks outpaced the gainers, with 597 stocks declining compared to 290 that increased in value.

Foreign and institutional investors sold off a combined amount of 448.97 billion won, while retail investors stepped in to purchase a net of 330.66 billion won worth of shares.

Earlier in the week, the KOSPI had dropped sharply by 2.52 percent on Monday amid fears regarding U.S. import tariffs. However, it rebounded over the following three sessions, achieving rises of more than 1 percent each day.

In the United States, stocks ended mixed despite a lack of strong indicators. The Dow Jones Industrial Average decreased by 0.28 percent while the Nasdaq composite and the S&P 500 saw gains of 0.51 percent and 0.36 percent, respectively.

Analysts noted a cautious outlook beginning to spread among domestic investors. Lee Sung-hoon, an analyst at Kiwoom Securities, remarked, "With a wait-and-see stance emerging in the domestic stock market, the recent rally has apparently led to some profit taking."

In Seoul's market, large companies experienced declines across the board. Market leader Samsung Electronics slid 0.56 percent to end at 53,700 won, while rival chipmaker SK hynix dropped 0.25 percent to close at 203,000 won.

Shares in the battery and automotive sectors also faced losses. The leading battery manufacturer LG Energy Solution decreased by 1.75 percent at 336,000 won, and major automaker Hyundai Motor fell 1.47 percent to 200,500 won.

State-owned Korea Gas experienced a significant decline of 13.82 percent, closing at 30,550 won, after the government announced it could not confirm the economic viability of one of the potential oil and gas reserves located in the East Sea.

On a positive note, Hyundai Rotem surged by 11.33 percent to 79,600 won, driven by a report from a local securities firm that predicted better earnings for the defense equipment producer this year.

By late afternoon, the local currency was trading at 1,447.80 won against the U.S. dollar, reflecting a minor decrease of 0.10 won from the previous session.

Seoul, stocks, losses