Seoul: South Korean stocks finished lower Tuesday as investors moved to lock in profits from recent gains amid lingering concerns about the United States' tariff scheme. The local currency fell against the U.S. dollar.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) lost 7.18 points, or 0.27 percent, to close at 2,637.22. Trade volume was moderate at 315.52 million shares worth 7.81 trillion won (US$5.71 billion), with losers outnumbering winners 514 to 361.
Foreign investors and institutions sold a net 75.92 billion won and 19.97 billion won worth of stocks, respectively, while individual investors bought 53.42 billion won worth of shares. The index opened lower and stayed in negative territory after a sharp increase in the previous session. This followed news that U.S. President Donald Trump announced a delay in imposing 50 percent tariffs on imports from the European Union until July 9. Concerns remain over U.S. tariff policies, particularly as Trump threatened to implement 25 percent tariffs by the end of next month on smartphones made by Apple, Samsung Electronics Co., and other companies unless they are manufactured in the U.S.
U.S. stock markets were closed Monday in observance of Memorial Day. In Seoul, most large-cap technology shares declined. Market leader Samsung Electronics fell 1.46 percent to 53,900 won, and competitor SK hynix dropped 0.25 percent to 202,500 won. Major battery producer LG Energy Solution decreased by 1.98 percent to 272,500 won, and leading steelmaker POSCO Holdings fell 1.86 percent to 237,000 won.
Leading biotech firm Samsung Biologics saw a decline of 1.63 percent to 1.03 million won, and financial leader KB Financial edged down 0.1 percent to 101,900 won. Top automaker Hyundai Motor's share price remained unchanged at 181,900 won, while its affiliate Kia Motors saw a slight increase of 0.11 percent to 88,200 won.
However, defense company Hanwha Aerospace experienced a significant gain of 6.48 percent to 887,000 won, and major biopharmaceutical company Celltrion rose 1.7 percent to 155,600 won. The local currency was quoted at 1,369.5 won against the greenback at 3:30 p.m., down 5.1 won from the previous session. Bond prices, which move inversely to yields, closed higher. The yield on three-year Treasurys decreased by 0.8 basis points to 2.340 percent, and the return on the benchmark five-year government bonds declined by 2.6 basis points to 2.748 percent.