Seoul: Seoul shares closed slightly higher Friday, marking a third consecutive day of gains as investors closely monitored the ongoing tariff negotiations between South Korea and the United States. The Korean won, however, depreciated against the U.S. dollar.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) increased by 5.6 points, or 0.18 percent, ending at 3,196.05. The trade volume was moderate with 385.7 million shares exchanging hands, valued at 9.8 trillion won (US$7.1 billion). Despite the gains, more stocks fell than rose, with 504 losers compared to 370 winners.
Foreign investors and institutions were net buyers, purchasing shares worth 268.9 billion won and 110.4 billion won, respectively. Retail investors were net sellers, offloading 461.3 billion won. Meanwhile, on Wall Street, the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite and the S and P 500 saw slight gains of 0.18 percent and 0.07 percent, respectively, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average decreased by 0.7 percent.
Investors are particularly focused on whether South Korea will achieve a trade deal with the U.S. following Japan's recent agreement. South Korea's top trade officials met with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick in Washington, D.C., reaffirming their commitment to reaching a deal before the upcoming August 1 deadline and agreeing to further negotiations soon.
Lee Kyoung-min, an analyst at Daishin Securities, commented that while the market was somewhat reassured by news of the meeting, the KOSPI's growth was limited due to ongoing uncertainties surrounding the negotiation deadline.
In the stock market, tech giant Samsung Electronics saw a slight decline of 0.15 percent to 65,900 won, while SK hynix fell 1.3 percent to 266,000 won. Leading battery maker LG Energy Solution dropped 1.22 percent, following Tesla's 8.2 percent decline overnight. Bio shares also weakened, with Samsung Biologics losing over 2 percent to 1.06 million won and Celltrion down 1.33 percent to 178,000 won.
In the automotive sector, Hyundai Motor decreased by 0.46 percent to 216,500 won, and Kia fell 0.86 percent to 104,100 won, primarily due to reduced operating profits in the second quarter, attributed to the 25 percent tariffs on all imported cars imposed by the former Trump administration.
Conversely, financial and shipbuilding sectors performed well. KB Financial advanced 1.37 percent to 118,800 won, and Shinhan Financial rose 2.74 percent to 71,200 won. HD Hyundai Heavy, a major shipbuilder, surged 5.83 percent to 444,500 won, while Hanwha Ocean increased 1.35 percent to 90,000 won, driven by expectations of cooperation with the U.S. in the industry.
Elsewhere, internet portal operator Naver climbed 3.3 percent to 234,500 won, and Kakao Pay, the fintech subsidiary of Kakao, surged 10.71 percent due to substantial purchases by global investment bank Goldman Sachs.
The Korean won was quoted at 1,377.9 against the U.S. dollar at 3:30 p.m., marking a decrease of 10.7 won from the previous session.