(LEAD) Seoul shares close tad lower despite BOK's rate cut

(ATTN: ADDS bond yields at bottom, photo)

SEOUL, Oct. 11 (Yonhap) -- Seoul shares ended slightly lower Friday on foreign sell-off despite the Bank of Korea's (BOK) first rate cut in more than three years. The local currency rose against the U.S. dollar.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 0.09 percent, or 2.25 points, to 2,596.91.

Trading volume was moderate at 470.8 million shares worth 9.26 trillion won (US$6.86 billion), with losers outpacing gainers 487 to 367.

Foreigners dumped 601.2 billion won worth of local stocks, while retail investors and institutions purchased 290.5 billion won and 270.2 billion won, respectively.

"The KOSPI kicked off strong backed by the BOK's first rate cut in more than three years but turned lower on foreign sell-off," Lee Kyoung-min, an analyst at Daishin Securities, said.

Earlier in the day, the BOK slashed its key benchmark interest by 25 basis points to 3.25 percent, marking the first reduction since August 2021.

The central bank's decision came after the U.S. Federal Reserve made a half percentage point rate cut last month.

Wall Street also lost ground overnight following the release of hotter-than-expected inflation data, raising concerns the Fed may not give another rate cut in November.

In Seoul, tech behemoth Samsung Electronics rose 0.68 percent to 59,300 won, while its chipmaking rival SK hynix lost 0.37 percent to 186,000 won.

Leading battery maker LG Energy Solution slid 3.75 percent to 411,000 won, and its smaller rival POSCO Future M plunged 2.57 percent as investors moved to take profit after Tesla unveiled its driverless robotaxi.

Shipbuilders also lost ground on concerns over a possible strike by industry workers.

HD Hyundai Heavy shot down 3.49 percent to 182,300 won, and HD Korea Shipbuilding dropped 2.78 percent to 185,200 won.

KT&G, South Korea's dominant tobacco company, also plummeted 12.57 percent to 102,200 won.

On the other hand, bio shares were bullish, with Samsung Biologics up 2.91 percent to 1.02 million and Celltrion up 1.54 percent to 197,300 won.

Book publishers also rallied after South Korean novelist Han Kang won the 2024 Nobel literature prize.

The local currency was trading at 1,349.50 won against the U.S. dollar at 3:30 p.m., up 0.7 won from the previous session.

Bond prices, which move inversely to yields, closed higher. The yield on three-year Treasurys fell 1.5 basis points to 2.947 percent, and the return on the benchmark five-year government bonds dropped 1.6 basis points to 2.998 percent.

nyway@yna.co.kr
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