Seoul: Shares, won recover after China stocks and yuan pick up

[SEOUL] South Korean shares recovered from a 4-month low and ended higher on Friday, as a strong rebound in Chinese stock markets and the yuan eased pressure on global markets.

The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) closed up 0.7 per cent at 1,917.62 points, after falling as much as 1.1 per cent to 1,883.82. The index wavered between negative and positive territory over the session.

On a weekly basis, the index fell for a second straight week, down 2.2 percent Foreign investors offloaded a net 254 billion won (S$304.1 million) of KOSPI shares during the day, preliminary data showed.

The South Korean won closed local trade up 0.2 per cent at 1,198.1 on the dollar, tracking the rise in the Chinese yuan. For the week, the currency was down 2.2 per cent, the biggest weekly percentage loss since the week ended Sept 25, 2015.

REUTERS