Seoul: Shares reverse early loss to close up 1 per cent; won gains

[SEOUL] South Korean shares erased early declines and closed up 1 per cent on Wednesday as investors played catch-up after a long weekend and as foreigners turned net buyers.

The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) ended up 1 per cent to 1,962.91 points after falling as much as 1.4 per cent early in the session.

During the month, it was up 1.1 per cent, breaking a four-straight-month losing spree. On a quarterly basis, however, it slid 5.4 per cent, marking the sharpest quarterly percentage fall since June 30, 2013.

Foreigners ended a five-day selling streak and became net buyers by purchasing a net 148 billion won (S$177.98 million) worth of shares in the main board, preliminary data showed.

On the currency market, the South Korean won broke a five-day losing streak, closing up 0.8 per cent to 1,185.3 per dollar as stock markets rallied.

For the quarter, it lost 5.9 per cent, the biggest quarterly percentage loss in four years, falling a fifth straight quarter.

REUTERS