Seoul: Shares slip on tech drag; post best weekly jump in nearly 6 months

SOUTH Korean shares fell on Friday (Jul 22), dragged down by tech stocks tracking Snapchat owner Snap’s plunge, but they posted their biggest weekly gain in nearly 6 months. The won weakened, while the benchmark bond yield fell.

The benchmark Kospi ended down 16.02 points, or 0.7 per cent, at 2,393.14. The index gained 2.7 per cent for the week, its biggest jump since early February.

Snap Inc on Thursday painted a grim picture of the effects of a weakening economy on social media and declined to make a forecast in “incredibly challenging” conditions, sending its shares down 25 per cent.

Local tech shares tracked Snap’s sharp losses, said Shinhan Financial Investment’s analyst Choi Yoo-june, who added that there were also investors taking profits from recent gains.

Meanwhile, a Reuters poll on Friday showed South Korea’s economic growth probably slowed a bit in the second quarter as falling exports and soaring import costs hurt private consumption.

Technology giant Samsung Electronics fell 0.8 per cent and peer SK Hynix dropped 2.4 per cent, while battery maker LG Energy Solution lost 2.2 per cent.

Automaker Hyundai Motor rose 1.1 per cent on upbeat second-quarter earnings, though its sister Kia Corp lost 1.3 per cent.

Of the total 927 traded issues on Kospi, 331 advanced.

Foreigners were net buyers of shares worth 29.6 billion won (S$31.3 million).

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The won was last quoted at 1,313.0 per dollar on the onshore settlement platform, 0.40 per cent lower than its previous close. It gained 1.00 per cent for the week, its biggest jump since early June.

In money and debt markets, September futures on 3-year treasury bonds rose 0.27 point to 104.92 in late afternoon trade.

The most liquid 3-year Korean treasury bond yield fell by 8.5 basis points to 3.209 per cent, while the benchmark 10-year yield fell by 7.5 basis points to 3.299 per cent. REUTERS