Seoul: Stocks end lower on foreign selling

[SEOUL] South Korean shares ended lower on Friday, as foreigners turned net sellers, erasing earlier gains led by technology shares and upbeat exports data.

The Kospi closed down 5.86 points, or 0.19 per cent, at 3,156.42, after gaining as much as 1.13 per cent in early trade.

The benchmark index ended the week higher with a gain of 0.10 per cent. It fell 1.37 per cent in the previous week.

Among technology heavyweights, chip giant Samsung Electronics rose 0.75 per cent, while internet giant Naver and mobile messenger operator Kakao added 2.56 per cent and 3.08 per cent, respectively.

Foreigners were net sellers of US$120.08 million worth of shares on the main board.

South Korean exports had surged 53.3 per cent on-year during the first 20 days of May, helped by strong chip and car sales as well as higher demand from China and the United States.

REUTERS