South Korean stocks end flat

[SEOUL] South Korean shares gave up most of early gains to end steady on Thursday as investors were uncertain about Samsung Electronics' recovery in chip sales.

The Seoul stock market's main KOSPI ended at 2,083.48, after rising as much as 1.1 per cent earlier in the session. For the month, the KOSPI rose around 1 per cent.

Samsung Electronics warned of a smaller mobile business profit on Thursday as its rival Apple gave a positive iPhone sales outlook, dampening hopes new models will help the world's largest smartphone vendor finally get back on a growth track.

Samsung Electronics rose nearly 2 per cent in early trade, but ended flat.

Foreigners were net buyers of US$30.43 million worth of shares on the main board.

REUTERS