Seoul: Shares close flat, hurt by foreign selling; won down

[SEOUL] Seoul shares erased early gains to close flat on Thursday as the streak of net selling by foreigners reached 21 days, its longest in more than seven years, while tech shares outperformed.

The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) ended at 1,915.53 points, barely changed from the previous close of 1,915.22 points. It gained as much as 0.8 percent to 1,931.19 points in the morning.

Tech shares bolstered the market. Heavyweight Samsung Electronics Co ltd rose 2.9 per cent and LG Display Co Ltd by 5.3 per cent.

Foreigners were net sellers for a 21th straight session, the longest selling streak since July 2008. They sold a net 4.38 trillion won (S$5.26 billion) worth of shares in the main board during the 21 days, preliminary data showed.

On the currency market, the South Korean won closed local trade down 0.8 per cent to 1,190.3 per dollar, weighed by offshore selling in domestic stocks.

REUTERS