Seoul: Stocks plunge to 11-week low as Trump fans fears on North Korea

[SEOUL] South Korean shares ended at an 11-week nadir on Friday as anxious offshore investors sold stocks following President Donald Trump's fresh warning that North Korea not strike Guam or US allies.

The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) closed down 1.7 per cent at 2,319.71 points, its lowest closing level since May 24.

For the week, Seoul shares fell 3.2 per cent, the biggest weekly per centage loss since February 2016.

On Thursday, Mr Trump said that his threat earlier this week to unleash "fire and fury" on Pyongyang, if it launched an attack, may not have been tough enough. That triggered fresh selling in global financial markets.

Foreign investors have been heavy net sellers for three consecutive sessions, unloading 648.7 billion won (S$776.70 million) of Kospi shares for the day.

The South Korean won also finished at a four-week low, ending the week with its biggest slide in five months.

The won was quoted at 1,143.5 to the US dollar at the conclusion of onshore trade, the weakest since July 12.

It was down 0.1 per cent versus Thursday's close of 1,142.0 and down 1.6 per cent on a weekly basis.

REUTERS