Seoul shares tumble on foreign sell-offs

SEOUL (Yonhap) - South Korean stocks finished 1.89 percent lower on Thursday as heavy foreign selling continued for the sixth straight session, analysts said. The local currency gathered ground against the U.S. dollar.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) plunged 40.27 points to 2,095.51, ending in negative territory for the ninth time out of 12 sessions in May. Trading volume was light at 278.7 million shares worth 7.8 trillion won (US$7.2 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 634 to 207.
"Hefty foreign selling weighed on the KOSPI," said Lee Sun-yup, an analyst at Shinhan Investment Corp. "Foreigners are offloading shares amid lingering uncertainties such as eurozone debt risks."
According to Lee, foreigners' net selling was largely focused on shares that were recently bullish, such as automakers and chemical companies.
Leading automaker Hyundai Motor slipped 2.1 percent to 233,500 won, and its smaller affiliate Kia Motors lost 4.01 percent to 71,800 won.
Chemicals also lost ground with top chemical maker LG Chem slipping 1.17 percent to 507,000 won. OCI, the country's No. 1 polysilicon maker, nosedived 8.49 percent to 528,000 won.
Techs were also among decliners with market bellwether Samsung Electronics shedding 1.46 percent to 880,000 won.
In contrast, Samsung affiliate Cheil Industries jumped 3.78 percent to 123,500 won following reports on the chemical firm's plan to increase its market share in China.
The local currency closed at 1,086.2 won to the greenback, up 1.7 won from Wednesday's close, amid views that U.S. interest rates will continue to stay low, dealers said.