Seoul shares tumble 4.36 pct in late-morning trade

SEOUL, Sept. 23 (Yonhap) -- South Korean stocks traded 4.36 percent lower late Friday morning as investors were jittery about concerns about the global economic recession, analysts said.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) tumbled 78.42 points to 1,722.13 as of 11:20 a.m.
Global financial markets were gripped by fears that the global economy may slide back into a recession, hit by the sputtering recovery in the U.S. economy and the eurozone debt crisis.
China's economic data added to recovery woes as its manufacturing sector contracted for the third straight month in September in a sign that its monetary tightening stances might have curbed the growth.
Foreign investors sold a net 187.2 billion won (US$156.9 million) worth of Seoul shares on the main bourse.
U.S. markets plunged on Thursday on recovery woes. The Dow Jones industrial average declined 3.51 percent and the tech-laden Nasdaq Composite Index fell 3.25 percent.
The Seoul bourse lost ground across the board. Flat panel giant LG Display tumbled 7.46 percent and top banking group KB Financial Group lost 6.43 percent.
The local currency was trading at 1,193.10 won to the greenback as of 11:20 a.m., down 13.30 won from Thursday's close.
Before the market opened, the finance ministry and the Bank of Korea said in a joint statement that South Korea will take actions to respond to any "irregular movement" in the currency market, calling the recent currency market action "excessive."
The local currency underwent high volatility as it shot up as high as 1,150 won to the dollar as soon as the market opened. But despite authorities' warning, the Korean won reversed earlier gains, extending losses to an intra-day low of 1,195.30 won per the dollar.
sooyeon@yna.co.kr
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