April 20, 2024

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[THE INVESTOR] Korean stocks closed lower for a third consecutive session on April 4 due to massive blue-chip selling amid growing concerns over a full-blown trade war between the United States and China, analysts said. The Korean won fell against the US dollar.

The benchmark KOSPI fell 34.37 points, or 1.41 percent, to close at 2,408.06. Trade volume was high with 544.6 million shares worth 7.8 trillion won (US$7.34 billion) changing hands, with losers overwhelming gainers 650 to 186.

The local stock market opened lower, dragged down by losses in market heavyweight tech shares, and went further south as large numbers of investors offloaded more shares than they bought.

Institutions and foreigners sold a net 345.4 billion won and 198.5 billion won worth of local stocks, while individuals bought 524.4 billion won.

Market kingpin Samsung Electronics dropped 2.49 percent to close at 2,346,000 won, and SK hynix, a major chipmaker, was down 1.71 percent to 80,400 won.

Steelmaker POSCO fell 2.31 percent to 317,500 won, and leading chemical company LG Chem declined 0.66 percent to close at 376,000 won.

Naver, Korea’s top portal operator, plunged 3.95 percent to 754,000 won, and Netmarble Games, the country’s top mobile game maker, tumbled 7.86 percent to close at 146,500 won.

Meanwhile, shares of Hyundai Motor, the country’s No. 1 carmaker, jumped 2.96 percent to close at 156,500 won after Elliott Advisors, a unit of US activist hedge fund Elliott Management, announced that it has acquired more than US$1 billion worth of stocks in three major affiliates of Hyundai Motor Group and called for improvement of the conglomerate‘s corporate governance structure.

The auto giant’s smaller affiliate Kia Motors rose 2.52 percent to 32,550 won, and auto parts maker Hyundai Mobis advanced 3.52 percent to finish at 264,500 won.

The local currency ended at 1,059.80 won against the greenback, down 5.60 won from the previous session’s close.

By Song Seung-hyun and newswires (ssh@heraldcorp.com)