SEOUL: South Korean stocks ended 0.56 percent lower Wednesday as investors avoided risky assets amid heightened concerns over China’s second devaluation of its currency, analysts said.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 11.18 points to 1,975.47. Trading volume was high at 517.92 million shares worth 6.8 trillion won (US$5.72 billion), with losers beating gainers 613 to 201.
China cut the yuan’s value against the U.S. dollar by an additional 1.6 percent on Wednesday, a day after cutting it by nearly 2 percent.
“The devaluation is likely to weaken the price competitiveness of South Korean exporters and erode Chinese consumers’ purchasing power, both of which are very likely to impact the Seoul bourse adversely,” said Kim Yong-gu, an analyst at Samsung Securities Co.
“Although China’s currency devaluation was initially expected to be a one-time event, the second weakening could mean that there may be additional devaluations down the road,” Kim said.
Foreigners dumped a net 299.92 billion won, while retail investors and institutions scooped up a net 17.93 billion won and 261.47 billion won, respectively.
Market bellwether Samsung Electronics slipped 0.26 percent to 1,154,000 won, while flat screen maker LG Display climbed 0.66 percent to 22,850 won. Top chipmaker SK hynix dropped 0.83 percent to end at 35,800 won.
