Seoul shares ended lower for a second straight day Thursday, after the latest Fed minutes indicated interest rates will remain at a high level for some time. The Korean won fell against the U.S. dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 20.29 points, or 0.78 percent, to close at 2,587.02. Trade volume was moderate at 761.45 million shares worth 8.84 trillion won (US$6.8 billion), with losers outpacing winners 614 to 277. Institutions sold a net 800 billion won worth of stocks, outpacing foreigners and individuals' stock purchases valued at 785 billion won. Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.8 percent to 37,430.19, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq declined 1.2 percent to 14,592.21. Fed minutes from its December meeting suggested policymakers stood for higher rates for some time and possible rate cuts will likely happen later in the year, analysts said. In Seoul, large-cap stocks were mixed across the board. Market bellwether Samsung Electronics Co. fell 0.5 percent to 76,600 won, No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix Inc. declined 0.3 percent to 136,400 won, top carmaker Hyundai Motor Co. dropped 2 percent to 190,000 won and state utility Korea Electric Power Corp. shed 2.3 percent to 18,810 won. Among the gainers, the country's leading shipbuilder HD Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. rose 2.6 percent to 63,500 won, leading shipping firm HMM climbed 2.9 percent to 20,500 won and leading car battery maker LG Energy Solution was up 0.7 percent to 419,000 won. The local currency traded at 1,310.00 won against the greenback, down 5.20 won from the previous session's close. Bond prices, which move inversely to yields, closed higher. The yield on three-year Treasurys fell 5.1 basis points to 3.227 percent, and the return on the benchmark five-year government bonds declined 5.7 basis points to 3.256 percent. Source: Yonhap News Agency
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