Seoul shares trim earlier gains late Thu. morning

Seoul shares trimmed earlier gains late Thursday morning amid concerns over the possible delay of a long-awaited interest rate cut by the U.S. Federal Reserve. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 1.82 points, or 0.07 percent, to 2,799.15 as of 11:20 a.m. U.S. stock markets were closed on Juneteenth on Wednesday (U.S. time) to commemorate the end of slavery in the U.S. The Fed recently pared back projections for rate cuts this year. Institutions and foreigners bought a combined 282 billion won (US$203 million) worth of stocks, offsetting individuals' stock selling valued at 223 billion won. In Seoul, large-cap stocks were mixed across the board. Market bellwether Samsung Electronics Co. rose 0.3 percent, leading refiner SK Innovation Co. jumped 16 percent, and state-run Korea Gas Corp. gained 4.5 percent. Shares in SK Innovation jumped on news that it is considering merging with gas power generation affiliate SK E and S Co. to strengthen its competitiveness. Among decliners, top carmaker Hyundai Motor Co. fell 0.5 percent, national flag carrier Korean Air Co. declined 0.2 percent, and leading steelmaker POSCO Holdings shed 0.5 percent. The local currency was trading at 1,384.05 won against the U.S. dollar, down 2.25 won from the previous session's close. Source: Yonhap News Agency