SEOUL: Seoul shares ended lower for a third straight session after volatile trade on Wednesday, weighed by falls in techs and transporters, but rallies in crude oil refiners such as SK Innovation limited losses.
The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) finished down 0.42 percent at 1,961.63 points.
"Persistent foreign selling eventually gave the market away. Investors remain cautious in the midst of the Middle East turmoil and rising inflation worries as oil prices climb," said Yoo Soo-min, a market analyst at Hyundai Securities.
However a technical analysis indicated that main KOSPI had solid technical support at the 1,875-1,900 point range, or the levels seen last December before a rally that lifted the index to its record high began. The KOSPI's 200-day moving average is around 1,890 points.
Foreign investors remained net sellers for a second straight session, offloading a net 156.8 billion won ($141.3 million).
Shares in construction firms operating in the Middle East failed to sustain an early recovery, closing lower. Hyundai Engineering & Construction fell 2.9 percent and Samsung Engineering lost 1.4 percent.
Memory chip makers retreated, hurt by a weak outlook from Hewlett-Packard Co and a 4 percent fall in the Philadelphia semiconductor index.
"HP's bearish comments on weak PC demand dented sentiment towards memory chip makers," said Lee Jeong, an analyst at Eugene Investment & Securities.
Shares in Hynix Semiconductor, the world's No.2 memory chip maker, fell 4.2 percent and Samsung Electronics, the world's No.1, declined 0.9 percent.
But shares in crude refiners surged as oil held near 2-½ year highs in US trade on Tuesday.
"Gains in crude oil prices can be reflected in refiners' product prices at current levels. This will translate into higher sales," said Sohn Young-joo, an analyst at Kyobo Securities.
"However at some point it will become difficult for refiners to fully reflect crude oil price hikes. Rising prices may also dampen demand and prompt governments to take tightening steps to rein in inflation," Sohn added.
SK Innovation led the sector's gains, advancing 1.7 percent, as investors banked on its exploration and development capacity. SK Innovation owns oil and natural gas fields.
S-Oil rose 1.73 percent.
Renewable energy issues rallied on renewed interest in alternative energy sources.
Shares in Taewoong, a manufacturer of nuclear power plant and wind power equipment parts, rose 4.6 percent. Pyeong San, a parts supplier for wind power facilities, spiked 15 percent.
But transporters continued to decline despite the previous session's falls. Shares in Korean Air Line, the country's top air carrier, shed 1.8 percent. Asiana Airlines declined 1.4 percent.
Trading turnover stood at 5.7 trillion won, compared with average daily turnover of around 7.7 trillion won in January.
The KOSPI 200 March futures index rose 0.15 points to 259.75 points. The KOSPI 200 spot index fell 0.92 points to 259.21 points.
The junior Kosdaq index declined 0.96 percent to 507.16 points.
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