Seoul shares fell again on Tuesday as continuing worries about growth in China and Europe dampened the mood of a market already cautious ahead of expiring options on Thursday. The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) ended off 0.78 percent but managed to close just above 2,000 points, a key level it fell below during the day.
Tuesday's nadir was 1,988.36. Trading remained subdued compared with the busy February. On Tuesday, 549.2 million shares changed hands. Foreign investors, in a "risk-off" mode, dumped a net 234 billion Korean won ($209.2 million) worth of shares, the largest single-day selling session by offshore players since December. Institutional investors disposed a net 110.7 billion won worth. On Tuesday, shares in POSCO, the world's third-largest steelmaker, fell 3.08 percent while metal refiner Korea Zinc shed 2.03 percent.
Other growth-related shares fell across the board, led by shipbuilders as Hyundai Heavy Industries lost 3.1 percent. Bucking the trend of broad declines in the construction sector, Daewoo Engineering & Construction wrapped up Tuesday's session with a 0.96 percent gain, reversing earlier losses after the company said it won two orders for a combined $460 million. The KOSPI 200 index closed down 0.72 percent while the junior, tech-heavy KOSDAQ fell 1.13 percent.
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