Seoul shares down

Seoul shares edged lower after a choppy, range-bound session on Thursday as investors took to the sidelines to await the results of a key Spanish debt auction. The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) edged down 0.23 percent to close at 1,999.86 points, drifting just below the psychologically significant 2,000 point level.
"The index is still consolidating near the 2,000 point chart with solid fundamentals lacking, while the dark cloud of persistent debt worries in the euro zone is still lingering," said Han Bum-ho, an analyst at Shinhan Investment & Securities. "Investors may also expect to see some positive action or statements by the IMF and the G20 from its finance heads' meeting in light of renewed market jitters over Spain," he added.
Offshore investors were net sellers on Wednesday, now having dumped shares in six of the last seven sessions with a net 94.1 billion won ($82.7 million) sold on Wednesday. Spain faces a key test of confidence on Thursday when it holds an auction of two- and 10-year bonds. Yields on Spain's 10-year notes climbed above 6 percent earlier this week, raising fears that it would not be able to meet its fiscal deficit target.
SK Innovation, South Korea's largest refiner, fell 3.8 percent while S-Oil, the country's third-largest, tumbled 4.2 percent. Bank shares also weighed on nagging concerns over the euro zone's financial health, as Hana Financial Group declined 2.2 percent while Shinhan Financial fell 2 percent.
KT Corp, South Korea's second largest mobile service provider, shed 1.7 percent to extend its losing streak to six consecutive session, with analysts seeing KT as having fallen behind competitors in the LTE race which may dent its earnings. Samsung Electro Mechanics, a key parts-supplier to Samsung Electronics, advanced 2.5 percent to its highest close in 11-months on strong demand anticipated for the newest, soon-to-be-expected iteration of Samsung's Galaxy-line of smartphones. The large-cap benchmark KOSPI 200 index fell 0.24 percent while the junior, tech-heavy KOSDAQ index declined 0.34 percent.