S.Korean stocks slip on recession, US-China worries

SEOUL: Round-up of South Korean financial markets:

South Korean shares dropped on Thursday after data showed the country plunged into recession in the second quarter, while escalating US-China tensions further weighed on sentiment.

The Korean won weakened, while the benchmark bond yield fell.

The benchmark KOSPI closed down 12.47 points, or 0.56pc, at 2,216.19.

South Korea plunged into recession in the second quarter in its worst economic decline in more than two decades as the coronavirus pandemic battered exports and social distancing curbs paralysed factory output.

SK Hynix, the world's No.2 memory chip maker, slid nearly 1pc after it warned of uncertainty in the second half of 2020.

The country's biggest carmaker, Hyundai Motor , surged 5.2pc on smaller-than-expected fall in operating profit in the second quarter.

Chip giant Samsung Electronics slipped 1.1pc, while internet services provider Naver and messenger app operator Kakao jumped 5.2pc and 3.6pc, respectively.

Foreigners were net sellers of 210.1 billion won ($175.54 million) worth of shares on the main board.

The won ended trading at 1,197.3 per dollar on the onshore settlement platform, 0.17pc lower than its previous close at 1,195.3.

In offshore trading, the won was quoted at 1,196.8 per dollar, unchanged from the previous day, while in non-deliverable forward trading its one-month contract was quoted at 1,196.4.

The trading volume during the session in the KOSPI index was 920.07 million shares. Of the total traded issues of 899, the number of advancing shares was 260.

In money and debt markets, September futures on three-year treasury bonds rose 0.05 point to 112.24.

The most liquid 3-year Korean treasury bond yield fell by 1.3 basis points to 0.797pc in late afternoon trade, while the benchmark 10-year yield fell by 3.0 basis points to 1.317pc.