SEOUL: Seoul shares traded slightly higher mid-session on Monday after hefty early gains faced resistance near the psychologically-significant 2,000 point threshold, which triggered profit-taking.
"Investors tend to cash out when shares gain around 10 percent in a short-term rally, which is where the index has come from the low point at the start of the year," said Park Suh-hyun, an analyst at KTB Securities. "Concerns about Greece are providing enough context to sell."
Greece's coalition parties must tell the European Union on Monday whether they accept the painful terms of a new bailout deal as EU patience wears thin with political dithering in Athens over implementing reforms.
The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) was up 0.24 percent at 1,977.11 points as of 0230 GMT, easing back from a fresh six-month intra-day high of 1,996.05 points touched near the market open.
Foreign investors reverted to net buying after a recently rare bout of selling on Friday, scooping up a net 155.5 billion won ($139.1 million) worth of shares.
Institutions bought a net 5.1 won billion of shares after nine consecutive selling sessions in which they offloaded over 2 trillion won.
Gains were led by bank shares, with Hana Financial Group soaring 3.8 percent while Woori Financial Holdings gained 2.53 percent.
Flat-panel maker LG Display climbed 4.29 percent, poised to extend a five-week rally on expectations of a turnaround in 2012 on robust demand for smartphones and tablets as well as stabilising TV prices.
Hanwha Corp shares tumbled 5.15 percent after the company said in regulatory filing that the CEO of its parent conglomerate was facing a probe over alleged embezzlement of corporate funds.
POSCO, the world's third-largest steelmaker, saw its shares dip 1.32 percent after reporting slower-than-expected growth in fourth quarter profit.
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