Seoul shares rose on Friday, rebounding from sharp last-minute falls in the previous session, lifted by rallies in technology issues and construction firms like LG Display and Hyundai Engineering & Construction. Foreign investors were sellers of a net 260.3 billion won ($227.3 million) worth of stocks, offloading shares for a third straight session. Retail investors bought a net 26.2 billion won, purchasing stocks for a fourth straight session.
The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) ended up 1.8 percent at 1,838.38 points. LG Display spiked 7.8 percent despite reporting a record quarterly loss after the market close on Thursday, amid hopes that the worst may be over for the panel industry beset by oversupply and weak demand, analysts said. LG Electronics, the world's No 3 handset maker, rallied 7.6 percent and Hynix Semiconductor, the world's No 2 memory chip maker, jumped 10.2 percent. Hyundai surged 6.6 percent and Daewoo jumped 7.8 percent. The KOSPI 200 spot index finished up 1.9 percent at 240.02 points and the junior Kosdaq market rose 2.4 percent to 481.22 points.