An electronic board showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index at a dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul on Tuesday. (Yonhap)
Seoul stocks finished lower Tuesday due to weaker-than-expected earnings results by Samsung Electronics and overnight US stock losses. The local currency fell against the US dollar.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index dropped 0.61 percent, or 16.02 points, to 2,594.36.
Trading volume was moderate at 313 million shares worth 8.98 trillion won ($6.65 billion), with losers outpacing gainers at 569 to 305.
Institutions and foreign investors together sold a net 72 billion won, while retail investors bought a net 69 billion won.
Ahead of the market opening, Samsung Electronics estimated its third-quarter operating profit to reach 9.1 trillion won ($6.8 billion), apparently failing to meet market expectations due to the lukewarm performance of its flagship memory chip business.
Overnight, US stocks fell across the board after Treasury yields hit their highest levels since the summer following stronger-than-expected jobs data for September and rising oil prices.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.94 percent, the S&P 500 slumped 0.96 percent, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite also fell 1.18 percent.
Han Ji-young, an analyst at Kiwoom Securities, said, "As of the previous day, foreign investors have been net sellers of Samsung Electronics for 20 consecutive trading sessions since Sept. 3, with net selling having snowballed to around 9.7 trillion won."
"Concerns about a slowdown in the semiconductor cycle played a significant role in the recent sell-off, making today's Samsung Electronics earnings particularly important in the market direction," Han added.
Semiconductor shares retreated following Samsung's announcement, with the company's shares losing 1.15 percent to end at 60,300 won and industry rival SK hynix plunging 3.73 percent to 178,000 won.
LG Electronics also plummeted 5.5 percent to 98,000 won after it also reported weaker-than-expected third-quarter earnings estimates in the morning.
Bio and automotive shares also fell to negative terrain. Celltrion lost 1.19 percent to end at 191,200 won, and Hyundai Motor slipped 0.4 percent to 246,000 won.
In contrast, defense-related shares continued to rise amid ongoing tensions in the Middle East. Defense equipment manufacturer Hanwha Aerospace rose 3.7 percent to 364,500 won.
Top battery manufacturer LG Energy Solution also climbed 3.93 percent to 436,500 won after announcing a new electric vehicle battery cell supply deal with Mercedes-Benz.
The local currency was trading at 1,346.7 won against the US dollar at 3:30 p.m., down 3 won from the previous session. (Yonhap)
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