Shares edge up on U.S. budget cut talks

South Korean stocks closed slightly higher Thursday as investors stayed on the sidelines following another bump on the U.S. fiscal spending talks overnight, analysts said. The local currency fell against the U.S. dollar.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 6.41 points to finish at 1,999.50. Trading volume was moderate at 416.2 million shares worth 5.43 trillion won ($5.05 billion) with decliners outpacing gainers 408 to 395.

“All that investors are waiting for now is for the U.S. (to fix the fiscal cliff issue). The eurozone is for now under control with no further nuisance, with China on a recovery path. But Washington has yet to meet that demand,” said Eom Tae-woong, an analyst at Bookook Securities Co.

Disagreement between President Barack Obama and House Speaker John Boehner on tax benefits overnight kept the discussion again in a deadlock.

The KOSPI started off by regaining the psychologically important 2,000 mark in the opening as expectations on the new government rose following the Wednesday presidential election, but such optimism wasn’t enough to embolden investor appetite, Eom said.

“It was effective only because some sectors were predicted to benefit from President-elect Park Geun-hye’s pledges got a boost, but it’s a short-term effect,” he said.

Shares of construction companies and utilities gained ground.

Industry leader Hyundai Engineering & Construction shot up 4.01 percent to 72,600 won, with state-run electricity provider Korea Electric Power Corp. jumping 3.83 percent to 29,800 won.

In contrast, tech blue-chips were bearish on worries over their future profits after the Bank of Japan announced a plan to ease the rise in the yen currency. A weaker yen poses a risk to local exporters since it hurts their competitive edge over the currency value.

Samsung Electronics slid 0.79 percent to 1,503,000 won and chipmaker SK hynix lost 0.75 percent to 26,300 won.

The local currency ended at 1,074.70 won against the greenback, down 1.9 won from Tuesday’s close, mainly due to Japan’s monetary easing, dealers said. The local financial markets were closed on Wednesday for the presidential election. (Yonhap News)