Seoul stocks snap 5-day losing streak; local currency up for 1st in 7 sessions

South Korean stocks finished higher Wednesday, after five consecutive sessions of losses, as investors bought oversold issues. The Korean won also gained ground against the US dollar for the first time in seven sessions.

The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added 12.11 points, or 0.5 percent, to close at 2,447.45, breaking the five-day losing streak.

Trading volume was moderate at 407.61 million shares worth 7.93 trillion won ($5.91 billion), with gainers outpacing decliners 575 to 275.

Institutions and retail investors, combined, sold off a net 146.14 billion won worth of shares, while foreign investors picked up a net 150.76 billion won.

Investors are bracing for more monetary tightening policy at home, along with the possibility of hawkish remarks from the United States later this week.

The Bank of Korea (BOK) is widely expected to raise its interest rate by 0.25 percentage point at a policy meeting Thursday.

In July, the BOK delivered an unprecedented 0.5 percentage-point rate hike in a bid to tame runaway inflation, the sixth rate increase since August last year.

The US Federal Reserve will hold its annual meeting in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, on Friday (US time), where Fed Chair Jerome Powell is scheduled to give a speech, which observers expect to provide a clue as to the pace of the central bank's rate hikes.

Last month, the Fed raised its key interest rate by 75 basis points for the second straight month. The minutes of its July meeting hinted at continued aggressive monetary tightening to fight high inflation.

"The KOSPI gained partly from bargain hunting following the market's fall for the fifth straight session, along with the slight weakening of the US dollar against the Korean won," Choi Yoo-joon, an analyst at Shinhan Investment Corp. said, adding that stock gains were still limited ahead of the Jackson Hole meeting.

Most big-cap shares ended mixed.

Among winners, Samsung SDI gained 0.68 percent to 591,000 won, key battery maker LG Energy Solution went up 1.35 percent to 451,000 won. Internet portal giant Naver rose 0.21 percent to 241,500 won and platform operator Kakao added 0.13 percent to 74,900 won.

Market bellwether Samsung Electronics fell 0.17 percent to 59,000 won and No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix lost 0.43 percent to 93,200 won. Major chemical firm LG Chem declined 0.97 percent to 614,000 won.

Samsung Biologics, the biotech arm of South Korea's Samsung Group, declined 0.12 percent to 828,000 won, and pharmaceutical giant Celltrion fell 0.26 percent to 193,500 won. Hyundai Motor retreated 0.53 percent to 188,000 won, and its smaller affiliate Kia lost 1.03 percent to 76,600 won.

The local currency ended at 1,342.10 won against the US dollar, up 3.4 won from the previous session's close when the won finished at 1,345.5 won against the greenback, hitting the lowest figure since April 28, 2009. (Yonhap)