SEOUL, March 04 (AJP) - South Korean shares extended their downward spiral in the aftermath of the Middle East crisis, losing more than 5 percent at the opening bell Wednesday following Tuesday’s rout.
South Korea’s benchmark KOSPI tumbled 6.09 percent to 5,444.51 on panicky retail selling after a 7.24 percent plunge in the previous session. The retreat later eased to around 3 percent by about 9:20 a.m., as foreign and local institutional investors moved to scoop up large-cap stocks that had fallen more than 10 percent.
A similar pattern played out on the secondary bourse. The KOSDAQ’s earlier 6 percent drop moderated to about 2.6 percent, also on buying by foreign and domestic institutions.
Defense stocks were the sole winners among large-cap names.
LIG Nex1 soared 25 percent after surging by the daily limit of 30 percent on Tuesday, amid speculation that the Cheongung-II missile defense system — also known as M-SAM — could see deployment in the Middle East to help defend airspace around Iran.
Among heavyweights, Samsung Electronics fell about 7.89 percent, while SK hynix dropped 5.96 percent.
Hyundai Motor declined 8.40 percent, and affiliate Kia retreated 8.72 percent in early trading.
The dollar — which briefly touched the crisis-level 1,500 won in the overnight offshore market — eased to 1,476.20 won.
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