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South Korean shares fall 1.7 pct on banks, autos
Reuters - Friday, January 21
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* KOSPI falls on China tightening fears, profit taking
* Brokerage downgrade also weighs
* Losses in large-caps weigh; autos, banks fall
SEOUL, Jan 21 - South Korean shares fell on Friday as investors took profits after the main index hit record highs earlier this week, and as concerns about further Chinese monetary policy tightening weighed on shares of big exporters.
The Korea Composite Stock Price Index finished down 1.74 percent at 2,069.92 points, retreating from an all-time high of 2,119.24 points hit on Wednesday.
"Worries about Chinese inflation are overriding the market. There is even talk China may raise the interest rate before the New Year holiday," said Hong Soon-pyo, a market analyst at Daishin Securities.
Hong said Beijing is expected to continue to signal its determination to rein in inflation and point to more hikes in the future.
Data on Thursday showed that China finished 2010 with a bang, its growth soaring past forecasts and inflation slowing less than expected, number that could prod the government to intensify its easy-does-it approach to tightening. Markets fear such moves will curb its demand for everything from commodities and raw materials to imported finished goods.
"Such news comes at a time when shares recently have hit historical highs, making it more vulnerable to profit-locking moves," said Lee Sun-yeb, a market analyst at Shinhan Investment Corp, adding that the correction would likely continue through the end of this month.
A negative brokerage note on South Korea also dented sentiment as Morgan Stanley lowered its rating on South Korea to equal weight from overweight.
Morgan Stanley said its model ranking on South Korea fell to tenth from the previous third.
Large-cap autos and banks lost ground. Hyundai Motor lost 4.4 percent, while shares in its affiliate Kia Motors shed 3.3 percent.
"Fundamentals continue to be sound. But some investors are moving to lock in fat gains that auto firms have posted," said Choi Dae-shik, an analyst at HI Investment & Securities.
Hyundai Motor shares have risen 12 percent so far this year, and Kia Motors 14.4 percent, compared with the broader market's 2.7 percent gain.
Shares in KB Financial Group fell 3.4 percent and Shinhan Financial Group slipped 3.6 percent.
Shares that are particularly sensitive to Chinese economy, such as steelmakers and heavy machinery manufacturers, also retreated.
Shares in POSCO , the world's No.3 steelmaker, lost 1.3 percent and Doosan Infracore , which exports construction equipments to China, fell 3.1 percent.
Shares in LG Display retreated 1.7 percent ahead of its fourth-quarter results announcement.
After the closing bell, the world's No.2 LCD flat screen maker announced its first quarterly loss in seven quarters, hit by a $289 million price fixing fine and as panel prices plunged on weak demand from television makers.
"There are a lot of expectations over Chinese New Year sales, but we are not entirely sure whether it is going to meet such high hopes," said Cho Ik-jae, head of research at HI Investment & Securities.
"The sector will fare better in the second half. First half sector momentum will be flat."
Other technology issues also eased, with Samsung Electronics , the world's No.1 memory chip maker, down 1.1 percent.
Bucking broader market weakness, stocks which are seen benefiting from any improvement in relations with North Korea rose strongly after news that Seoul had agreed to high-level military talks with its neighbour.
Shares in companies that run factories in North Korea including Romanson and apparels manufacturer Shinwon Corp rose, gaining 4.3 percent and 2.4 percent respectively.
The KOSPI 200 March futures index fell 5.65 points to 272.55 points. The KOSPI 200 spot index lost 5.08 points to 272.67.
The junior Kosdaq index rose 1.43 percent to 525.75.
Move on day -1.74 percent
12-month high 2,119.24 19 Jan 2011
12-month low 1,532.68 25 MAY 2010
Change on yr +0.92 percent
All-time high 2,119.24 19 JAN 2011
All-time low 93.10 6 JAN 1981
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