Seoul stocks sink over US rate hike concerns
[THE INVESTOR] Korean shares dropped on June 14, as worries over possible fallouts from the US interest rate hike and its future belt-tightening outlooks caused a selling spree by foreign investors, analysts said. The Korean won fell against the US dollar.
The benchmark KOSPI shed 45.35 points, or 1.84 percent, to finish at 2,423.48. Trade volume was heavy at 613.17 million shares worth 9.62 trillion won (US$8.87 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 646 to 208.
Offshore investors and institutions dumped 477.4 billion won and 53.5 billion won worth of local shares, respectively, while retailers picked up shares worth 501.3 billion won. Most blue chips ended lower.
The Korean currency closed at 1,083.10 won against the US dollar, down 5.90 won from the previous session’s close.
By Song Seung-hyun and newswires (ssh@heraldcorp.com)