Seoul shares pare gains late Monday morning on foreign selling

Korean shares trimmed earlier gains in the late morning on Monday as foreign investors persistently sold major cap technology stocks, despite bargain hunting by retail and institutional investors. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 25.15 points, or 0.4 percent, to 6,283.92 by 11:20 a.m., following an opening gain of 0.76 percent.

However, foreign investors sold approximately 619.7 billion won ($437.8 million), canceling out a combined 598.2 billion won worth of buying by retail and institutional investors. The KOSPI closed lower for the second consecutive session on Friday, pressured by foreign selling. Wall Street saw gains on Friday, driven by positive U.S. job reports, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.28 percent and the S&P 500 gaining 0.62 percent to a new record.

The tech-focused Nasdaq Composite Index climbed 1.3 percent. Korean technology equities continued to dominate the market. Despite a strong start, Samsung Electronics experienced a minor decline of 0.11 percent, while its rival SK hynix rallied 0.84 percent. The Korean won was trading at 1,414.8 won per U.S. dollar.