(2nd LD) Seoul stocks snap 4-day losing streak on chip bargain hunting

Seoul stocks have ended a four-day decline on a strong rally, as investors took advantage of bargain prices in major tech shares and semiconductors. The Korean won weakened against the US dollar during the trading session. The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rebounded sharply, closing 90.71 points or 1.37% higher at 6,717.97.

Trading activity was relatively light, with 197.7 million shares changing hands, valued at 15.9 trillion won (US$11.6 billion). While losers outweighed winners 576 to 303, institutional investors were net buyers, purchasing shares worth 1.21 trillion won. Retail and foreign investors, however, were net sellers, offloading a combined 2.87 trillion won in securities.

Analyst Lee Kyoung-min noted that investors believed the recent drop in the KOSPI was excessive, and that bargain hunting focused on two semiconductor giants, as the memory uptrend story remains intact. The Korean won fell to 1,368.6 won per US dollar, down 9.2 won from the previous session's close. Bond prices, which move inversely to yields, rose; the yield on three-year Treasurys increased by 3.8 basis points to 4.053%, while the return on benchmark five-year government bonds fell by 5.7 basis points to 4.288%.