Stocks close lower on institutional and foreign sell-offs

Stocks closed lower for a second day on Tuesday as investors remain wary of additional rate hikes in the United States. The won rose against the dollar. The benchmark Kospi shed 11.38 points, or 0.43 percent, to close at 2,607.62.

Screens in Hana Bank's trading room in central Seoul show the Kospi closing at 2,607.62 points on Tuesday, down 0.43 percent, or 11.38 points, from the previous trading session. [YONHAP]

Stocks closed lower for a second day on Tuesday as investors remain wary of additional rate hikes in the United States. The won rose against the dollar.

The benchmark Kospi shed 11.38 points, or 0.43 percent, to close at 2,607.62.

Trading volume was moderate at 485.85 million shares worth 11.75 trillion won ($9.32 billion), with decliners far outpacing gainers 723 to 171.

Institutions and foreigners offloaded a net 300.02 billion won and 187.17 billion won worth of stocks, respectively, while retail investors bought a net 476.83 billion won.

Overnight, Wall Street closed higher, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average hitting its highest closing level in 2023, as the market anticipated more upbeat second-quarter earnings results following strong performances from some major banks.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen sent a positive signal to the market, saying she sees the United States on a "good path" to tamp down inflation without tipping the economy into a recession.

Nevertheless, there are lingering concerns on the U.S. central bank maintaining its monetary tightening campaign going past its July policy meeting, where it is widely expected to raise rates.

In Seoul, large-cap shares ended mixed.

Samsung Electronics shed 1.77 percent to finish at 72,000 won, while SK hynix rose 0.51 percent to 117,800 won.

Hyundai Motor went down 0.98 percent to 201,500 won, and Kia declined 0.81 percent to 85,900 won.

LG Energy Solution added 2.04 percent to 549,000 won, Samsung SDI grew 0.58 percent to 699,000 won and LG Chem advanced 1.34 percent to 679,000 won.

Posco Holdings climbed 2.09 percent to 488,000 won, and Posco Future M spiked 13.23 percent to 458,000 won.

Naver gained 1.21 percent to 209,000 won.

The local currency ended at 1,260.4 won against the dollar, down 6.2 won from the previous session's close.

Bond prices, which move inversely to yields, closed higher. The yield on three-year government bonds lost 2.2 basis points to 3.594 percent, and the yield on the benchmark 10-year government bonds retreated 2.1 basis points to 3.810 percent.

BY SOHN DONG-JOO, YONHAP [sohn.dongjoo@joongang.co.kr]