Shares decline as investors await U.S. job data

Shares fell as investors awaited key U.S. economic data. The Kospi dropped 0.61%, with foreign investors selling and retail investors buying, while major stocks showed mixed performance.

A screen in Hana Bank's trading room in central Seoul shows the Kospi closing at 2,664.63 points on Tuesday, down 0.61 percent, or 16.37 points, from the previous trading session. [YONHAP]

Shares fell as investors took to the sidelines ahead of the release of key U.S. data. The local currency lost ground against the dollar.

The benchmark Kospi lost 16.37 points, or 0.61 percent, to close at 2,664.63.

Trade volume was moderate at 291 million shares worth 8.8 trillion won ($6.56 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 458 to 416.

Foreign investors turned to net sellers, offloading a net 287.5 billion won worth of shares one day after ending a six-day selling streak. Retail investors purchased a net 512.4 billion won while institutions dumped 240.5 billion won.

Investors took a cautious approach ahead of the upcoming release, later this week, of U.S. jobs data and the manufacturing purchasing managers index.

“The local stock market will likely continue to take sidesteps for some time, considering its sensitivity to U.S. employment data,” Mirae Asset Securities analyst Kim Seok-hwan said.

Most large caps closed in negative territory, with Samsung Electronics plummeting 2.55 percent to 72,500 won.

SK hynix tumbled 3.28 percent to 168,300 won while Celltrion inched down 0.05 percent to 197,000 won.

Battery maker LG Energy Solution slipped 0.24 percent to 411,000 won, and Samsung SDS surged 1.97 percent to 155,600 won.

Auto were sharply down, with Hyundai Motor falling 3.46 percent to 237,500 won and Kia dipping 3.68 percent to 102,200 won.

Samsung C&T closed at 154,800 won, up 6.03 percent from the previous session, following positive prospects for the firm's renewable energy plans from analyst reports.

LG rose 7.96 percent to 85,400 won.

The local currency was trading at 1,341.44 won against the dollar, up 3.0 won from the previous session. The Kosdaq lost 8.84 points, or 1.15 percent, to close at 760.37.

Bond prices, which move inversely to yields, closed mixed. The yield on three-year government bonds lost 0.7 basis points to reach 2.981 percent, and the return on the benchmark U.S. 10-year government bond rose by 0.3 basis points to 3.907 percent.

BY CHO YONG-JUN [cho.yongjun1@joongang.co.kr]