Kospi drops 1.15% on Trump policy apprehension

The benchmark Kospi lost 29.49 points, or 1.15 percent, to close at 2,531.66 with investors concerned about the effects of policies under the incoming Donald Trump administration.

A screen in Hana Bank's trading room in central Seoul shows the Kospi closing at 2,531.66 points on Monday, down 1.15 percent, or 29.49 points, from the previous trading session. [YONHAP]

Shares declined more than 1 percent Monday as Samsung Electronics fell to an over two-year low following rising uncertainties over the incoming Donald Trump administration's trade policies. The local currency sharply fell against the dollar.

The benchmark Kospi lost 29.49 points, or 1.15 percent, to close at 2,531.66, following a 0.14 percent drop on Friday. The Kosdaq fell 14.54 points, or 1.96 percent, to close at 728.84.

Trade volume was heavy at 565.2 million shares worth 11.1 trillion won ($7.96 billion), with losers far outpacing winners 726 to 186.

Foreigners sold a net 537.8 billion won worth of local stocks and institutions offloaded a net 237 billion won, offsetting a net purchase of 736.1 billion won by individuals.

In particular, offshore investors dumped Samsung Electronics for the ninth straight session from Oct. 30.

The selling streak followed the previous selling spree for 33 sessions in a row from Sept. 3 to Oct. 25, dumping a net 12.9 trillion won, following concerns that the world's largest memory chipmaker has been losing steam while the demand for AI chips is increasing.

Additionally, a shift in trade and economic policies under President-elect Donald Trump also weighed heavily on Samsung Electronics and other semiconductor shares.

Samsung Electronics tumbled 3.51 percent to 55,000 won, marking the lowest closing price since Sept. 30, 2022, when it finished at 53,100 won.

SK hynix also sank 3.94 percent to 192,600 won, and Hanmi Semiconductor slumped 6.48 percent to 88,100 won.

Retailers went south, with Lotte Shopping dropping 2.37 percent to 61,700 won and Shinsegae dipping 3.25 percent to 136,900 won.

Nongshim slid 3.16 percent to 353,000 won, and Shilla Hotels went down 2.88 percent to 38,800 won.

Hyundai Motor rose 3.69 percent to 211,000 won and Kia also gained 1.72 percent to 94,600 won.

The local currency was trading at 1,394.7 won against the greenback at 3:30 p.m., up 8.3 won from the previous session.

Bond prices, which move inversely to yields, closed higher. The yield on three-year government bonds lost 2.8 basis points to 2.893 percent, and the return on the benchmark U.S. 10-year government bond fell 9.4 basis points to 4.338 percent.

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