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Roundup: S. Korean shares posts limited rise on uncertainties

Xinhua, May 29, 2015 Adjust font size:

South Korean shares showed a limited rise Friday due to external uncertainties such as the U.S. Federal Reserve's interest rate increase and Greek bailout negotiations in Europe.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) gained 3.91 points, or 0.19 percent, to 2,114.80 at the close. Trading volume stood at 448.19 million shares worth 7.65 trillion won (6.9 billion U.S. dollars).

The KOSPI took a strong start, but it trimmed earlier gains on lingering concerns over the Fed's rate hike within this year.

Fed Chair Janet Yellen said last week that it would be " appropriate" to raise the federal funds rate "at some point this year," suggesting the first rate hike from near zero since the 2008 financial crisis.

Uncertainties remained over the ongoing negotiations on the Greek bailout funds among European countries, and Chinese stocks tumbled more than 6 percent in the previous day, hampering market sentiment.

Foreigners pushed up the local stock market by purchasing a net 244 billion won worth of local stocks. They kept a buying trend for two straight days.

Retail and institutional investors limited the KOSPI's gain by selling shares worth 169 billion won and 72 billion won respectively.

Large-cap shares ended mixed. Cheil Industries, the de-facto holding company of Samsung Group, advanced 3.2 percent, and the group's technology unit Samsung SDS gained 1.8 percent. Memory chip giant SK Hynix climbed 2.9 percent, and top steelmaker POSCO rose 1.7 percent.

The biggest automaker Hyundai Motor added 1.3 percent, but the No.1 mobile operator SK Telecom declined 3.3 percent. The largest auto parts maker Hyundai Mobis slid 1.3 percent.

The South Korean currency finished at 1,108.2 won against the greenback, down 2.4 won from Thursday's close.

Bond prices ended higher. Yields on the liquid three-year treasury notes dropped 5.3 basis points to 1.745 percent, and the return on the benchmark 10-year government bonds tumbled 10.2 basis points to 2.308 percent. Endi