South Korean shares traded slightly lower late Friday morning, trimming earlier gains as investors sought to cash in recent gains. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) lost 12.98 points, or 0.50 percent, to 2,596.32 as of 11:20 a.m. The index had opened in positive terrain, tracking overnight gains on Wall Street. Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 0.37 percent to close at 43,239.05, marking a new high for a second consecutive session on reports of better-than-anticipated consumer spending. The U.S. Department of Commerce reported that the value of retail sales increased 0.4 percent from a month earlier in September, rising from 0.1 percent on-month growth the previous month and beating market expectations of a 0.3 percent increase. In Seoul, foreign investors were net sellers, offloading over 260 billion won (US$189.5 million) worth of local shares as of 11:20 a.m. They have remained net sellers for two consecutive sessions since Wednesday. Large caps traded mixed. M arket bellwether Samsung Electronics lost 0.50 percent, while the world's No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix plunged 3.83 percent. Leading battery maker LG Energy Solution tumbled 2.27 percent, while its local rival Samsung SDI was down 0.75 percent. KB Financial gained 0.85 percent, while top portal operator Naver added 0.80 percent. Top automaker Hyundai Motor and its smaller affiliate Kia rose 0.21 percent and 0.11 percent, respectively. The local currency was trading at 1,372.00 won against the U.S. dollar, down 3.40 won from the previous session. Source: Yonhap News Agency
