South Korean shares fall as chipmakers track slump in US peers

SK Hynix

Mon 03:22

KOSPI falls, foreigners net sellers
Korean won weakens against dollar
South Korea benchmark bond yield rises

    SEOUL, June 29 (Reuters) - Round-up of South Korean financial markets:
     
** South Korean shares fell more than 1% on Monday, as chipmakers slumped following sharp losses in U.S. peers in the previous session, while investors' focus was also on a highly anticipated investment project announcement by the government and chipmakers. 
** The benchmark KOSPI .KS11 was down 147.07 points, or 1.75%, at 8,264.14 as of 0210 GMT. 
** Chipmaker Samsung Electronics 005930.KS fell 5.08% and peer SK Hynix 000660.KS lost 3.22%, dragging the benchmark index lower. 
** The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index .SOX tumbled 5.3% on Friday, underscoring recent volatility among AI-related chipmakers that have fuelled much of Wall Street's gains in recent years. .N
** While some investors remain optimistic about the potential for AI to fuel higher profits, others worry that massive spending to build AI data centers may take too long to pay off.
** South Korea is set to unveil three "mega-projects" on Monday to fuel its next growth phase, including a new semiconductor hub in the southwest that local media say could attract investments by Samsung and SK spanning hundreds of billions of dollars over several years.
** Shares of South Korean construction and engineering companies surged ahead of the highly anticipated investment announcement from the presidential office and the nation's top chipmakers.
** Among index heavyweights, battery maker LG Energy Solution 373220.KS climbed 13.88%, while Hyundai Motor 005380.KS and sister automaker Kia Corp 000270.KS were up 0.94% and up 1.11%, respectively. 
** Steelmaker POSCO Holdings 005490.KS added 4.43%, while drugmaker Samsung BioLogics 207940.KS rose 4.10%.
** Of the total 917 traded issues, 789 shares advanced, while 118 declined.
** Foreigners were net sellers of shares worth 3.7 trillion won ($2.40 billion). 
** The won was quoted at 1,542.4 per dollar on the onshore settlement platform KRW=KFTC, 0.43% lower than its previous close at 1,535.8.
** The most liquid three-year Korean treasury bond yield KR3YT=RR rose by 1.5 basis points to 3.738%, while the benchmark 10-year yield KR10YT=RR rose by 4.6 basis points to 4.160%.
     
($1 = 1,542.3500 won)

(Reporting by Jihoon Lee; Editing by Rashmi Aich)
((jihoon.lee@thomsonreuters.com;))