Seoul shares sink over 1.5 percent amid rate hike woes, won sharply down
![A screen in Hana Bank's trading room in central Seoul shows the Kospi closing at 2,427.90 points on Wednesday, down 37.74 points, or 1.53 percent, from the previous trading day. [YONHAP]](https://image.koreajoongangdaily.com/10188248.webp?imageId=10188248&width=960&height=642&format=jpg)
Seoul shares ended lower Wednesday as investors assess hot U.S. inflation data and the Federal Reserve's commentary suggesting further rate hikes to tame inflation. The local currency fell against the dollar.
The benchmark Kospi fell 37.74 points, or 1.53 percent, to close at 2,427.90.
Trading volume was moderate at 380 million shares worth 8.64 trillion won ($6.7 billion), with decliners outpacing gainers 803 to 108.
Overnight, U.S. stocks ended mixed, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average falling 0.5 percent to 34,089.27 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rising 0.6 percent to 11,960.15.
The U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI) data showed prices advanced by a higher-than-expected 0.5 percent in January. The Fed said it is not done yet in its monetary tightening to battle inflation.
Institutions and foreigners sold more than 1 trillion won worth of stocks, fully offsetting individuals' stock purchases valued at 1 trillion won.
"The January CPI data weighed on investor sentiment. Investors now await the next key inflation data for February, which will be released before the Fed's rate-setting meeting on March 22 to take a cue in their future investments," Kim Young-hwan, an analyst at NH Investment & Securities, said over the phone.
In Seoul, most top-cap shares finished lower.
Samsung Electronics fell 1.6 percent to close at 62,200 won, and chipmaker SK hynix declined 1.6 percent to 91,700 won.
Carmaker Hyundai Motor dropped 0.6 percent to 172,700 won, and refiner SK Innovation shed 7.5 percent to 155,000 won.
Among gainers, steelmaker Posco Holdings rose 6 percent to 325,500 won, steel mill Hyundai Steel gained 0.9 percent to 34,550 won, and car battery maker LG Energy Solution climbed 0.4 percent to 527,000 won.
The local currency traded at 1,282.2 won against the dollar, up 12.8 won from the previous session's close.
Bond prices, which move inversely to yields, closed lower. The yield on three-year government bonds gained 6.8 basis points to 3.497 percent, and the return on the benchmark 10-year government bonds climbed 4.8 basis points to 3.751 percent.
BY SOHN DONG-JOO, YONHAP [sohn.dongjoo@joongang.co.kr]
