Seoul shares plunge on fallen confidence

SEOUL, Oct. 6 (Yonhap) -- South Korean stocks made a free fall late Monday
morning, as a recently-endorsed U.S. rescue plan failed to resuscitate
heavily-damaged confidence in financial markets around the globe, analysts said.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) tumbled 38.88 points, or
2.74 percent, to 1,380.77 as of 11:20 a.m., the lowest level of the year so far.
"The Seoul market, considering its close on Friday for a national holiday, seems
to be losing more than other Asian markets as confidence was battered over the
weekend on concerns that the credit crunch may soon impact economic indicators,"
said Lim Dong-min, an analyst at Dongbu Securities.
U.S. stocks fell Friday as market watchers raised questions over the likely
effectiveness of congressional approval of a US$700-billion bailout plan. The Dow
Jones industrial average lost 1.5 percent and the tech-dominated Nasdaq composite
index lost 1.48 percent.
While most players expect the Bank of Korea to freeze interest rates for October
on Thursday, investors seem to be taking extra precautions as steep fluctuations
in the foreign exchange market may sway the bank's decision, Lim added.
Large caps lost ground across the board, with top steelmaker POSCO plunging more
than 7 percent and leading shipyard Hyundai Heavy Industries down more than 10
percent. Market heavyweight Samsung Electronics shed 3.03 percent.
Financials and telecoms were also in the red. Mirae Asset & Securities tumbled
10.23 percent and No. 2 mobile carrier KTF fell 2.84 percent.
The local currency was trading at 1,269.25 won to the U.S. dollar as of 11:20
a.m., plunging 45.75 won from Thursday's close, its lowest level since 2002. The
local market was closed Friday for National Foundation Day.