Seoul shares rise helped by techs, retailers

* KOSPI gains 1.76 pct

* Kumho Investment Bank falls after building purchase news

* Retailers jump on bullish earnings hopes

(Updates to mid-morning)

By Jungyoun Park

SEOUL, June 10 (Reuters) - Seoul shares rose on Wednesday led
by technology issues including Samsung Electronics (005930.KS)
after gains in their U.S. peers and the semiconductor index
.SOXX, while retailers rallied on earnings hopes.

The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) was up
1.76 percent at 1,395.92 points as of 0209 GMT.

"For now, institutional and foreign buying is holding up, but
given the latest volatility in markets ahead of futures and
options expiry this week, it is hard to say how much of the gains
markets will retain," said Daishin Securities market analyst Hong
Soon-pyo.

Institutions were buyers of a net 136.3 billion won ($108.3
million) and foreign investors picked up a net 139.8 billion won,
headed for a fourth consecutive buying session.

Retail issues rallied after department store and discount
store retailer Shinsegae Co (004170.KS) late on Tuesday said
total revenue for May rose 20 percent year on year to 1.1 trilion
won.

"Shinsegae's strong numbers point to improvements in sales at
other retail companies, such as Lotte Shopping (023530.KS) and
Hyundai Department Store (069960.KS)," said Lee So-yong, an
analyst at KB Investment & Securities.

Shinsegae jumped 6.33 percent and Hyundai Department Store
advanced 12.21 percent. Lotte Shopping spiked to 6.78 percent.

But Kumho Investment Bank (010050.KS) fell 3.07 percent after
news it was part of a consortium that has agreed to buy American
International Group Inc's (AIG.N) New York headquarters.
[ID:nN09391877]

Details of the agreement including pricing were not
disclosed.

"It seems investors are questioning whether the buildings
would be bought at an attractive price ... traditionally, returns
on investments in real estate assets tend to be lower than from
securities," said SK Securities analyst Shin Kyu-kwang.

Gains in the U.S. semiconductor index .SOXX lifted
technology issues. Hynix Semiconductor (000660.KS), the world's
No.2 producer, was up 1.55 percent. Samsung Electronics, the
world's No.1 memory chipmaker, rose 2.83 percent, helped further
by news Saudi mobile telephone company Etihad Etisalat (7020.SE)
(Mobily) had awarded Samsung Electronics a $100 million deal to
expand the WiMax network of its subsidiary Bayanat al-Oula.
[ID:nL91037833]

LG Display (034220.KS), the world's No.2 maker of liquid
crystal displays, rose 2.1 percent on a positive brokerage note.

JPMorgan lifted its target price on LG Display by 10.7
percent to 31,000 won.

"We expect LG Display's second-quarter results to be better
than our porjections and management's guidance, largely driven by
higher-than-expected panel prices and shipment growth," JPMorgan
said in a note on Wednesday.

(Editing by Chris Lewis)