Seoul shares fall on Shinsegae, but banks rally=2

On the upside, Daehan Fire & Marine Insurance (000400.KS) soared by its daily ceiling of 15 percent to 20,100 won. A consortium led by South Korea's Lotte Hotel has signed an agreement to buy a majority of Daehan Fire, in a deal reportedly worth about $400 million.[ID:nSEO80904]

The Bank of Korea's decision to keep its benchmark interest rate steady for a fourth consecutive month had limited impact on the stock market as it had been widely expected.

Trade volume stood at 357.7 million shares worth 6.1 trillion won ($6.6 billion), compared with 336.7 million shares valued at 6.9 trillion won on Thursday. Decliners outnumbered advancers by 515 to 294, with 69 titles unchanged.

The December KOSPI 200 futures index <0#KS:> shed 2.65 points to 248.20 and the underlying KOSPI 200 spot index .KS200 fell 2.25 points to 247.38.

The junior Kosdaq .KQ11 market dipped 0.52 percent to 747.65.

Move on day -0.97 percent

12-month high 2,085.45 1 NOV 2007

12-month low 1,345.08 10 JAN 2007

Change on yr +34.85 percent

All time high 2,085.45 1 NOV 2007

All time low 93.10 06 JAN 1981

(Editing by Keiron Henderson)