(Updates to afternoon)
By Jungyoun Park
SEOUL, March 2 (Reuters) - Seoul shares rose 1 percent on
Tuesday, erasing an earlier 2.55 percent decline, as technology
and auto exporters rebounded, helped by weakness in the won
KRW=.
The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) was up
0.97 percent at 1,028.68 points at 0410 GMT, rising from the
session low of 992.69 points, the lowest intraday level since
late November.
"Gains were led by major exporting issues, which are rising
as the won remains pretty weak. Also, the view that the currency
is probably near its bottom has prompted some buying," said Ham
Sung-sik, a market analyst at Daishin Securities.
Finance Minister Yoon Jeung-hyun on Tuesday warned against
one-way bets on the won, which helped the currency to recover
slightly against the dollar. [ID:nSEO126386]
Samsung Electronics (005930.KS) rose 2.6 percent and Hyundai
Motor (005380.KS) advanced 4.57 percent.
But financials fell on continued concerns about the U.S.
financial sector after AIG posted a record quarterly loss, with
Shinhan Financial Group (055550.KS) losing 1.82 percent and Hana
Financial Group (086790.KS) losing 1.14 percent.
(Editing by Nick Macfie)
