South Korean shares little changed as investors await Fed meet -September 18, 2023 at 09:39 pm EDT

* KOSPI flat, foreigners net sellers

* Korean won strengthens against dollar

* South Korea benchmark bond yield falls

SEOUL, Sept 19 (Reuters) – Round-up of South Korean
financial markets:

** South Korean shares were little changed on Tuesday, with
investors taking a wait-and-see stance ahead of the U.S. Federal
Reserve’s policy meeting.

** The benchmark KOSPI was down by 5.41 points, or
0.21%, to 2,569.31 as of 0116 GMT, keeping a narrow range
between a gain of 0.3% and a fall of 0.3%.

** The Fed will start its two-day policy review on Tuesday,
in which it is expected to leave interest rates unchanged, while
central banks in other major countries, such as Japan and
England, will have their own meetings later this week.

** “Wait-and-see sentiment is prevalent over the Federal
Reserve’s decision, with focus on the dot plot and economic
forecasts,” said Kim Dae-jun, an analyst at Korea Investment
Securities.

** Among index heavyweights, chipmaker Samsung Electronics
fell 0.14% but peer SK Hynix gained
0.50%, while battery maker LG Energy Solution slid
0.79%.

** Automakers, online platform companies, and
biopharmaceutical manufacturers fell, but their losses were less
than 1%.

** Of the total 932 traded issues, 272 shares advanced,
while 585 declined.

** Foreigners were net sellers of shares worth 25.9 billion
won ($19.6 million) on the main board so far on Tuesday.

** The won was quoted at 1,322.0 per dollar on the onshore
settlement platform, 0.18% higher than its previous
close at 1,324.4.

** In money and debt markets, September futures on
three-year treasury bonds rose 0.05 point to 103.05.

** The most liquid three-year Korean treasury bond yield
fell by 0.7 basis point to 3.882%, while the benchmark 10-year
yield fell by 4.2 basis points to 3.941%.
($1 = 1,321.5400 won)
(Reporting by Jihoon Lee and Youn Ah Moon; Editing by Varun H
K)