South Korean stocks declined 0.64 percent Thursday on a foreign selling as U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said a tapering of the monetary easing will come in due time, analysts said. The local currency fell against the U.S. dollar.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 12.01 points to close at 1,875.48. Trading volume was moderate at 374.9 million shares worth 3.42 trillion won (US$3.05 billion), with losers outstripping gainers 463 to 317.

"Bernanke's remarks on Tuesday at the Congress were no different from his May comments that jolted global markets. He just confirmed that the 'open-ended' stimulus has become a 'will-be-ended,' " said Cho Byung-hyun, an analyst at Tong Yang Securities.

On Tuesday, U.S. time, the Fed chairman told before the House in his semi-annual report on monetary policy that it expects to start scaling back its bond-buying program later this year, though he left room for the exact timeline, saying that will depend on the economic outlook.

Foreign investors offloaded a net 113.7 billion won, while retail investors and institutions scooped up a net 115.4 billion won and 385 million won, respectively.

Tech and financial blue-chips drove down the main index. Market bellwether Samsung Electronics sank 2.12 percent to 1,292.000 won, with flat panel giant LG Display slumping 3.06 percent to 26,950 won.

No. 4 lender Shinhan Financial Group dropped 1.38 percent to 39,300 won, and major insurer Samsung Life Insurance finished down 0.93 percent to 107,000 won.

The local currency ended at 1,126.30 won against the greenback, down 4.7 won from Wednesday's close, largely due to the foreign selloff, dealers said. (Yonhap News)