S.Korea stocks flat as foreign, institutional sell-off offset recovery hopes

    * KOSPI flat, foreigners net sellers
    * Korean won weakens against U.S. dollar
    * South Korea benchmark bond yield falls

    SEOUL, March 29 (Reuters) - Round-up of South Korean
financial markets:
    
    ** South Korean shares traded flat on Monday, as sell-off
from foreign and institutional investors offset optimism over
stimulus- and vaccine-led recovery. Both the won and the
benchmark bond yield fell.
    
    ** The benchmark KOSPI         climbed 1.03 points, or
0.03%, to 3,042.04 by 0223 GMT, after falling as much as 0.51%
in earlier trade. It rose 1.09% on Friday.
    
    ** Among the heavyweights, technology giant Samsung
Electronics             dropped as much as 0.61%, while peer SK
Hynix             also fell 1.48%. Battery maker LG Chem
            and internet giant Naver             both slid 0.12%
and 1.57%, respectively.
    
    ** U.S. President Joe Biden is expected to put some detail
on his infrastructure spending plans on Wednesday, while
vaccinations that had been given to almost 94 million people in
the United States lifted recovery hopes.     
    
    ** Meanwhile, South Korea's exports were seen growing at
their sharpest pace in 29 months in March, a Reuters poll
showed, with semiconductors and car sales leading the expansion
as global demand improved.             
    
    ** But foreigners were net sellers of 108 billion won
($95.45 million) on the main board, while institutional
investors also sold net 523.9 billion won worth KOSPI shares.
    
    ** The won was quoted at 1,132.1 per dollar on the onshore
settlement platform           , 0.25% lower than its previous
close at 1,129.3.
    
    ** In offshore trading, the won        was quoted at 1,131.8
per dollar, down 0.3% from the previous day, while in
non-deliverable forward trading its one-month contract
              was quoted at 1,131.4.
    
    ** In money and debt markets, June futures on three-year
treasury bonds         rose 0.01 points to 110.86.
    
    ** The benchmark 10-year yield fell by 1.7 basis points to
1.987%.

($1 = 1,131.5000 won)

 (Reporting by Joori Roh; Editing by Shailesh Kuber)