SEOUL, Oct 11 (Reuters) - Seoul shares could dip at the open on Thursday, retreating from the prior day's record, as caution takes hold before the outcome of the Bank of Korea's policy meeting, with investors expecting no changes in interest rates.

LG.Philips LCD Co Ltd <034220.KS> could fall after major shareholder Philips <PHG.AS> sold 46.4 million shares at 43,425 won each overnight, marking a 3.5 percent discount to Wednesday's closing price, a source familiar with the deal told Reuters. [ID:nSEO265256]

With the deal, Philips reduced its stake in the South Korean flat-panel maker to 19.9 percent from 33 percent.

"We are likely to take a breather. Shares have risen quite a bit already so there's likely to be some profit taking, although I don't think we'll see big falls," said Kim Hak-kyun, an analyst at Korea Investment and Securities.

The main KOSPI <.KS11> hit on Wednesday its third consecutive intraday record and marked its second straight record close, bolstered by strong confidence about the domestic economy.

Although the Bank of Korea (BOK) is widely expected to leave its overnight call rate target unchanged when it announces its decision in the morning, investors will scrutinise comments from central bank officials about the economy, analysts said. [ID:nSEO248466]

The BOK is not expected to change rates for the remainder of the year either, according to a Reuters poll of economists, after raising them by a combined 1.75 percentage points in seven steps from October 2005 to August this year.

Investors will also be focused on earnings results coming soon, with blue chip Samsung Electronics Co Ltd <005930.KS> set to post its third-quarter earnings on Friday.

STOCKS TO WATCH

- SK Telecom Co <017670.KS>

The country's biggest wireless mobile operator has submitted a bid proposal for Pakcom, a Pakistan telecom company, the Korea Economic Daily reported on its Thursday edition, citing a senior SK Telecom official. [ID:nSEO265393]

- Samsung Corp <000830.KS>

A daughter of Samsung Group Chairman Lee Kun-hee and Samsung Corp will jointly buy BP's <BP.L> shares in a petrochemical joint venture between the UK and South Korean firms for $70 million, the group said Wednesday.

The deals come after Samsung Group [SAGR.UL] said in August it was considering buying out BP's 47.4 percent stake in Samsung Petrochemical after it had tried to find a strategic buyer. [ID:nSEO252233]

PREVIOUS CLOSE

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) <.KS11> rose 1.3 percent to end at 2,041.12 points, after earlier hit an intraday record of 2,044.78, its third such pinnacle in as many sessions.

The December KOSPI 200 futures index <0#KS:> rose 3.1 points to 261.85, while the underlying KOSPI 200 spot index <.KS200> added 3.6 points to 259.79.

The junior and tech-heavy Kosdaq <.KQ11> market gained 0.7 percent to finish at 818.26.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> fell 0.6 percent to 14,078.69, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite <.IXIC> gained 0.3 percent to end at 2,811.61. ((Reporting by Rafael Nam, editing by Sei Chong; Reuters Messaging: [email protected]; Email: [email protected]; Tel: +822 3704 5644)) Keywords: MARKETS KOREA STOCKS