Trading was choppy, with the index very near to 1,300 points at one stage as as institutions rotated through the second-liners looking for laggard stocks after the recent sustained gains.
The KOSPI index closed up 1.51 points at a record 1,293.22, having hit a high of 1,298.25 and a low of 1,285.24.
Hong Kong share prices closed flat after moving in a narrow range, with trade focused on the government's Link real-estate investment trust (REIT) as it made a strong debut, dealers said.
The Hang Seng Index slipped 2.92 points to 15,081.47, off a low of 15,027.76 and a high of 15,100.94.
Link REIT closed at HK$11.80 (US$1.51), up 14.56 percent from its initial public offer (IPO) price of HK$10.30.
Francis Lun, general manager at Fulbright Securities, said the Thanksgiving holiday in the US on Thursday made for overall quiet trade, but the Link REIT made up for that, at least in part.
In Shanghai share prices closed 0.15 percent higher, contining firmer as financial stocks found favor and the airlines were buoyed by an extension of fuel surcharges, dealers said.
The Shanghai A-share Index added 1.74 points to 1,172.0, while the Shenzhen A-share Index was up 0.36 points or 0.13 percent at 280.90. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index, which covers both A- and B-shares, added 1.54 points or 0.14 percent at 1,114.92.
Australian share prices closed easier as a strong performance from the resources sector failed to lift a market lacking direction because of Wall Street's Thanksgiving Day holiday, dealers said.
The benchmark SP/ASX 200 index slipped 3.5 points at 4,648.8 while the All Ordinaries index ended down 2.4 points at 4,592.5.
In Singapore share prices closed 0.46 percent lower on profit taking amid a dearth of leads with the US markets closed for Thanksgiving, dealers said.
The Straits Times Index fell 10.58 points to 2,295.73.
Malaysian share prices closed flat, coming off their lows on last minute buying of blue chips by local funds after the market was down for most of the day, dealers said. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index was up 0.63 points to 904.28.
Thai share prices closed flat in very light trade as investors remained worried about a feud between the government and one of its most vocal critics, dealers said.
The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) compsite index edged up 0.13 points to 669.89 and the bluechip SET-50 index rose 0.20 points to 469.05.
Indonesian share prices closed 0.35 percent lower on profit-taking amid a lack of fresh leads for the market to sustain Thursday's rally, dealers said. The Jakarta Stock Exchange composite index lost 3.779 points at 1,047.400.
New Zealand share prices closed 0.23 percent higher in mixed trade, dealers said. The benchmark NZSX-50 gross index rose 7.54 points to 3,324.23.
Indian share prices ventured into uncharted territory, adding another 1.25 percent to put the historic 9,000 points level clearly within sight and a target for next week, dealers said. The BSE-30 SENSEX index rose 109.17 points to a record 8,853.21.
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