Seoul shares open lower on tech slump
An electronic board showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index at a dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul on Wednesday. (Yonhap)
South Korean stocks opened lower Wednesday, led by chipmakers, amid uncertainties surrounding the US semiconductor policy under the new Donald Trump administration.
The benchmark Kospi fell 6.59 points, or 0.26 percent, to 2,513.77 in the first 15 minutes of trading.
Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.28 percent to a new record, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite added 0.63 percent. The S&P 500 increased 0.57 percent to a fresh high.
Market players worry that the incoming Trump administration will not provide subsidies to chipmakers investing in the US, including Samsung Electronics and SK hynix.
Samsung Electronics dropped 2.57 percent, and No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix lost 2.54 percent.
Top battery maker LG Energy Solution added 0.86 percent, while Samsung SDI decreased 1.44 percent.
Carmakers started mixed, with Hyundai Motors adding 0.22 percent and Kia moving down 0.92 percent.
The local currency was trading at 1,395.5 won against the greenback as of 9:15 a.m., up 2.7 won from the previous session. (Yonhap)
