SEOUL: South Korean stocks opened lower Thursday, dragged down by losses in large-cap telecom and chemical companies, analysts said.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) lost 7.25 points, or 0.37 percent to 1,932.13 in the first 15 minutes of trading.
Most shares lost ground across the board. Top mobile carrier SK Telecom dipped 1.6 percent, with LG Chem, a leading chemical maker, falling more than 1 percent. Market bellwether Samsung Electronics also dropped 0.5 percent.
In contrast, automakers move upward, with Hyundai Motor adding 0.4 percent and its smaller affiliate, Kia Motors, inching up 0.2 percent.
The local currency was trading at 1,179.90 won against the U.S. dollar as of 9:15 a.m., up 5.4 won from Wednesday’s close.