Seoul shares open tad lower on profit-taking

South Korean stocks opened slightly lower Friday, despite overnight gains on Wall Street, as investors moved to take profits from recent gains.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 1.3 points, or 0.04 percent, to 3,460.0 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

The Kospi rallied in recent sessions, hitting a record high of 3,461.30 on Thursday.

Overnight, Wall Street closed at fresh highs after the Federal Reserve’s interest rate cut and gains in Nvidia and other tech stocks. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.27 percent, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite added 0.94 percent, and the S&P 500 advanced 0.48 percent.

In Seoul, most top-cap shares opened lower.

Market bellwether Samsung Electronics fell 0.25 percent, and leading battery maker LG Energy Solution shed 0.71 percent.

But chip giant SK hynix rose 0.28 percent.

Leading bio company Samsung Biologics slid 0.68 percent, and Celltrion edged down 0.12 percent.

No. 1 financial firm KB Financial Group decreased 0.17 percent, and defense giant Hanwha Aerospace retreated 0.68 percent.

Automakers opened lower. Top automaker Hyundai Motor sank 0.92 percent, and its sister affiliate Kia went down 0.29 percent.

Shipbuilders traded mixed. Leading shipbuilder HD Hyundai Heavy fell 0.1 percent, and its rival Hanwha Ocean advanced 0.81 percent.

The local currency was trading at 1,391.45 won against the greenback at 9:15 a.m., down 3.65 won from the previous session. (Yonhap)