South Korean stocks traded slightly lower late Monday morning as investors sat on the sidelines after overnight losses on Wall Street, analysts said.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index edged down 0.08 percent, or 1.54 points, to 1,923.16 as of 11:20 a.m.

Market leader Samsung Electronics lost 0.08 percent, and the country's top carmaker Hyundai Motor surrendered 0.83 percent.

Tech solutions provider Samsung SDS dropped 3.16 percent after having gained ground in the previous two sessions. Samsung Life, the seventh-largest on the local bourse in terms of market cap, moved down 2.49 percent.

The local currency was trading at 1,086.25 won against the U.S. dollar as of 11:20 a.m., up 3.75 won from Friday's close. (Yonhap)