South Korean stocks opened lower Monday due to losses in semiconductor and auto shares on profit taking.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 7.96 points, or 0.32 percent, to 2,507.82 in the first 15 minutes of trading.
Foreign and institutional investors sold shares, offsetting retail buying.
On Friday, US shares plunged as a better-than-expected jobs report dashed hope for further rate cuts by the Federal Reserve. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite dipped 1.63 percent each.
In Seoul, market bellwether Samsung Electronics fell 0.9 percent, and chip giant SK hynix dipped 1.23 percent.
Leading battery maker LG Energy Solution inched down 0.14 percent, while top chemicals manufacturer LG Chem lost 1.02 percent.
Top automaker Hyundai Motor sank 1.77 percent, and its sister affiliate Kia slid 0.85 percent.
Top portal operator Naver remained flat, while No. 1 steelmaker Posco Holdings decreased 0.76 percent.
But major bio shares gathered ground. Samsung Biologics surged 3.4 percent, and Celltrion inched up 0.16 percent.
The local currency was trading at 1,473.2 won against the greenback at 9:15 a.m., down 8.2 won from the previous session. (Yonhap)
