Seoul shares opened lower Friday, weighed down by losses in tech and auto stocks, as investors continued to assess the impact of US President Donald Trump's import tariffs on major companies' earnings and the political turmoil at home.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 12.86 points, or 0.5 percent, to 2,543.75 in the first 15 minutes of trading.
The main index bucked overnight gains on Wall Street.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.21 percent, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite gained 1.52 percent on strong earnings from Microsoft and Meta Platforms.
Investors are now watching earnings result from Apple and other major companies for clues on the future direction of markets.
In Seoul, most large-cap stocks traded lower.
Market bellwether Samsung Electronics fell 1.17 percent, and top carmaker Hyundai Motor shed 1.05 percent.
Leading steelmaker POSCO Holdings declined 1.73 percent, while smaller rival Hyundai Steel shed 1.63 percent.
Battery maker LG Energy Solution slipped 0.92 percent, and leading refiner SK Innovation lost 1.6 percent.
Among gainers, HD Hyundai Mipo Shipyard rose 1.14 percent, and state-run utility Korea Electric Power Corp. advanced 1.36 percent.
The local currency was trading at 1,436.90 won against the US dollar at 9:15 a.m., down 15.9 won from the previous session. (Yonhap)
