An electronic board showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index at a dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul on Friday. (Yonhap)
An electronic board showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index at a dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul on Friday. (Yonhap)

South Korean stocks opened slightly lower Friday, as investors continued to cash in recent gains.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 7.84 points, or 0.25 percent, to 3,071.72 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

The overall losses were led by battery and automotive shares, with top battery manufacturer LG Energy Solution down 1.01 percent and leading automaker Hyundai Motor falling 0.95 percent.

Internet portal operators and refiners also extended their losses. Top portal firm Naver slid 0.96 percent, and leading refiner SK Innovation tumbled 1.2 percent.

Chip shares traded mixed, with Samsung Electronics up 0.33 percent and rival SK hynix falling 1.54 percent.

The local currency was trading at 1,355.15 won against the greenback at 9:15 a.m., down 1.75 won from the previous session. (Yonhap)